new to the game Posted November 17, 2008 Share Posted November 17, 2008 I have a Hymer 4.6cwt twin wheel motor home, tyre size 195/70R/15C, Considering Mitchelin Agilis or continental vanco, have read Mitchellin last longer but Vanco smoother ride, better in wet conditions. Any advice would we welcome. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hymer1942 Posted November 17, 2008 Share Posted November 17, 2008 Hi, Sounds as if we have the same van, Mine a 650 S class at the moment on Vanco, I had Michelin on my last Hymer and will probably go for the new Michelin when ready to change. Regards Barrie. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neillking Posted November 17, 2008 Share Posted November 17, 2008 Funny how we're all different. I've bought several vehicles fitted with Michelins dating back the the classic 'X' and culminating in their 'Camping' tyre. I've hated every one of them and changed them to something with proper wet grip at the earliest opportunity! Personally I'd recommend Conti Vanco or even better on the front of a FWD like the Boxer-Ducato the Vanco Winter. "A number of tests, held across Europe, have praised Continental tyres, awarding the company's tyres the highest scores in a number of categories ... awarded the top rating of "exemplary" ... the highest ratings on snow and ice ... All of the tests also paid tribute to the Continental tyres' performance with regard to safety, especially under wet conditions" etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy T Posted November 18, 2008 Share Posted November 18, 2008 Hi, Look at this before you decide. Andy. http://www.motorcaravanning.com/vehicles/tyre_test.htm Sorry don't know how to do live link. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy T Posted November 18, 2008 Share Posted November 18, 2008 Oh! Yes I do ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neillking Posted November 18, 2008 Share Posted November 18, 2008 The sister page is worth a read too ...http://www.motorcaravanning.com/vehicles/tyres.htm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BGD Posted November 18, 2008 Share Posted November 18, 2008 It's been mentioned here before several times, but possibly bear repeating once again: Whichever brand of tyres you decide to go for, I'd recommend that you inspect the ACTUAL "new" tyres that the fitter is proposing to fit, to confirm their real age. The 4-digit date code on each tyre in the small "lozenge" shaped sign on the tyre wall shows the year and week number that it was manufactured (if you don't know how the tyre date code system works, then Google for it) The rubber compounds used in tyres begin to degrade from the moment the tyre is formed, NOT from the moment the tyre is actually fitted and then used. And it's age that causes degrading/hardening/cracking in such rubber. There have been many example of people having "new" tyres fitted, only to later discover that those tyres were actually 1, 2 or more years old, and have been sitting around at a Distributors, or a Fitters Garage for all that time. Others may have their own yardstick for such things, but I have always rejected "new" tyres that are datestamped as older than 6 months at the time the Fitter wanted to put them on any of my vehicles. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Silicongyro Posted November 19, 2008 Share Posted November 19, 2008 Bruce I support your vigilance on ensuring the tyres you buy are fresh - especially as the tyres on my motorhome were 3 years old when I took delivery ! However I am not sure you are completely right about the degredation starting as soon as they are manufactured. I say this as I noticed the spare in my vehicle remained in apparent virgin condition, even though the running tyres were crazing/cracking after 6 years from new. My spare is stored in the "garage" area, so is in the dark for nearly all the time. Expanding this thought to ordinary road vehicles, I have been blessed with no punctures for many years now, and all the (unused) spares have remained in seeming perfect condition - though some have been 8 years in my possession. In fact the cheap spare trailer tyre I have is perfect, though the running tyres are now badly rotting. So I suspect the daylight (uv) exposure time is far more to blame than absolute lifetime - thus warehoused stored tyres may not be quite as bad as you fear! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George Collings Posted November 19, 2008 Share Posted November 19, 2008 My understanding of tyre aging is that while exposure to sunlight plays a considerable part in tyre degredation just standing may lock up the oil based plasticisers that keep a tyre supple. They may look like new but who knows what is happening inside. Luckily my annual mileage is enough to wear tyres down to minimum depth after five years as long as the spare is used in the annual rotation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted November 20, 2008 Share Posted November 20, 2008 I believe the Pro Mobil tyre-test referred to on the www.motorcaravanning.com website was carried out in 2002 not 2006. There is a massive amount of tyre-related discussion on this forum - here are just a couple of examples: http://www.outandaboutlive.co.uk/forums/forums/thread-view.asp?tid=12935&posts=30 http://www.outandaboutlive.co.uk/forums/forums/thread-view.asp?tid=11403&posts=27 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neillking Posted November 20, 2008 Share Posted November 20, 2008 Derek Uzzell - 2008-11-20 7:24 AM I believe the Pro Mobil tyre-test referred to on the www.motorcaravanning.com website was carried out in 2002 not 2006 The original test comparing tyres on two motorhomes was early but there is added information from later dates confirming the Vanco superiority in the wet and some summary info about the high performance of the Winter version/s in October 2008 testing. None of this is very surprising because Michelin have always traded wet grip against their trademark long tyre life. What is new is the superiority of Continental in the wet, something they seem to have worked hard - and successfully - on since their troubles back at the turn of the millenium. The 2002 info is still valid and confirmed as recently as last month.As a purely personal view I also dislike the 'thumpy' ride quality of Michelins too.When I last changed from M. Camping to a C. Vanco I also gained in both load index and speed rating. That may or may not be the case still or for different sizes, it would be necessary to check the info on the sidewalls and/or consult the makers' websites for the latest specs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hymer1942 Posted November 20, 2008 Share Posted November 20, 2008 Hi Niel, Very interesting you may have changed my mind and I might stay with Vanco. Regards Barrie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neillking Posted November 20, 2008 Share Posted November 20, 2008 Glad it helped! As with everything there are costs and benefits in every choice we makle and everyone really should weigh up their own preferences rather that going with what the guy next door does. For me wet grip wins over long life almost all the time and certainly on a motorhome where many tyres will be scrapped due to old age long before they wear out. Each to his own though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hymer1942 Posted November 20, 2008 Share Posted November 20, 2008 Certainly agree with that, long life is not at the top of the list. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LordThornber Posted November 20, 2008 Share Posted November 20, 2008 Never paid much attention to the difference new tyres have made in the past until we put the new Michelin Agilis on our van, we noticed an immediate improvement in stability, grip, less road noise and best of all better MPG. Martyn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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