Is that an M+S Nangkang on the bonnet? Quite like them, good October to April tyre in the UK, soft sidewalls and decent longevity from tread. If so, are they still available in Oz?

Not just Nankang, but an M&S Nankang...

But on a more serious note, haven't they dropped their 'Michelin knockoff' tread pattern in favour of something more CX668 shaped?

ken

mytyres.co.uk are still listing them, but for £48! compared to £28 for the newer ones...

The tyres are Nankang N803 which appear identical to the M+S Nankangs on the Canadian VW website. I am not sure if they are available in Australia any longer as they do not appear on the Nankang Australia website. Instead the website features the CX668 which has a more normal tread pattern.

Since the next Raid Oz is not until 2012, and since both my spares are new and the four road tyres will probably see out the next Raid, I am not that worried. However if they still make N803s in Taiwan (or wherever they are made) we might place an order for a shipment to Australia for other Raiders. There would be enough to make it worthwhile for the importers. They are a good, affordable tyre for Raid conditions, costing around 40 quid. The sidewalls are stiffer than Michelins and the tread is a good pattern for our requirements.

Daffy Duck

Luke,
did you notice that mytyres, who seem to know what they're doing, describe the Nankang N803 as a 'summer' tyre.
I had a car in today with a couple of them fitted so was able to compare how close their tread pattern is to that of a Michelin ZX.

If you want a proper M+S tyre, surely something such as the Vredestein SNOW+ 155 R15 82Q is the business?
Apparently, they work well with 2CV4 gearbox ratios, so maybe I will find a use for those 3 which seem to have appeared around here recently...

ken.

I don't know what they mean by a "summer" tyre. For a bitumen road car, I would prefer the tread on the CX668, and would expect it to be a better tyre in the wet due to the parallel grooves. For a Raid Oz, which is generally in the outback on dirt roads and tracks, the N803 has a better tread, particularly in sand. Although they are generally held in the Australian Spring, with nightime temperatures down to zero and daytime temperaturs up to 40 degrees celsius, its nearly always sunny (thats why the outback is desert). That probably makes a "summer" tyre appropriate. Certainly snow and ice tyres are not needed.

Daffy duck

sorry for the thread hijack DD, but as we were talking about M&S tyres i thought this relevant.

spotted these on eBay - 'Englebert' M+S+E 135's i've never heard of them, i'm guessing they're ancient? any ideas?



http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Citroen-Dyane-2CV ... 0398199479

"Please release me, let me go"...Screech........BANG!!! Straight into a ditch on a bend, when the grip lets go

Well, they are Englebert (Humperdinck) Sorry very,very bad joke.