Jinyu YH12

2 brand new jinyu yh12 fitted to a 2012 Vauxhall zafira by Arnold Clark cars , which I've just purchased they replaced 2 very worn conti premium contact.(front). The 2 conti 's on the rear will probably last another 18 months.

I've come across this brand of Tyre before & wasn't concerned at all , in fact they are excellent for a budget Tyre , grip in both dry / wet is more than adequate , road noise is very good , handling is positive & ride is good also .

Since February this year we have covered approx 6000 miles & they still look pretty good , probably about 1500 miles of that was towing a 1200kgs caravan too.
All in all a good replacement Tyre I'm looking to replace the rear 2 with the same or the newer yh18 , jinyu is certainly a brand which is vastly under rated .
I fully recommend these tyres , cheap Chinese doesn't always mean bad or inferior................ :-)

One year on since my last review. - Still good!

I have just replaced all 4 tyres and bought new set of these jinyu yh12 tyres. £29.50 per tyre.
The previous set that I'm reviewing covered 28,000 miles! The tread depth was 3mm, and at this shallow depth there was a noticeable reduction in effective breaking in very wet conditions from new, tyres were also louder than before. Dry grip was still top notch and the comfort and reasonable fuel economy remained. Overall these tyres are great for my driving style. Still commuting at around 55mph with the odd overtake here and there, but generally quite easy going, I checked tyre pressure twice a month and these tyres lasted along time, longer than other premium tyres I've used, for an economy or budget tyre at the low cost it's great.
I highly recommend these tyres to all who drive at reasonablely sensible speeds.
The weather permitting, I've pushed the tyres a little harder than usual, three things stand out.
1, the tyres are very stable at higher straight-line speeds, possibly due to the continuous centeral rib.
2, my car has very sharp turn in due to electronic steering not hydraulic power steering and these tyres match the turn in rate and are very responsive.
3, when pushed to the limit it tyres are reasonably forgiving, an audible squeal is heard before the tyres break away and loose lateral grip. These tyres corner well for its size and type, it's no track tyre so don't expect that but it's safe for some fun.

The newer tyres have a redesigned tyre sidewall. The text jinyu yh12 is no longer raised but flush with the tyre and that addition text gallopro is also visible. Still holds tyre shine well so compound hasn't changed much. Balancing is easy I can only recall getting my previous set balanced 2x over the life of the tyre, and that was due to swapping the jinyu for barum winter tyres.

Great tyre, safe tyre, we'll constructed for the money.

9/10

Shibby

At 47.50 a corner fitted I was not expecting too much, suffice to say I am pleasantly surprised. On a car running 183hp through the front wheels, they put the power down well, especially in cooler temperatures in the wet, although I can say the sidewalks are soft and a little vague when giving feedback.
The tyres give plenty of warning when pushed to their limits and I would say that they perform well in all aspects especially considering the very low purchase price.
The sidewalls are quite thick (although they are soft and deflect slightly) and fitted instead of 205's they have increased my fuel economy very slightly.
After 3000 spirited miles the tyres are down to 6mm from their original 8, which means they have lasted better than the Toyo t1r's they were fitted to replace. As a rough guide I would say the wet grip as actually better than the Toyo, however they are not as good in the dry.

I would buy these tyres again especially considering how well they have exceeded my expectations.

This is an update of my last review of these tyres.

These tyres still remain impressive for their price.
Over an additional 7500 miles these tyres have worn well only 1.5 mm.
This tyre is best in the wet. Its stability and grip in the wet is impressive and in the wet, the braking is at its best. It resists aqua planing well at reasonable speeds and offers great levels of confidence in adverse road conditions.
In the dry the tyres perform pretty good. Dry grip and control is satisfactory and the braking in the dry is pretty decent up to the speed limit.
Wheel spin is limited even under hard acceleration.
These tyres are very quiet and comfortable on the road. And fuel economy is no worse than the original Dunlop's fitted from factory.
These tyres also are also great to apply tyre shine too. For some reason the tyres hold their product longer than other tyre brands, possibly in the chemicals or materials used.

I commute 50 miles to work and back daily @55 - 60 mph, from city centre to the motorway. And for this type of driving at these speeds this tyre is highly recommendable.
And at £49 fitted per corner for my tyre size it's an easy choice.
I rate this tyre 7.5 / 10 and the best used on this vehicle/tyre size to date

(Note: Other tyres used; Dunlop sp 01, kumho ecowing, Michelin energy saver).

Shabby

These were fitted to my car when purchased with around 5/6 mm tread remaining.
Grip in the dry is adequate although nothing special.
However, grip in the wet is way below average and the tyre has, on a number of occasions aquaplaned, in fairly moderate standing water.
The car's steering also feels vague in heavy rain.
The edges of the tread seem to be wearing quicker than the centre even though the pressures are regularly checked.
The tyres have worn to 4 mm in around 3500 miles, so the rate of wear appears fairly quick.
They might be inexpensive to buy, but the fairly rapid wear rate may not be cost effective in the long run.
That, and the below average (dangerous?) grip in the wet would lead me to steer well away from these in the future.
Can't wait to get my winter tyres on.
I'll get these replaced when I switch back to summer tyres, even though they have a fair bit of tread left.