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Tires
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Some are saying belts, tread, everything the same so must be same tire labeled differently especially for sears...thanks
I tried Pirelli P4000 (H-rated), which were not bad, and Bridgestone Turanza H on our 1990 Voyager. Turanza H were fine to start but lost their wet traction when only 1/3 worn due to the dual-tread compound scam. Pirelli, Michelin and Yokohama do not practice this scam.
My personal preference is not to go below T, since there are such good ones (Yokohama Avid T-4 and Michelin X-ONE) or above V (where the Yokohama AVS-dB is unusually good-riding for a V).
kauffman@hslc.org
Say if a car allows 125 mph and then the onboard speed governor kicks in. If the manufacturer put tires that are speed rated to only to 110 mph and the idiot (polite term) then injures or kills himself or herself by driving off a cliff, then the car manufacturer can be sued because they put incompatible tires on the car which will be proven by the lawyers to have caused the demise of the said idiot.
This called product liability.
Willy Shakespear had it right with regard to lawyers.
This could certainly be better debated in a more specific topic, but it is clearly the reason that many tire stores will not, regardless of what you ask for, sell you any tire that has a "lower" speed rating than the one which came with your car. No matter what warning you might give, the survivors of the driver and his passengers would certainly argue that the store should not have given in and that they were negligent in not "convincing" them to get the higher speed rating. So, when you try to get your tire store to sell you what you want, as opposed to what came from the factory, either size wise or rating wise, understand they are not being stubborn just for the fun of it, but are probably just following the orders of their law department.
it for the first time on the MotorWeek TV show.
Now
there are a few ads on TV here and there. I have
found this link to the company that markets it:
http://www.imiproducts.com/imi_htmlcode/imi_equa/imi_equa.html
Is it as good as advertised?
My next set of tires will be x-one's-i bought this set due to the recommendation of the people in the store-they had them on their vehicles. Drove for about 5 miles and went back and told the tire store guys-hey for once a recomendation paned out better than advertised. Can't beat the wet/snow traction and crisp handling/tracking on corners. Once running at 70 on full cover I put the car into a slide on purpose-no traffic good visibility-got it out of the slide very easily because of the excellent traction of these tires. The other traffic-even the trucks was staying below 60. ALso no cupping on the back tires even though I ran them for 20K before rotating.
Ever once in a while a great product comes along-the x-one's are just that. I sell medical systems-only connection with tires is driving.
I once knew a guy who really did get 110mpg with his VW beetle, so he thought...
Back to tires...
But they're all outstanding tires.
----Chris
--Chris
The MXV4s would drive great on your car, but you wouldn't realize the benefits of these higher end tires. But you would notice the difference when you hit the 40K mile mark and it's already time to drop another 5 bills.
You're glad you dumped the Wilderness ATs? Why? If you had waited, you could have had Firestone pay for your next set of tires. Last I heard from my old boys at Sam's, they were allowing customers exchanging Firestones to drive off on the tires of their choice, completely Firestone's treat. Most of them exchanged their $80 Wilderness ATs for $110 Michelins. Not a bad deal. I can't believe how many people are still driving on those tires--and wore out! You'd think if you knew your tires were wearing thin, and you'd been dreading the impending tire purchase on the horizon, a recall would be a miracle. I don't understand how one could be so oblivious to their environment not to know the situation with those tires. Even my college homecoming queen fiance notices when someone is driving on Firestone truck tires. She yells at me when I walk up to complete strangers in the parking lot and politely remind them that their tires have been recalled and can be replaced for free at just about any tire shop in the country. She gets so embarrassed (for what reason I do not know). It's tough being engaged to the Tireguy. I'm out of control.
---Chris
The 225x60x16 Goodyear Eagle GAs on my '95 LS400 are poor handling tires and they're getting replaced soon -but I noticed from Tire Rack that the X-One is only T-rated -- what's the next best Michlin model without surpassing the LS suspension's capabilities? Pilot XGT-V4s?
Any comments would be appreciated.
Jeff M
I feel sorry for all the people with new non-Firestone tires on there Explorers. No tire is bullet proof (run flat maybe). Some new tires will blow out and Explorers will roll. A false sense of security.
I have modified my vehicles with Bilstein shocks, and the ride improves dramaticaly.
Remember that Ford takes competitive bids for all of the parts on their cars, and the lowest bidder wins the contract for the seat belts, wheel rims, brake pads, etc.. do you see where I am going here. It's probably a combination of a lot of marginal parts on the vehicle that together contribute to accidents and subsequent loss of control rollovers.
I recall from high school drivers ed that it takes 3 or more factors to cause an accident (for example, equipment, weather, and a distraction). Well, the low inflation 26 psi or less on C heat rated Firestone tires (A is best, B is on most SUV's), coupled with marginal suspension and a high center of gravity... leads to accidents. The Goodyear tires put on Explorers at the factory in 1996 and 97 take out one factor. The other factors still remain.
He then said he worked at Uniroyal for 9 years (maybe some time ago). But he said they sectioned competitors tires and only Michelin tires had belts that were properly positioned. The other American tires had shifted and mis-positioned belts. It was obvious just looking at the cross sectioned tires! This was a short conversation in the parking lot so there aren't anymore details.
This definitely confirms Tireguy's assertions about Michelin quality.
One final question - any reason to spend the extra $30-40/set and get the Z-rated version of the Pilots - or is it just overkill on a LS?
I should have mentioned I live in Southern California so snow and ice aren't involved. Just fires, floods, earthquakes...but I digress.
I can't recall what reason I was given for the high incidence of blowouts of the driver's side rear tire. It may have been from stress from the drive train, but don't quote me.
If you think about it, your vehicle should never flip with a blow out of any kind, even if you are traveling 75 mph. Why do you only hear of the problem on the Explorer and not other SUV's?
I'm convinced that the problem rests in a poor quality tire being stressed out on a vehicle which has a design flaw. Ford would rather you believe it is solely the tire. Firestone is caught between a rock and a hard place. Who really wants to point blame at their largest customer (or bite the hand that feeds them)?????
r
In response to a previous comment about the tires being aftermarket add-ons, the factory sticker for the vehicle (with matching VIN) shows the 31x10.5 tires. The owners manual mentions them but no psi listing. I don't know why the door panel is different.
Personally, I would just go with an LT235/75R15 LTX M/S or other Michelin all-season truck tire. I don't know what you do in your van. If you try to drive it like a Camaro, then you might as well stick with that ridiculously wide size, but if you're concerned about load-carrying capability and handling stability, you need to go with a light truck tire. The heavier sidewall will more than make up for the reduction in tread width, with the proper pressure.
And on the topic of tire pressures, we had some pretty in depth discussions on the subject in entries past. It would behoove y'all to check them out before asking the same questions we've answered months ago.
Jasabra, you do not adjust your pressure based on the squeal factor. It's all here, my half decade of experience plus all the discoveries of the other inquisitive minds which have perused and added to this forum. All you have to do is read.
--Chris
I have labored over this keyboard by the light of the midnight oil, trying to explain in simple terms, the procedures for one technique I have found to work infallably. I don't think that's a word, but at 4:30a.m. EST, I say it shall be. All you have to do now is take an upward gander and find the post. It's 4:30 am on a Friday night (Saturday morning). I just got in from a serious night of D.C. clubbing, and I just don't have the energy to reiterate it tonight.
----Chris
Points to consider:
1) Ford Thunderbird V-8 well known "fair weather"
vehicle
2)Price is important i dont want to pay $100+ for goodyear ultragrips
3) live in ohio, moderate snow mostly ... occasional heavy snow from lake erie effect.
4)tires i am considering --Dunlop graspic HS-1
Firestone winterfire, Bridgestone Blizzack WS-50
Mich. Arctic alpin, other tire suggestions would be fine.
Thanks in advance
JA
I have also seen great rating on the arctic alpins and i really believe in mich. reputation but everyone seems to push the blizzack.
Also. I am really wondering if i need a 70+ dollar snow tire. Dunlop seems to have a good reputation snow tire for around 50$ a piece and i dont live in Alaska.
JA
For a T-bird, the Cooper M + S tire is very soft-riding with good snow grip.
Nokia makes good snow tires also; some are even H-rated — very unusual for a snow tire.
JA
Thanks
For starters, Michelin owns BF Goodrich tires, so comparing the Long Trail TA to the LTX is comparing 2 Michelin tires. I think the general consensus is Michelin tires are "premium" while BF Goodrich tires are cheaper "darn good" tires.
And while CR may rate the LTX lower, actual customer surveys (this one from tirerack.com) show the opposite.
I no longer give much credence to CR articles and have not read the one you mention. Every time I have read an article in CR on a topic that I personally knew more than the average person about, I found the article to be woefully lacking. Maybe its just me, but it always seems like their articles are written from the "We know what's best for you" perspective. Not being beholden to advertising is good, but I just feel CR takes a more consumer activist role and less of an unbiased one.
Oh well, enough ranting agaisnt CR.
Unfortunately, this is not just with CR, but with anything printed in the general press (as opposed to scientific journals). Would it be CR, NY Times, Economist, or free town weekly newspaper.
Both USA and Russian (and previously USSR) journalists are the same in this respect. In reality, the your sentence (quoted) is almost direct translation of a standard joke, used everyday in Russia. I believe, though, that the expression was not originally Russian, but was borrowed from some famous English writer - probably B.Shaw.
Of all consumer surveys for the tires of this size, probably the best are for Firestone Firehawk SH30. Better than more expensive tires, and in many aspects better even than Michelin.
Especially good marks consumers gave to the wet traction and hydroplaning. And, while this is a high-performance tire, it have very good UTOG rating (thread wear life).
Does it make sense to swap the tires at the new car? I live in CT, where the wet traction and hydroplaning are important.