Vredestein tyres

[CJ]

Anyone ever used Vredestein Ultracs? I've heard good things about them, a quick web search compares them to the Eagle F1s but with less road noise and better wet grip.

CJ

[Myfeckin FTO]

Likewise heard good things about these tyres but I really don't think they would be in the same category performance wise as the F1 Eagles. I always found the GSD3 F1's had very good wet weather grip - IMHO every bit as good as my current set of Bridgestone S03's.

If you are talking about budget brands I would put these around the same level as the Federal Super Steels - another excellent medium rung-of-the-ladder tyre.

[soc]

Anyone ever used Vredestein Ultracs? I've heard good things about them, a quick web search compares them to the Eagle F1s but with less road noise and better wet grip.

CJ

I've been considering a set of these - I've a mate who's been runing these on a porsche 911 (964) turbo and he rates them. I've read some good things about them in a some different magazines (Evo & Total911). I wouldn't call them a budget tyre either,...

Eiretyres prices for 225/40x18's are:

Eagle F1 GSD3 -> 164.80
Toyo Proxes -> 156.20
Vredestein Ultrac: -> 156

[CJ]

The reason I ask is that I paid a visit to a new tyre depot in my area who have good things to say about the Ultrac model. The outlet is called Discount Tyre and Auto Services and its based in Rosemount Business Park in Blanchardstown, I was impressed with their customer focused approach, the director, Rob Ferguson, took time out to show me around the facility and explained what sort of service they could offer, we briefly discussed the option of club discounts which is something I'll come back to at a later date. Rob was previously a tyre specialist at Bridgestone and he certainly appears to know his stuff, he reckoned that you should expect less torque steer and tramling with the Ultracs as well as similar wet\dry handling to some other well known performance tyres. Just found a thread on the FTOOC forum concerning Vredesteins, on the whole, they seem to get a mixed response.

Apart from tyres and the like, DTAS have a new Corghi 4-wheel alignment system, I'll be trying that out in the near future to get a comparison with Dave McCanns setup.

CJ

[CJ]

I went into DTAS last Thursday with a view to getting a slow puncture sorted and came out with a new set of Vredstein Ultracs (big windows in that place )! On closer inspection, the rears were down to to bare minimum thread depth, they didn't have Eagles F1s in 215/45/17 so I bit the bullet and bought a full set of Ultracs (I was driving down the Mayo the following day and didn't want to mess about with mismatched tyres or a slow puncture for that matter).

I put about up 600kms over the w/e, so far, I can say that the Ultras are a lot less noisy that the F1s (GSD2's) and wet grip is certainly better. Overall, they're a much more comfortable tyre to drive on in comparison to F1's, bumps and hollows in the road are much less apparent. I havent driven in the dry since putting them on so I can't really comment on dry grip, if wet grip is anything to go on then I'm hoping that they will be at least as grippy as the F1s. Another thing I noticed is that wheel spin is substantially reduced when moving off from a standing start (bearing in mind that the F1's that were on the front previously had a good bit of tyre thread remaining). The only negative point is that the tyre wall is slightly taller than the F1's, the result is I'm getting scrubbage on full lock (I need to do a job on the wheel arch liners which were already shredded in places)

In terms of price, you would expect to pay about €170 per tyre for 215/45/17's, I would imagine that you could pick up F1's slightly cheaper.

Its early days but at this stage, I would certainly recommend the Vredstein Ultracs if you're considering a change of performance tyre.

CJ

[CJ]

/Old thread revival alert

As some of you will know, I've been banging on about how good Vredestein Ultracs are for some time now. The Potenza RE040's needed replacing on the RX-8 and after some research, I decided upon Vredesteins newest performance incarnation, the Ultrac Sessanta (not to be confused with a cable sports channel):



The tyres are well scrubbed in at this stage, my first impressions are:

They grip so much better than the RE040s
Emit less tyre noise
Feel more poised on the road
Sit on the rim better (i.e. 'squarer' look)
Have a funky thread pattern!
Are much cheaper than RE040a's and RE050's (Mazda recommended replacements)

Downside:

The Bridgestones would let go progressively so you knew where you stood in terms of grip levels. The Sessantas grip like a limpet but can let go suddenly, you can really push them right up to the level and they grip like hell, knowing when you've reached the limit is the problem.

They can be got from Camskill at reasonable money (had them fitted as DTAS for €70 all in), I highly recommend this option if you're after something different with all the hallmarks of a more expensive premium rate performance tyre. They're comparible to the Michelin Pilot Sport SPIIs I had on the RX-7 (and they cost €250 per tyre!).

CJ

[Myfeckin FTO]

/Old thread revival alert

As some of you will know, I've been banging on about how good Vredestein Ultracs are for some time now. The Potenza RE040's needed replacing on the RX-8 .......

They grip so much better than the RE040s
..............
Have a funky thread pattern!
Are much cheaper than RE040a's and RE050's (Mazda recommended replacements)

...........CJ

Those Vredesteins do look the bizz alright and also look to be a nice step up on previous versions.
The RE040's are a very hard compound - They came with the last Zed I had and I wasn't long changing them to RE050s which are night and day compared to the RE040s. The RE040's get badmouthed quite a bit on the Zed forums as they take so long to get heat into them although (for this very reason) they don't go off quickly on the track.

[Aido C]

I liked the Ulracs a lot. I found them really good on the back when wet. I got Eagle F1 the last recently. They were the exact same price the Utracs because they were on special offer on camskill. they were only £4 off. I got them because I've heard to much about them. After having both tyres, I don't think the F1s are any better than the Ultacs. It's probably much of a muchness between the two. I like the Ultracs, it's just that they are very hard to get over here.
Eagle F1s are easier to get.

[Aido C]

Eiretyres prices for 225/40x18's are:



Eagle F1 GSD3 -> 164.80

Toyo Proxes -> 156.20

Vredestein Ultrac: -> 156

Eire Tyre are very expensive. Go to Camskill, Top Gear Tyres in Ashboure or Discount Tyres in Blanch.
They are the 3 best. A good 30% or so cheaper than Eire Tyres.

[Dragonheart]

Class looking tye!
Dont know if I'd change from my Potenzas though, got used to doing the whitewall and have the hang off going around bridgestone potenza now.

[CJ]

Eire Tyre are very expensive. Go to Camskill, Top Gear Tyres in Ashboure or Discount Tyres in Blanch.
They are the 3 best. A good 30% or so cheaper than Eire Tyres.

Note that Discount Tyres no longer supply Vredesteins. I got them off Camsill, by far the cheapest option.

CJ

[Aido C]

Top Gear aren't bad either. A little more then camskill but not much when you take into account getting them fitted and balanced. For 215/45 17 Toyo T1Rs fitted and balanced its €105 per wheel and for Eagle F1s fitted and balanced its either €110 or €115 per wheel. Thats pretty good I think.

[sinlessgunner]

Just FYI everyone Camskill have a discount on Vredestein ULTRACS, going for about 70 quid per tyre. Have 2 ordered for the front wheels cost 170 quid delivered and have a guy to fit them for about 30 quid.

Happy days