Tyres

[Stine]

Total newbie here. . .

I was hoping for some direction, please. I've taken my partners 2010 Liberty GT Wagon as he's now got a work vehicle.

I need to get four new tyres for it, and I'm conscious of getting the right ones, I sometimes carry 400kg in the back for work, but otherwise it's general driving (60km return trip daily) with the occasional gravel road.

I'm getting the run around with the tyre shops, everything from;
- ma'am do you realise there are different tyre sizes
to
- you need to buy these as they are the last ones to come out of the US and much better than Asian tyres?! (don't even get me started)

It has 225/45/18's at the moment. Are Bridgestone RE003 suitable or is there something more appropriate for the Liberty.

Thanks

[Yowie]

Bridgestone RE003 are a very popular tyre for "sporty road-based" drivers.

I have them and so do many other Subaru enthusiasts. More "pure sport" drivers talk-up Michelin Pilot Sports as the better sports tyre, but I don't think they are as price competitive as RE003s on special.

RE003 regularly turn up as "4 tyres for the price of three" deals several times per year, so if you can wait for the next one of those you'll save more cash.

I think my "4 for 3 deal" RE003s cost about the same as my wife's "regular economy/wear" family car tyres on the same rims

If your particular needs are not so much "sporty grip" but more general/gravel/load and longevity is more of a priority, then RE003s will probably wear faster than "regular economy/wear" family car tyres (which I don't know/care as much about). There would be plenty of options in the "regular economy/wear" family car tyre category for that tyre size.

[BillyCorgi]

"What tyres should I use" posts are as emotional as "what Oil Should I use" posts and "Should I use E10" posts and "should I use genuine Subaru oil filter" posts.
There is no right or wrong answer, simply personnal preferences.

I run 225/45/18 tyres on my Gen4 SpecB and they work well.
I think that they work better than the standard 215/45/18 and feel more comfortable than 225/40/18
The service manual suggests that 225/45/18 are the factory size for the 18inch wheels on the 2010 Liberty GT.

Advice I will give you, determine what tyres you want, check if they are available from Tyroola and see what prices they have, and buy them online.
Much simpler!

Good luck with your quest.

[Stine]

Thanks for the guidance. I ended up with the RE003's at $200 each fitted. Glad to have it done.

I find the car is pulling to the left, I took it back, and they've told me the 'the alignment is spot on, it's because the casters are slightly negative and can't be adjusted' is this normal for the liberty?

[fedaykin]

Might be camber (positive camber on left front wheel)

[Stifull]

Hi.. Yes tyres can be a difficult choice without a lot of research. We have 9 cars in our household, 3 are 4wd, 1 is a Suzuki Swift GTi and the other 5 are all Subarus, 3 WRXs, Lib GT and a normal Impreza. As you can imagine we have tried many tyres however we never go the expensive brands as the difference between the best of the normal price tyres are as good as the expensive one IMHO. I think some people get convinced that the dearest ones are the best so they always pay too much for everything the buy. LOL... If you are driving in Snow, which our STi does in winter, get RE003s. PS4s were on sti last year and it struggled in snow. A friend with new PS4s on his Lib Wagon stopped on Alpine Way last week because cars were loosing it in snow ( the vast majority of staff live in Jindy and work in Thredbo and they all drive Subarus or other AWD cars because they are exempt from the mandatory Snow Chain laws). From stopped, his Lib slowly started to slide backwards down the hill off the road and into another car that had done the same. RE003s probably would have held their ground, literally, as they have done so in the past. I have re003s on my Lib GT and Michelin on my WRX but only because I got 4 for $ of 3 plus $100 cash back. GT needs tyres soon as it is my daily and I will get another set of RE003s. The Michelin PS4s do stop better on a wet road and that's why they are on my wifes and daughters cars but they aren't quite as good as a performance tyre as the RE003s..Sorry can't advise on how long they last as I never keeping track. If I cared about that I wouldn't go to the shops via the 30 min mountain circuit instead of 15min via the village..

[Yowie]

Good to hear the feedback about 003s in icy conditions. Not that it's a Queensland problem, but still.

---

With all those subies in the household it might be like that scene in The Castle:-

Darryl Kerrigan: “Oh Steve, could you move the Camira? I need to get the Torana out so I can get to the Commodore.”
Steve Kerrigan: “I’ll have to get the keys to the Cortina if I’m gonna move that Camira.”
Darryl Kerrigan: “Yeah. Watch the boat, mate.”

[bigBADbenny]

5CB5EF98-0DFB-4AC0-85E6-146744929179.jpeg (219.42 KiB) Viewed 2399 times

My last 2 sets were S001, now on Re003.
The local tyre shop practically insisted, so far I can see why they’re popular

[Tonic]

Continental super sports I found were good with Bridgestone potenza the stock tyre... a good one....
Buying a set a year I tend to shop around. Just gone off kuhmos onto pirelli dragon sports and I think that has been a retrograde step... no confidence I the pirellis as they feel ‘slippery’ in the steering..... kuhmos were good but wore faster than the Bridgestone or contis.
If you only city drive with no 7 tenths or more than the cheap Chinese tyres are fine.....