Are you saying that there are “all season” tires that are not also “rain” tires? The very definition of an AS tire is that it handles all seasons - hot, cold, dry, wet and to some degree ice and snow.
It’s certainly no more worth buying cheap, low-rated AS tires than any other kind, but your posts imply that AS =/= better wet handling than “summer” tires, which I’d like to see you correct or substantiate.
Because it’s the festival van (we even have the license place to match now). It only runs us about $300 a year between insurance and registration (obviously overall cost is a bit higher this year with the tires). Festivals have their share of incidents (String Cheese and otherwise), so risking a rental may not be a good thing. Plus, in addition to stickers and other decorations on it we’re going to hit it with something like this.
No, I’m not saying that. However, some AS tires do have better ratings than other AS tires.
Would you accept the word of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration? Seeing as they went thru all the trouble of having different traction ratings for tires, I shop for tires that have a traction rating of AA. The fact that there are different ratings probably means that all AS tires are not considered equal, at least by the NHTSA.
http://www.firestonecompleteautocare.com/catalog/pop_up/utqg.jsp
Warning PDF file ahead -
p.s. The traction rating of your tires are posted on the sidewall of your tires by law.
No argument. I’m not even sure how this side topic evolved except that you seemed to be making a very strange argument that AS tires weren’t AS. 
I think you’d have trouble finding equivalent summer and AS tires (same size, same price bracket) where the wet traction of the AS tires wasn’t higher than the summer tires. The dry traction could be somewhat less, though. And snow and ice traction is a whole other ballgame - you can save money by not buying tires highly rated for frozen conditions if you rarely encounter them, but if you get snow every year and plan to use one set of tires, make sure they have the snowflake icon.
Neat idea / product, but geezzz they are expensive.
Surely there’s something between plaster and concrete they could made from as DYI for way, WAY cheaper.
I think doorhinge is just referring to any AS tire with a AA rating as a good “rain” tire because tires with that rating will brake the best on wet surfaces. However, the UTQG description also states that their traction test doesn’t include wet cornering or hydroplaning resistance. I think those other two factors should play a role in what makes a good “rain” tire, but in their absence, it makes sense to go with the AAs, all other things being equal.
It always makes sense to go with the best rating you can afford. I think way, way too many people buy tire by (1) lowest possible price and (2) rated mileage. Looking at UTQG ratings AND Tire Rack survey results would tell them a lot of useful things about what they’re getting for their money.
The Subaru I just bought had almost-new Firestones on it that were rated at eleven bazillion miles. Had the traction of an old steel-wheel roller skate. Dumped 'em for the TripleTreds and it’s a completely different car.
Wrong.
“An all-season tire trades the summer tire’s damp-road grip for the ability to remain flexible at well-below-zero temperatures.”
Seriously. You’re going to quote Popular Mechanics as an authority? These days?
And you’re going to take “trades the summer tire’s wet grip” as a reliable statement? Find any designated “summer tire” with wet grip anywhere near its dry grip.
“(All-Season Tire) A steel-belted radial tire which has been designed to provide balanced performance on wet and dry roads and traction in mud and snow.” - GM
“The All Season tire classification is a compromise between one developed for use on dry and wet roads during summer and one developed for use under winter conditions.” - Wikipedia
“An approved traction tire, whether on a four-wheel/all-wheel drive vehicle or a standard vehicle, must have at least an eighth of an inch of tread and be labeled M&S, All Season, or have a Mountain/Snowflake symbol.” - WA DOT
I could go on. Sorry to tell you, but PopMech hasn’t been a particularly reliable source of auto info since Tom Cahill retired around 1970.
Thanks—that sums up a lot of the rationale behind posting. Though not necessarily trivial, the price difference of a couple hundred bucks isn’t worth it in this case. Not that I’m trying to spend money for the sake of it, just that tires are a mystery to me and it was hard to tell what features to focus on. Tires seem such an odd thing to try and skimp on.
On that note, here’s today’s safety question:
I had the van inspected by a mechanic. Besides the state requirements (NY), he knows it’s seldom driven and we’re taking it on long trips this summer. He said it was fine, but when balancing the tires one of the fronts had a slight flat spot on it and couldn’t be balanced. That’s what started this thread–my intent is to buy two new tires, put them on the rear, and drive on.
On the drive back, the shaking (why we asked to rebalance the tires) was minimal. Previously, anything over sixty miles per hour meant the steering wheel jiggled like mad, now it’s barely noticeable. Again, he only balanced one front tire.
We were hoping to take the van across Connecticut today, about 200 miles. The tire past its initial visual inspection (tread is okay, etc.), it wasn’t until he was unable to balance it that the flat spot showed up.
On a scale of Very Dumb Things, especially considering the whole ‘safety first’ premise of the OP, how dumb would it be to take it on this trip? Or is a minor flat spot, one that’s not noticeable to a visual inspection and isn’t causing a pronounced shake a trivial safety concern? Does it’s location (front tire) make a difference?
The steering wheel vibration that you are experiencing may initially seem like a minor annoyance but it’s shaking your steering system, motor mounts, drive train, cooling system, and electrical connections. Maybe to the point of failure. A 400 mile round trip isn’t very long. Unless you break a motor mount, lose a wheel, or a cooling hose fails.
I’m guessing that all four of your tires are “olde” and maybe the tire compound has hardened to a point where it might not carry half of it’s rated load, survive an encounter with a pot hole, or grip even a damp road, let alone carry you thru a heavy downpour. However, I’m not there, so I don’t know.
Personally, if the tires are 6+ years old, I would buy four new tires. At minimum, I would buy two new tires and put them on the front (steering and most of the braking) wheels. I would then put the best two of the three remaining tires on the back wheels. That’s my choice, YMMV.
I use Tire Rack to see what’s available for my vehicles, compare performance ratings, and check out the customer reviews. Then I choose the best tire, that meets my criteria, AND IS READILY AVAILABLE IN MY AREA. If your choice of tire isn’t normally carried in Connecticut, you’ll have to wait for delivery or shipping. Just sayin’.
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All-Season tires have been my tire of choice for decades but I understand that AS tires are a compromise based on the criteria of each manufacturer. Is wet or dry traction a higher priority? Should the tire have a more water redirecting tread or a higher mileage tread? How quiet should the tire be? All AS tires are not created equal.
Consumer choices differ depending on where the tires will mostly be used. Are the roads straight and flat or mountainous and twisty? An AS tire that works well in Nebraska might not be adequate in the Blue Ridge mountains.
None of those statements come remotely close to categorically saying that all-season tires have better wet traction in warm weather than summer tires. Yeah, summer tires don’t give you winter traction, so yes, buy all-seasons in Washington. I don’t know why you think summer tires even exist if all-seasons are just the best at everything. Your own source says it’s a “compromise.”
But since you want more sources to impugn, your erroneous belief is misconception #1 according to Mobil: http://www.mobiloil.com/USA-English/MotorOil/Car_Care/Notes_From_The_Road/Misconceptions_Tires.aspx
And Tire Rack says: “A summer tire … will perform better in dry road cornering and braking than an all-season tire. Summer tires also perform well in the rain; wet traction isn’t an exclusive all-season characteristic. Because it rains in summer, summer tires are made to be quite capable in the wet.”
You are just wrong on this one.
My one and only experience attending a large music fest involved parking and camping in a big ass field. Had it rained, I’m not sure I’d want to rely on summer tires to get me out. I’d go with AS tires.