Tyres

Re Goodride tyres. I fitted a set that I bought new at auction to fit my 2006 Mitsubishi 380. I was a bit concerned, too, about wet-weather driving after reading some negative reviews from Britain where they seem more widely available. We had not one issue in the wet — my wife drives the car most of the time and she would have complained if there was a problem. We got 45,000km from them over three years and, as I paid about two-thirds of retail, it was a good return. I believe Goodride tyres are used commonly on mining and industrial vehicles.

For all those suffering with cabin noise, do what I've done with every new car. Buy a couple cans of sound deadener and spray inside the wheel arches. It reduces the problem dramatically for only a few bucks.

Have you or your colleagues had any experience with Goodride tyres? We recently bought a Suzuki Kizashi for my wife to drive. The owner has fitted a set of Goodride S07s to sell the car and, while they thump a bit which I put down to the 45 profile, I am a bit concerned about the grip on wet roads. They don't seem to give a lot of confidence and, while they may be all right this winter, I am concerned about how they'll be next winter and the following one.

I agree with the Mazda3 tyre noise criticism. I bought an SP25 GT hatch in 2014 and on any road surface that is less than pristine this car struggles to insulate. There are also vibrations inside the cabin from the front seat belt adjuster on the driver's side, the steering wheel and the centre console lid. There's a constant popping sound from the dashboard. There were several software glitches and the parking sensors needed replacing. This car has been a major disappointment. I can't understand why it's a motoring media favourite.

I've been reading with interest of the problems with excessive tyre noise in the Mazda3. I have a new Mazda3 SP25 GT fitted with Dunlop Maxx tyres and I have no reason to complain about noise. In fact, this car is much quieter than my previous model Mazda3.

My wife and I drive a Mazda3 Neo built in August 2014. Will replacing the supplied Toyo NanoEnergy tyres make a significant difference to road noise? I reckon it's just a matter of insufficient noise dampening materials fitted in the vehicle.

I bought the new Mazda3 for my wife when it first came out in early 2014, an SP25 GT Sedan top-of-the-range. She likes the Mazdas and the write-ups on this model mentioned a lot less road noise, but I could only test it up to 80km/h on Melbourne roads, so thought it was reasonable. How wrong I was. Tyre noise has been an issue from day one with the new one, although I waited until 30,000km to change tyres. After a bit of research, I went for Continental ContiSportContact, which I also have on my Volkswagen Passat wagon and find quiet. It has reduced road noise on the Mazda by maybe 25 per cent, but still not acceptable in today's motoring and I find it hard to talk over the noise when on coarser road surfaces. This is the third Mazda we have owned and it will be our last.

We have just returned from a road trip to Queensland from Victoria in our brand-new Mazda3 sedan and are very disappointed with noise from the road surface, wind and drumming from the rear of the car. We had to raise our voices to hear each other and had to turn up the radio to hear above the noise. I didn't read about or consider this to be an issue with this car. Any comments, as we are considering replacing it?

I've just had my 2003 Nissan X-Trail serviced by my garage, which they do every six months. It has done 120,000km. They said my tyres are now getting a bit hard and should be replaced, even though there is plenty of tread left. I had two fitted in February 2008 at 66,000km, the next two at 83,000km in April 2010. I retired in July 2011 so we don't do the kilometres we used to. My question is, at what stage do they start going "off" and do they get to the stage where they are dangerous?

I have been looking at new cars, and so many only have space-saver spares. Speaking to one rep he said space-savers actually cost the car companies more than a full size spare. Which begs the question why not design the cars properly in the first place to have enough space to fit a full size spare? I don't mind paying extra for a full size one if they want to save cost or weight. What am I supposed to do if I have a flat in one of these cars that doesn't even have space for a full size spare? That means there is no space to safely store the flat. It's going to be a potential missile within the car and at the very least dirty up the interior of the boot space and my luggage. It just doesn't seem logical.