Tyres......again....ZzzzzZzzzz

sidepod · Mar 29, 2017

Would you sacrifice a few kilos of load rating for a few decibels?

My research shows if you drop down from 102 rating to 101 (25kg) then you can source tyres with a decibel rating of 68dB as opposed to 72 ish.
I assume this is sidewall stiffness related.

Download a decibel app on your phone and hum a constant drone at 68dB, then increase your hum to 72.
Big delta!

How interesting would I be at a party! :bananadance2

MattBW · Mar 29, 2017

My all season tyres are what my boss refers to as velcro tyres and pretty noisy. I'd like a quieter van for sure.

Perhaps you can do us a video of you humming at different decibels so we can decide

Alibee · Mar 29, 2017

4dB is a hell of a lot to give away.

I found tyre noise to be single biggest issue with long-distance days in my T4, but I only managed to find van tyres down to 70dB. 25kg is peanuts compared to a fully laden Cali, so I would go with the quieter tyre.

MattBW · Mar 29, 2017

In my T25 I couldnt hear the tyres over the engine tbh, its novel to be able to hear windnoise.

sidepod · Mar 29, 2017

I'll get on it Matt. It's bound to go viral!

briwy · Mar 29, 2017

Just done 160 miles after putting the summer Dunlops back on from the winter Vredensteins.
So much smoother and quieter. You just get used to what is on I guess.

soulstyledevon · Mar 30, 2017

I always look for the lowest decibel rating on tyres. Who wants noisy rubber on a touring vehicle...???
Had no idea, dropping from 102 to 101 was a 25kg difference. I assumed it was less.
I've never tried, but it would be interesting to fully load the vehicle for a camping trip and see what she weighs.

larrylamb · Mar 30, 2017

sidepod said:
Download a decibel app on your phone and hum a constant drone at 68dB, then increase your hum to 72.
Big delta!

Noise measurements are an algorithm and every increase of 3db is a doubling of noise energy. For example 96db is actually 4 x the sound energy of 90db so if you can save db it is well worth it.

sidepod · Mar 30, 2017

Slightly off topic but it always makes me laugh....

Confuserated · Mar 30, 2017

so that's 100 kg altogether?

sidepod · Mar 30, 2017

Probably better stated as 50kg/axle?

That said, tyres are available at any given load rating with an XL suffix for extra load.
I've yet to find a numerical indication as to what this means.

T6 CFO · Mar 30, 2017

larrylamb said:
Noise measurements are an algorithm and every increase of 3db is a doubling of noise energy. For example 96db is actually 4 x the sound energy of 90db so if you can save db it is well worth it.

Thanks! Never knew that

Mike

Borris · Mar 30, 2017

Some years ago I purchased a second hand Mercedes R Class, mainly for towing. It had plenty of grunt to match it's pig uggly looks but was a good tow car.

The drive home was accompanied by an unusual amount of road noise. On investigation I discovered that the dealer had fitted a full set of new chinese tyres. So the first thing that I did was to change them for a set of Michelins and sell the chinese jobs on Ebay. The difference was startling.

The same thing happened recently when I bought my wife a nearly new car from a main agent dealer. Part worn continentals on the rears and new chinese tyres on the front. To some they are just tyres but for me at least, I demand the same brand and model on each corner.
So the moral of this story is to check closely as some dealers think that they can get away with this sort of thing.

Yorkie · Mar 31, 2017

Borris said:
Some years ago I purchased a second hand Mercedes R Class, mainly for towing. It had plenty of grunt to match it's pig uggly looks but was a good tow car.

The drive home was accompanied by an unusual amount of road noise. On investigation I discovered that the dealer had fitted a full set of new chinese tyres. So the first thing that I did was to change them for a set of Michelins and sell the chinese jobs on Ebay. The difference was startling.

The same thing happened recently when I bought my wife a nearly new car from a main agent dealer. Part worn continentals on the rears and new chinese tyres on the front. To some they are just tyres but for me at least, I demand the same brand and model on each corner.
So the moral of this story is to check closely as some dealers think that they can get away with this sort of thing.

I bought a one year old Audi A6 and the dealer said he would replace the one low tyre, they fitted a £20 tyre and so 3 good year 1 Chinese. I complained endlessly and they paid for me to swap for a match