[Mark]

I need some replacement rear tyres for my Mark 2 fairly soon and wondered what tyres you would recommend?

The wheels are the standard Mazda 15" wheels and currently have Goodyear Eagle tyres which I quite like. The front tyres are Firestone Firehawks which have plenty of tread left but which I do not rate that highly, so would not wish to buy a pair for the rear. I know that it is not recommended to mix tyres on an MX5 but there is no way I can afford to replace all 4 when I need an MOT and service soon, tax is due end of the month and I need a replacement roof too

My thoughts are probably to go for some more Goodyear Eagles or maybe Toyos (I had some on a Mark 2.5 I used to own and they were pretty good )

And if anyone knows of any good tyre places, in my neck of the woods, to source the tyres at a good price then please let me know.

Thanks in advance for your help :thumbsup:

 

[kaz1003]

Mark, can't help with the actual tyres but when you do decide what ones to get, source them online. Usually cheaper, you can pay for them to be delivered and fitted at a local tyre fitter place too.

Places I've tried are, Blackcircles, mytryes and also kwikfit (usually cheaper than buying from their garages)

Good luck

 

[Jot]

Just remember that most online prices (unless stipulated) are for dellivery only
I am still hunting for my RS2... must get my self in gear and ring tomorrow. Gonna have to bite bullet.
RS2s are brill as well. Rubyrider has them on his 2.5 and loves them, Mark.
Try KUMHOs..... Eagles are good (as you know).... trying to think what else mk2s have available... just sort thro the online sites. See what they suggest. You won't go wrong with TOYOs as well.

 

[CaptainHaddock]

I have Kumhos KU31s and they seem pretty good. Got these and the previous Toyos online,
Toyos from http://valuetyres.co.uk/ where they were delivered to a fitter of my choice
Kumhos from http://www.event-tyres.co.uk/ where they came to the office carpark and fitted them there.
Both sites give prices for fitted or valuetyres will deliver only if you wish but charge an extra £10 for delivery only.
I think you get discount (or non supplement) for multiple tyres, so if you know someone else local (Jo) provided you get more that 1 tyre it may be beneficial to all.

 

[Jot]

oooh mark - wanna drive up to ATS in Llan'dod?.... they may be more willing to knock off money for my one tyre

 

[safaristu]

One golden rule is a matching set so would say replace with the same as the front unless you plan to change them soon.

Myself I have Falken ZIEX ZE912's the best thing I could get in 14" however turns out they are a bloody good tyre!

Asymmetric Performance tyre suitable for small to mid sized cars. New asymmetric pattern with 4 wide circumferential grooves making the ZE 912 an incredibly stable tyre at high speed, and under heavy braking. New lateral groove design creates significantly improved water displacement performance with higher land ratio on the outer blocks of the tread resulting in higher load handling when cornering. Typically suited to performance hatch backs. Target vehicles include anything from 120 to 250bhp.

 

[Mark]

Thanks guys for all your replies :thumbsup:

I think I will have a look around and see what tyres are available and at what price. Stu makes a good point about having 4 tyres of the same make on the car and ordinarily I would agree except:-

• I don't rate the existing Firestones on the front that highly and don't see the point of buying another pair of the same
• I have got mixed tyres on the car now (Goodyears on the back) and have done maybe 3000 miles in it including winter use and it seems to drive fine to me
• The Firestones have plenty of tread on them and I cannot afford to throw them away when the tyres will set me back £50 or so a piece and when I have got to pay for the road tax, MOT and service in the next few weeks and also I want to get a replacement roof fitted too

I will update this thread when I have made my choice

 

[CaptainHaddock]

oooh mark - wanna drive up to ATS in Llan'dod?.... they may be more willing to knock off money for my one tyre

other alternative is you forego the ats % and get a better price where Mark chooses if they can get your Uniroyal.

 

[Jot]

other alternative is you forego the ats % and get a better price where Mark chooses if they can get your Uniroyal.

Aye another good point!

 

[safaristu]

Any update on how your new tyres are going ?

 

[Mark]

Sorry for not updating this before

I bought a pair of Toyo Proxes in the end (they were marginally cheaper than the Goodyears). I could have bought these on-line and had them fitted for £96 whereas my usual tyre place wanted £118 The problem being that this was just before Easter and the on-line supplier could only supply for the following Thursday and I had my MOT booked in for the Tuesday

I managed to get my tyre place to do them for £100 and as the tyres were in stock they were duly fitted on Good Friday

I have already done 400+ miles and I am impressed with them so far They grip very well in the dry although I cannot comment about the rain as it has been dry ever since. The tyres are fairly soft though so I expect them to wear at a higher rate than some harder compounds so it will be interesting to see how many miles I get out of them.

 

[stevo]

I have a full set of Toyo Proxes, they are without doubt the best tyres I have used for road use. They wrap around 16" x 8" Rota cups and perform confidently in the rain!

 

[Mark]

I am still pleased with my choice of Toyos which I can now confirm perform well in the rain .

 

[safaristu]

Any further updates as I need a new set after a MOT fail..... not sure if I should just upgrade the wheels at the same time as 14's have a poor selection of tyres

 

[TCat]

Toyo TR1's all the way.............after you scrub them in, 100 miles..........keeps my bum from stepping out when I dont want it to and pretty dam good in the wet. Admit they slightly softer than competitors but after 4 diff sets of tyres I can report TR1's are matched to Mk3.

 

[Jumpman23]

Any further updates as I need a new set after a MOT fail..... not sure if I should just upgrade the wheels at the same time as 14's have a poor selection of tyres

Get some 15'' alloys stu or 16'' alloys, wrapped in the tyre of your choice.

 

[safaristu]

Get some 15'' alloys stu or 16'' alloys, wrapped in the tyre of your choice.

Any recommendations on make and offset ?

 

[Jot]

I'd still advocate Uniroyals over Toyos.
I never did change that Toyo.
It's held well but is definitely wearing quicker than my RS2s

Any advice on winter tyres would be good
In the running: Nokian, Snowproxes, Hankook, Kumho.....

 

[stevo]

Oddly enuff, most folk comment how much they love my Rota cups.....the rest of the car gets ignored!

 

[Minx]

Myself I have Falken ZIEX ZE912's the best thing I could get in 14" however turns out they are a bloody good tyre!

Asymmetric Performance tyre suitable for small to mid sized cars. New asymmetric pattern with 4 wide circumferential grooves making the ZE 912 an incredibly stable tyre at high speed, and under heavy braking. New lateral groove design creates significantly improved water displacement performance with higher land ratio on the outer blocks of the tread resulting in higher load handling when cornering. Typically suited to performance hatch backs. Target vehicles include anything from 120 to 250bhp.

Got them on the Minx on a set of Liso 14" 195's - superb mid range tyre and had them on both my BMW 7 and Lyns' Hyundai Accident. Highly Recommended!!