2WD Standard Tyres?

[riph72]

Hello all,

I'm trying to assess whether Skoda have selected different tyres for the 4WD variant, so can someone let me know what tyres are fitted as standard to the 2WD, preferably the Estate but I doubt it's different for the hatch!

For the record, the 4WD uses Dunlop SP Sport 01.

Cheers,

Richard.

[james26]

Mine was new in Sep this year and came with 5x Continental Sport Contact 2 Tyres in size 16". Would have been happy with Michelins but not bad.

James.

[riph72]

Mine was new in Sep this year and came with 5x Continental Sport Contact 2 Tyres in size 16". Would have been happy with Michelins but not bad.

James.

Ah, thanks.

The 4x4 Estate only has 4 full size wheels, I think they had to use a space saver because of the extra space taken up by the 4WD system.

What exactly is your car, just out of interest [EDIT: just noticed your details... sorry]? Was 16" standard, or was it an option?

[skomaz]

Ah, thanks.

The 4x4 Estate only has 4 full size wheels, I think they had to use a space saver because of the extra space taken up by the 4WD system.

What exactly is your car, just out of interest [EDIT: just noticed your details... sorry]? Was 16" standard, or was it an option?

Hi Riph - I think the space saver thing is associated with the particular model year of the car - my 4x4 has a full size spare.

It also came with the SP01's but, as I've mentioned previously they cracked circumferentially between the treads which appears to be a common problem with them. I now have Vredestein Sportrac 3's.

[Pud]

My 4X4 has 16 inch alloys with a steel spare, also full size, the boot space is the same on both types of car, the four wheel drive system makes no difference at all except that the fuel tank is of a saddle shape and holds an extra 5 litres, ie 60 as opposed to 55 on the standard car. The tyres are standard V rate Bridgestones E300, slightly noisy but wear well with good grip. A friend of mine yesterday got well and truly stuck with his Hyundai Terracan in the snow, where I have to say I gleefully passed him, and that was on summer tyres, I would imagine it would be even better on winter tyres, we'll see next year.

[james26]

Ah, thanks.

The 4x4 Estate only has 4 full size wheels, I think they had to use a space saver because of the extra space taken up by the 4WD system.

What exactly is your car, just out of interest [EDIT: just noticed your details... sorry]? Was 16" standard, or was it an option?

They came with 16", did try out the 15" car with the lower spec ride wise 16" seems a lot better!

james,

[riph72]

Hi Riph - I think the space saver thing is associated with the particular model year of the car - my 4x4 has a full size spare.

It also came with the SP01's but, as I've mentioned previously they cracked circumferentially between the treads which appears to be a common problem with them. I now have Vredestein Sportrac 3's.

What made you select the Sportrac 3s? Were they recommended, or have you just had good "previous" with them? Those tyres are also listed as "Summer" on their website, rather than "Winter" or "All season"?

[riph72]

My 4X4 has 16 inch alloys with a steel spare, also full size, the boot space is the same on both types of car, the four wheel drive system makes no difference at all except that the fuel tank is of a saddle shape and holds an extra 5 litres, ie 60 as opposed to 55 on the standard car. The tyres are standard V rate Bridgestones E300, slightly noisy but wear well with good grip. A friend of mine yesterday got well and truly stuck with his Hyundai Terracan in the snow, where I have to say I gleefully passed him, and that was on summer tyres, I would imagine it would be even better on winter tyres, we'll see next year.

Are those the tyres your car came with as standard then?

[skomaz]

What made you select the Sportrac 3s? Were they recommended, or have you just had good "previous" with them? Those tyres are also listed as "Summer" on their website, rather than "Winter" or "All season"?

I've used Vredesteins on the Fabia for years (HiTrac's) and they have proved excellent.

I also tend to look for tyres with good wet weather grip (having historically found myself facing the wrong way on a damp roundabout in traffic in a small MX-5 has tended to influence this!). I therefore have a good look at the tyre test sites etc. and the Sporttrac3's and the Goodyear Hydragrip (or Eagle Ventura as-was) have always been good and tested well for a number of years in this regard. So, having had the Hydragrips and Venturas on the MX-5 I thought I'd try the Sportrac's on the Octavia.

My other theory was that I don't tend to go offroad (the car was bought to give added safety and security on a daily commute across the Pennines) and we don't get that much snow here, so I was happy with a summer tyre with good wet grip. The thought being that the four wheel drive would mean I would still be better off in things like snow than a normal front wheel drive car would be (and as it turns out this has proved correct!)

So, basically a combination of recommendation and previous combined with my particular usage.

[skomaz]

Oh - and I forgot to mention in case you ask I'm running on 16" optional Appollon wheels and have a full size alloy spare.

[riph72]

Oh - and I forgot to mention in case you ask I'm running on 16" optional Appollon wheels and have a full size alloy spare.

How have you actually found them compared to the OEM tyres then, any thoughts?

I'm a long way from changing tyres, but doesn't hurt to arm myself with facts

[_ZS_]

The Octavias at work came with a mixture of Bridgestone ER30, Dunlop SP01 and SP3000A. All are replaced by Goodyear Excellence.

[Pud]

yes , as it came out of the box, wheels are appollon

[skomaz]

How have you actually found them compared to the OEM tyres then, any thoughts?

Very good - far better wet grip, good dry grip and definitely quieter.

[riph72]

Very good - far better wet grip, good dry grip and definitely quieter.

Ah, thanks.

I've been looking about at tyre options, it's surprising but you can find tyres that are (roughly) 80% road 20% offroad rated, but they are usually not available at 205/60/R15.

I suppose though, the Octavia isn't an out+out offroader, so this explains it I guess.

If you are recommending the tyres you have, I guess they are a strong contender when I do change then!

[riph72]

Very good - far better wet grip, good dry grip and definitely quieter.

How do they compare in the current snow/ice conditions, any thoughts there?

[KenONeill]

This has been said over and over, but you can pretty much bet that the "standard fit" tyres on most mass production models (except PSA, where Pug almost invariably fit Goodyear, and Citroen always Michelin) are whatever name brand they got the best price on several thousand of last week.

[skomaz]

How do they compare in the current snow/ice conditions, any thoughts there?

I can;t really compare as I never got to drive the SP01's in the snow.

The Sportrac3's seem OK though and from a bit of research on the internet they seem to get higher marks for snow grip than the SP01's...

[riph72]

I can;t really compare as I never got to drive the SP01's in the snow.

The Sportrac3's seem OK though and from a bit of research on the internet they seem to get higher marks for snow grip than the SP01's...

I quite like the look of the Quatrac 2/3s, did you consider those?

[Karlos69]

Just had a quick look on Vredestein's website, and for those of us with 18s, the choice of tyres is limited.

It's either Ultrac Sessantas for the summer, or Wintrac Xtremes, so it seems there's no Vredestein option for All Season tyres like the Quatrac 3 :(