Date:         Wed, 26 Nov 2003 18:18:02 -0800
Reply-To:     Shawn Wright <swright@ZUIKO.SLS.BC.CA>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Shawn Wright <swright@ZUIKO.SLS.BC.CA>
Subject:      Re: Tire recommendation requested
In-Reply-To:  <002001c3b483$0e4193c0$1e091545@chubbuck>
Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII

On 26 Nov 2003 at 18:08, Paul Chubbuck <chubbuck@TDS.NET> wrote:

> '82 Westy
>
> I need two new tires and would appreciate experienced suggestions.  I have
> two needs which may go beyond average driving (but then again maybe not, for
> this group).
>
> Snow--I live in western Colorado and it snows several times a year here in
> the valleys.  I may even need to cross the passes in winter on rare
> occasions
>
> Rock roads--In summer I love to camp as far up the forest service roads as
> my NON-4WD Westy can take me.  I would like the tires not to be the weak
> link in the chain.
>
> Can any tire meet both of those needs.  Should I just get chains and resign
> myself to that miserable task of putting them on and taking them off, always in
> the very worst of weather?

The tire I have the most experience with - Yokohama Y-370 - definitely meets your
second criteria. I have put approx 60k kms on a pair of them, many of these on
rough gravel roads, during which I've had 3 flats, none of them on the two original
Yokos. My only complaints are short treadlife (at 60k kms, they are mostly worn out),
and the fact that both of them now seem to suffer from broken belt(s) and have
lumps in them, possibly due to rough roads. But I like that I can put 65 psi in them
and they are rated to 1700+ lbs, although I usually run them at 42-50 psi depending
load and conditions.
I would say their snow capabilities are only average, as the tread appears to clog up
easily, but I think even the best snow tires won't get you far on a 2wd vanagon in
serious white stuff. (I got stuck just trying to get off my street back in the big snow of
'96 here, which was about 10" of fresh snow at the time, later to total nearly 5'). I got
the feeling that only 4wd would have moved the van at the time, but admit I have very
little experience driving Vanagons in the snow. Under the same conditions, my '85
Jetta, even with wide 60 series snow tires always does better than the van though. In
other words, carry chains... I do.

--
Shawn Wright
http://Zuiko.sls.bc.ca/swright
'88 Westy 375k
'85 Jetta D 263k
'85 Jetta TD 482k (retired)
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