Tyre rating Y or V for GTI?

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Burnerclimb
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Tyre rating Y or V for GTI?

Post by Burnerclimb »

I purchased a 2nd hand GTI recently and it came with 215/40 R17 87 Y rated tyres but when I do a tyre search on Kwik fit or National Tyres it recommends a V rated tyre replacement.

Y rated tyres are rated to 186mph and I don't plan on driving anywhere near these speeds either on V, W or Y rated tyres!

My question is as the top speed of the car is 146mph, can I fit V rated tyres which cover to 150mph as long as the load factor is good? The ride on the car is pretty miserable and and I was hoping this might improve the ride if the pressures were lower.

TIA.
SRGTD
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Re: Tyre rating Y or V for GTI?

Post by SRGTD »

The GTI came from the factory with a Y speed rating. Bear in mind that if you’re considering fitting tyres with a lower speed rating, then according to this article on Auto Trader’s website, you could invalidate your insurance.

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/content/gu ... eed-rating

As for ride quality - any small performance hatch on low profile (40 section) tyres with shallow sidewalls, 17” alloys and a suspension set up with the emphasis on handling will always have a less compliant ride than, say, a 1.0 litre Polo on 15” wheels and tyres with higher profile (60 section) sidewalls. The brand of tyre fitted can make a big difference to ride quality - e.g. Bridgestone’s performance tyres (that VW seem to favour) tend to have very stiff sidewalls and so give a much less compliant ride than say Michelin’s PS4 performance tyre. VW’s recommended tyre pressures on the sticker inside the fuel filler flap will also be on the high side with the emphasis on minimising rolling resistance and reducing CO2 emissions - lowering the pressure by a couple of PSI may improve the ride quality.

Both of my Polo GTI’s (previous car; a 2016 6c GTI and current car; a 2020 AW GTI+) had Bridgestone tyres fitted from the factory. My current car now has Michelin PS4 tyres fitted all round, and IMHO the ride is definitely more compliant than it was when the ‘hard as nails’ original Bridgestone tyres were fitted. I run my tire pressures a couple of PSI lower than VW’s recommended pressures.
Burnerclimb
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Re: Tyre rating Y or V for GTI?

Post by Burnerclimb »

Thanks SRGTD for a comprehensive reply, much appreciated. I will drop the pressures by a couple of PSI from the VW recommended settings. The car is indeed on Bridgestone tyres so I'll look at replacing those as I think they're OEM. If you think keeping new tyres at Y rated is good then I'll go with your advice.

My wife's Golf GTI runs at 41psi all round so I'll look at dropping them a couple too! I understand VW's logic in saving the planet but our kidneys are taking a battering!
Bepis
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Re: Tyre rating Y or V for GTI?

Post by Bepis »

I'm on PS4s and run 35 front and 33 rear.

Took the edge off the bumps but wasn't a night and day difference and the mpg didn't drop noticeably.

Although going to the eco pressures for a one-off long motorway journey did improve the mpg enough to justify it (4-6mpg roughly).
Burnerclimb
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Re: Tyre rating Y or V for GTI?

Post by Burnerclimb »

VW recommend 39 front, 35 rear for normal driving.and into the 40's for carrying weight, so I'm a bit wary dropping too low. I can't find any mention of eco setting for 215/40 R17's?

SRGTD recommends only dropping a couple of PSI in an earlier post and you're both recommending the PS4, so thanks for that endorsement.
Bepis
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Re: Tyre rating Y or V for GTI?

Post by Bepis »

Eco pressure is just running at the pressure for carrying weight but without carrying the extra weight.

Less rolling resistance so more mpg but less grip and if you do it all the time you'll wear out the centre of the tyre before the rest. The ride at low speeds is also awful so I only ever do it if I'm doing 200+ miles of motorway driving to the south once or twice a year.
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