DroppedRider Posted March 29, 2023 Share The costs of bicycle tyres are now almost the same as what it costs for my car tyres. Is there special material in them or more R&D? Someone help me understand. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brawler Posted March 29, 2023 Share Devils advocate - don't shoot me. Lower economies of scale Fewer suppliers and fatter profits Are you comparing an ultra high end bicycle tyre to a Toyota Tazz tyre? Go look at the price of a Range Rover tyre... Edited March 29, 2023 by Brawler Vishal72, Mtree and mecheng89 1 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DieselnDust Posted March 29, 2023 Share 16 minutes ago, DroppedRider said: The costs of bicycle tyres are now almost the same as what it costs for my car tyres. Is there special material in them or more R&D? Someone help me understand. Unadulterated price gauging kower material costs lower labour costs lower energy costs loke everything else provided by the bike industry , because we’re willing to be ripped several new ones , they oblige, even open the door fot you with a smile Wannabe and love2fly 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DieselnDust Posted March 29, 2023 Share 10 minutes ago, Brawler said: Devils advocate - don't shoot me. Lower economies of scale Fewer suppliers and fatter profits Are you comparing an ultra high end bicycle tyre to a Toyota Tazz tyre? Go look at the price of a Range Rover tyre... 225x40 R18 Z rated is around R2200 per tyre. A lot of rubber and steel, fabric. It’s heavy and when shipped there’s a lot of air average Mtb tyre is R1200 for a 1/20th of the material, weight and is packaged far more economically. import tax has a role in the bicycle tyre being so expensive but largely it’s just because we’re willing to pay. commuter bike tyres are far cheaper nonky and Wannabe 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
love2fly Posted March 29, 2023 Share Because we're getting ripped off! Not by the LBS but by the manufacturer. Compare the weight of your car tyre vs bike and that's it. Same with brake pads. Someone mentioned economies of scale - car tyres are produced in their 10's of millions but there are thousands more vrands. Same goes for bicycle disc pads... The bike industry is contracting so hopefully some sanity will emerge. mazambaan and TheoG 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Danger Dassie Posted March 29, 2023 Share Also factor in that cycling/tyres often have material not found on car tyres. Kevlar beads, graphene compounds etc .... Fyi I don't know which car tyres are that much cheaper really. Anything 15inch and over is way more than any cycling tyre. Don't even get me started on motorbike tyres. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OVERDRIVE Posted March 29, 2023 Share 25 minutes ago, Brawler said: Devils advocate - don't shoot me. Lower economies of scale Fewer suppliers and fatter profits Are you comparing an ultra high end bicycle tyre to a Toyota Tazz tyre? Go look at the price of a Range Rover tyre... 11 minutes ago, DieselnDust said: 225x40 R18 Z rated is around R2200 per tyre. A lot of rubber and steel, fabric. It’s heavy and when shipped there’s a lot of air average Mtb tyre is R1200 for a 1/20th of the material, weight and is packaged far more economically. import tax has a role in the bicycle tyre being so expensive but largely it’s just because we’re willing to pay. commuter bike tyres are far cheaper Range Sport tyre vs MTB wheel... Danger Dassie and DieselnDust 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prince Albert Cycles Posted March 29, 2023 Share Asked myself the same question many times . But the question answered every time I barrel down a rocky path at speed without a worry about a tyre failing.. Oli4, nonky, white tiger and 1 other 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BaGearA Posted March 29, 2023 Share 36 minutes ago, OVERDRIVE said: Range Sport tyre vs MTB wheel... And you can get the cream of the crop mtb tyre for 1299 if you shop around a little anyone seen what A Pirelli P-zero costs ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MORNE Posted March 29, 2023 Share Yes but will i bike tire last 60000km?😅 Edit: lets compare fruits from the same species: Bicycle tyres are expensive. Edited March 29, 2023 by MORNE love2fly and Skylark 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted March 29, 2023 Share Tread carefully, all this talk is making me very rather tired. Sandro, DieselnDust, devvydoesdonuts and 10 others 13 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MORNE Posted March 29, 2023 Share Just now, Frosty said: Tread carefully, all this talk is making me very rather tired. Yea, all these pressures can be deflating. 440MTB, Vishal72, Scary Rider and 7 others 10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted March 29, 2023 Share I guess inflation is the reason tyre prices are expensive Scary Rider, DieselnDust, Vishal72 and 7 others 1 9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Posted March 29, 2023 Share 31 minutes ago, MORNE said: Yes but will i bike tire last 60000km?😅 Edit: lets compare fruits from the same species: Bicycle tyres are expensive. What'd they cost if the market expected them to weigh 1.6 kg instead of 4.5 kg? ChrisF 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MORNE Posted March 29, 2023 Share There’s no beading around the bush even if you valve a little deeper in search of core answers. In a pinch a cheap solution works like a bomb and will seal the deal for most. But often costs will mushroom out of control and leave your wallet as flat as an Ardent Race at the 2022 epic. Frosty, Prince Albert Cycles, mazambaan and 11 others 3 11 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ncayi Posted March 29, 2023 Share This is no expert opinion but my humble opinion. I’m no economist so my logic could be flawed. Short answer: relative to my position in the socio-economic landscape, bicycle tyres are expensive AF including most things associated with the sport. Proceed at your own risk Long answer: Requires a bit of patience. There is a scene in The Wire that sums up the cycling industry for me. For context The Wire was a show based on the drug infested city of Baltimore which explored how the drug industry influenced and was influenced by other social issues. During the show Stringer (a drug lord) is having a conversation with DiAngelo (a minion) about the good thing about selling your product to less than rational customer base that will do anything to satisfy its need for a high. In this scene DiAngelo is stating that you can’t sell a weak product and expect your customer to not notice and when they do , still buy it and not complain. Stringer proceeds to explain that even if the product is weak a dope fiend will still buy it. Even if you double the price they will still buy it. Furthermore they will by more instead, as they need a higher dose to try and satisfy their need for a high. The implication being that when a customer has an insatiable appetite for your product and limited options they will buy it. So Stringer is basically saying, when you sell an in demand product that has a relatively limited life span at an inflated price you make more profit. What does this have to do with cycling you may ask. We are to some extent “dope fiends" who will pay what ever price to satisfy our need for a “high". There is absolutely no justification for a bicycle being worth R200 000 a cycling top being R2000 etc. But our drug dealer is smart. He dangles the concept of the customers being able to use the same products used by the pro's as a justification to essentially loot our wallets. As I wait for my overpriced helmet to arrive Edited March 29, 2023 by Ncayi Jono, TheoG, DieselnDust and 16 others 17 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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