my car - 4 X new tyres (tires) 
It always sees to come when you can least afford it 
It always sees to come when you can least afford it 
A Christmas Present for
- Thread starter DaveM
- Start date
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As much as it may hurt to buy them new tires are the only thing between you and "the great beyond."
This is one area where I never scrimp on tires for my car or bikes. I suck it up and pay whatever it takes to be safe.
The same goes for brakes.
But that doesn't mean that I like it either :ya2:
This is one area where I never scrimp on tires for my car or bikes. I suck it up and pay whatever it takes to be safe.
The same goes for brakes.
But that doesn't mean that I like it either :ya2:
I fully agree with you here Rocky you cannot put a price on any safety issue. I am hover convinced that these things actually know when it is not a good time to give in as they always seem to do it at the worst time :y114:
Here right on the Atlantic coast where I live we get a lot of rain both summer and winter and hydroplaning is a problem with worn tires. Many highway crashes and deaths are caused by loss of control in the rain on worn tires and too much speed.
A few years ago I experienced the feeling of losing control in a heavy rain and it's like suddenly being on ice. As soon as I felt the steering wheel lighten I backed off and saved the day. A few days later I had a complete set of new Goodyear tires.
Another time I was riding with my daughter in her Subaru Forester and she began to feel the same sensation of losing the wheel. She backed off too and regained control. A couple of days later she had a set of four new Michelin tires.
I have the same soft and fast wearing Yokohama tires on my new Forester and am keeping an eye on tire wear. They stick and handle well, but wear very fast too.
So far so good, but I also have the good sense to slow down in a heavy rain storm and let the morons go flying by.
A few years ago I experienced the feeling of losing control in a heavy rain and it's like suddenly being on ice. As soon as I felt the steering wheel lighten I backed off and saved the day. A few days later I had a complete set of new Goodyear tires.
Another time I was riding with my daughter in her Subaru Forester and she began to feel the same sensation of losing the wheel. She backed off too and regained control. A couple of days later she had a set of four new Michelin tires.
I have the same soft and fast wearing Yokohama tires on my new Forester and am keeping an eye on tire wear. They stick and handle well, but wear very fast too.
So far so good, but I also have the good sense to slow down in a heavy rain storm and let the morons go flying by.
Hydroplaning is a common cause of accidents here in Florida, too. In the summer, when we get those pop up thunderstorms, they often dump 1- 4 inches (2.5 cm - 10.2 cm) in thirty minutes or less. In that initial deluge, the roads are covered with water and and the oil and grease on the roads float making a very slick surface. One can hydroplane in a millisecond. Almost invariably, someone skids off the roads into a ditch and/or flips often hitting one or two other vehicles. This is a daily occurrence in the summer.
Drivers do not slow down when the roads get wet. They come barreling along, hit about an inch of water on the road, start to skid and jam on their brakes. There is no hope of recovering; they do not know how to drive.
Drivers do not slow down when the roads get wet. They come barreling along, hit about an inch of water on the road, start to skid and jam on their brakes. There is no hope of recovering; they do not know how to drive.
Dschief
Member
[quote author=CarlS link=topic=2895.msg19693#msg19693 date=1229018291]
Drivers do not slow down when the roads get wet. They come barreling along, hit about an inch of water on the road, start to skid and jam on their brakes. There is no hope of recovering; they do not know how to drive.
[/quote]
Tell me about it! The last time I went to Orlando, it poured from about 30 miles north of Daytona until about 5 miles outside of Orlando. I'll bet we saw 20 accidents from idiots not slowing down and being impatient. My wife was in panic mode, and I was educating the other drivers in proper finger etiquette.
DaveM, I feel your pain. My Ford van just received 4 new Michelins. OUCH!
Drivers do not slow down when the roads get wet. They come barreling along, hit about an inch of water on the road, start to skid and jam on their brakes. There is no hope of recovering; they do not know how to drive.
[/quote]
Tell me about it! The last time I went to Orlando, it poured from about 30 miles north of Daytona until about 5 miles outside of Orlando. I'll bet we saw 20 accidents from idiots not slowing down and being impatient. My wife was in panic mode, and I was educating the other drivers in proper finger etiquette.
DaveM, I feel your pain. My Ford van just received 4 new Michelins. OUCH!
Dave, light vehicles, vehicles with short wheel bases and pickups with empty beds are very prone to hydroplaning. And when an SUV with its higher center of gravity hydroplanes and gets out of shape, it is going to roll almost every time. My F-350 with the dual wheels is very stable and does not hydroplane easily. But I also know enough to slow down and increase my distance from the vehicle in front. You are right about the number of accidents when it rains down here. It is really interesting to ride a bike in those rains!
Dave,I don't know what sort of car you drive but I've been using Continental Sport Contacts on my BMW 325ti. I got 100,000km out of the last set which I think is pretty good so I recommend them highly.Not exessively expensive,I shopped around and found the best deal was Tiger Wheel and Tyre.May,of course be different down your way.
I have a Mazda 6 and I had Continental on but they just did not last. I now have 4 Pirelli P6000 and it cost me R4000 at Tiger
dented car=$500
traffic ticket=estimated $200-300
dialup internet, operator told me # was toll free=$403 phone bill
All within a month...There goes my Xmas money. Wanna trade places Dave?
h: 
traffic ticket=estimated $200-300
dialup internet, operator told me # was toll free=$403 phone bill
All within a month...There goes my Xmas money. Wanna trade places Dave?
h:
Dale, that really sucks!
[quote author=dazco link=topic=2895.msg19743#msg19743 date=1229123040]
All within a month...There goes my Xmas money. Wanna trade places Dave?h:
[/quote]
Nope I like my new tyres thanks :y114:
All within a month...There goes my Xmas money. Wanna trade places Dave?
h: [/quote]
Nope I like my new tyres thanks :y114:
Rocky said the key words to driving in slippery conditions.....back-off.
People who end up with crashed cars are normally those who panic and over-react. Simply backing off on the throttle and gently easing your vehicle back under control is the key.
I drove Jeep CJ-5s and CJ-7s for many years and everyone thought I could go anywhere in any conditions. That was true as long as you drove them slowly. A vehicle with such a short wheelbase and high center of gravity always wanted to swap ends. Using your typical maneuvers to correct for a slide was out of the question with a CJ....it happened too quickly and correcting it usually caused it to snap back and then spin the opposite direction.
Here where you drive in snow and ice, narrower tires actually give you more control than do wide ones.
People who end up with crashed cars are normally those who panic and over-react. Simply backing off on the throttle and gently easing your vehicle back under control is the key.
I drove Jeep CJ-5s and CJ-7s for many years and everyone thought I could go anywhere in any conditions. That was true as long as you drove them slowly. A vehicle with such a short wheelbase and high center of gravity always wanted to swap ends. Using your typical maneuvers to correct for a slide was out of the question with a CJ....it happened too quickly and correcting it usually caused it to snap back and then spin the opposite direction.
Here where you drive in snow and ice, narrower tires actually give you more control than do wide ones.
I've skimped on car tyres before. When I was a student and a bit cash strapped.
I nearly wrote my car off in a wet turn when I ended up snaking down an onramp.
I bit the bullet and bought proper tyres the next weekend.
...
I nearly wrote my car off in a wet turn when I ended up snaking down an onramp.
I bit the bullet and bought proper tyres the next weekend.
...
Dschief
Member
[quote author=The Seeker link=topic=2895.msg19775#msg19775 date=1229184843]
Here where you drive in snow and ice, narrower tires actually give you more control than do wide ones.
[/quote]
Exactly why snow tires always come in the stock sizes. Have you ever seen a 50 series snow tire? They don't exist.
Guys around here have always gone for the biggest widest "All Terrain" tires they could get, with the obligatory lift kits that would put the bottom of the door sill at waist level. They would do this for "clearance". I always laughed at that theory as the axles and differentials are still at (basically) the same height.
I used to have a 4 wheel drive van with stock sized mud and snow tires, and stock suspension. Driving sensibly on the snow I never had even a close call, except for one time a guy in one of the jacked up trucks tried to pass me and wiped out in a ditch. My wife asked me if I was going to stop and help him. I told her "Why? He can get himself out if he wants to drive like an idiot!".
Here where you drive in snow and ice, narrower tires actually give you more control than do wide ones.
[/quote]
Exactly why snow tires always come in the stock sizes. Have you ever seen a 50 series snow tire? They don't exist.
Guys around here have always gone for the biggest widest "All Terrain" tires they could get, with the obligatory lift kits that would put the bottom of the door sill at waist level. They would do this for "clearance". I always laughed at that theory as the axles and differentials are still at (basically) the same height.
I used to have a 4 wheel drive van with stock sized mud and snow tires, and stock suspension. Driving sensibly on the snow I never had even a close call, except for one time a guy in one of the jacked up trucks tried to pass me and wiped out in a ditch. My wife asked me if I was going to stop and help him. I told her "Why? He can get himself out if he wants to drive like an idiot!".
I don't know why bike tires are so expensive. Before my last road trip, I bought a new rear for about $200. It was handed to me across the counter. I had to mount and balance it myself. The next day I bought two tires for my small pickup, $150 out the door, mounted and balanced while I waited in their showroom reading car magazines.
The wide, all terrain tires definitely help in mud and sand because they give more surface area resulting in more flotation. But they aren't worth a flip in snow!
And a new Battery 
Dschief
Member
All I can say is "when it rains, it pours".
I've been trying to figure out a mysterious lean condition on my wife's Ford pickup. I had the computer read when the "service engine soon" light appeared. It showed that it had a lean misfire on both cylinder banks. That would normally mean a bad mass airflow sensor, so I replaced that ($100 US) and the airfilter ($15 US). Disconnected the battery to reset the computer. The light stayed out for about 1 day, then came back in all its glory. Next was the fuel filter (about $100 US), done at a local garage as I don't have the line tool to replace it. Then I replaced the spark plugs too ($18 US). So far I've spent over 200 bucks, and the damn light is still on. The truck runs fine, gets decent fuel mileage, and is driving me crazy! The only other thing that could be wrong is both oxygen sensors went bad at the same time, or the computer has a glitch. I told her it's going to have to wait until after the holidays, then we'll start again. Cars (and trucks) suck!
I've been trying to figure out a mysterious lean condition on my wife's Ford pickup. I had the computer read when the "service engine soon" light appeared. It showed that it had a lean misfire on both cylinder banks. That would normally mean a bad mass airflow sensor, so I replaced that ($100 US) and the airfilter ($15 US). Disconnected the battery to reset the computer. The light stayed out for about 1 day, then came back in all its glory. Next was the fuel filter (about $100 US), done at a local garage as I don't have the line tool to replace it. Then I replaced the spark plugs too ($18 US). So far I've spent over 200 bucks, and the damn light is still on. The truck runs fine, gets decent fuel mileage, and is driving me crazy! The only other thing that could be wrong is both oxygen sensors went bad at the same time, or the computer has a glitch. I told her it's going to have to wait until after the holidays, then we'll start again. Cars (and trucks) suck!
