Recent content by AboutTires

My own review of the CS5's just posted, for those interested: http://tires.about.com/od/TireReviews/fl/Review-Cooper-CS5-Grand-Touring.htm

Originally Posted By: CapriRacer Sorry, but, No, that does not work. Ya' see, the wheels have a tapered seat that exactly fits the lugnut's taper. (Yes, there are exceptions, but this is not one of them!) If the lugnut isn't properly seated, it will wear the seat oblong. Not to mention the...

Start shopping when football season starts and install when you can see your breath in the air.

Originally Posted By: bvance554 I've had it done on passenger and M/T tires and it works very well. They do not cut deep, and in no way does it harm you're tire. the naysayer arm chair expert tire guys with zero experience here really shouldn't comment. Being an actual non-armchair expert, I...

While resetting the TPMS is probably trivial, you may encounter a problem with finding a shop that will install the steels without sensors. It's not illegal for you to decide to run without the TPMS, but it is illegal for a shop to put the wheels on for you. On the other hand, a large number of...

Originally Posted By: CapriRacer Originally Posted By: geeman789 Is a tread design patentable... Yes, a tread design is patentable (design patent) and it last 14 years. But be aware that many tread patterns look alike and it has been argued successfully that small differences can be enough to...

Originally Posted By: edyvw That is precisely why I went with LM-60 Bridgestone for CC and not Michelin Pilot Alpin or X ice3. No issues in slush and wet snow at all. Though, they are wearing off like crazy. But then, I ski 2-3 times a week, so I usually put 10-15K in on ski season. 2-3 times...

Originally Posted By: Quattro Pete Many many years ago, I had H-rated Michelin Pilot Alpins on my A4. While dry handling was decent, their snow/slush performance was disappointing. I don't want to make the same mistake again. The reason is that Pilot Alpins are performance-oriented winters...

Quattro- I've been privileged to be able to drive on all three of the tires you're looking at on SUV's during various launches. Here's my take: Hakka R2 SUV - For pure snow and ice performance, these are clearly the best. Grip into next week, and as normal for Nokian, they have the mostest and...

Originally Posted By: eljefino You can do it without a torque stick if you "know your gun". The variety of effort and care involved varies from person to person though. No, no, no, and furthermore, no. An impact wrench puts out full torque on every hammer stroke. Feathering the trigger will...

Had somebody ask me once if this could be fixed. Um... nope.

As a shop manager for ten years, I can't even estimate the number of times I've heard, "Why can't I just sign a waiver?" I've heard it from people who want new tires on the front. I've heard it from people who want different tires on the same axle, who want tires that are too narrow for the...

Once again you folks have given me a great idea for an article. My Tire Review column is aimed at tire techs, and I have in mind an article on what to do when the balancer starts "chasing weights" like that. Zzyzzx: Can I use your picture for the article? It's a perfect illustration of what not...

Ah, some mounter head drag and what looks like a bar snap. It's a constant problem especially for inexperienced techs, but even the best will have a bad day sometimes. Low profile tires makes it worse. Low profile runflats makes it infinitely worse. The stiff sidewalls tend to pull the mounter...

Originally Posted By: turtlevette Seems to me to be 6 or a half dozen. You can run a cambered tire straight up and down ie no camber or run a non cambered tire at negative camber. Running a cambered tire at negative camber would provide even more camber. I don't think that idea is going...