tire thread

[TylerG]

what types of tires do you have on your ride and where do you buy them from? what did they set you back?

i have just the standard 18" wheel, 2 of my tires have bubbles and i need to get them replaced for a drive this weekend.

i'm thinking of going with american tire, they said they price match, a good and knowledgeable buddy said tirerack is a better deal, wondering if anyone has an opinion about this?

any info is appreciated, thanks!

[moyenecorniche]

After having looked over ATD's website, I wouldn't buy from them for a couple reasons.

(1) they require signing in to just look at the products available....
(2) they specialize in american vehicles .....
(3) they are really a distributor and you still need to get to a shop for removal and install.

I have bought multiple times over the years from tire-rack.. They have a list of installers that they approve... Tire rack also knows our Audi's and will recommend against doing something not advisable...
I have bought Michelin's, Continental's and Yokohama's from them... Never have I had a problem with any tire or wheel tire package..
They will ship to the installer so all you need to do is drive there.

If your tires are bubbling then either the tires you are running are not up to specs for your Audi or your roads are nonexistent...
For Conti's and Michelin's you are looking at $600 to $1,200 depending on what you choose...

BTW, not a good idea to mix and match, especially with Quattro, older tires with newer retires will not only give you handling discrepancies but the differing tread depth will affect performance.. especially in the wet..
Just get 4 or 5 new tires ( 5th for spare ) and call it a day....

BTW last year I spent just over $700 for 4 Continental Extreme contacts DW's ( Dry and Wet ) including install, they are summer tires but I ended up rocking them all winter... I do not advise anyone to do so but just for laughs, these DW's were better in the snow than the Sumitomo AS's that came with the S4 when purchased... Never will I buy a Sumitomo tire, worthless in the wet and snow..... ( also the Conti's were on sale )...

[TylerG]

my tires were installed by a dealer... it was a bmw dealer (my car was traded in there) and now there are 3 fat bubbles in it... i'm not sure if they are liable, i live in the silicon valley california and the roads are great here...

[TylerG]

do i need to get an alignment?

[moyenecorniche]

do i need to get an alignment?

It all depends on wear pattern on your current tires, bubbles are not caused by alignment issues, those are either from an impact or they are not tires spec'd for your Audi.
If the tires cannot handle the loads then Yes they will self destruct and bubbles are a tell tale sign...
Personally I would not go back and have the BMW dealer install your tires...
An independent tire installer on Tire racks list will do the job better and for less...

Don't buy budget / cheap tires, buy tires rated for a 3,800 lbs Audi.....
Performance tires are not cheap and they do not last 60,000+ miles but they do what they are supposed to do and do it well...

[TylerG]

It all depends on wear pattern on your current tires, bubbles are not caused by alignment issues, those are either from an impact or they are not tires spec'd for your Audi.
If the tires cannot handle the loads then Yes they will self destruct and bubbles are a tell tale sign...
Personally I would not go back and have the BMW dealer install your tires...
An independent tire installer on Tire racks list will do the job better and for less...

Don't buy budget / cheap tires, buy tires rated for a 3,800 lbs Audi.....
Performance tires are not cheap and they do not last 60,000+ miles but they do what they are supposed to do and do it well...

bought some 255/35R-19 Yokohama S.drive XL off tirerack and having them installed at a pepboys...

[crash1121]

Summer setup:
Bridgestone S-04 Pole Position
255/35/R19
Through tirerack.com

(Check them out on Tire Rack - excellent price for excellent summer tires.)

Winter setup:
Bridgestone Blizzak LM-60
255/40/R18
Through Audi dealer

[rahip4567]

Im just curious on why some of you buy summer sets and winter sets? Why not just get all seasons? Sorry if this question is stupid but i live in the East Coast, so i would prefer to have all seasons tires just so i don't have to deal with changing tires during each season. Is there like a difference from non all seasons or all season tires?

[crash1121]

Up here in Montana we have nasty ice periods throughout the winter, and all seasons don't cut the mustard. Also like to have assurance that I have the best potential grip I can get on ice/snow. Also also, summer tires perform better than all-seasons (in the dry). Also also also, I like to have a reason to have 2 sets of wheels.

I am no tire expert, but I believe all seasons have a sort of siping that works better in most weather conditions that summer tires simply don't have. However, summer tires work very well in both wet & dry but not in snow. And trust me on this, summer tires act like hockey pucks in snow.

[moyenecorniche]

Im just curious on why some of you buy summer sets and winter sets? Why not just get all seasons? Sorry if this question is stupid but i live in the East Coast, so i would prefer to have all seasons tires just so i don't have to deal with changing tires during each season. Is there like a difference from non all seasons or all season tires?

Winter before last I ran Michelin's alpine PA3 winter shoes and Extreme contacts DW's in spring /summer / fall. I'm in the quiet corner of CT but I assume Danbury receives just as much winter snow as we do.... I've run all seasons, Conti's DWS's, liked them but as good as they are, they are still a compromise. designed to perform year round....
Winter time it's really about the ability to stop and change direction... The Alpin's were like night and day compared to an all season. Excellent in the dry cold, but most importantly excellent in snow/slush and even deep snow.... They are a performance tire, so they won't be as great in deep snow as a full on winter tire... But with the S4 and Quattro a full on winter tire in these parts is overkill....
My S4 came with Sumitomo all seasons when I bought it in 2012 .... My Continental Extreme Contacts DW's were better in the snow than the garbage Sumi's.

Anyway, a dedicated set of winter wheels/tires and a spring/summer/fall setup is really the way to go. A bit more of an expense, but shopping around will net you savings.
Plus your winter set should last at least 2 winters if not 3 and summers 2 seasons at least.... Normally I would go thru a summer set each year, but the advantage of two separate sets means that you are running appropriate tires for the appropriate conditions and temps...
We didn't get to ski much this winter but definitely next winter, we plan on at the very least bi-weekly trips to Stowe / Killington / Mad River / Sunday River.... Wouldn't even think of heading up to Vermont without the Alpin PA3's or an equivalent winter tire....

BTW... I did mention before that I ran my Conti's Extreme Contact DW's ( Dry Wet ) this past winter... Those are summer tires not like the DWS's ( Dry Wet Snow )... I advise against doing that since driving in snow with the DW's may very well result in calling your insurance company ...

[asfastas63]

Im just curious on why some of you buy summer sets and winter sets? Why not just get all seasons? Sorry if this question is stupid but i live in the East Coast, so i would prefer to have all seasons tires just so i don't have to deal with changing tires during each season. Is there like a difference from non all seasons or all season tires?

Check this video out. Comparing All Seasons and Snow tires on AWD vehicles
edit: just rewatched and I guess they are using summer tires not all seasons, so doesn't directly answer your question. Still a good watch though in my opinion.

I have two sets because I bought my car (used) and it had snow tires on the stock rims. Figure it would be cost effective to just get the rims I want with the tires I want and swap the sets back and forth myself. This was my first season in the Northeast with AWD and dedicated snows, and damn was it amazing.

Summer Setup:
Michelin Pilot Super Sport
245/35/ZR19
tirerack.com - $1,044 shipped
Review: I love them, they are fantastic on the dry and I was even more surprised how great they were on the wet. They do feel a little weird when maneuvering very slow speed turns (like, think parking lots). This might just be my ignorance with low profile tires though. On the pricey end for sure though.

Winter Setup:
Bridgestone Blizzak
??/??/18
Stock wheels/came with car
Review: Amazing this winter in the snow. Completely confident at 60mph in 3-4 inches of snow, didn't even realize I was going that fast until someone pointed it out. Likes lots of snow better than minimal cover slippery conditions (duh!), pretty loud when driving on clear pavement, but worth it for the confidence during the storms.

[gunsmoker]

I have used the following tires recently. 245/40/R18 is my size. All-season is my choice. Cost+shipping to my house from tirerack - $800-$900. Installation at my Audi dealershop - $120.
First choice: Goodyear Eagle F1 Asymmetric A/S - best of the group dry cornering and steering accuracy. On snow seem no worse than Conti DWS.
Second Choice: Yokohama Advan S4 - good dry performance, sharp cornering, worse than the others on snow.
Third choice: Continental DWS - best snow performance in an A/S tire there is. Imprecise steering, fishtailing, cornering noise, soft side walls. The lightest tire this size and class. Good value for the money.

These two I have not tried but here is my research:
Bridgestone RE970 A/S - great dry handling if not the best for A/S tire, but this is the heaviest tire out there. Decent snow performance but not better than the DWS or the Goodyears.
Michelin Pilot Sport A/S 3 - the most expensive tire with stellar dry handling. The snow capability is barely enough to have a check mark on the spec sheet.

If you don't want to deal with the two-sets hassle, pick A/S tires depending on how much snow driving you need to do. If it's negligible, get a tire that has more emphasis on dry performance.

[OB1]

Why two threads?
http://www.audizine.com/forum/showth...-deal-on-tires