Is it ok to use same size but different brand?

[CapriRacer]

Originally Posted By: CATERHAM
When replacing or rotating tires, obviously the tires with the most tread always go on the driven axle or the axle with the greater power bias.......


Not only do I think it is not obvious, I think it is wrong!

Originally Posted By: CATERHAM
.....It's the reason road racers can increase the rear brake bias in the wet.


Actually the reason they increase the rear brake bias is that the weight tranfer is less so the fronts are even more prone to lock up first - and that's a good thing if you don't have the ability to adjust the brake bias. But if you are after fast lap times, you'll get just a bit more braking action in the wet if you do that.

But in the final analysis of street situations, you should put the best tires on the rear so the rears NEVER lock up first. Even if you are just braking in a straight line, you'll want the rear to always have more traction than the front. Otherwise, the rear wants to become the front.

The only exception to that is when you are accellerating on snow. In that case having the better tires on the drive - the front if a FWD - will get you going better. Unfortuantely, it's just the opposite of what's good when you are braking.

 

[CATERHAM]

Ideally speaking, with a front drive car the tires should be rotated frequently, again with the best tires going on the faster wearing front. This way all 4 tires (5 if you include the spare in the rotation) will wear out at the same rate minimizing the affect on the cars handling.
Not rotating the tires, and then just replacing one pair and not putting them on the faster wearing front perpetuates the less than ideal pattern of only replacing one pair of tires at a time. You'll never get back on the track of ideally replacing all four tires at the same time. The caveat, as I mentioned initially, is that the existing rear tires are perfectly serviceable. If the remaining tread depth is less than 5/32" or so then all four tires should be replaced.

Whenever a change is made that can potentially affect a vehicles handling, caution is advised under all road conditions to fully assess any adverse changes to the handling.