Date: Thu, 9 Aug 2007 07:29:10 -0700
Reply-To: Lee Peterson <iridewheelies@GMAIL.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Lee Peterson <iridewheelies@GMAIL.COM>
Subject: Re: Tires - oh no!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
In-Reply-To: <vanagon%2007080900060493@GERRY.VANAGON.COM>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1
Just saw these on CL.
http://seattle.craigslist.org/sno/pts/392662346.html
I think the tires are passenger tires but the wheels look good.
Lee
89 syncro
On 8/8/07, John Reddick <SVYOLO@yahoo.com> wrote:
>
> I have finally been able to drive, for a couple of hundred miles each,
> most or all of the "recommended" tires for the Vanagon. I have owned
> several sets myself, including Michelin MXT's, XCA's, Goodyear A/T TA's,
> all
> in 14 inch. I have driven Continental Vanco's, Agilis, Hankooks as
> well. I
> have driven, and owned, several sets of cheap 14" passenger tires. I
> think
> the A/T TA's, on a passenger syncro, were my favorite. The MXT's had
> awesome steering feel. The XCA's were the most solid feeling by far, but
> needed dry sandpaper for a driving surface as their tread was worthless on
> anything else. The Agilis and Hankooks ride very well, but handling is a
> bit vague, albeit safe.
> What is the best choice? If cost is the primary issue, Busdespots
> price
> on the Hankooks is really hard to beat, and they do ride very smooth. If
> cost is not overriding, forget them all. I have driven an equal number of
> Vanagon's with 15 or 16 inch wheels, with a huge assortment of tires. All
> of them, every single one, was vastly superior to any 14 inch tire on a
> Vanagon. It is the cheapest bang-for-the-buck upgrade you can ever put on
> a
> Vanagon.
> More importantly, if you grenade a tire somewhere, the local tire store
> will have something, maybe even a cheap used tire, that is safe. 14"
> inchers in reinforced sidewalls are special order only at most places. Try
> blowing 2 tires 200 miles north of Fairbanks like me. If I had 15"ers, I
> would have been back on the road, safely, in under an hour. Instead, I
> spent
> 2 weeks in vain trying to find something suitable, and ended up limping
> 1000
> miles south until I found a Canadian Tire with Michelin XCA's in stock.
> I know this post will cause lots of disagreement, angst, and hateful
> responses. I am lucky that I get to drive a lot of vans with different
> equipment. I will never own a Vanagon with 14 inch wheels for any length
> of
> time. Actually, lightweight 2wd passenger vans do OK, just OK, with some
> 14
> inch tires. By the time you get to a Westy, or worse yet a Syncro Westy,
> 15
> inch is the minimum.
> John
>
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