Date:         Thu, 23 Jan 2003 14:37:24 -0800
Reply-To:     Aristotle Sagan <killer_jupiter@HOTMAIL.COM>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Aristotle Sagan <killer_jupiter@HOTMAIL.COM>
Subject:      Re: Where to put the fish tires?
Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed

My theorum...

Rear drive, better tires on the back. I have put a 140 Volvo into a
non-recoverable slide on sheet ice. Not fun, lucky to get out of it with two
bent fenders (wings fer you Brits). 165R15's if I remember correctly. Sucky
tires for so large a car.

Front Drive, better tires on the front. Those suckers in the back are just
going to keep following whatever happens up front.

Best results, good standard profile tires all the way around. Had a Honda
CRX with 205/60 15s on it. Slid it through a gas station once going around a
rotary in Boston. When it was brand new. When we moved to Montana, it got
Cooper Snow tires with studs. Couldn't be stopped.

Best idea, move someplace where you don't worry about this.

tim in san jose



 >
>Recently I talked to a friend in Europe.
>He had his car, a small Renault 5, inspected by the
>Tüv, the biannual required German road worthy
>inspection.
>It passed, but the inspector told him to switch the
>front tires, which had more tread left, to the rear.
>The logic is that it's worse if a car breaks out
>(slips out of control) with the rear end.
>He said it's harder to get the vehicle back under
>control if the rear end slips than the front.
>The Renault is a front-wheel drive car.
>He said it didn't make any difference in that regard
>if it's front wheel or rear wheel drive.
>This doesn't have anything to do with tire chains.
>Those are always installed on the driving wheels.
>Just thought that was kind of interesting.
>Personally I used to install the better tires on the
>front, thinking it would give me better steerage.
>I did end up in the ditch once on a slushy road with
>an '81 vanagon westy. The rear end swung around and
>passed me by.
>The vanagon made two 360 degree turns. I managed to
>keep it out of the oncoming traffic, only to end up in
>the ditch. That vanagon camper was still fine.
>The tires on the rear were marginal when that happened
>to me.
>Any opinions welcome, differing or otherwise.
>as posted on
>http://autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/vw-camping/
>Harald
>'90 westy
>

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