Mixing tires

[ant184]

Should I be worried about using a set of Pirelli P6000 on the front and Michelin Pilots on the back?

Thanks
Anthony

[2001 ZTS]

Having all four the same is obviosly best. Assuming they are all the same size, if you are getting only two new tires (be warned this will sound strange at first until you think about it) it is recomended that the best pair go on the rear of the car. I wish I could give you a quote for that but there was an article on it recently.

The logic is similar to the arguement for NOT putting only two snow tires on the front wheels of a FWD car. Having your best grip up front throws your bias even more towards the front and leaves the back end very loose for lack of a better word.

I'm sure this will be controversial so I'll hunt around for that article unless one of the "gurus" can run to my aid!

[ 11-27-2001: Message edited by: 2001 ZTS ]</p>

[2001 ZTS]

I found the article I was thinking about before. This should stir up some debate!

NEWS AND REVIEWS

How to put your best foot forward isn't always obvious
By Tom Mack
Thursday, November 15, 2001

When replacing two tires at a time, the general rule may surprise you … and be kinder to your pocket book!

At its proving grounds in Laurens, S.C., Michelin recently settled an age-old question about where to mount the tires when replacing only two at a time. The answer is: the new rubber goes on the rear axle, never on the front!

To some people, that seems really weird, given phrases like "put your best foot forward," but in the case of tires, vehicle safety dictates a more demure approach. Michelin says this general rule of thumb for replacing two tires at a time is the same for passenger cars, light trucks and SUVs. The rule includes all drive systems: front-wheel, rear-wheel, all-wheel and four-wheel drive alike.

When only two tires are going to be replaced, Michelin has always recommended that the new tires go on the rear. "The new tires will grip the road more effectively and evacuate standing water more efficiently than the worn tires," said Ron Margadonna, Technical Marketing Manager with Michelin.

This becomes especially important when travelling and braking on wet surfaces. In such situations, if the front tires have more tread than the rear, the rear will lose their grip and begin hydroplaning first, creating a very difficult situation for even a seasoned driver to control.

"This is far less likely to occur when the new tires are mounted on the rear," said Margadonna. "If there is any loss of control from hydroplaning of the front tires, the driver is more likely to feel it in the steering wheel early enough to make the necessary corrections in speed and/or steering to remain in control of the car."

If you follow the tire rotation recommendations in your vehicle owner's manual, chances are you will always end up with all four tires wearing evenly and therefore ready for replacement at the same time. Many motorists, however, don't remember to follow the recommendation.

If not rotated regularly, the front tires on front-wheel drive vehicles will tend to wear faster. When that happens, Michelin recommends rotating the rear tires forward and putting the new tires on the rear axle. At the next rotation interval, rotate the front and rear tires side to side, this will help ensure even wear. "When it comes time to replace the front tires, just go back to the pattern of removing the worn tires on the front axle, move the rear tires to the front and put the new tires on the rear," said Margadonna. "And if cost is a factor, replacing tires in sets of two may be easier on the family budget."

Copyright © 2001 Globe Interactive, a division of Bell Globemedia Publishing Inc.
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[focifocus]

Finnally more people are becomming aware. It is about time. I wish more people would take time to know about this, and not be so uneducated when purchasing tires.

[OmniFocus]

I believe that extreme understeer can be just as bad as extreme oversteer. The only difference is that you can see what you are hitting.

Your beliefs may differ. [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

[CTB]

I had mixed tires on my old beater Integra. In the dry the two kinds of tires were very even. The in wet, no such thing. I found this out, of course, after I rotated and put the not-as-good-in-wet tires on the rear and nearly looped it on a wet off-ramp. Once I knew that this was the case, it was easy to use (and actually fun) to rotate the car a little. Basically, it's the same as everything else - use your head and creep up to the limit so that anything like this will happen in a way that you can control it.

Another thing to consider: Not only will one tire grip differently than another, as in the Michelin text, but also different tires have different sidewall stiffnesses, and that can make a big difference. I remember thinking how crazy it would have been to only put two Yoko Guardex snow tires on my car once I learned how soggy the sidewalls were. It would have been a handful with tires of such wide-ranging stiffness on the car.

[tobal78]

If you want good traction in the rear, then yes, you should put the good meats on the rear. But I agree with OmniFocus, I don't see why keeping the stock, understeer-like-a-mofo setup is best. If you have good traction on the front, the car will handle every bit as well, provided you are ready for the back to break loose before the front does. I'd prefer to have more control over the front, because you can save yourself from a spin pretty easily if you still have control of the front. If you plow ahead with no front traction, all the rear traction in the world won't save you. It's pretty hard to loose the back end on a Focus anyway, unless you're driving like a maniac, in which case all bets are off and no tire made is going to save you.

[Dev]

I would rather plow instead of spinning... I'm my opinion (and experience [img]images/icons/blush.gif[/img] )

[ 12-04-2001: Message edited by: zx3ford ]</p>

[Ducman69]

Not that controversial if you ask me. With the better tires in the front you will be able to initiate a turn better and accelerate harder, but more prone to lose control and spin out.

With the better tires in the back you won't be able to accelerate as hard or turn as sharply, but understeer is easily controllable (you slow down until you can steer again).

Its why almost all factory cars are setup for understeer. Its safer.