ianphampton Posted February 5, 2012 Share Posted February 5, 2012 Last winter I was still running on Bridgestones (the 040s) and was appalled at how bad they were in snow. Specifically, she wouldn't do forward, only sideways, even with only a modest snowfall, around 20mm. I admit the tyres were low on tread - I swapped them off her for a set of Goodyesr F1 Eagles in May, but they were truly atrocious. So this year, I looked at getting some winter tyres. I reviewed quite a few forums and tests (see the references at the foot of this posting) and was certain that Continental were the best, Vredestein probably mid range. Then I looked at the prices, and the Continental were about £180 to £200 each, and even the Vredesteiins were £160 per corner. The Nankangs came in around £330 the complete set. Now I agree with many of the posts on here about how important tyres are as your contact with the road - hey, that's why I bought the F1 Eagles. But I thought the most telling review data was the ranking by Auto Express : 1 Continental 100.0 Best winter 2 Goodyear 99.3 3 Pirelli 98.9 4 Michelin 98.7 5 Hankook 96.4 6 Vredestein 95.7 7 Nankang 93.5 8 Kumho 90.0 The Nankang's came in at 93.5% score - and they're less than half the price. On the basis that I'm unlikely to be doing any spirited driving in these conditions, I thought that was a pretty creditable score. Anyway, I bought a set from mytres.co.uk (Very good, efficient, recommended) and fitted them on a spare set of JDM 17" (bought from another forum member in Edinburgh) and have been running on them since October. It's taken until now to write a review as I wanted to drive them in all conditions and it's only this weekend we've had the snow and ice to test them! So - in the dry they're definitely not what you'd want, especially after driving the F1s. They feel a bit vague as you put the power in, especially power on a bend (like roundabouts) In the wet they are OK, even in heavy rain there's no aquaplaning. Power and accelleration are OK, but the vagueness above still applies. I'd say they are adequate in the wet, though I didn't really push them - but in wet conditions that would be inviting trouble anyway on pretty much anybody's rubber. And now to this weekend; we had 40 - 50mm of snow in Manchester and in Northwich it was frozen rain rather than snow so the roads were ice all over. The tyres performed faultlessly. On the ice, pulling away was easy, and traction was good round the bends - though if you gave her power you could step it out easily enough. (I enjoyed that on the occasions I did it - it was entirely deliberate!) On the snow the grip was good, even on unsalted back roads, and in the full 50mm snow - turning and reversing in the snow was no problem either. Compared to last year on the Bridgestones which were staggeringly CR_P I was hugely impressed, and estimate they're about 8000% better than the 'stones. So - in summary - I'm very happy. I'm sure there are other forum members driving on Continental who'll say theirs are better - and I'd probably agree - but at £330 the set I am certain they are MUCH safer than driving on your summer rubber. References: 1) http://www.autoexpress.co.uk/products/t ... e_test.htm 2) http://www.whatcar.com/car-news/winter- ... ice/259257 3) http://www.tyretest.com/wintercar_tyres ... /index.htm 4) http://www.mk5golfgti.co.uk/forum/index ... ic=22302.0 5) http://www.tyrereviews.co.uk/Tyre/Nankang/SV2.htm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simon da silva Posted February 5, 2012 Share Posted February 5, 2012 Nankan is very cheap chinese tires.. They are good in snow but when it comes to Wet roads they are very very dangerous. Saw some danish test of the tires.. there was almost 10 meters longer braking distance with the nankan tires compared to better brands. never save money on tires! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dblock Posted February 5, 2012 Share Posted February 5, 2012 Nankan is very cheap chinese tires.. They are good in snow but when it comes to Wet roads they are very very dangerous. Saw some danish test of the tires.. there was almost 10 meters longer braking distance with the nankan tires compared to better brands. never save money on tires! are you sure they wernt nankang summer tyres? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trackpig Posted February 5, 2012 Share Posted February 5, 2012 Nankan is very cheap chinese tires.. They are good in snow but when it comes to Wet roads they are very very dangerous. Saw some danish test of the tires.. there was almost 10 meters longer braking distance with the nankan tires compared to better brands. never save money on tires! Sorry but I have sv-2 tyres fitted to my car at the moment, they are not dangerous at all. They actualy grip quite well in the wet. They serve their purpose very well- they are winter tyres, for use in low temps, snow and wet conditions. I will be swopping back to my summer tyres when the weather allows it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andlid Posted February 6, 2012 Share Posted February 6, 2012 Sounds like they perform in snow condition so. Want some winter tyre thats the best in wet and snow Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dblock Posted February 6, 2012 Share Posted February 6, 2012 Sounds like they perform in snow condition so. Want some winter tyre thats the best in wet and snow All winter tyres are great in the wet as thats what they are designed for. you can be going along at 70mph through massive puddles with no tugging at the wheel no aquaplaning or anything Ive got the Ts830's but they are only 16" so the price was decent Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JetSet Posted February 6, 2012 Share Posted February 6, 2012 Sorry but I have sv-2 tyres fitted to my car at the moment, they are not dangerous at all. They actualy grip quite well in the wet. They serve their purpose very well- they are winter tyres, for use in low temps, snow and wet conditions. I will be swopping back to my summer tyres when the weather allows it. All new tyres sold by reputable dealers in the U.K have to meet a BS-ISO standard, I'm pretty certain that while the grip level and braking distance of some tyres isn't as good as others none of them are actually dangerous. The only case I can recall where tyres were actually dangerous was in The U.S involving Firestone/Bridgestone tyres fitted to SUV's and Light trucks 3 or 4 years ago I think. Pete Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dblock Posted February 6, 2012 Share Posted February 6, 2012 Sorry but I have sv-2 tyres fitted to my car at the moment, they are not dangerous at all. They actualy grip quite well in the wet. They serve their purpose very well- they are winter tyres, for use in low temps, snow and wet conditions. I will be swopping back to my summer tyres when the weather allows it. All new tyres sold by reputable dealers in the U.K have to meet a BS-ISO standard, I'm pretty certain that while the grip level and braking distance of some tyres isn't as good as others none of them are actually dangerous. The only case I can recall where tyres were actually dangerous was in The U.S involving Firestone/Bridgestone tyres fitted to SUV's and Light trucks 3 or 4 years ago I think. Pete even so I bet below 3c the sv-2 will outperform most summer tyres. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trackpig Posted February 6, 2012 Share Posted February 6, 2012 Sounds like they perform in snow condition so. Want some winter tyre thats the best in wet and snow Do you want to try that again, you dont make any sense sometimes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andlid Posted February 6, 2012 Share Posted February 6, 2012 Sounds like they perform in snow condition so. Want some winter tyre thats the best in wet and snow Do you want to try that again, you dont make any sense sometimes. The SV-2 Snow (Nankangs!) sounds like the perform well in snow as OP described. ME MYSELF are looking for a set of tyres that perform just as well in the snow as they would do in the wet. THE OP didn't state that they where bang on the buck in the wet. See... I'm going to replace my Vredestein on the Volvo with a set of winter tyres when it's time... the Z needs slicks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karlp Posted February 6, 2012 Share Posted February 6, 2012 Been thinking about some Nankangs for my fronts on my nismos as the michelin only have another 2/3 months left in them, I had nankang sport II's on all corners of my lexus is200 and found them quite reasonable for a budget tyre, good grip, not a lot of road noise, long wearing. Anybody else tested Nankangs on front nismos? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trackpig Posted February 6, 2012 Share Posted February 6, 2012 Been thinking about some Nankangs for my fronts on my nismos as the michelin only have another 2/3 months left in them, I had nankang sport II's on all corners of my lexus is200 and found them quite reasonable for a budget tyre, good grip, not a lot of road noise, long wearing. Anybody else tested Nankangs on front nismos? Are you asking about SV-2's or another type of Nankang? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neilp Posted February 6, 2012 Share Posted February 6, 2012 Been thinking about some Nankangs for my fronts on my nismos as the michelin only have another 2/3 months left in them, I had nankang sport II's on all corners of my lexus is200 and found them quite reasonable for a budget tyre, good grip, not a lot of road noise, long wearing. Anybody else tested Nankangs on front nismos? I really wouldn't mate. Go for falkens to match the rears if your on a budget Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BulletMagnet Posted February 6, 2012 Share Posted February 6, 2012 I got the SV-2's also and am very happy with them. Some of the guys at work were taking the mick with me having a RWD sports car and the snow was coming down thick and fast on Saturday night. Sunday morning arrived and nightshift came to an end and those who took the mick just looked on speechless as I drive by while they were spinning their wheels in the deep snow of the carpark, haha Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trackpig Posted February 6, 2012 Share Posted February 6, 2012 I got the SV-2's also and am very happy with them. Some of the guys at work were taking the mick with me having a RWD sports car and the snow was coming down thick and fast on Saturday night. Sunday morning arrived and nightshift came to an end and those who took the mick just looked on speechless as I drive by while they were spinning their wheels in the deep snow of the carpark, haha Nice work. It is nice when the tyres get a chance to demonstrate their abilities in such a way! I am happy with my sv-2's for winter and my federal rsr's for summer set-up. Best of both worlds. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.