Vanagon EuroVan
Previous messageNext messagePrevious in topicNext in topicPrevious by same authorNext by same authorPrevious page (October 1998, week 3)Back to main VANAGON pageJoin or leave VANAGON (or change settings)ReplyPost a new messageSearchProportional fontNon-proportional font
Date:         Fri, 16 Oct 1998 08:08:12 +0100
Reply-To:     David Schwarze <des@TIU.NET>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@vanagon.com>
From:         David Schwarze <des@TIU.NET>
Subject:      Re: modern wheels & tires: some thoughts and many questions
Comments: To: George Lyle <physicshelp@rocketmail.com>,
          Sami Dakhlia <dakhlias@MAGELLAN.UMontreal.CA>,
          type2@type2.com, vanagon@vanagon.com
In-Reply-To:  <199810160515.WAA10534@yiff.azaccess.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

At 10:15 PM 10/15/98 -0700, George Lyle wrote:

>> (2) If a passenger tire has a sufficiently high max load rating, >does it >> really matter if it's "reinforced"? > >The bus will handle better if it is, as the stiffer sidewalls will be >more stable.

This is true, I have tried both. However, you pay a price in ride comfort. Everything is a tradeoff. For me, I choose stability.

>> (3) Any thoughts on the Goodyear Aquatred II or the Goodyear >Integrity? >> I'm looking for a nice street tire, with good grip and quiet. > >They have nifty advertising campaigns. Other than that, you'd be >better off with the Yokohama or Bridgestone 185R14s. They'll probably >be less expensive too.

With all due respect George, the Aquatread is a very good tire. The groove in the middle really does make it superior for driving in wet conditions, despite the advertising hooey. On the other hand, I don't believe it is reinforced. A friend of mine works at the GoodYear proving grounds in San Angelo and took me on a tour of the facility two weeks ago. After seeing what they do there I have a new respect for GoodYear tires. I also like the Wrangler AT's that I have on my bus at the moment - best handling tire I've ever had on my bus, but they do ride rough.

>> (7) Any thoughts on the use of wheel adapters? (Fuchs wheels have a >> different bolt pattern, so adapters would be needed) > >Adapters are never a good idea. Better to get wheels that fit.

Agreed.

>I seem to remember somewhere that Mercedes wheels had the same bolt >pattern as buses. This might be an avenue to getting wider wheels. >It remains to be seen whether the offset is correct or not, though.

I've seen 14" and 15" Mercedes wheels on busses, and although I didn't measure anything, they looked like they fit well. I don't want Mercedes wheels on my bus though, it's a personal thing. I like having a stock-looking wheel.

When I was at Jerome I met a guy with a '75 Double cab (!!) with wheels that looked stock except that they were 15". I asked him about them and he said a wheel shop had taken the stock wheels, cut the rims off and welded 15" rims on for about $35 apiece. I have decided to go that route for my rear wheels.

The reason I want to do this is that I want about a 5% increase in gearing, and there is no easy way for me to get it by juggling trannies, at least not cheaply. The tires I have on there now are the largest available in 14", except for 225/75/14's (which are slightly bigger, but they are not reinforced, and are way too big for the rims). I'm only doing the back two for now because the front cannot accept any larger of a wheel than what I have now anyway - sometimes the tire scrapes the wheelwell when I back out of my driveway - plus it would throw off the speedometer/odometer. There is plenty of room for larger tires in the back, I'm thinking I'll get 28x8.5 or thereabouts. The fronts will stay 27x8.5. The nice thing is that I can have them weld on a wider rim than stock - I will probably go with 8" wide rims for better stability.

-David ========================================================================= David Schwarze '73 VW Safare Custom Camper (Bluto) Dallas, Texas, USA '87 Mustang 5.0 (13.18@102.97) e-mail: des@eskimo.com '93 Weber WG-50 (Da Piano) http://www.tiu.net/~des '96, '96 cats (Aaaackkk! Phhhhht!!) =========================================================================


Back to: Top of message | Previous page | Main VANAGON page

Please note - During the past 17 years of operation, several gigabytes of Vanagon mail messages have been archived. Searching the entire collection will take up to five minutes to complete. Please be patient!


Return to the archives @ gerry.vanagon.com


The vanagon mailing list archives are copyright (c) 1994-2011, and may not be reproduced without the express written permission of the list administrators. Posting messages to this mailing list grants a license to the mailing list administrators to reproduce the message in a compilation, either printed or electronic. All compilations will be not-for-profit, with any excess proceeds going to the Vanagon mailing list.

Any profits from list compilations go exclusively towards the management and operation of the Vanagon mailing list and vanagon mailing list web site.