Omega Owners Forum
Chat Area => General Car Chat => Topic started by: Field Marshal Dr. Opti on 11 July 2015, 11:55:21
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It seems like only yesterday that the front tyres on my Signum were in rude health. This is no longer the case. They are now as bald as a badgers arse. :'(
Vauxhall suggest I fit 'oddball sized' 215/50/17 and it is this size of rubber that is currently fitted to the car.
However, tyre choice in this size is extremely limited, and also expensive. On average a 215/50/17 tyre costs about £25 more than a 225/45/17 tyre. Most Signum owners therefore fit tyres of this size and save themselves £100 or more on a full set.
So which brand to choose?
I have used Kwik Fit fully fitted prices as a guide only. All tyres 225/45/17.
Pirelli P-Zero..........................£78.50
Goodyear F1 Eagle As 2.......£79.50
Pirelli Cinturato P7................£78.50
Dunlop Sport Maxx RT...........£78.00
Prices are very similar so which would you choose.?
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I don't like the p-zero's as there wear and wet grip are not great. the goodyear is the one for me all day long, a good all rounder that makes you feel very relaxed in all conditions, I should advertise for them I even believed myself ;D
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I don't like the p-zero's as there wear and wet grip are not great. the goodyear is the one for me all day long, a good all rounder that makes you feel very relaxed in all conditions, I should advertise for them I even believed myself ;D
I tend to agree.
I have them fitted to my Omega in 235/45/17 form. No complaints.
The Signum is FWD though and I wonder if that makes a difference.
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I don't like the p-zero's as there wear and wet grip are not great. the goodyear is the one for me all day long, a good all rounder that makes you feel very relaxed in all conditions, I should advertise for them I even believed myself ;D
I tend to agree.
I have them fitted to my Omega in 235/45/17 form. No complaints.
The Signum is FWD though and I wonder if that makes a difference.
Personally I have had them on my old front wheel drive insignia and they were just great especially on a big car like the insignia, I will be putting them on the omega when the time comes so the siggy should be very settle with them on imo.
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If you go on www.camskill.co.uk the goodyear As 2 are £68.00 or £68.40 per tyre dependant on tyre rating, that's posted not fitted charge.
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So what you are essentially stating is that most Signum owners are cheapskates who are happy to fit the wrong size tyre to save money and risk affecting the handling and more importantly void their insurance? I would presume your insurance, if notified, would charge more plus the admin charge which would then effectively wipe out any savings you make?
Just fit the correct tyre. Or is it time to sell this car as well? :o
Edit: Eagle F1 would get my vote.
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So what you are essentially stating is that most Signum owners are cheapskates who are happy to fit the wrong size tyre to save money and risk affecting the handling and more importantly void their insurance? I would presume your insurance , if notified, would charge more plus the admin charge which would then effectively wipe out any savings you make?
Just fit the correct tyre. Or is it time to sell this car as well? :o
Edit: Eagle F1 would get my vote.
Not at all.
The handbook states 215/50/17 or 225/45/17 if using 17 inch wheels. :)
Hardly worth a call to the insurance company . :)
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Interesting. 2 different tyre sizes. Fair enough then.
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It seems like only yesterday that the front tyres on my Signum were in rude health. This is no longer the case. They are now as bald as a badgers arse. :'(
Vauxhall suggest I fit 'oddball sized' 215/50/17 and it is this size of rubber that is currently fitted to the car.
However, tyre choice in this size is extremely limited, and also expensive. On average a 215/50/17 tyre costs about £25 more than a 225/45/17 tyre. Most Signum owners therefore fit tyres of this size and save themselves £100 or more on a full set.
So which brand to choose?
I have used Kwik Fit fully fitted prices as a guide only. All tyres 225/45/17.
Pirelli P-Zero..........................£78.50
Goodyear F1 Eagle As 2.......£79.50
Pirelli Cinturato P7................£78.50
Dunlop Sport Maxx RT...........£78.00
Prices are very similar so which would you choose.?
I've used the Goodyears before and they're fine, but given the choice I'd go for a Michelin - if available - as they lasted longer for me.
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But which Michelin?
They do several models of varying compound, which affects life of the tyre.
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Blimey, now you're asking - I'll see if I can dig out a receipt to find out
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Michelins cost an extra £15-£20 a corner.
My Omega came with primacy/premacy?? tyres. Not impressed apart from they lasted for ever.
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But which Michelin?
They do several models of varying compound, which affects life of the tyre.
Sorry, can only find receipts for Pirelli P Zero Rossos, Dunlop SP200s (wife's car) & the dreaded Kumho KU39s
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Vectra C responded well to Bridgestone Turanza fwiw
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I'm reliably informed that a 215/50/17 tyre has an overall diameter of 647mm.
A 225/45/17 tyre has an overall diameter of 634mm......................some 2% less.
Will this have the effect of raising or lowering the overall gearing. Will the car accelerate slower or faster?
I shall now remove my anorak. :)
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Have a check on here :y
https://www.1010tires.com/Tools/Tire-Size-Calculator/215-50R17/225-45R17
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Have a check on here :y
https://www.1010tires.com/Tools/Tire-Size-Calculator/215-50R17/225-45R17
I like that, very useful indeed :y
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Have a check on here :y
https://www.1010tires.com/Tools/Tire-Size-Calculator/215-50R17/225-45R17
I like that, very useful indeed :y
I can't get the link to play ball. :-\
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Have a check on here :y
https://www.1010tires.com/Tools/Tire-Size-Calculator/215-50R17/225-45R17
I like that, very useful indeed :y
I can't get the link to play ball. :-\
Try just tyoing the web address into your browser and go from there.
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I'm reliably informed that a 215/50/17 tyre has an overall diameter of 647mm.
A 225/45/17 tyre has an overall diameter of 634mm......................some 2% less.
Will this have the effect of raising or lowering the overall gearing. Will the car accelerate slower or faster?
I shall now remove my anorak. :)
Smaller overall diameter = lower (shorter) gearing -> marginally quicker acceleration and higher revs (and over reading speedometer).
None of the above will perceptible of course but an increase in road noise will be.
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I'm reliably informed that a 215/50/17 tyre has an overall diameter of 647mm.
A 225/45/17 tyre has an overall diameter of 634mm......................some 2% less.
Will this have the effect of raising or lowering the overall gearing. Will the car accelerate slower or faster?
I shall now remove my anorak. :)
Smaller overall diameter = lower (shorter) gearing -> marginally quicker acceleration and higher revs (and over reading speedometer).
None of the above will perceptible of course but an increase in road noise will be.
Car is very long-legged and needs only 2000 RPM to maintain 70 MPH in 6th gear. Slightly shorter gearing should not present too much of a problem. :y
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Car is very long-legged and needs only 2000 RPM to maintain 70 MPH in 6th gear. Slightly shorter gearing should not present too much of a problem. :y
6th? You have a 6 speed in yours?
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Car is very long-legged and needs only 2000 RPM to maintain 70 MPH in 6th gear. Slightly shorter gearing should not present too much of a problem. :y
6th? You have a 6 speed in yours?
6 speed auto. :y
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I'm reliably informed that a 215/50/17 tyre has an overall diameter of 647mm.
A 225/45/17 tyre has an overall diameter of 634mm......................some 2% less.
Will this have the effect of raising or lowering the overall gearing. Will the car accelerate slower or faster?
I shall now remove my anorak. :)
Smaller overall diameter = lower (shorter) gearing -> marginally quicker acceleration and higher revs (and over reading speedometer).
None of the above will perceptible of course but an increase in road noise will be.
Yes.... I thought this to be the case. :y
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My old 3.2 Signum had 17's and I did take the OEM option of changing to 225's because of cost.
Went through a few different tyres and found Avon ZZV to be the best priced, lasted well and work the best.
My Current Signum is the V6 turbo but its on 18's as part of the XP2 kit, first full set of tyres was fitted middle of last year and again went for Avon ZZV's mainly because the AA were doing a deal and they cost £94 per corner fitted!!
Would say with the turbo, spirited driving, no front tyres will last that long ;D
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My old 3.2 Signum had 17's and I did take the OEM option of changing to 225's because of cost.
Went through a few different tyres and found Avon ZZV to be the best priced, lasted well and work the best.
My Current Signum is the V6 turbo but its on 18's as part of the XP2 kit, first full set of tyres was fitted middle of last year and again went for Avon ZZV's mainly because the AA were doing a deal and they cost £94 per corner fitted!!
Would say with the turbo, spirited driving, no front tyres will last that long ;D
Have you had your car remapped, Phil?
If so any problems?
Courtney Motorsport seem to have plenty of experience with this engine. Apparently £575 will buy a before and after rolling road test for a stage 1 remap.
This 'supposedly' yields 295 BHP and 400 lb (my brain won't work in NM) ft of torque.
.....all through the front tyres. :-\
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Have you had your car remapped, Phil?
If so any problems?
Courtney Motorsport seem to have plenty of experience with this engine. Apparently £575 will buy a before and after rolling road test for a stage 1 remap.
This 'supposedly' yields 295 BHP and 400 lb (my brain won't work in NM) ft of torque.
.....all through the front tyres. :-\
Short answer yes its been remapped.
Long answer involves finding paperwork with the car, discussions with Superchips, getting a new Bluefin unit and playing with it, result HUGE grin :-)
If you want to do it, as its an auto rolling road set up is quite hard, with the Bluefin you download the map on the car, email it to Superchips, in 48hrsish they send you the new map back and you just download it with the handheld unit. All for around £350, imho best way to go.
You will notice a huge in gear difference, as the box goes up or down when on boost you really can feel the pull.
Mine was a 230, but having a play with a G meter type plug in box of tricks theat works off the OBD port it will now hit 60 in around 6.3 seconds, for a heavy (Elite spec weighs little bit more than an Omega!!) repmobile with an auto box, I'm quite impressed with that.
Superchips quote that the 230, 255 and 280 versions all end up with around 290-300bhp and 400lb/ft and I have no reason to disagree its close to that
Oh and fuel economy has improved slightly, not that it really matters.
What you will find is once its mapped it will highlight any issues with coil packs and spark plugs, but packs can be bought for around £35-50 each and upgraded plugs are about £50 for all 6 Iridium, but its really important to make sute they are gapped to 0.8mm as that resolves alot of issues
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Have you had your car remapped, Phil?
If so any problems?
Courtney Motorsport seem to have plenty of experience with this engine. Apparently £575 will buy a before and after rolling road test for a stage 1 remap.
This 'supposedly' yields 295 BHP and 400 lb (my brain won't work in NM) ft of torque.
.....all through the front tyres. :-\
Short answer yes its been remapped.
Long answer involves finding paperwork with the car, discussions with Superchips, getting a new Bluefin unit and playing with it, result HUGE grin :-)
If you want to do it, as its an auto rolling road set up is quite hard, with the Bluefin you download the map on the car, email it to Superchips, in 48hrsish they send you the new map back and you just download it with the handheld unit. All for around £350, imho best way to go.
You will notice a huge in gear difference, as the box goes up or down when on boost you really can feel the pull.
Mine was a 230, but having a play with a G meter type plug in box of tricks theat works off the OBD port it will now hit 60 in around 6.3 seconds, for a heavy (Elite spec weighs little bit more than an Omega!!) repmobile with an auto box, I'm quite impressed with that.
Superchips quote that the 230, 255 and 280 versions all end up with around 290-300bhp and 400lb/ft and I have no reason to disagree its close to that
Oh and fuel economy has improved slightly, not that it really matters.
What you will find is once its mapped it will highlight any issues with coil packs and spark plugs, but packs can be bought for around £35-50 each and upgraded plugs are about £50 for all 6 Iridium, but its really important to make sute they are gapped to 0.8mm as that resolves alot of issues
Yes, I've heard that remaps work better with the plugs gapped thus.
I tried four different maps from a Bluefin Superchips device before returning it for a refund.
Performance was much improved with the standard map......the car being both smoother and quicker.
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....being the '250' version it appears all the performance gains were already put in place by Vauxhall. :-\
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....being the '250' version it appears all the performance gains were already put in place by Vauxhall. :-\
280 had the 'full beanz' but alas was never available in the Signum or Elite spec Vectras.
The only real difference between the 250 and 280 is the Vauxhall map and the VXR has a slightly different air box, it has an extra hole in the bottom.
The difference with the Bluefin on mine is really noticable, any gear from 2k-5.5k it pulls really really well. If you were a bit closer would take you for a comparisson drive in it, think you will notice the difference.
Guess I was lucky with mine, but its a daily runner, its Elite spec with a few otional extras, I bought it 18 months ago with under 80k on it and only paid £2.5k, even better it misses the expensive tax band by 2 days so costs no more to tax than my Omega :-)
The 'its just a crappy Vxl' looks makes alot of 'sporty' and 'performance variant' cars look very very silly, not that I would ever do that sort of thing :-)
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The auto VXRs were limited to 255 iirc, even when they went to the full fat 280 in the manual... Simply put, you've got the wrong box in yours Dr O :D
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....being the '250' version it appears all the performance gains were already put in place by Vauxhall. :-\
280 had the 'full beanz' but alas was never available in the Signum or Elite spec Vectras.
The only real difference between the 250 and 280 is the Vauxhall map and the VXR has a slightly different air box, it has an extra hole in the bottom.
The difference with the Bluefin on mine is really noticable, any gear from 2k-5.5k it pulls really really well. If you were a bit closer would take you for a comparisson drive in it, think you will notice the difference.
Guess I was lucky with mine, but its a daily runner, its Elite spec with a few otional extras, I bought it 18 months ago with under 80k on it and only paid £2.5k, even better it misses the expensive tax band by 2 days so costs no more to tax than my Omega :-)
The 'its just a crappy Vxl' looks makes alot of 'sporty' and 'performance variant' cars look very very silly, not that I would ever do that sort of thing :-)
I like the fact it (the Signum) looks so innocuous. Every Saxo driving spotty youth wearing a 'back to front baseball cap' thinks it will be easy meat away from the lights. With it's tall skinny tyres it's an unsporting old hector. Mine lacks even a sport button.
However, it's not as slow as it's staid looks imply. My car managed zero to sixty in 6.46 seconds and a 14.93 seconds quarter mile. :y. It's quite nippy. ::)
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The auto VXRs were limited to 255 iirc, even when they went to the full fat 280 in the manual... Simply put, you've got the wrong box in yours Dr O :D
I'm guessing about 90% of all Vectra VXR come with a manual gearbox, and about 90% of all Signum 2.8T come with an auto box.
The Vectra is more overtly sporting........and all of them seem to be bright blue. :)
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All 2.8v6 Signum and non Vxr Vectras are auto only... Exception being the plod ones which were Sri spec with full 280 and a manual box...
The 3.2 versions of both cars were available in manaul and auto form as both Elite and Sri, but non plod or Gsi manuals are rare at best ;)
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All 2.8v6 Signum and non Vxr Vectras are auto only... Exception being the plod ones which were Sri spec with full 280 and a manual box...
The 3.2 versions of both cars were available in manaul and auto form as both Elite and Sri, but non plod or Gsi manuals are rare at best ;)
You can get a manual 2.8 Signum.
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All 2.8v6 Signum and non Vxr Vectras are auto only... Exception being the plod ones which were Sri spec with full 280 and a manual box...
The 3.2 versions of both cars were available in manaul and auto form as both Elite and Sri, but non plod or Gsi manuals are rare at best ;)
That statement is not correct at all, there are manual 2.8 V6 Signums about - when I was looking for mine, of the 4 for sale at the time 2 were manual
They never made a GSi Signum, or indeed a 'sporty SRi version', Signum was only available in Elite, Design or Elegance spec iirc, but most GSi Vectras are manual as are the 2ltr turbos
Having owned a 3.2 Signum and now the 2.8, the 2.8 is a far far far better car to drive, actually makes the 3.2 feel pedestrian and gutless (still own a 3.2 Omega and as it weighs the same as the Signum, I can directly compare)
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The Signum Sri was available to order as an early facelift... But not as a V6...
Never said owt about the Signum being Gsi either... Was refering to the availability of the V6 with a manual box in the Vectra C/Signum platform ;)
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All 2.8v6 Signum and non Vxr Vectras are auto only... Exception being the plod ones which were Sri spec with full 280 and a manual box...
The 3.2 versions of both cars were available in manaul and auto form as both Elite and Sri, but non plod or Gsi manuals are rare at best ;)
That statement is not correct at all, there are manual 2.8 V6 Signums about - when I was looking for mine, of the 4 for sale at the time 2 were manual
They never made a GSi Signum, or indeed a 'sporty SRi version', Signum was only available in Elite, Design or Elegance spec iirc, but most GSi Vectras are manual as are the 2ltr turbos
Having owned a 3.2 Signum and now the 2.8, the 2.8 is a far far far better car to drive, actually makes the 3.2 feel pedestrian and gutless (still own a 3.2 Omega and as it weighs the same as the Signum, I can directly compare)
Yes...my Signum is far swifter than my Omega. Even before a remap it has an extra 80 lb ft of torque. Maximum torque of 258 lb ft is delivered at only 1800 RPM.
Pretty effortless really. :y
It's certainly no beauty but then neither is the Insignia.
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Is it ft lbs or lb ft?.......I always get confused. :-\
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But having driven a 4x4 Insignia VXR, the Signum cannot possibly compete in the driving department...
Even with an oil burner fitted, the four wheel drive Insignia is an exceptional cross country device, dynamically in a different universe to the Vectra C chassis 8)
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But having driven a 4x4 Insignia VXR, the Signum cannot possibly compete in the driving department...
Even with an oil burner fitted, the four wheel drive Insignia is an exceptional cross country device, dynamically in a different universe to the Vectra C chassis 8)
Yes...nothing to write home about in that department. It's a Vectra/Signum therefore it will never set the world on fire with it's handling prowess.
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But having driven a 4x4 Insignia VXR, the Signum cannot possibly compete in the driving department...
Even with an oil burner fitted, the four wheel drive Insignia is an exceptional cross country device, dynamically in a different universe to the Vectra C chassis 8)
Yes...nothing to write home about in that department. It's a Vectra/Signum therefore it will never set the world on fire with it's handling prowess.
Tru dat ;D
Doesn't stop you from putting a bit of weight in the boot, fitting a pair of Autonogrips to the back end and having hours and hours of lift off oversteer fun on any roundabout you encounter ::)