Do you pay attention to tire WEIGHT ??

[mareakin]

195/60R15 General Altimax HP tires weigh 16.5 lbs each. The very popular Goodyear TripleTreds in the same size weighs a good 23.5 lbs.

That's difference of 7! lbs. of the WORST and MOST unsprung of unsprung weights since the tire is farthest from the rotational axle = worst than weight of the wheel.

A car with Altimax HP tires would have a good 28 fewer lbs. of this bad stuff.

The great thing about lighter tires is that they don't compromise performance, traction, or cheapness.

Certainly weight should not be the ONLY factor but should be ONE of the factor and manufacturers should strive to reduce weight whenever possible.

 

[JHZR2]

How do you know the lighter tires dont compromise? What if there are fewer/weaker belts? Maybe the lighter one I'd more prone to blowouts or sidewall bubbles? Just a thought.

I look at it, and for all other things equal, I'll pick the lighter tire, but things usually aren't equal...

 

[AandPDan]

Interesting. At first I assumed that maybe the Altimax's had fewer belts, but they both have the same.

What do you think accounts for the difference in weights?

 

[440Magnum]

Weight is just about the last thing I'd look for in a tire. Wet/dry traction, quietness, reputation of manufacturer, and reputation of the tire itself are my top considerations. And for an offroad vehicle, an LT rated tire is a must, but that's a different consideration.

 

[Ursae_Majoris]

Do not see any rating for Altimax HP as far as snow and ice traction.

GY TT is on my Spectra, winter performance was my #1 priority (we have snow 8 months out of the year), so weight did not come into consideration.

Correction. TR says Altimax HP is "light snow capable". It is not good enough for Alaska.

Light snow for me is 3 inches in 24 hours, heavy snow is 8" in 24 hours; I've seen dumps of 24+" in 48 hours.

 

[robertcope]

I look at tire weight. But I also go to the track a lot, and un-sprung weight matters...

robert

 

[rpn453]

That is a huge difference. It looks like most tires in that size are 19 to 21 pounds. I've looked at tire weight occasionally, but I've never factored it into the purchasing decision because I didn't know there could be that much difference between tires of similar performance type.

Is there any advantage to that extra weight, such as puncture resistance, sidewall stiffness, or resistance to curb/pothole damage? It's hard to tell from here!

Originally Posted By: Ursae_Majoris
GY TT is on my Spectra, winter performance was my #1 priority (we have snow 8 months out of the year), so weight did not come into consideration.


Why did you decide against using winter tires?

 

[mechanicx]

Originally Posted By: 440Magnum
Weight is just about the last thing I'd look for in a tire. Wet/dry traction, quietness, reputation of manufacturer, and reputation of the tire itself are my top considerations.


Exactly, and usually a heavier tires is the more durable tire. Also you cannot directly compare the two tires the OP is comparing. One is a high performance type tire the other is a premium longer life pasenger car tire. Although I do think tire weight is important for a light sports car. But, you need to compare tires that are intended for the same purpose and load weight and not just compare tires by size.

 

[jmac]

Ditto, I do look at the weight, and an overly light tire usually means they have left out the top cap belt in the tire and maybe other areas when building the tire. A wildly popular tire here, Kumho, used to do this, may still, and I will not buy that brand after seeing once how they are constructed.

 

[fdcg27]

Originally Posted By: JHZR2
How do you know the lighter tires dont compromise? What if there are fewer/weaker belts? Maybe the lighter one I'd more prone to blowouts or sidewall bubbles? Just a thought.

I look at it, and for all other things equal, I'll pick the lighter tire, but things usually aren't equal...


You don't.
I would tend to think that greater weight would be the result of more robust construction, but could it simply be the result of less efficient design and cheaper materials?
Lower unsprung weight is a worthwhile goal for any vehicle.
The question would be whether the lighter tire will hold up in service.
Sadly, we have no information upon which to base any such judgement.
For all we know, the lighter tire might demonstrate superior durability in actual use.
We simply have no basis upon which to decide.

 

[Zaedock]

Jeebus...a 20 lb tire...

I think of weight every time I have to remove the 150 lb wheel/tire from my Jeep.


That said, less unsprung weight is more efficient in any motorsport or even your daily driver for mileage concerns (but you guys already know that). 7 lbs is a pretty big difference between tires of that size, but at what compromise? We just don't know. I'd go with 440's thought's when making a decision.

 

[HWEaton]

How much did the OE tire weigh?

 

[Johnny248]

I would assume that most of the weight difference comes from sidewall construction. The side wall on an Altimax is MUCH thinner or flexible than the Goodyear. The Assurance Triple Tred has a pretty heavy sidewall, which of course makes things like corning better from lack of flex/softness in the sidewall.

 

[sciphi]

Sometimes. It's used as a tie-breaker between two otherwise tied tires. The lighter tire usually wins.

The recent tire purchases did not factor weight since the choices were far too different for weight to ever come into play.

 

[ag_ghost]

Whenever I see that spec, I go "oh, that's interesting", then I forget about it. Having never read a good review on Generals and the fact that the last time I had them as OE tires, they lasted than 10K, fuhgettaboutit. The Costco labeled Uniroyals that replaced them on the Windstar went over 50K (and, yes, I'm almost as obsessive about tire inflation, "rotation", balancing and alignment as I am about oil).

 

[sparky123]

The Tire Rack lists the Altimax HP @ 17 lbs (195/60/15) These are really good tires that are holding up really well on our 05' Focus. The GY Triple Threads are a very heavy tire which surprisingly have a lower max load rating than the Generals. (I personally would not buy the GY's b/c I found them to be a very noisy tire.) The newest set of tire which I bought recently were Bridgestone RE-960 Pole Position in this exact size. (21 lbs per tire.) Great tires! They were 3 lbs heavier the OEM tires and this does not concern me one bit. IMO, a 7 lb difference is a little too much. Forget the GY's (23 lbs!) and look for a tire in the 17-21 lb. range.

 

[Ursae_Majoris]

Because I drive Kia in town only, I did not want to pay for a second set of rims and did not want to look at the flashing TPMS indicator for 8 months. GY TT do just fine in snow up to 6" deep.
On ice I have to remember to go light on the throttle, but I have not gotten stuck so far (it is my second winter on them).

I have 4WD Axiom shod with Nokian WR to handle anything worse than 4". I have plowed thru 2' snow with it before.

 

[dailydriver]

Originally Posted By: robertcope
I look at tire weight. But I also go to the track a lot, and un-sprung weight matters...

robert


YES, if I were heading to a road course with a dedicated set of R compound tires/wheels to put on at the track, I would be VERY concerned with weight.

But, there IS a reason Hoosier A/R 6es are NOT 'streetable', and it is not just because of crazy treadwear due to shrapnel magnet, super glue-like compounds. (They had to take the weight off somewhere, hint; PAPER-thin sidewalls.

)

 

[mechtech2]

In general, the heavier tire is more robust. Stiffer sidewalls, more belts, more rubber, etc..

 

[rpn453]

Originally Posted By: ag_ghost
Whenever I see that spec, I go "oh, that's interesting", then I forget about it. Having never read a good review on Generals and the fact that the last time I had them as OE tires, they lasted than 10K, fuhgettaboutit. The Costco labeled Uniroyals that replaced them on the Windstar went over 50K (and, yes, I'm almost as obsessive about tire inflation, "rotation", balancing and alignment as I am about oil).

Don't base your opinion of a tire brand on OE tires. Almost all are garbage. Search for comments on the General Altimax Arctic on this board and you'll find many great reviews. I've never paid attention to their non-winter tires though.