[cruzned]

I have at least 3 tire wear bars showing on the rear but none on the front. I tried to order on tire rack and they suggested I get an entire set. It just does not make sense to me to order an entire set if I only need to replace the rear tires at 20K miles. Of course, the need to replace has to do with overinflating the tires during autocross racing but do I really need to order all 4? Any thoughts or suggestons would be appreciated. I have noticed very obvious squiggle on take off and lane changes lately due to the balding rear tires. Kind of fun, but not so safe. :jester I think Buffy (our former autocrosser) would probably have the best advice on this or Freezer (our retired engineer and resident expert on the SSR).

 

[bcbear10]

With most of my sports cars, I usually find that I am replacing 2 sets of rear tires to one set of fronts. As long as you replace the two rears at the same time or the two fronts at the same time you should be ok. I just did it last week on one of the cars.

 

[RatherEatWorms]

You do not need to replace all 4 tires. The only times it is necessary to replace full sets are:

1) if the vehicle is an all wheel drive/4 wheel drive, the tread depth needs to match closely
2) if the tires you are replacing are of a different speed rating
3) if the tires are directional/symetrical and the replacements are not
4) if you are thinking of mixing snow tires with any other type of tire, don't do it!
5) if the tires on the other axle are worn out, in which case you can have traction/handling difficulties due to the different amount of grip in each axle

It is always nice to sell a full set of tires, that is why some tire dealers recommend it.

:flag

 

[Subdriver]

I agree with the above posters. Replacing only the rear tires, assuming you get tires of the same or better grip than what was on the car, will result in more rear grip relative to the front, which is inherently safe.

I would caution against opposite. Having more grip in the front relative to the rear can be hairy, so I would normally not recommend it unless the driver knew what was going on and could safely evaluate the change. :cheers

 

[mikepowell]

I have also heard this

I agree with the above posters. Replacing only the rear tires, assuming you get tires of the same or better grip than what was on the car, will result in more rear grip relative to the front, which is inherently safe.

I would caution against opposite. Having more grip in the front relative to the rear can be hairy, so I would normally not recommend it unless the driver knew what was going on and could safely evaluate the change. :cheers

the reasoning was that bald= slick. the majority of the driving population can handle understeer (front slide) , but oversteer (rear slide) is harder to manage.
I use to buy new tires for the front of my front drive vehics and put the best old ones on the rear- big mistake :flag

 

[RISSR]

I have never used this site but I did find that they have the rear tires cheaper than tire rack. They do not have anything for the front tires.

http://www.discounttiredirect.com/d...r=2004&sw=false&cs=295&vid=008649&rd=20&ar=40

 

[cruzned]

Thank you all for the advice. I ordered the rear tires from tirerack.com. Greatly appreciated gang. :seeya

 

[Subdriver]

Thank you all for the advice. I ordered the rear tires from tirerack.com. Greatly appreciated gang. :seeya

I've always had good service from Tire Rack. Get a lot of my race tires from them. Enjoy the new rubber. :cheers

 

[freezer]

It is a basic principle of vehicle dynamics that your best tires should always be on the rear of the vehicle. This applies whether you FWD, RWD, or AWD. The rear tires supply the anchor point for all vehicle lateral motion. If they have poor rear tire traction, you have no control when they start to slip.

 

[cruzned]

Thanks Ed. I always appreciate your sage advice!

Ed :seeya

 

[Devil]

I have at least 3 tire wear bars showing on the rear but none on the front. I tried to order on tire rack and they suggested I get an entire set. It just does not make sense to me to order an entire set if I only need to replace the rear tires at 20K miles. Of course, the need to replace has to do with overinflating the tires during autocross racing but do I really need to order all 4? Any thoughts or suggestons would be appreciated. I have noticed very obvious squiggle on take off and lane changes lately due to the balding rear tires. Kind of fun, but not so safe. :jester I think Buffy (our former autocrosser) would probably have the best advice on this or Freezer (our retired engineer and resident expert on the SSR).

Since you're not driving a Ferrari Enzo, as long as you change the 2 rear , you're ok.

 

[cruzned]

I went to kramer Tire and Merchants tire centers to see how much they wanted to mount my tires. they wanted $59.00 per tire!!!!!!! Priority Chevrolet (my dealer) is putting them on next week for $15.90 each, no hassles, no rip offs. You may want to speak with your dealership when getting tires on. They charge a lot for the tires (I got mine at Tirerack.com cheaper), but you can possibly save some dough at the dealership on install costs. That is a pretty big price difference. :seeya

 

[dingbat]

I think I set a record

After having lunch on Wednesday with some friends at their store I went outside to leave and found my rear tire flat. I picked up a chunk of a broken coffee mug.
I got on the phone to Chevy roadside service and called it in. They said that I would get a call back in about 5 min to let me know who was coming and when.
I walked from the back of the store to the front and in walks two guys from the towing company. It couldn't have been more than 3 minutes!!!!! By the time I got the phone call back from Chevy telling me the towing company would be there in 45 min. my car was already on the flatbed and on its way. Now that's service!!!
They managed to save the tire with a patch and it came to $45 for the repair.