What is difference of directional/non-directional tire?

[martyi]

I recently bought a Honda truck and the tires are Michelin LTX M/S P245/65 R17. I was going through the manual and it showed how to rotate tires. They showed two methods - one was for directional tires and wheels, which rotates front to rear but on the same side of the car; the other is for non-directional tires and wheels which rotates front to rear but in an X pattern. I've never heard of "directional" and "non-directional tires and wheels. Can someone tell me what this means and what kind of tires I have? Thanks in advance.

 

[mechtech]

The tires sipes,and internal construction, are tweaked to perform best in one direction, on a directional tire. The front wheel on a motorcycle, for example, only has braking and cornering forces. The rear has acceleration forces, primarily.

 

[626LX2.0LATX1998]

If you look at the wedge pattern of some tires you can tell the direction the tires are suppose to turn, example is the Goodyear Assurance TripleTred Tires, it is directional.

 

[Brikhead]

quote:

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Originally posted by martyi: I recently bought a Honda truck and the tires are Michelin LTX M/S P245/65 R17. ...and what kind of tires I have?

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The Michelin LTX M/S is a non-directional tire. The easiest way to tell if the tire is directional is to look at the sidewall. Directional tires will have an arrow (ie:">>> rotation") indicating the intended direction of forward rotation.

 

[Quattro Pete]

Yeah, looking at its tread pattern, I'd say LTX M/S is non-directional. Generally, directional tires will have a tread that forms V-shaped pattern when you look at it from the front of the car, and A-shaped pattern when you look at it from the rear of the car, assuming they've been mounted properly. The rotation arrow is also a dead giveaway, as Brikhead mentioned. Directional treads are mainly used to aid water evacuation.

 

[slugsgomoo]

most directional tires can be worn backwards on dry pavement quite successfuly (i know some racers who do this with their autoX tires to get that last little bit of life out of them)- Directional tires that aren't worn the right way in the rain are VERY dangerous, as they are basically unable to evacuate water.

 

[moribundman]

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Directional treads are mainly used to aid water evacuation.

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Unfortunately they also tend to aggravate tram-lining and veering caused by road crowning. I've given up on directional treads. My tires do however have an inside and an outside wall.