Mazda6 Tires and Wheels
Okay we all know the 215-50-17s are expensive snow tires. My friend recommended I should put 205-50-17 as they are 200$ cheaper. Any suggestions? My only concern is safety.
Tagged:
0
Comments
I have a MS6, Black, 12K miles.
when I bought it, I swapped out the stock summers for all seasons. I went with Pirelli P zero Nero 21540 18 from tire rack.
no trouble initially, good in some snow in jan, feb. not bad overall tires.
The problem has been wear. One of them is wearing unevenly. had one flat already (replaces with another pirelli).
based on tread wear indicators, i probably have 1-2K more on the three originals.
The dealer has checked the alignment and can't explain uneven tread wear.
I am thinking of changing out all four.
Seems to be a limited set of choices at the OEM size. Has anyone upsized to 225 40 or 45 18's using the original wheels?
there seems to be much more choice at that size.
anyone else have a tire wear issue?
door sill recomends 38psi. that is higher than I normally run, are people keeping their tires this high?
thanks in advance
Please let me know what you learn as I plan to replace with a 225/40/18 probably toyo or yokohoma.. This small size change should not cause us ANY problems..
Later - Morgan
Please let me know what you learn as I plan to replace with a 225/40/18 probably toyo or yokohoma.. This small size change should not cause us ANY problems..
Later - Morgan
If you live in a climate where it snows you need all seasons. "Summer" tires are not designed to deal with cold temperatures and lack the edges to bite on icey/snowy roads. If you like your summer tires, you might want to consider just getting pure winter tires on alternate wheels for when there is white stuff falling. If the stock 16" from a regular Mazda6 will clear the brakes, I am sure a set of those can be picked up super cheap.
While its good to know you feel invincible in your AWD car, I wanted to point out that it offers little advantage when trying to do things other than accelerate, like STOPPING or TURNING. With summer tires, you will be even more at a disadvantage since you don't even have the tread compounds afforded by "all season" tires. Whats worse is once you do spin off in the ditch, your summer tires wont grip to get you back on the road, and everyone can watch all 4 of your tires spinning in the snow.
Summer tires can/will get dangerous with temperature drop. You need no snow. Dry and cold will render them almost useless.
Wishing you best of luck.
Krzys
Double check that, usually the lease calls for 4 matched tires but not necessarily what was originally on there. While it is more of a pain, you could have your snows and summers mounted and unmounted on the same rims.
Alternatively, I would look for some regular Mazda6 wheels (cheeap)if they clear the brakes.
It dusted when reviewer was dining. The car was unable to move from parking spot. M5 is not AWD but it does have traction control. I guess there was no traction.
Krzys
If you don't want winter tires/wheels, a good set of all-seasons will work just fine for you, and as stated previously, I'm sure the lease calls for 4 matched, evenly-worn tires, so all-seasons won't kill your lease.
For all-seasons, I've heard the Pirelli P Zero Nero M&S are a good choice...
car purchased 12/23/05............Salt Lake City, Utah
When I had the R32, I was a regular on VWVortex.com. There were hoards of posts warning about driving the R32 in snow/ice without changing to winter, or at least truly all-season tires; there were even a few "I learned my lesson the hard way" posts. The R32, factory equipped with Goodyear Eagle F1s, came with a strong warning about driving in snow/ice.
The R32 was unflappable in the wet, but from everything I read, it was a disaster waiting to happen in snow/ice unless the tires were changed. The R32 and the MS6 have similar specs: both have a Haldex that stays in FWD 90% of the time, both have similar power to weight ratios, both come stock with aggressive performance tires.
So why would the MS6 be any different than the R32 in its need for winter tires? If the MS6 were full-time AWD, it would be a better winter car, but AWD doesn't assure a contact patch for braking and turning.
-Mister Winky
Absolutely Agree! In all the cars and all the winter driving, I had the scariest experience ever last winter in this AWD car with the summer tires on it. All four tires spinning and the driver has NO control what so ever. Tires are hard as a rock and may as well be blown up tight inner-tubes.
I also have the same dilema. I checked with my sales guy. Tire should be of the same size. Doesn't matter the make.
There are two options
1) Use 17'' rims from Mazda6 and a winter tire combo ~ 1000 USD. The 17' offers more tire options
2) Use the Pirelli's. If they don't last out the whole lease I feel option 1 may be better. :confuse:
Avon simply because I have no knowledge of the company. Can anyone educate me on this brand? The Continental is a winter-oriented AS tire. My tire dealer said that customers had mixed sentiments about the Continentals. This week I am having Bridgestone RE 960AS tires put on my MS6. They are top-rated on TireRack reviews. The stock tires make 811 revolutions per mile; the RE 960AS is rated at 804 revolutions per mile, so the difference is minor.
I can't give you any feedback yet on the new tires, but I do know that summer tires in winter are bad news. I once drove in a snow with summer tires at 5 mph and slid sideways off the road; simply no grip. If I lived further north, I would have dedicated winter tires, probably 17"; the difference is quite significant.
Avon tires have been used on Aston Martins and Bentleys for years, and the Tech M550 A/S has been a solid performer, from what I've heard. Other Mazda6 owners have bought and used them for 17" OEM replacements, and I haven't heard anything negative about them yet. Great traction in dry and wet conditions, relatively quiet for a performance tire, and good treadlife.
thanks.
My friend with a regular 6 loves his Avons. thinks they are way better than OEM.
quieter with better handling.
has had them almost 40K and still going strong.
I was thinking about the Avons for my MS6, but I wanted to be sure about upsizing to 225 45 18. the Pirellis at 215 do actually look narrow for the wheel, but they are the recomended OEM size.
I need to pull the trigger soon, the shimmy from the uneven tire is starting to really annoy me. I can't drive the way I want either, don't really have the confidence in the handling that I used to.
This car,even with summer biased AS like the Pirellis was totally unfazed by 3" of snow and slush in Jan and Feb.
It handled almost as well as my previous A6 quattro did.
If $$$$ is an issue, may I suggest buying a set of 16" steel wheels and the 205-60/16 tires? They are the stock tire size for the 16" wheels, and are much less expensive than the 17". A set of steelies (or used wheels) can be found without much $$$$ as well.
Please help.
Anyway, I took it in and was told no warranty on road hazard or anything for the tires. Since I didn't want to buy TWO new tires, I figured I should stay with the stock brand/make of tire. IS THIS CORRECT?
Though the soonest they could get a new Potenza RE050A XL in would be in over a week, and it would cost $220, I ended up getting one online for $200 and it got here the next day (shipping was only $15).
Next time it's going to be Pirellis or Goodyears or something in the $120-$150 range.
I've been getting alot of compliments.... anyway, I'm very happy with them :-)
Why not post them on your CarSpace page and then display them from there?
My sister just purchased a very well kept 1997 Mercedes S 320.
Can anyone tell me which tire would have the best grip and quietness to suit this car?
:mad:
miles. Dealership and service rep don't know exactly
what to do. Other Mazda 6s with 18" wheels have had
problems as well according to the service manager.
They're putting another set on tomorrow and trying
to change the alignment specs, but without understanding
just what is going on. As this is supposedly the final
fix, I hope they chew up also so that the lemon law will
kick in and I can get my money back. Mazda North America
will now stand by their word nor behind their product as
I've discovered. Goodbye and good riddance Mazda...
-ticked off in Alabama...
Keep us posted.
The speed6 looks so good I want to buy one, but if it has problems and Mazda won't back it, then its off my list.
Pilot. Rear differential changed as well... So far, for
the 2K miles I've driven all is OK. They suspect problems
with Bridgestone's tires, but I suspect alignment issues.
I'll keep the car a year and dump it. No more Mazdas, but
mostly because of their customer care, or lack of it...
-bob
DOES ANYONE KNOW THE MM SIZE ON OUR LUGNUTS? As the tires are directional, front to back & vice versa only? (no criss-cross)? Also, found a good low profile jack with a saddle that won't mar the undercarriage? Replies are greatly appreciated.
Anyone else experienced this problem? Did it turn out to be a tire problem or a suspension problem? What was the outcome?
for a pretty good description. There is a lot of other good info there as well.
Dealer blamed low tire pressure. :sick: Pressure was at 30 psi and the weather had just changed 30 degrees F lower temp. from when I checked the pressure the week before.
Tire pressure is NOT the cause. :mad:
Has anyone priced the Bridgestones yet? I'm planning ahead.
I've read about tire wear problems but I sold Mazda's for school money and the real problem were brake rotors.
at 35K they're gone and most are not turnable. Check your rotors and if they show wear that does not appear normal go to your dealer and don't leave until he gives/free
rotors and pads. Mine were replaced at 14K.
Suggestions for a different tire would be welcome.
My advice is to buy these great deal tires if you can find them, but try to get 215/45/18's. For snows, the Dunlop Sport M3 cannot be beat, and the slightly larger tire made no difference at all.
Here's my story.
I've been driving for close to 40 years. Lived in southeast PA all my life. Several times have driven several hours though blizzards, so I know a bit about snow driving. Despite my incredulity, the dealer said I'd be fine year round with the summer tires.
A month after I got my 6, I found myself in a two inch deep snowfall and that fifteen minute drive with the summer tires was the closest I've ever been to needing a change of underwear after driving. It accelerated fine, but turning and stopping were a whole 'nother issue.
Two days later I had a set of P-Zero Neros on it. At about 8,000 miles on the P-Zeros, I noticed the fronts were wearing pretty evenly across the tread, but cupping. I took it to the dealer who checked the alignment--OK, of course--but found all tires were at 34 PSI instead of the recommended 38. The dealer put four more pounds of nitrogen in them and rotated them front to back. Since they were all at the same pressure, I assume the tire dealer either didn't know the Mazda spec or wanted to save my kidneys with a softer ride.
At 5,000 miles on the rotation (13,000 total on the tires), I noticed uneven tread wear on the fronts. The outsides were taking a beating, so I had the dealer look at it. He expressed concern that they were wearing so unevenly and checked alignment again. Perfect, again, so I left the tires where they were, which, in retrospect, was an error.
At 10,000 miles on the rotation (18,000 total) the fronts are pretty much shot. The middles look like they'd be good for 10,000 more miles, the inside edges for half that, and the outside edges, especially the right, look like they'll be showing cords in 2,000 miles at their current deterioration.
Figuring I have nothing to lose, I X-rotated them today, hoping they'll all wear out together and I'll come up with a better plan next time. I doubt that the rears--the tires that got torn up when on the front--would pass inspection now, let alone in November, 3,000 miles from now.
What bothers me is that on two occasions the dealer was so concerned about the wear, cupping first and unevenness second, that he had the alignment checked at no cost to me. Now he's saying that I'm lucky, that the 6 is a performance car and performance cars chew up the soft tires and, besides, most people aren't getting even 12,000 from a set of tires. The final bit of advice was: Rotate them more frequently and Go Away.
I'll be checking back here in a few months to get more feedback about the suitability of 225-40's and everyone's experiences with the wider selection of tires that size offers.
Conclusion: I have had no tire problems. The original tires can be expected to last about 15K miles. Perhaps you need have a different dealer look at your problem.
Holly
If you're putting on BOTH different rims and tires, you have three choices:
1. You can swap the TPMS sensors from the old rims to the new, then mount the tires and install back on the car.
2. Install new TPMS sensors on the new rims. But then the car has to be taken to a dealer to program the TPMS system with the new sensors, or:
3. You can install the new rims/tires without the TPMS sensors. The only disadvantage is that the TPMS light will flash for the first 30 seconds after you start the car, then stay lit. This happens every time you drive the car, until the original rims are re-installed. Doing this does NOT affect the ABS, or any other system on the car besides the TPMS.
Hope this helps.