18-month Ownership Report

[Demonic Angel]

Done almost 14,000 miles in 18 months in my Aygo... lots of very happy miles with not a lot of bother at all.

Imagine my surprise when I noticed my front tyres are almost illegal! :o

I did well over 24,000 miles in 3 years in my Yaris without the need to buy new tyres at all.... and I got some of the guys at work to take a look and they've told me I have another 500-1000 miles max before they'll need changing.

It's not a problem for me to go and get two new front tyres (apart from the slightly OCD fact that I'll have to get Continentals to match the rears!), I'm just really shocked at the excessive wear... I mean I know I'm not a saint behind the wheel, but still, I drove the same in the Yaris (if not worse!)

I would blame god-awful tyres but I was under the impression that Continentals were actually a fairly good brand!

I'm going to get the tracking looked at too as I think it's slightly off..... anyone dare me to try Mr T?

[T V O R]

Common problem. Check your brake discs as well while you’re at it...

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[Demonic Angel]

I realise it's a common problem.... I don't need you to do my searches for me. I wasn't asking "Who else has had this problem" now was I? ;)

[T V O R]

No, you are correct. Funny how you are one of the first ones to jump on repetitive threads when there are dozens covering the same subject!

Silly me, I momentarily forgot you’re a ‘Mod’ (different rules apply)

To answer your question, no I wouldn’t go to Mr T, I would try an independent tyre centre, but not Kwik Fit

Now I’ve answered your question are you going to lock this thread?!

[Demonic Angel]

The question was rhetorical

I was merely updating folk to the status of my car, as is tradition to do so. Are you going to update us on your Aygo James, beings as you like to comment on them so much? Didn't think so, moving swiftly on.... ;)

I appreciate your sentiments on the brakes however, last time I went to Mr T for an "inspection" they did try to tell me they were 70% worn before they backed down and admitted they were swindling me..... so I shall get those checked as well. After three Toyotas I have much more sense than to go to them, although I am curious as to how much they'd charge for tyres, checking the tracking & a brake check. I might enquire just for a laugh!

Most bizarre is I'm 18 months in to owning a car and don't want to change it yet! I'm fully prepared to keep this for the long-haul. Says something about the Aygo I think!

(Just for you James, I've changed the title of this misleading thread. )

[walfice]

I think the problem is the Continental tyres (which is strange because they have given me good mileage on previous cars). Mine were worn out at 15000. I replaced them with Yokohama A-drive tyres and they have covered 25000 so far (I would estimate they have 3-5000 miles left in them). My rears are now pretty low so I am going to replace them soon. I have seen some Toyo 350 tyres for £36 fully fitted from tyre shopper so I might give them a try.

[daveyjp]

The Contis are rubbish - they have a lower wear rate figure than the Pirelli low profiles on my 170PS Audi! Why? The Aygo is hardly a high performance car which requires excellent roadholding.

[crisskro]

Mine didn't wear at all... probably because I don't use them :D Toyo Rules :P

[hertsnminds]

Would rotating the tyres (front to back) every 12 months help to get more life from the set of four? I know there are different schools of thought on having less worn tyres on the driven wheels.

[PaulT]

The Contis are rubbish - they have a lower wear rate figure than the Pirelli low profiles on my 170PS Audi! Why? The Aygo is hardly a high performance car which requires excellent roadholding.

I think the idea is that by putting some soft, grippy but high wear tyres on the car it means you can run a thinner width and therefore get better fuel economy through lower rolling resistance.

So yes, when you have that small amount of rubber on the road, quality is important. Toyota has used the most expensive tyres you can get in that size which shows once again that they have not cut costs on the engineering / mechanical side of the car.

Paul.

[crisskro]

As far as I know, Peugeot and Citroen use Michelins. And also, as far as I know, Michelin makes more durable tires and are more expensive.

I could be wrong, but I dont think that I am -> I found that, in our tire size, michelin costs 10% more than continentals.

PS: Toyota IS slipping in quality. Many complaints, on the aygos I have none because I didnt expect very much. But the new corolla, 1 month (~1000 miles) the safety belt button on the pole (safety belt hight) has popped out and a spring has come loose. And yesterday, the A/C was only pumping out hot air! Tomorrow we'll go get these fixed. Hopefully.

This does not mean I don;t like the car, the fuel consumption is awsome. I made 400 km using 16 liters of diesel. That's 4%, the manual says that it shoud be 4.3%.

[Teemu]

Would rotating the tyres (front to back) every 12 months help to get more life from the set of four? I know there are different schools of thought on having less worn tyres on the driven wheels.

In Finland we use winter tyres from about November to April and normal tyres the rest of the year. And the tyres are always rotated from front to back when changed. It will help to keep them more balanced I think. They will last a bit longer but have to be replaced together... I think it is a good compromise as the car is safe to drive with four good tyres.

Also experts have warned to not to put worn tyres to the rear which is usually done. This is because the rear can then slid off more easily, a serious problem if there is no VSC on the car.

What comes to tyres wearing there is huge differences. A friend had some Korean tyres that wore out really quickly. I have Nokiantyres that are quite strong, had the Aygo fitted them when I got it.

[Demonic Angel]

Had my new tyres for about a week now and they're brilliant, can really tell the difference - I actually have grip!

£108 later and got the same Conti Eco Contact 3's that were on before.... will be keeping an eye on these ones to see how long they last!

I blame Muse for my erratic driving! :lol:

[gordonh]

Do you really need to match the tyres front and back?

I can understand them being the same on the same axel but on a front wheel drive car you really just want very sticky on the front and the backs can be a harder compound. I used to have an old Ford Escort and I put wider types on the front than the back and that handled fine despite all the abuse I put it through. Mostly the back wheels just hold the rear off the road and follow the fronts, it only gets exciting when you come off the gas when cornering hard/fast.

[daveyjp]

"Do you really need to match the tyres front and back?"

No - My Audi has Vredesteins on the front and original Pirellis on the back. No way I was paying £140 each for Pirellis which disappear at an alarming rate.

[Demonic Angel]

You don't have to.... however I wanted the same four tyres.... for OCD & aesthetic reasons!

[reece]

Always looks nicer with matching tyres

[ihpj]

You don't have to.... however I wanted the same four tyres.... for OCD & aesthetic reasons!

Nice to see that I'm not the only one!

I like matching tyres on all four corners of my cars - its just something that gives me that much more peace of mind. I like Contis but know they can be a very soft compound tyre (hence the higher grip) and for me it has always been a balance between tyre wear and grip. But the way I see it is that if I loose grip then I will be far worse off than replacing a tyre that wears quicker - if that makes sense!

I hate Pirellis and Crapstones - as their compounds are too hard and thereby make the tyre noisy and lack grip in wet/moisture conditions. As a member of Costco, I always buy Michelins (which are the best tyre IMHO) so I don't have to worry in that sense. However, as the Aygo is cheap to run I don't think I will be too bothered if I have to replace tyres (and the brakes) often.

I will be keeping an eye on my tyres and rotating them now and again to ensure even wear, and then when time comes to change, stick on a set of Michelins :)

[aygoal]

The front tyres on our blue were worn at 14000 miles too, but more on the inside edge so tracking a bit at fault. I bought 1 new conti tyre and used the spare as can't see the point in having a brand new full size spare - made the best front the new spare.

I too want matching tyres all round so may front rear swap some time so they all wear down together.