MK6 Wheel / Rim / Tyre Thread

[Diesel_vert]

Thanks all. I think if it's going to be overly expensive I will stick with what I have (until I upgrade ). I'm waiting on the dealer to get back to me with a quote.

In relation to the acceleration, do you think the 18 inch will grip better on the road. I know if I put my foot down from a stopped position I lose a fair bit of traction.

Wider and lower profile tyres can potentially lead to more traction, due to the wider but shorter shape of the contact patch, compared to narrower and higher profile tyres (even though the actual area of the contact patch remains nearly constant).

However, the characteristics of the tyre itself plays a much bigger influence.

One can just as easily purchase a durable and humdrum 225/40 R18 tyre designed for touring and low rolling-resistance, as a fast-wearing and sporty 225/45 R17 tyre designed for maximum grip and adhesion.

In other words, a good 225/45 R17 is better than a poor 225/40 R18 tyre in nearly most cases.


Sometimes, you need to upgrade to bigger wheels and in order to gain access to grippy, high-performance tyres, but you shouldn't have much issues with 225/45 R17 - plenty of options available.

[nickSFC]

This may be a silly question, and I'll freely admit I'm a bit clueless when it comes to tryes, but here goes.

The front tyres on my Mk6 GTI (Bridgestone RE050 225/45R17) are just about down to the cords, but the rears still have plenty of tread left. I know i probably should have rotated them earlier in life, but unfortunately never got round to it.

After reading around, I'll probably go for the Goodyear Eagle Asy 2's... there should be no dramas getting just the 2 for the front, and leaving the existing RE050's on the back, right?

[walbjj]

[QUOTE=nickSFC;954689]This may be a silly question, and I'll freely admit I'm a bit clueless when it comes to tryes, but here goes.

The front tyres on my Mk6 GTI (Bridgestone RE050 225/45R17) are just about down to the cords, but the rears still have plenty of tread left. I know i probably should have rotated them earlier in life, but unfortunately never got round to it.

After reading around, I'll probably go for the Goodyear Eagle Asy 2's... there should be no dramas getting just the 2 for the front, and leaving the existing RE050's on the back, right?[/QUO

yes, u can do that.
however, i cant understand how u never got around to it? just tell the mechanic to rotate every 15k km service. should be part of the servicing (common sense).
unless u burnt thru the tyres in under 15k km, then its prob a driving issue or an alignment issue.
im currently at 37k km on my original set of tyres and they still have plenty left

[brad]

No dramas at all but I'd put the new on the rear & the rears on the front (put the L on the R & vice versa).

If you are really set on putting the new ones on the front then keep an eye on the tread depth & when the fronts equal the rears put the rears on the front

[brad]

however, i cant understand how u never got around to it? just tell the mechanic to rotate every 15k km service. should be part of the servicing (common sense).

My sister has just thrown away 2 back tyres at 25,000km because McGraths at Sutherland never recommended tyre rotation in the 2 services she has had done so far.

According to the Service Advisor at McGraths "It's up to the owner to monitor the tyres & ask for tyre rotation"

[walbjj]

No dramas at all but I'd put the new on the rear & the rears on the front (put the L on the R & vice versa).

If you are really set on putting the new ones on the front then keep an eye on the tread depth & when the fronts equal the rears put the rears on the front

firstly, if its a fwd car then always put the newest tyres on the driving wheels, aka FRONT. the rears are trailing wheels, so there is less traction needed.
secondly, swapping left and right is not recommended especially if they are directional tyres. and are designed to be used on one side only. if its the re50, then i think they are asymmetric, so no go with swapping.
the safe play here is just stick new on the front, and see how much tread there is on the rears.
as far as mcgraths vw goes, well thats her fault for taking the car to a stealership. unless you are specific and double check their work, i always take and trust my car to a vag independent workshop

[nickSFC]

Thanks for the feedback all.

Coming up to 25k kms on this set. I've only ever taken it to Barloworld Mascot for servicing, and not sure if they've been rotated or not (maybe they did and I didnt realise?).

I'll just get the new ones put on the front, and probably get an align done at the same time.

[walbjj]

Thanks for the feedback all.

Coming up to 25k kms on this set. I've only ever taken it to Barloworld Mascot for servicing, and not sure if they've been rotated or not (maybe they did and I didnt realise?).

I'll just get the new ones put on the front, and probably get an align done at the same time.

u should always get an alignment done with new tyres, especially if u havent had it done in over 20k

[Diesel_vert]

After reading around, I'll probably go for the Goodyear Eagle Asy 2's... there should be no dramas getting just the 2 for the front, and leaving the existing RE050's on the back, right?

Yes, you'll be fine.

In case anyone is wondering, there is no regulation stipulating that new tyres are to be fitted on the rear axle.

firstly, if its a fwd car then always put the newest tyres on the driving wheels, aka FRONT. the rears are trailing wheels, so there is less traction needed.

The current trend of tyre manufacturers advising fitting new tyres on the rear axle is based on the idea that the rear plays a crucial role in maintaining vehicle stability.

The tread depth of new tyres tends to reduce the likelihood of the back from swinging around in adverse conditions, especially during wet emergency braking and aquaplaning situations. A vehicle's stability system (if fitted) can prevent, or at least, reduce the severity of such behaviour, but neither can it override the laws of physics.

The tyre manufacturers are essentially arguing that preventing the back from swinging around in adverse conditions should be priority and in the public's interest (and probably their interest as well, from a liability viewpoint).

I'm not arguing either way, just pointing out their rationale.

secondly, swapping left and right is not recommended especially if they are directional tyres. and are designed to be used on one side only.

Directional tyres are designed to be rotated in one direction - they can be fitted left or right as long as the direction of rotation is correct.

If the tyres have to be taken off the wheels, refitted and rebalanced, then so be it - though I doubt many people would ask the tyre fitter to go to this much trouble.

if its the re50, then i think they are asymmetric

RE050 = directional tread pattern

RE050A = asymmetric tread pattern

[brad]

firstly, if its a fwd car then always put the newest tyres on the driving wheels, aka FRONT. the rears are trailing wheels, so there is less traction needed.

Bum-draggers need the better tyre on the rear due to lack of weight on the rear end. This is one of the reasons why the Skoda Fabia hatch has 15kg of ballast attached to the LH rear bumper bar.

History lesson: When New Zealand started importing large numbers of grey imports in the 1980s that were mainly FWD it was noted their was a substantial increase in single vehicle accidents. The NZ DOT commissioned a study by one of the universities and the report found that a substantial contributor to these accidents was the rear tyres aquaplaning or losing grip. The front end has enough weight over it to maintain traction but the rear end needs all the help it can get, hence best/newest tyres on rear.

Tirerack thinks so
Kleber think so
Michelin think so
Pirelli says so on page 13

secondly, swapping left and right is not recommended especially if they are directional tyres. and are designed to be used on one side only. if its the re50, then i think they are asymmetric, so no go with swapping.

Yes, an RE050 is directional and should only be run in the recommended direction of rotation (I have run directionals backwards but only after getting out the tyre tread cutter & making them uni-directional).

I have only ever seen RE050A(ssymetric) fitted as OEM VW tyres. Asymmetric have an inside & an outside but are not directional. They can be rotated front to rear & side to side.

Generally, the tyre on the drive axle will get a "set" in the belts due to acceleration forces. In order for this set to "relax" you need to put the tyre on the lazy axle for a while. The tyre on the lazy axle won't have these stresses on the belt & the direction of rotation can be changed without stressing the tyre excessively.
Here's Bridgestone's take on it
Tirerack

the safe play here is just stick new on the front, and see how much tread there is on the rears.

I suppose it would be but technically it's incorrect.

The real problem with always fitting the best to the rear is that you get stuck with constantly replacing the fronts & putting the new ones on the rear. This may suit some people but most prefer to replace tyres in sets of 4. This is why I said an alternative is to put the new ones on the front until they are worn slightly less than the rears, then rotate them & every time the fronts get a couple of mm less than the front, rotate them again (say every 7500-10,000km). It isn't ideal but at least you can change all 4 at once & you dont get an aged tyre (5+yrs old) on the rear after going through 3 sets of fronts.

as far as mcgraths vw goes, well thats her fault for taking the car to a stealership. unless you are specific and double check their work, i always take and trust my car to a vag independent workshop

Well, good for you! I take mine to an independent as well.

It's her first new car in 30 years & she thought she was doing the right thing going back to "VW factory trained mechanics". Neither her or her husband are "car people". My BIL is one of the best builders in the area. As he said "If somebody comes & asks me to build a mansion I don't leave the flashing off the roof & tell the client it's their responsibility to worry about water leaks".

There are no specialist independents in their area anyhow. Busy people. Both work, 3 kids, etc. Traveling 25km to the nearest specialist independent isn't an option.