How much does tread depth difference matters between the front and rear tires? I know that it matters some and the guys at tires plus told me that they would not mount new front tires to my car and would only do all four. ( i got the winters tires and steal rims for free from a neighbor thats why they are worn differently) Two of the winter tires are almost bald, these came off the back of his car. But the front ones only have 2 or 3 winters on them and still have a fair amount of tread left. So should i just buy 2 new tires and through them on the front, keeping the used ones on the back. or will it totally pwn my differential like the guy at tires plus said, and i have to buy 4 new ones. Would the difference in tread between the new ones in front and the ones that have been used 2-3 seasons in back be to much or is it not even worth the risk? (yes i know i should put up a measurement of tread depth on the old tires but i can't find my caliper, sorry. when i find it i'll post it.)
even a millimeter off will wear on the clutch packs in the diffs and their not cheep, ive replaced more than i care to mention.
guideline is 1/4" max difference in circumference, which translates to a bit more than 1/16" tread depth. I'm guessing after 2-3 winters those used tires have a bit more more than 1/16" of wear on them...
sounds about rite. nice cheep skinny tires are best for winter anyway. just get 4 $40 dollar 195/70s or something.
Subaru also states that you cannot run any different brand or even model of tires, even if they are the same size.
sounds like i'll be going over to costco then for some new winter rubber, thanks for your help guys, i certainly dont want anything to happen to my diff. also do you guys recommend any CHEAP winter tires? i'm online now searching randomly
I don't generally suggest going cheap with any tires. Everything your car does goes through the tires. But if you need to go cheap, Firestone Winterforce tires are actually quite good and are about as cheap as winter tires go. They won't have the ice grip of a Blizzak or a Hakka (or any of the many newer options), but they're be decent, and will be quite good in snow and slush, and you can use them as RallyCross tires next year :laugh:
What type of car do you have? I picked up a winter wheel set for cheap from tire rack. http://mnsubaru.com/forums/showthread.php?t=35041 Otherwise there is a group buy that may still be going on. http://mnsubaru.com/forums/showthread.php?t=34915 I checked Costco for my friend who also needs just rubbers for his car. I found that discount tire had way better deals and a lot more options. just my $0.02
Actually, it has to do with the fact that even tho they say they are the same size, most times they are not. both are 225/45/17. There is a obvious width difference and there was a small height difference. Left set is re070 and the right set is a fuzion zri. Russ
i just thought different compounds lead to different stickienesses. but you definitely have a point their ay. btw amazing bridgestone potenzas.
And the GF currently has 225/45/17 Hakka rsi's on her car that are skinnier than the fuzion zri tires. Russ
great information, thanks for the linkity's as well, i'm guessing that the carcass of tire is from inside rim to rim? or is it how far apart the bands span?, either way it is quite peculiar that manufactures can sell tires that say the same size but are widely different. and that there is no easy other way to tell unless you stack'm up / break out the ruler. lol
Some tires have a rim guard, and some don't. The rim guard will make the tire look wider, especially when stacked like you have them.
The difference in widths stacked is probably 4 inches. And my point to the whole thing is that even tho they say they are the same size, they are not the same size. Width and height. Russ
