Results 1 to 8 of 8

Thread: New Tire Happiness

  1. #1
    Moderator Eggman's Avatar
    Join Date
    Sep 2015
    Location
    Cleveland, Ohio
    Country
    United States
    Posts
    10,156
    Thanks
    4,039
    Thanked 2,788 Times in 2,107 Posts

    New Tire Happiness

    I can't be the only one here who has experienced this.

    Just put a new set of four Continental TrueContact Tours on the Escape and am really pleased with the decision. The new tires are working great. They are smooth, quiet and no vibration at speed. Had to order them, they're not carried by the local shops. They're rated for 80,000 miles and can be pumped up to 51psi with 11/32" tread depth.

    The old tires made this easy. They were the OEM set, were noisy and felt out of balance. I just wanted to get them balanced. However, while a dealer technician was replacing the rear shocks under warranty he noticed the belt had "shifted" on the driver's side rear tire. With that diagnosis, I felt better looking for a new set of tires.

    Glad I did, it rides like a completely different car. The shaking was so bad at we had to keep our speed down around 60mph - not good on the freeway. I wanted to see how many more miles I could get out of them. Not any more.

    Anyone else have experience with Continentals? At one point I had considered finding a set for Speck.


        __________________________________________

        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2015 Mirage ES 1.2 manual: 49.6 mpg (US) ... 21.1 km/L ... 4.7 L/100 km ... 59.5 mpg (Imp)


  2. #2
    Senior Member
    Join Date
    Aug 2017
    Location
    SW, WI
    Country
    United States
    Posts
    7,402
    Thanks
    594
    Thanked 2,688 Times in 2,106 Posts
    Quote Originally Posted by Eggman View Post
    I can't be the only one here who has experienced this.

    Just put a new set of four Continental TrueContact Tours on the Escape and am really pleased with the decision. The new tires are working great. They are smooth, quiet and no vibration at speed. Had to order them, they're not carried by the local shops. They're rated for 80,000 miles and can be pumped up to 51psi with 11/32" tread depth.

    The old tires made this easy. They were the OEM set, were noisy and felt out of balance. I just wanted to get them balanced. However, while a dealer technician was replacing the rear shocks under warranty he noticed the belt had "shifted" on the driver's side rear tire. With that diagnosis, I felt better looking for a new set of tires.

    Glad I did, it rides like a completely different car. The shaking was so bad at we had to keep our speed down around 60mph - not good on the freeway. I wanted to see how many more miles I could get out of them. Not any more.

    Anyone else have experience with Continentals? At one point I had considered finding a set for Speck.
    I have never owned Continental tires, but I have always had a good impression about them. Michelin & Continental may be two of the best tire companies.

    As far as our beloved Mirages go, you aren't going to find a 14" Continental tire for it. They don't even offer the somewhat popular 175/65r14 tire size. You may find a 15" tire (175/55r15 Continental ContiProContact), however.

    Michelin doesn't appear in our Mirage tire discussions, because they don't offer any 14" tires here. Michelin offers 15" tires, but they don't offer the 175/55r15 or 185/55r15 tire sizes (which would be the most obvious tire choices for a Mirage with 15" rims).

    I think both tire companies are good ones, but making/selling tires for the Mitsubishi Mirage is not their thing!

  3. #3
    Senior Member
    Join Date
    Dec 2017
    Location
    the Netherlands
    Country
    Netherlands
    Posts
    340
    Thanks
    16
    Thanked 158 Times in 109 Posts
    Quote Originally Posted by Mark View Post
    As far as our beloved Mirages go, you aren't going to find a 14" Continental tire for it. They don't even offer the somewhat popular 175/65r14 tire size.
    Living at your side of the pond saves you for a lot of decision stress. I looked at a random tire site, and found in size 165/65 R14 12 Continental and 2 Michelin tires. And a zillion other brands. And even one of the brand 'Mirage'.

        __________________________________________

        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2013 Space Star Cleartec Intense 1.0 manual: 55.7 mpg (US) ... 23.7 km/L ... 4.2 L/100 km ... 66.9 mpg (Imp)


  4. #4
    Senior Member
    Join Date
    Aug 2017
    Location
    SW, WI
    Country
    United States
    Posts
    7,402
    Thanks
    594
    Thanked 2,688 Times in 2,106 Posts
    Quote Originally Posted by Space Wolf View Post
    Living at your side of the pond saves you for a lot of decision stress. I looked at a random tire site, and found in size 165/65 R14 12 Continental and 2 Michelin tires. And a zillion other brands. And even one of the brand 'Mirage'.
    It's amazing the difference in tire options. Small cars are not popular here. I am also not aware of any cars using 165/65r14 tires outside of the Mirage.

    Tire shopping for factory size 165/65r14 tires is somewhat simple (not many choices to pick from).

    Currently my personal choices would be -

    All-season tires
    Kumho Solus TA31 (500AA/60,000 mile warranty) - South Korea
    Nexen N'Priz AH5 (460AA/50,000 mile warranty) - South Korea

    All-weather tires
    Vredestein Quatrac 5 (400AA/45,000 mile warranty) - Netherlands

    Winter/snow tires
    Dunlop WinterMaxx 2 (only studless option offered) - Japan
    Nokian Nordman 7 (can be bought studded or studless/studs not legal in Wisconsin) - Russia

    I really don't see anything outside these 5 tires that I would consider for 165/65r14 tires in the States. The above tires seem to be in-stock with various tire vendors the past few years. I also don't list over priced 165/65r14 Dunlop, Bridgestone, or Falken tires.

    There are some lesser known (many Chinese brands) that may be perfectly fine, but someone who has tried them would have to vouch for that.

    That's the extent of my 165/65r14 tire shopping. Tire choices are quite limited. I don't blame anyone for looking at alternative 175/65r14 tire choices when tire shopping.

  5. #5
    Moderator Eggman's Avatar
    Join Date
    Sep 2015
    Location
    Cleveland, Ohio
    Country
    United States
    Posts
    10,156
    Thanks
    4,039
    Thanked 2,788 Times in 2,107 Posts
    Mark, you've tried some different sets of tires on your Mirage. Is there one tire that stands out for comfort & low noise? What about traction?

    And do you recall if there was ever a tire from Continental that would have fit on the Mirage?

        __________________________________________

        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2015 Mirage ES 1.2 manual: 49.6 mpg (US) ... 21.1 km/L ... 4.7 L/100 km ... 59.5 mpg (Imp)


  6. #6
    Senior Member Wallythacker's Avatar
    Join Date
    Nov 2016
    Location
    Niagara region
    Country
    Canada
    Posts
    2,455
    Thanks
    56
    Thanked 544 Times in 436 Posts
    I ran one set of Continentals on my Suzuki Burgman 400 and was disappointed in their life and cold performance. The tires were done at 10,000 miles where the Michelins on my other Burgman were still good for at least 5,000 miles more. Also, the conti's would skitter and slide when ambient temps were about 45F. Not so the Michelin.

    I don't think I would use either on a car with so many other highly rated tires to choose from.

    ETA: On a 1250 Bandit the Conti's stuck like glue on new, hot pavement. It was scary how well they stuck. No life though. 6k miles=bald.
    Zero, 2014 ES Plus 5MT, written off but not forgotten.
    Zero II, 2014 SE, 5MT, climate She's HOME now!
    Shelby AKA "Cute", 2017 ES 5MT, A/C.

    Mirage owners look at the world differently than everyone else, but in a better way
    We're driving the Beetle of the 21st century, the greatest small car now available!

        __________________________________________

        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2017 Mirage ES PLus 1.2 manual: 39.0 mpg (US) ... 16.6 km/L ... 6.0 L/100 km ... 46.8 mpg (Imp)


  7. #7
    Senior Member
    Join Date
    Aug 2017
    Location
    SW, WI
    Country
    United States
    Posts
    7,402
    Thanks
    594
    Thanked 2,688 Times in 2,106 Posts
    Quote Originally Posted by Eggman View Post
    Mark, you've tried some different sets of tires on your Mirage. Is there one tire that stands out for comfort & low noise? What about traction?

    And do you recall if there was ever a tire from Continental that would have fit on the Mirage?

    I have never seen a 165/65r14 (or 175/65r14 Continental tire offered in the States. They have some for the global market, but not for us. Continental offers a VikingContact 7 (winter tire) & a ContiProContact in the 175/55r15 & 185/55r15 tire sizes. Maybe someone with 15" Mirage rims has tried them?

    As far as motorcycle tires go, I never had a rear tire (regardless of brand) go beyond 5,000-6,000 miles before it needed to be replaced. I sold my last motorcycle in 2018, and that was one of several reasons I had given up on them. I got tired of having to replace tires (front tires lasted maybe twice that).

    The two main reasons I sold my bike, however, was the fear of hitting a deer & none of my friends ride motorcycles. I really like motorcycles, but they come with risks. At this point in my life, I might enjoy driving a Mazda Miata with the top down more. I am content with the windows being down on the old Mirage for now!

    Below is a pic of my last motorcycle. It was only 650cc, but it had basically the same engine as the Ninja. It moved when you twisted the throttle!
    Attached Images Attached Images  

  8. The Following 2 Users Say Thank You to Mark For This Useful Post:

    Basic (04-04-2023),inuvik (04-04-2023)

  9. #8
    Senior Member
    Join Date
    Aug 2017
    Location
    SW, WI
    Country
    United States
    Posts
    7,402
    Thanks
    594
    Thanked 2,688 Times in 2,106 Posts
    Quote Originally Posted by Eggman View Post
    Mark, you've tried some different sets of tires on your Mirage. Is there one tire that stands out for comfort & low noise? What about traction?

    And do you recall if there was ever a tire from Continental that would have fit on the Mirage?
    "Sets of tires" is not the correct term for me. My Mirage hasn't had 4 tires of the same brand/age/mileage on it since December of 2017.

    I blame that on losing a factory Dunlop tire to a sidewall issue within the first year of ownership. My Mirage turned over 76,000 miles today. At this point, I have used up 4 tires (Dunlop pair & Federal pair).

    The worn out Federal pair were replaced with a pair Nexen N'Priz AH5 tires (currently on my rear axle).

    The worn out factory Dunlop pair were replaced with a pair of Kumho Solus TA31 tires (currently on my front axle).

    Nokian Nordman 7 snow tires were pulled off last week (completed their 6th winter).

    I can only comment on pairs of tires (not sets of tires).

    If I needed snow tires, I would search for the Dunlop WinterMaxx 2 (1st choice) & Nokian Nordman 7 (2nd choice).

    If I wanted to try an all-weather tire, I would search for the Vredestein Quatrac 5 (has 3-peak mountain snowflake symbol).

    If I am buying all-season tires, I am looking for the Kumho Solus TA31 or Nexen N'Priz AH5 (best price wins).

    165/65r14 tire shopping is easy! I don't know of anything else on the market that would be a better value, & I don't consider a Dunlop Enasave for $160+/tire a good value.



Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •