Date: Sun, 9 Nov 2008 10:17:24 -0800
Reply-To: neil N <musomuso@GMAIL.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: neil N <musomuso@GMAIL.COM>
Subject: Re: Tire sales-people (rant + info .... long)
In-Reply-To: <008201c94294$624bd620$edc6f004@computer>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1
Thanks Jerry!
I too had noted Dennis' pointer to those General Tires. Another option.
I should mention that though my post was mostly about the L.I. rating
of the tire in question, it was salesman's behavior that spawned my
rant.
From now on, I'll be more direct about what I"m looking for.
"I need a 185/14/C 97 tire, that is wicked good in the snow, ice,
rain, dry pavement, will leap tall sand dunes in a single bound, make
my Westy corner like a Porsche, cancel out cross winds......"
;)
Cheers,
Neil.
On Sun, Nov 9, 2008 at 9:55 AM, azsun99 <azsun99@earthlink.net> wrote:
> I agree with Mark on this one. On my '90 Westy, I am on my second set of Michelin XCLT
> 4's, the same tire, but branded for Sears. Unfortunately, they also are no longer
> available in 195/75/14 size.
> But, if you want an inexpensive tire, check out the General Altimax RT in 205/70R14,
> mentioned a few months ago by Dennis Haynes. It's an XL (Extra Load) rated tire, L.I.
> 98, max load 1653LB @51PSI, 5 tread plies, 1 sidewall tread, 70,000 mile treadwear. I
> bought 5 from The TireRack. They were here in 2 days from their Reno warehouse. And
> they are not made in Asia, but that other up and coming powerhouse, Brazil.
> Not wanting to deal with the "know-it-all's" at the local tire stores, I had them
> balanced and mounted at the local Wal-Mart. I was actually impressed with their
> operation. Not a vehicle moved, up, down, in or out, without much beeping of horns and
> people yelling "Clear!". And the tech that worked on my '88 Westy was very agreeable.
> He had not worked on one before and was more than happy to follow my instructions.
> The Westy's happy, I'm happy, and I will probably wear out before the tires do.
> Jerry in AZ
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "mdrillock" <mdrillock@COX.NET>
> To: <vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM>
> Sent: Saturday, November 08, 2008 9:05 PM
> Subject: Re: Tire sales-people (rant + info .... long)
>
>
>> Sadly, that tire is discontinued in that size. I have used several sets
>> on Syncros/ Campers and I know many other Vanagon/Syncro/Westy owners
>> who have too. Nice tire and I would love to still be able to get them.
>> Of course it is a Load C 6PR tire so the load index theory does not
>> strictly apply, IMHO. Larry and I have gone around and around on this.
>> He prefers to err on the side of insisting on a higher weight/load
>> standard. The result is that many people buy low end Asian tires with
>> high load/weight numbers but inferior braking and handling and think
>> they have done a good thing. Doesn't matter much anymore since most of
>> the quality tires that fit our vans are gone anyway. You can at least
>> still get some decent winter tires for $$$.
>>
>> Mark
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> neil N wrote:
>> > Tire in question: Michelin LT 195/75/14 93R Mud & Snow.
>> >
>> > On a whim, I went to a local tire shop. The first salesman, tries to
>> > sell me these Michelins. I was dubious, but curious, so he sent me to
>> > talk to someone else. I should say in defense of the first guy, that
>> > he did recommend some Agillis tires though I didn't actually see them
>> > to identify what size/model they were. Regardless, I wanted some
>> > snows. So....
>> >
>> > Ok. Now I'm talking to the second fellow. First off, in reference to
>> > me saying my Westy needed a minimum 97 L.I. tire, he asks: "where did
>> > you hear that?". I say: "internet". During the conversation, he then
>> > refers to the info I got as "crap". Well, now he's inadvertently
>> > insulting my Vanagon buddies here on this list and elsewhere. (not to
>> > mention my own intelligence) But to be open minded, I listened.
>> >
>> > I knew enough to know this tire didn't have the right load index
>> > (according to what I've read) but the first fellow looks it up anyway.
>> > Sure enough. 1435 lbs. But no, they're both trying to convince me that
>> > it would be fine citing various "examples". Basically continuing to
>> > tell me I'm wrong. But hey. I'm the customer right? I want a tire with
>> > a L.I. minimum of 97 dagnabbit! ;^)
>> >
>> > To confirm my suspicions:
>> >
>> > This from Larry's website (thanks Larry)
>> >
>> > "Model: LTX M/S
>> > Size: LT195/75R14
>> > Passenger Car Tire: No
>> > Load Index: 93
>> > Load Range: C
>> > Max Load: 1435 lbs
>> > Max Infl@ion Pressure: 50 psi
>> > Diameter: 25.5
>> > Revs/per Mile: 824
>> > Fits in Stock Clamshell: Yes
>> >
>> > Meets Specifications: No "
>> >
>> > Oddly, I didn't see it on the Canadian Michelin website:
>> >
> Yeesh! ;)
>> >
>> >
>> > Neil.
>> >
>> > --
>> > Neil Nicholson '81 JettaWesty "Jaco
>> > http://groups.google.com/group/vanagons-with-vw-inline-4-cylinder-gas-engines
>> > http://web.mac.com/tubaneil
>> > http://tubaneil.googlepages.com/
>
--
Neil Nicholson '81 JettaWesty "Jaco
http://groups.google.com/group/vanagons-with-vw-inline-4-cylinder-gas-engines
http://web.mac.com/tubaneil
http://tubaneil.googlepages.com/
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