I will need a new set of tyres soon so what are people using out there on their 2.0 ND’s?
Bridgestone or Conti or anything else?
cheers
I went for Michelin Pilot Sport 4 (now superceded by PS5) but in 215/45 which is cheaper than 205, makes the speedo more accurate and a better fit on 7" rims.
Mine is on Goodyear Eagle F1, also 215/45 R17.
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I’ve got the PS4/5 combo on my Golf tbh & have been happy with those
I changed to standard size Falken ER310z. Seem fine to me; that said I never felt much wrong with the OEM Bridgestones everyone loves to hate - but the Falkens were more economical and had better ratings
Kumho PS71s for me. Ratings, grip, feel, wear and price all very good.
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Goodyear Eagle F1 Asymmetric 6 - great tyres, quiet (far quieter than Bridgestones) and very grippy (even in last week’s torrential rain).
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Michelin Pilot Sports were my other option when BBR put the OZ wheels on my car. I asked how they differed and was told that the Michelins likely have slightly better dry grip but the Goodyears do better in the wet. As I don’t think I’m talented enough (or likely to go on track much, if at all) to notice the slightly improved dry grip I decided I’d rather have a bigger safety net in the wet. Especially as I’d had the back end loose on my car several times before I had it modified.
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I’m in the “dislike Bridgestones” camp, mainly because of buying cars with them on and seeing the vast improvements in quietness and grip when moving to anything else decent.
This antipathy has its roots back in the 1960s/70s when most of us bikers made the dealer take the brand-new unused Bridgestones off new Hondas etc and instead fit Avon or Dunlop before taking possession of the new bike on the never-never. I found the Avon SM MkII wet grip was better than the Bridgestone dry grip, especially when leaning into corners.
But that was a long time ago and most products have improved out of all recognition.
Both my NCs had OE Bridgestones when I bought them and the grip was not quite zero, closer to running on Bakelite than rubber, and I was tiptoeing around.
DSC light was quite busy on the first car.
Second was not so bad, but steering wandered continually, as if they were overinflated.
I asked NickD to fit Dunlop Maxx on the first NC, fantastic grip.
He fitted 215/45 R17 87V Continental Premium Contact 6 on the second NC, they’re an enjoyable confidence booster with super grip.
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My Bridgestones were adequate in the dry and substandard in the wet. After much noodling on the web I chose Michelin PiIot Sport 4s , and I am now on my second set. Like most people I haven’t tried all the alternatives ,so my judgement is subjective . All I can say is that I’ve found them noticeably better all round than the Bridgestones , much better wet grip and with a more progressive breakaway under duress . Which makes the odd playful skid more fun …
Thanks all, some food fir thought!
For those who would like to give Bridgestone another chance, I would recommend their Potenza Sport tyre.
They are noticeably wider than the factory fitted skinny Potenza S001 tyre in the same 205/45 R17 size. They did reasonably well in the following test:
One of the common complaints with these tyres is their seemingly poor longevity during track use.
Wish they were available in 205/50 R16 size! 
This is an interesting read👍
This question is asked so many times. The answers given are always so similar.
So to recap on this thread so far people have recommended Michelin, Goodyear, Falken, Kumho and Dunlop.
The main point that can be taken from these recommendations is that the comments are usually along the lines of “Brand X are much better than the OEM Bridgestones”.
When my tyres were getting low my Mazda dealer quoted for Bridgestones. Are the dealers under Mazda UK instructions to only recommend the OEM tyres? When it seems that the Bridgestones are universally disliked by owners it does make you wonder why Mazda would still be fitting them.
And I’m perfectly happy with my Uniroyal Rainsports. Seem very good up north where it’s not stopped raining since last summer! Being serious though, they seemed good value, good grip and reasonably quiet.
I suspect with my suspicious mind they have a really cheap deal on them.
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I’ve just checked the brand on my ND2; Yokohama Advan Sport on a 16 inch rim. They are most likely the originals as the car has only done 7500 miles. They seem good to me, plenty of grip in the dry but have little experience of them in the wet as mainly a fair weather car.
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They probably fit Bridgestones because they are adequate and they can get them really cheaply. They also underfill the diff oil for the same reason, ie cost cutting.
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Given that Mazda are Japanese, as are both Bridgestone and Yokohama, I can’t believe anyone actually is confused as to why they’re fitted to the 2.0 and 1.5 respectively as OEM!
Not really a surprise but then again there are plenty of electrical parts on the car from China.
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