Just got 2 new tires......Excited! Tirebuyer.com rules!

[70coupyel]

I have seen what having passenger car tires can do. My first replacment set of tires came big tire chain here in So. Calif. I mostly used those tires as driving back and forth to work on the freeways here. The belt was delaminating from the casing of the tire. Wrong load rating.

Buyer beware on playing close to the load rating.

Nokian Van C and Koni's all around last Oct. Very predictible and I feel very seccure and confident with this set up.
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[dhaavers]

Torton - yeah, you can replace tires in pairs if you need.
When looking at "new-to-you" tires, please consider their age: http://www.roadhaus.com/tires/tire_age.html

My "new" van had adequate but 17-year-old tires on the back...plenty of tread, but obviously plenty old.
Fronts were only 4 years old but not properly load rated. Ditched 'em all & glad I did - van rides better & I can sleep at night.

PS: I also chose the Hankooks - they're solid, properly rated tires, but NOT good in deep snow or mud.
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86 White Wolfsburg Westy Weekender
"The WonderVan"
<EDITED TO PROTECT INNOCENT PIXELS>

[Ahwahnee]

RA08 are the Hankooks mentioned in some of the above posts. I'm on my second set & like 'em fine -- other opinions abound.

If the rear tires are not really old (say 10 years or so) I see no reason why you can't just go with 2 new assuming you get the same size, etc.

As I recall, prevailing wisdom is that the newer tires go on the rear.

[Wildthings]

As Randy linked to in his first post in this thread

[Alan Brase]

[Alan Brase]

Don't know if this is the right thread or if I should start another... I REALLY need to buy some snow tires, mostly for my 91. (this damn thing is sitting on thin packed snow, maybe started as 6". Absolutely won't move! These Agillis have rubber so hard, it's like glass on snow!)
What's out there these days? I saw the Nokians at Van Cafe. OUCH, are they expensive! Van Cafe are good guys, tho.
My 82 diesel has an almost new set of Hankook R008's and right now is not driving, but I don't know if they are very much better.
Al
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Al Brase
Projects: 67 sunroof bug, 67 Porsche 912 Targa, 70 Westy
Dec 1955 Single Cab pickup WANT 15" BUS RIMS dated 8/55, thru 12/55
To New owners: 1969 doublecab, 1971 Dormobile
Vanagons:
80 P27 Westy JUL 1979, 3rd oldest known US
83 1.6TD Vanagon, 87 Wolfie Westy daily driver, swap meet home

[Randy in Maine]

Hey Al! Long time no see.

What size are you looking for anyway?

[Alan Brase]

[jerrydog411]

Hi Al,

Given what you're (apparently) looking for ... 185R14 Nokians for $98 may well be your answer.

Granted, not $50 or $60 ... but definitely a really good tire.

http://www.van-cafe.com/home/van/page_1172 "C" dedicated snow tire

http://www.van-cafe.com/home/van/page_1155 "CS" snow capable all weather tire

my 2c ...

[dhaavers]

[vanjoe]

Ok I been watching this post I started and I decided today to go to Big Brand tires and Goodyear today. I drove my van there and had them both look at the tires I bought to make sure they are safe. Both dealers agreed that these tires are perfectly fine and safe for the van. They also explained that tire pressures vary between brands and to go by the psi rating for that tire. They also explained that the tires don't know a difference between a passenger car and the van. The van is very comparable in weight to a mid to full size care that these tires would originally go on. They also stated that a reputable shop is not going to install tires that are unsafe. The liabilty is too great to do that he said. I have driven about 1000 miles on them so far and am very pleased with the performance. They handle great in wet conditions with all the rain we have gotten in Cali it was a good time to test them.

[70coupyel]

I think this old thread need to be posted. Alot of first hand info.
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=304941&highlight=passenger+tires+blow
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[70coupyel]

[hiram6]

Sorry VanJoe, I disagree with you on the results of your visit to the tire store. The threads here are full of people riding on incorrectly rated tires who counted on a "local tire guy" to sell them what they should have. It's up to YOU to research the requirements, and also to research the tires you are buying. Unfortunately, I would not count on the guy behind the counter and his computer database to make that call for me. You can trust a front counter employee at a tire store who has likely never seen, much less driven, a Vanagon. Or you can trust a group of passionate Vanagon owners who have considered, debated, and driven many models and brands of tires on our Vanagons.

His line about "no shop would ever sell substandard tires, it's too great a liability" is BS. Look on the back of your receipt. There's enough fine print back there to cover any liability. Ultimately, it's YOUR responsibility to buy the right product for your van.
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1985 Westy, 1.9L automatic (Daisy)
1996 Mazda Miata
1998 Jeep Grand Cherokee 5.9 Limited

You can't lie around on the beach and drink rum all day.................unless you start first thing in the morning.

[Ahwahnee]

[r39o]

[Home Team Van]

Vanjoe- I went to 4 different local tire shops and was recommended four different sets of tires none of which met the required specs. One even wanted to put on some trailer tires. Every shop but one kept telling me I didn't know what I was talking about because I was requesting a tire that didn't have a middle number. The bottom line is that it's your decision to make and you should do whatever makes you most comfortable. After doing my research I came to the conclusion that i knew more about vanagon tires than they did so I ordered the proper tire and had it shipped to a local guy to install.
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82 Diesel Westy

[climberjohn]

Volks,

There is an easy tire solution that will work for most of us:

Buy Nokian tires from Van Cafe.

They come in sunny and stormy weather models, and fit 14", 15" and 16" wheels.

This is a proven product from an esteemed vendor.
Supporting VW-specific vendors like Van Cafe help ensure they will be around in the future when you need them for another part. (VC has great prices on Nokians, to boot.)

There can be lots of confusing and complicated things about vans. Tires need not be one of them. Why make this harder than it has to be?

My 2 bits,
CJ
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'86 Westy, 2.5 Subaru power
Know your limits. Exceed them often.

[wvukidsdoc]

Hey Al,

As a transplanted Alaskan well known to you, go with the Nokian's, really, the only thing serious people run on 2wd vehicles up here.

Of course as a cheaper alternative, if not permanent, as worthless as Agillis are, you can put a set of chains or cable chains on them if your locale tolerates them???

John

[msewalson]

I wasn't to impressed with Tirebuyer.com. One of the most expensive online companies. Their price for 195 BFG AT's was $137.16 and an additional $132.00 for mounting, balance and etc. That comes out to $163.57 a tire.

Tirecrawler.com price was $107.68 a tire and $15.79 per tire for shipping. That comes out to $123.47 a tire but doesn't include balancing and valve stems which runs about $20.00 per tire, in my area.

Sears kinda price matched tirecrawlers price but not a huge savings and they were a huge pain in the a$$ to deal with. I ended up going to discount tires and got them down to $141.76 a tire which beat Sears price and includes tax, balance, road hazard and valve stems. Not a huge savings but the money is staying some what local and I'm paying local taxes which helps are crappy local economy.