I then asked the tyre guy for a quote for a replacement price on my son’s VE SV6 of Potenza 18″-245-45, thinking Chrissy present and was told $372.00 each -FUG-ME

Now that I have looked at the tyres side by side any differences, apart from inside diametre and wall depth, are VERY hard to spot. In fact if you look at the two from the end they are identical, right down to the tread pattern.

Have I entered the wonderful world of aftermarketing ?

as to the rest – wish I’d thought of buying multiple spares. I’m paying around $500-$570 a tyre (depending on single or full set) and only getting around 20,000kms out of them due to the camber putting excess wear on the inners.

as to re-treads – wouldn’t touch ‘em with a barge pole. I had them on an old cortina when I was back-packing Oz many years ago before I moved over here permanantly – they essentially fell apart when we hit the higher temps, and weren’t safe beyond 80km/h.
considering all your steering, cornering and braking relies on 4 tiny postcard-sized contact points with the road, the tyre is the one component you shouldn’t scrimp upon – I’ll always buy high quality tyres; My life and the lives of my passengers are too valuable not to.

CHEERS SHANE

i got the most simple and easiest way to save money on tires under 18 or 19 inch only though. Ok whats the problems with re-treds. i mean u pay $230 for 16 inch tires for a omega. with re-treds u will easily save $80 per tire(without hagging). And with re-treds you are getting the same amount of tred that u get on normal new tires, the only difference is, when u decide to take it to the track u can notice the difference, & whats the chance ur gona take a omega or berlina or calais to the track. on the road re-treds are pretty much the same as normal tires.

Now think this through right save $80 a tire on re-treds, x times 4 tires, u easily save about $320.

and if u think of it tires arnt that expensive, tires are changed what between every 30 000 km to 70 or 80 000 km, and by 80 000 km of travel how much money of petrol would have been spent.

and ive read that some ppl change their tires once every like 6 yrs that how rarely they drive, so if ur scared or too cheap to cough up $4000 once every say 60 000 km, or about 2 yrs of average driving, for a car like a ssv, then thats ur problem not the tire companies or cars problem.

I mean surely if u can afford a beautiful car like a ssv, and u r able to keep it serviced and put fuel in its tank, then surely u should have no problem getting tires for it