Wanli S1063 Reviews - Page 5

I bought these Wanli tires after seeing a weekend offer on Tire Shopper which almost seemed too good to be true (£63 per tire fully fitted - madness!). Like most people, I looked up reviews on them before clicking on the 'buy' button and was initially apprehensive because I'd never heard of Wanli and tha the reviews that I was reading weren't exactly stellar, with words like 'ditch finder' being mentioned frequently and of them apparently being 'dangerous' in the wet.

Since the offer was so good, I decided to bite the bullet and buy them. Got them fitted a few days and I have to say that I'm actually impressed! Going from the (fairly worn) Avon ZZ5's that were fitted before, the difference is noticeable; the traction levels right from pulling away to braking are massively increased - they're managing to deal with the torque from my Audi's remapped (190bhp-ish) engine impressively without a hint of wheelspin - even in the wet. When brand new (like all tires) they felt quite slippy but that's to be expected though. The car is cornering nicely now after the tires have bedded in a bit too. I've read a few complaints about increased road noise with the Wanli's fitted, but I honestly haven't noticed any difference to my previous tires. I can't rate them on progressiveness or wear yet as I've never been one to drive like Lewis Hamilton around corners and haven't had them fitted long enough to vouch for how well they wear.

This begs the question 'Why are they getting such bad reviews?'. I've got a theory that people are slating these before even trying them or are driving like nutters with them fitted. Naturally, these are BUDGET tires, so you can't complain about them not performing like tires twice their price - although I very much doubt that the average driver will notice much of a difference. No tire performs amazingly well in wet weather - that's a fact. If you go around a tight bend at 50mph and are surprised when you end up in a tree and blame it on your tires people have every right to point and snigger.

If I continue to be as happy with these tires as I am at the moment I can definitely see me buying them again.

You're probably reading these reviews because you are unsure about the quality of these tires for the price,given they are made in China. I did too. Well I suppose it depends on what you are expecting from a tire: if it's brand image that is of concern to you then some buyers may want to look elsewhere. My assumption is that all tires must meet a minimum standard to be sold here in the UK, so they all do the job intended but perform differently under varying road and weather conditions, coupled with the level of driving experience the person driving has and how hard they push the vehicle when cornering. I have just replaced four old tires with the same again; the Wanli S1063. Why? Well, yes, the price was good but also because the previous set covered 34,500 miles. I am no expert but that tells me that they are not a soft compound tire and so the down side is a bit more road noise and a reduction in grip in wet conditions. Overall,I would say that if you are a careful, considerate driver who drives normally (not races around)and takes a little extra care in the wet, then you should not be disappointed. If you drive hard and expect more feedback from a tire then you may want to look at the upper end of the market. With these, value for money you will get, perhaps street cred you won't. As they say you pays your money and... Hope this helps.

I recently replaced a set of manufacturer-issued Michelins on my '09 Insignia with 1063 WANLIs.
The 225/17/55 is a tall tire and I have had the sidewalls collapse on the front during an avoidance maneuver on the motorway. Quite frightening as car became really unstable for a second.
This tire proved very hard to balance correctly and needed a few visits to get right. Still not sure it's right.
I noticed straight away that the car seems to bounce along at normal urban speeds and has a certain wobble or roughness at highway speeds, so much so that I have an appointment at Grimshawes in Bury to try a new set of wheels to isolate any one wheel causing an issue and then drilling down to see if a tire is to blame.
These problems appeared with these tires and I am not a fussy guy, they just feel odd.
Snow grip is amazing, by the way, but that makes me think that a certain softness for snow-grip is what gives these tall tires, in my instance, this rubbery, bouncy, wobbly feel.

Have both of my front tires wrapped in these.

A great dry tire with plenty of grip and responsiveness throughout acceleration and also during rapid cornering. Tires also give great feedback, but are somewhat more noisy than premium brand tires, as may be expected.

The compound in these is quite hard, hence the slightly elevated road noise and after 20,000 miles, the thread shows little signs of wear.
These tires give good braking and give great predictability if the wheels happen to lock up under heavy braking.

As a wet tire, they're not very impressive. While they're not dangerous in the wet, I've experienced these tires spin in the wet when attempting to feed >170bhp through them in 1st, 2nd and 3rd gear. Cornering in the wet while reasonable is by no means confidence inspiring. These tires will tend to squirm if the car is pushed slightly, but for an economy brand, they're very good and you get more than you pay for.

For anyone who is going to get tires put on fresh;
1. Check that your tire pressure is correct shortly after having tires put on. These are a reasonable wet tire, so be sensible and make sure that the tire pressure is correct to ensure their proper performance.
2. As with any tire; break them in gently, get to know their characteristics and nature in different conditions.

Overall, these are an economy tire which are excellent value for money.
I initially got one of these as the tire center had no other brand in stock.
I was not impressed upon hearing "Wanli" but shortly after I gladly replaced the opposite tire with another of these and there was a noticeable improvement in grip from the cheap (and quite rubbish) Hero Milanza tire which the previous owner had mounted.

Recommend; yes!