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Tires, tires, tires

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  • wlbrown9wlbrown9 Member Posts: 867
    I have one of the little 12V inflaters...takes forever. I got a 15 Gallon, 150 PSI, 120V compressor for Christmas 2005. It is a stand up model with wheels. Great for the garage. Have not used the brad nailer yet, but did invest in an inexpensive impact wrench and sockets. Have used them several times. Don't know how I did without before. Oh, and it lets me manage the pressure in the tires without taking a lot of time. This setup came from Sears, Harbor Freight does have some real bargains as well.
  • obyoneobyone Member Posts: 7,841
    back to tires...when rotating and torquing the lugnuts you can't get me to give up my 1/2" Snap On Torque wrench.
  • capriracercapriracer Member Posts: 907
    Please use a torque wrench to do that final tightening. Don't just use the torque wrench to check, the nut (bolt) has to turn to get the proper torque.

    It is very easy to over torque with an impact wrench, because the impact wrench works so well. I put mine on the second to lowest setting and only snug the nuts up - NO HAMMERING!!!

    If you overtorque the nuts, you will have difficulty removing the wheels by hand when you have a flat, plus (and more importantly), it's possible to break a stud (although it takes a lot of overtorquing to do that!!)
  • imidazol97imidazol97 Member Posts: 27,675
    A local store with my free rotation and rebalancing used to iinsist their flexible torque sticks tightened to the right torque. I checked after I got home and my 103 lb/ft nuts were from 85 to 115 roughly when I'd loosen them all. I'd retighten with my manual torque wrench. Didn't trust those things, and still don't.

    Maybe there's a technique to using the torque sticks with an air hammer impact wrench, but they were getting it right.

    I made the Sears store who inherited the job use a real torque wrench. Of course they cross-threaded things and eventually broke two studs and insisted I pay for the last one--their rapid removal heated the damaged threads and broke it removing it.

    2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,

  • smokey75smokey75 Member Posts: 434
    And don't forget to tighten the lugnuts in stages. Even if you don't overtighten them, just tightening 1 to the full proper torque when the others are loose can warp the rotors. I tighten mine in 3 stages... hand-tight, half torque, & full torque.
  • obyoneobyone Member Posts: 7,841
    using star pattern.
  • woodywwwoodyww Member Posts: 1,806
    I have a roughly 7 y.o. set of Unused 16" Contis that were OEM on 2000 bmw 5-series. I'd like to put them on my bmw, partly because my current tires are down to 5/32's, & also because these "New" Contis are mounted on New bmw rims that I'd like to put on my car as well--& mount new snows on the old wheels for winter.

    These 7 y.o. "New" Contis look good--except for some Greyish patches on the back side of the tires--like they have some kind of dermatology issue. But I showed them to a guy at one of the best indie bmw repair shops in my area & he said they were fine.

    Any opinions? are they likely to be any worse, or more unsafe, than the 7 y.o. set of Contis with 5/32's of tread that I have on the car now? TIA!
  • obyoneobyone Member Posts: 7,841
    They are simply too old.
  • wlbrown9wlbrown9 Member Posts: 867
    I agree on the torque wrench. I don't use the impact wrench on my lug nuts... I used it to break loose bolts when changing brake pads and it works great on removing blades on the lawn tractor as well as breaking loose nuts when replacing a belt pully on the lawn tractor. The air tools are great for tough jobs like that.

    I'm real careful of my lug nuts...the old 94 Rodeo I had came with defective lugs on the front and several of them stripped even when being careful.
  • pathstar1pathstar1 Member Posts: 1,015
    But Murphy was an optimist. Bought tires for a 90 4Runner at Costco. They mounted them for me, and the tech came out and apologised. He had broken off two wheel studs with his torque wrench (Snap-on) which apparently had failed. They paid a Toyota dealer to replace them, and at my insistence, the Toyota dealer tested the others, and found four more about to break.

    So sometimes even a torque wrench isn't the absolute answer. ;)
    "Anything that can go wrong eventually will." Murphies law #1. :P
  • woodywwwoodyww Member Posts: 1,806
    Good reason to buy tires, or get them mounted & balanced, at Costco. Not so they'll break off your wheel studs!, of course, but the one near me, in Mass., always seems to do a great job. How many shops would have owned up to the problem, & paid for it yet? With a 17 y.o. vehicle?
  • imidazol97imidazol97 Member Posts: 27,675
    The local Sears store broke two. Paid for the first one on the rear themselves since they were replacing the struts. On the other they blamed cross-threading, which was probably their fault since they're the only speed guns that had been on the 8 year old wheels.

    Sears won't see the car again.

    2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,

  • blufz1blufz1 Member Posts: 2,045
    I get mine at Discount Tire. Free lifetime balancing and rotation.
  • imidazol97imidazol97 Member Posts: 27,675
    They were in the building where NTB was and that was who did lots of tires and struts for me while they were in business. I wanted the Harmony tire and Discount has their own version of the Harmony called Agility, I think. I didn't see quite the same tread design and passed. Salesmen were great. They have Road Force balancing available.

    Sears also has a thinner tread rubber version of the Harmony but I thought it was even less a Michelin. I bought the real thing. Michelin has started selling certain tires only at Michelin dealers instead of having them compete with the discount houses selling the exact same tire.

    2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,

  • lesabreloverlesabrelover Member Posts: 9
    Recently I bought a set of tires, which say on them, "Inflate to Max. 44 psi." When I got home and checked them I found that the store had put only about 30 psi in each. I filled them to 44 psi at home. I called the store manager and he told me 44 is too much and that I should only put about 30 or 32 psi in them regardless of what is indicated on the tire. I have never heard of such a thing. :confuse: On my other car, the tires say 44 psi and I've been driving that car with 44 psi in its tires.
    Can someone please clarify this this for me? Thanks.
  • imidazol97imidazol97 Member Posts: 27,675
    The door sticker on the driver's side door should give the amount of air pressure recommended for the tires under the load/weight of the LeSabre. Most are 30 lbs.

    I have had 3 LeSabres and use 32-33. Above that in importance is rotating the tires to eliminate quirks in the wear pattern from alignment or driving patterns and habits.

    The maximum pressure listing has nothing to do with the air pressure you should use.

    2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,

  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    Well to be honest you would want to check your door jam or owner's manual, that will dictate the tire pressure for your car, given the stock size tires. Despite what a tire is rated max for, you will want to fill it to what the vehicle manufacture recommends.

    If you have them filled to max of the tire, you will likely have a few side effects:
    Extremely poor ride, Inproper wear, poor handling

    Hope this helps.

    -mike
    Motorsports and Tuning Host
  • krzysskrzyss Member Posts: 849
    There is one bright side.
    He is getting better milage than he would with properly inflated tires.
    Where is capriracerwhen you need him ;-)
    Max pressure on the tire is not pressure to be used in particular application. Check the vehicle placard. It should state what tire size and what pressure to use.

    If your tires are OE size use pressure on placard as starting point. If you want better steering response or slightly better milage bump presure by few PSI. 30 PSI range sounds normal for passanger car. 44 does not.
    You are lucky that you do not have tires with 51 PSI indicated as max pressure. The ride would be quite harsh.

    Krzys
  • lesabreloverlesabrelover Member Posts: 9
    Thank you, everyone.
    Actually, the car with the new tires is a Grand Marquis. I will check the manual and the door panel so I can adjust the tire pressure.
    The car I referred to as my "other" car is the Lesabre, which I've been driving for 2 years with 44 psi. I'd better check the door panel for that car too. I do over 25,000 of Interstate driving per year, so I definitely want my tires to last.
  • ruking1ruking1 Member Posts: 19,826
    Since you are used to running 44 PSI, which USUALLY is the max side wall pressure, you might drop that to 38 PSI as a point of departure. If you decide that is the way to go, let us know how you like it. More importantly, how are the results. I have been running 38 psi on 44 max side wall pressure tires and the tire set is going on 92,000 miles. I project it should make it to 121,000 miles. I do app 23,000 per year longer distance travel. The car weighs app 2950#'s with a half tank of fuel. It is front wheel drive. I have been using 10,000 mile oem rotation recommendations.
  • smokey75smokey75 Member Posts: 434
    Well, on the bright side your ride is about to get more comfortable. Also, don't forget the pressure that's indicated is a cold pressure... meaning that's what the tires should be at after not driving for hours. As you drive the tires heat up so the pressure increases. Therefore you can really only check them when the car has been sitting.
  • ruking1ruking1 Member Posts: 19,826
    Yes, for sure what you said gets folks in the ball park. I would not shy away from checking when the tires are indeed "HOT". Operating temperatures add app 4-6 psi. Again that is VERY easy to check/verify. So if you want or need to add psi, that is the variable to keep in mind.

    The operative variable at work here: for every 10 degrees change (delta) is 1 psi.

    So for example, I have operated (most folks have but probably gave it no mind in the above context) in ambient temps of 20 degrees to 110 degrees in the same trip. As one can see just the ambient temp delta would be 9 PSI! ?
  • jaymagicjaymagic Member Posts: 309
    The tire pressure listed on the tire is the maximum air pressure. Typically, the car manufacturer will spec around 30-32 for the car. Unless you are planning on significant HIGH sustain speed (100+) or are carrying a much higher load in/on the car than normal, the car maker's recommendation is what you should go with.
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    Also if you run too high a pressure, your handling will actually go down because you will have effectively less rubber in contact with the road.

    -mike
  • blufz1blufz1 Member Posts: 2,045
    Yeah, I bet that 1 row of tread Ruking is riding on is almost thru the carcass, :)
  • ruking1ruking1 Member Posts: 19,826
    Yah woulda lost that bet! It is at a bit more than 4/32 in. The tread wear is pretty much dead even across the width. This itself is an anomaly given it is a front wear drive, a VW (like every make and probably model, VW Jetta has its own peculiarities) At 92,000 miles, it has also not had an alignment. So given the mileage, how many more miles would I need to know that 38/44 psi works? :) Indeed the GY is the worst rated of the oem tires for that year. MPG in a normal commute has been 48-52 mpg. The range has been between 44-62 mpg.

    So looking at this in print, I am also probably amongst those that are surprised.
  • blufz1blufz1 Member Posts: 2,045
    Just kidding,you. I raised the pressure to 33 front and 35 rear to help my rear suspension tow my small bass boat. I thinks it helps and may marginally help mpg. Glad to hear that your tread wear is straight across, hope mine will be. Gotta be approaching some kind of personal record w/92K. Stay smooth.
  • ruking1ruking1 Member Posts: 19,826
    Yeah I know! :) I actually phrased it that way to cover the next point. :) There are truly a lot of "commonly known stuff" about tires that might not be "commonly" or entirely true. :)
  • Mr_ShiftrightMr_Shiftright Member Posts: 64,481
    But changing tire pressure does change your handling, especially if it varies front to rear.

    I run mine harder than normal, too.
  • ruking1ruking1 Member Posts: 19,826
    For sure that is true, and that is why one has to dial in some of the variables, i.e., a few: towing, front/rear drive, comfort vs handling, no to max weight, and of course the obligatory, etc. etc. That is why I put in (over time) some of the details of how I run, so that folks can see what I am dealing with and then adapt to their own situations.
  • blufz1blufz1 Member Posts: 2,045
    Thanks. Personally,I'm more concerned with comfort,mpg,tire wear,then handling. As Ruking alluded,we all have different priorities. I've got a 160mph motorcycle for fun. :) I drive my car as easily as possible. But, you are correct. The handling/comfort does change. I may go back to 32f. I do appreciate the diversity of opinion on the forums. Prior to starting to follow the forums I didn't really give enough thought to tire pressures and oil change intervals. I was at 3750 w/mobil 1. So thanks to all for broadening my horizons.
  • Mr_ShiftrightMr_Shiftright Member Posts: 64,481
    now then.... tires on fast motorcycles...that's something I used to look at almost every day! Sometimes I pass by parked multi-cylinder motorcycles and peek at the rear tire and CRINGE in horror....
  • ruking1ruking1 Member Posts: 19,826
    Yes even on this august thread, not too much emphasis has been put on the tire as an intergral part of the suspension system. As such, some oems indeed do have it dialed in pretty well. The VW I have talked and the truth is all over the map, but the Toyota Landcruiser (full time 4WD)is good to go at 32/44 psi. You can of course air down to as low at 2 psi (sand dunes) or up closer to 44 psi for other applications (towing) , but for the majority of situations 32 PSI is dead nuts on.
  • blufz1blufz1 Member Posts: 2,045
    That's exactly right. The ride is best on my Accord at 32 all around. Just experimenting w/ the pressures to find my best combo of comfort,mpg,and towing. My last set of tires seemed to wear more on the inside portion of the tread. I attribute this,rightly or wrongly, to slight squat when I hook up the trailer. I'm just compensating by putting slightly more pressure rear vs. front. Most of my miles are towing.
  • explorerx4explorerx4 Member Posts: 20,723
    how am i supposed to know which is the number? i have a round dial gauge that reads 'x' lbs. my digital gauge reads about 'x+1.5' lbs. my 'dale jr.' pencil gauge gift from my nephew just about always reads 35 lbs. :confuse: ;)
    2024 Ford F-150 STX, 2023 Ford Explorer ST, 91 Mustang GT vert
  • capriracercapriracer Member Posts: 907
    ".....how am i supposed to know which is the number?....."

    Needless to say, you can't tell unless you find a known source. But let me suggest a few ways to cope with this problem:

    1) Choose the gauge that is the most likely to be reliable. In this case, it is the digital gauge.

    2) Look for the odd man and ignore that one. That doesn't work in this instance as we have 3 answers that aren't grouped.

    3) Pick the one that gives you the lowest reading. That way you'll always be overinflated - which is a bunch safer than being underinflated.

    So to give you the benefit of my experience - Throw "Dale" away. Use the digital. Find another source.
  • woodywwwoodyww Member Posts: 1,806
    Considering a very slightly used set of 245ZR45-17 Potenza RE960AS tires on bmw 8X17 Style32 wheels for my 528i wagon. The usual size is 235/45-17. The seller said they worked fine on his e39 540i--I'm not sure why he went with the 245's tho. I did check out the diff. in sizes here:

    http://www.1010tires.com/TireSizeCalculator.asp?action=submit

    Any advice? Will they work? Any potential problems? For the price, if the rims & tires are as nice as the guy says, it's almost a no-brainer.

    TIA!
  • imidazol97imidazol97 Member Posts: 27,675
    I asked a garage if I could check my fairly expensive, metal analogue gauge with theirs. They laughed when I asked if they have quality gauges. They buy $1 gauges, check them all and throw out the ones that are off from the center group. They replace them a couple times a year. That's what Capriracer already said.

    I adjusted my metal gauge by taking off the back and adjusting the little metal screw inside after I decided it was 1 pound too low comparing with 3 others. That put it at the middle of the pack. Even my cheapie KMart (preSears) plastic round gauge is adjustable.

    2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,

  • kyfdxkyfdx Moderator Posts: 265,617
    On a 5-series, they shouldn't be a problem, though I like to stick closer to the stock size.. If he is currently running them on a 540i, and he doesn't have any issues upfront, then you should be in good shape.

    The good thing is.. The BMW speedometer is usually very optimistic, so the adjustment might even make it more accurate!!

    Anyway.. How much?

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  • lesabreloverlesabrelover Member Posts: 9
    Thank you so much for your answers. All these years, on every car I've owned, I've been inflating my tires to the "max" pressure indicated on the tires! But until recently all the tires I've owned said 35 psi.
    Anyway, getting back to the new tires on the Grand Marquis...I let some air out to make the pressure 32 psi (instead of 44 psi), but then the car felt too mushy. So now I filled them to 37 psi and I like that better. Is it safe for me to leave the pressure at 37 psi? (The tires say Max of 44 psi.) I do a lot of Interstate driving. Thank you.
  • ruking1ruking1 Member Posts: 19,826
    Yes between 38/36 psi. 38/44 is app 85% of the max side wall pressure.
  • woodywwwoodyww Member Posts: 1,806
    Anyway.. How much?

    $800 for both the (4) 17" Style32 wheels, & the 245ZR45-17 Potenza RE960AS tires with supposedly very little wear. I priced just the tires new--around $600. And I really like the Style 32 wheels:

    http://www.angelfire.com/biz7/bmwheelie/index.htm

    Would be to replace the dorky orig. 16" rims on a 2000 non-sport 5-series. Maybe I should jump on it? I could probably re-sell for around that if need be.....
  • kyfdxkyfdx Moderator Posts: 265,617
    Not a bad price.... I'm partial to 42s over 32s, but not my car...lol.

    These are all 17 X 8, right? Not staggered?

    Have you seen the tires? If they are truly in good shape, the price is good.. I've noticed that the price keeps dropping on used E39 and E46 wheels, so I wouldn't count on getting a ton out of them, once you wear out the tires.. But, your wagon might sell quicker with the upgraded wheels, once you get to that point..

    It is hard to sell used tires/wheels, without being willing to ship... If this guy is local, I'd hit him up around $600-$650 and see if he bites..

    regards,
    kyfdx

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  • woodywwwoodyww Member Posts: 1,806
    Yeah, they are all 17 X 8. I saw a pic of one tire which had a ton of tread left.

    You're right about prices dropping on E39 wheels, & maybe I will offer $600. I've found that either used wheels sell in 5 minutes, or can take months. I live in a major urban area so that helps to sell w/o shipping.

    Another wrinkle is: I have 5 like-new Style 33 16" wheels (20 spoke I think) in my tiny garage. Only 16's, but they're paid for ($400), & because of the condition, & not as common, I think they'd look nicer than the OEM wheels (Style 8). However, they have 7 y.o. tires roughly (never used tho) so I might feel compelled to get new tires, at $80-$120 each. (My tires on the stock wheels are down to 5/32's, so I need new summer tires one way or another). And then use the orig. wheels for snow tires.

    And if I get the used Style 32's, I might need to sell those because of my tiny garage. Decisions, decisions. :confuse:

    One thing i've vowed to do: if I ever get another bmw, to get one WITH the SPP, & all the goodies that that entails, wheels, suspension, etc.etc. Or whatever vehicle I get, make sure it's the version I really want, so as not to go crazy afterwards trying to replace stuff.

    cheers, woody
  • hidingbackwardhidingbackward Member Posts: 19
    I've actually posted a similar msg about a month ago with no response..hoping for a 2nd time others may have heard of this problem..

    I have a 2007 rabbit with 3,100 miles on it that has had 3 out-of-round tires in the same location - drivers side front. Each time that the tire was found to be defective all other tires were checked to make sure they weren't out of round; and still has only been in that same location. After 2nd brand new tire I took in my car to dealer. Dealer found nothing mechanical...however they thought it was unusual. Now this is my 3rd out-of-round tire and I will be taking in my car again. Has anyone ever heard of this being a problem on the rabbit/golf? It seems it takes a few weeks after getting new tire for it to become out-of-round, so i find it difficult dealer doesn't see anything mechanical. It is really bothersome, considering it makes my overall driving experience really unpleasant.
    I would appreciate any feedback to this very annoying problem.
  • imidazol97imidazol97 Member Posts: 27,675
    Hub may be offcenter. I had a car RWD that had balancing problems. GM worked it over. I finally noticed tires measured more out of radial roundness on left front. I check studs and they weren't centered.

    2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,

  • capriracercapriracer Member Posts: 907
    At this point, it ought to be obvious that the tires aren't the cource of the problem. Something else is driving the issue.

    I suggest the alignment should be looked at. Even though there are no provisions for adjustment, it doesn't mean that the alignent is OK.

    But I suspect a bad bearing or a bad bushing in the suspension.
  • hidingbackwardhidingbackward Member Posts: 19
    I will be bringing in the car again to the dealer next week to see if they can find anything. I'll be sure to ask them about the suspension, eventhough the 1st time they claimed to look at "everything mechanical"..its just so strange...
  • woodywwwoodyww Member Posts: 1,806
    Is the dealer paying for all these tires? Or the tire mfg? One of them should be.

    I'd keep a detailed record of all this--altho I guess if they fix it each time in 1 day maybe that wouldn't count towards a Lemon Law claim(?). Also I'd be reading & posting on various VW sites to see if this is a common problem. And, asking to see the VW Zone Manager.

    Also, if there's a good indie foreign car repair shop in your area, it could be worth a try for a diagnosis. I wouldn't depend on these VW guys to suddenly find the problem.....
  • hidingbackwardhidingbackward Member Posts: 19
    the manufacturer is - continental. but since VW doesn't certify its tires, I have to take it each time to discount tire so i can claim the warranty on it...it's been alot of wasted time and energy in this big mess.

    In my state the Lemon Law works with a 4 times test - taking it into the dealer 4 times, along with letter to dealer and manufacturer and still problem is not fixed then you can claim lemon law..

    yeah i was thinking about taking it to an independent shop, but first wanted to see what dealer had to say a few times b/f i spent a bunch of money taking it elsewhere
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