honestautoestimates.com » tires http://blog.honestautoestimates.com The Source for Honest Auto Repair Fri, 16 Apr 2010 12:54:17 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8 en hourly 1 Low profile tires, are they worth it? Look good at any cost? http://blog.honestautoestimates.com/2010/04/low-profile-tires-are-they-worth-it-look-good-at-any-cost/ http://blog.honestautoestimates.com/2010/04/low-profile-tires-are-they-worth-it-look-good-at-any-cost/#comments Fri, 16 Apr 2010 12:46:01 +0000 scott http://blog.honestautoestimates.com/?p=112 A lot of young people are into the tuning market and like the look and performance of low profile tires mounted on very large wheels. The problem is the tire is the first line of defense when you hit a pot hole or turn into McDonalds. The energy from the collision that is created when your vehicle runs through a pot hole or any other large bump, has to be absorbed by the tire first and then into the wheel, then wheel hub, the suspension and eventually into the chassis, then your seat. If you have a very low profile tire (Sidewall), the energy is not absorbed by the tire it is transferred completely into the other parts. These parts are not designed to take the complete impact so they begin to fail prematurely or worse they fail immediately and cause lots of callateral damage. The idea of street tires having to be low profile to handle well is solid, but it has to be tempered with reason. There is “Too low” when it comes to the tire’s side wall and you could cost your self a lot of money trying to look sporty!

]]> http://blog.honestautoestimates.com/2010/04/low-profile-tires-are-they-worth-it-look-good-at-any-cost/feed/ 1 Your tires should be a “Match made in Heaven!” http://blog.honestautoestimates.com/2009/12/your-tires-should-be-a-match-made-in-heaven/ http://blog.honestautoestimates.com/2009/12/your-tires-should-be-a-match-made-in-heaven/#comments Thu, 03 Dec 2009 14:26:56 +0000 scott http://blog.honestautoestimates.com/?p=107 I was talking to someone the other day and they mentioned they had 2 new tires put on their car. I asked them if they really wanted to go into the ditch that bad? They answered, “What?”, I explained to them that if you mix tire tread patterns it can cause vehicle stability issues. You see, most of today’s vehicles are equipped with some kind of Vehicle Stability Control system and ABS (Anti-Lock Brakes). These systems calculate many factors and then make decisions about transmission gear changes, engine speed, braking and steering to keep you from driving beyond the vehicles limits. The problem with having tires that do not match (Tire design, manufacturer, rubber compounds, age etc.) is that all these safety systems assume that the traction or road contact is the same at each point of the vehicle. If one or more contact points are different, the systems will react incorrectly and possibly destabilize the vehicle potentially causing an accident. The moral of the story is saving a few bucks may cost you your life under certain conditions, BUY 4 TIRES!

]]> http://blog.honestautoestimates.com/2009/12/your-tires-should-be-a-match-made-in-heaven/feed/ 0 Deadly contact! http://blog.honestautoestimates.com/2009/11/deadly-contact/ http://blog.honestautoestimates.com/2009/11/deadly-contact/#comments Tue, 10 Nov 2009 13:41:49 +0000 scott http://blog.honestautoestimates.com/?p=105 I would guess that most people have no idea of what a DOT number is on your tires. This is perhaps the most important number associated with a vehicle tire, even more important than the price, it’s the age. Watch the following report from ABC news before you kill your family or friends trying to save money and time:

http://abcnews.go.com/Video/playerIndex?id=4826897

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