jim beam wrote:
> Siskuwihane wrote:
>> On Oct 6, 3:20�pm, dgk <d...@somewhere.com> wrote:
>>> I was going to get two new tires for my 91 Accord at Costco. They will
>>> only mount new tires on the rear if you only get two. Apparently a
>>> study tells them that the better tires should be on the rear to
>>> prevent fishtailing. Odd, I would think that the front would be
>>> better, having the steering, power, and brakes. So which is better?
>>
>>
>> New on the rear and here's why...
>>
>> From Tire Rack:
>>
>> http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tirete....jsp?techid=52
>>
>> Intuition suggests that since the front tires wore out first and
>> because there is still about half of the tread remaining on the rear
>> tires, the new tires should be installed on the front axle. This will
>> provide more wet and wintry traction; and by the time the front tires
>> have worn out for the second time, the rear tires will be worn out,
>> too. However in this case, intuition isn't right...and following it
>> can be downright dangerous.
>>
>> When tires are replaced in pairs in situations like these, the new
>> tires should always be installed on the rear axle and the partially
>> worn tires moved to the front. The reason is because new tires on the
>> rear axle help the driver more easily maintain control on wet roads
>> since deeper treaded tires are better at resisting hydroplaning.
>>
>> Members of Tire Rack team had the chance to experience this phenomenon
>> at Michelin's Laurens Proving Grounds. Participants were allowed to
>> drive around a large radius, wet curve in vehicles fitted with tires
>> of different tread depths -- one vehicle with new tires on the rear
>> and half-worn tires on the front and the other with the new tires in
>> the front and half-worn tires on the rear.
>>
>> It didn't take long for this hands-on experience to confirm that the
>> "proving grounds" name for the facility was correct. The ability to
>> sense and control predictable understeer with the new tires on the
>> rear and the helplessness in trying to control the surprising
>> oversteer
>
> oversteer on a honda???? obviously they're not talking about fwd vehicles.
>
>
>
>> with the new tires on the front was emphatically proven.
>>
>> And even though our drivers had the advantage of knowing we were going
>> to be challenged to maintain car control, spinouts became common
>> during our laps in the car with the new tires on the front and the
>> worn tires on the rear. Michelin advises us that almost every driver
>> spins out at least once when participating in this demonstration!
>>
>> Experiencing this phenomenon in the safe, controlled conditions of
>> Michelin's Laurens Proving Grounds rather than in traffic on an
>> Interstate ramp in a rainstorm is definitely preferred!
>>


On a related note, we are told to only use snow tires in sets of
four, especially on FWD cars. I've used snows in front with FWD, with
aggressive all-season tires in the rear, for 20 years now, with no
problems at all. I've also used snows in the rear only on RWD cars.
After getting a new 1986 Civic with actual summer tires on the rear, and
then putting snows on the front, I saw the problem with that, believe
me! But using all-seasons that are good in snow on the rear has worked
fine in all sorts of driving, including on unplowed and icy roads. If
the car handles well in snow, it appears that you can do what I've done
safely. If the car doesn't seem stable in snow with all-seasons on all
four wheels, though, you should probably use 4 snow tires...