Outstanding 14" tire choice - Vredestein Comtrac- Edit :NLA

[katstan]

[flyboyaviator]

Can you elaborate more on the 356 Yokohama problem, the reason I ask is because I'm about to go and purchase that very tire for my westy.

[katstan]

[jkallo]

[katstan]

[jkallo]

[katstan]

Alright, if they're good enough for IdahoDoug then I'm in.

I cancelled my order with our local tire place for the Yokohomas to order these Vredesteins on the web and the local place will do the install. The Yokohomas could have been put on today but hopefully I will get these soon enough.

I'm not sure what to do about my camping trip this weekend since i have that broken belt. They switched the wheels around so that it's on the back at least (was on the front) but I don't think I should drive an hour on it to get to our camping spot on Saturday. Can I drive that far on the spare? .

[bobbyblack]

Ok, i'll give it a try:

What is the spare?

Also, just to mention, I drove a Suburban for more than 10 years, and that was the rig that kept having the belt separation issue. Heavy rig used for big jobs. of the 4 or 5 belt problems I experienced, I wasn't that concerned to drive it a few hundred more miles, maybe even a thousand once.

Anyway, there is always the option to see if a used but close match tire is available. In a pinch, I've done that on many many cars in my past.
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'87 Westy 'Flossie','86 Westy 'R1','86 tintop GL - Subi2.2 'J2','83.5 stock tintop L 'ZoomBus','74 Karmann Ghia, '63 Notch

[katstan]

[bobbyblack]

It would be way cool for them to be in tomorrow, and ON the van tomorrow too! Hope that works out.

I have to admit, I don't know what my spare is either. I do know that my spare is on a steel stock rim, that uses different hardware than I have on my rig now to fasten it on. The PO put brand new BFGs on 14" alloy rims and mounted them on the rig with new bolts/lugs. He left me a bag of hardware just in case the spare was needed at some point.

It is kind of stupid funny that I don't know. I've had the rig for almost 2 years. I've also had a set of Merc rims AND hardware to mount them from T3 for nearly that long, and have not yet done a single thing to move to the 16" setup I have sitting right in my way, taunting me every time I am in my garage.

Sure hope you take your Westy on that trip, would be awesome!
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'87 Westy 'Flossie','86 Westy 'R1','86 tintop GL - Subi2.2 'J2','83.5 stock tintop L 'ZoomBus','74 Karmann Ghia, '63 Notch

[katstan]

[danfromsyr]

Bobby brings up a good point for you Kat (and all other van drivers)

1st we should know the condition of our spares. because we'll hope it's up to the task if we have the emergency need..
mine is like 14+years old..

and
2nd what rim it's on and the hardware required.

in my mom's van she has aluminum rims and a steel spare, there are 5 steel wheel lug bolts screwed into 5 steel wheel lug nuts (for front or rear installation) in her glove box.

if you have an aluminum spare then yer all good.
if it's been swapped out for a steelie ask andrew if he has 5 lug bolts & lug nuts to spare when your in for the next service..

also
check the lug nut torque (just giving them a grunt from the lug wrench) after they've been off/on for 100~150miles. the tire place should let you know.
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[katstan]

[IdahoDoug]

Suspect tire on left rear. Be slow n respectful n ensure inflation correct. Enjoy the Vredesteins. Every mile Im still impressed.
_________________
1987 2WD Wolfsburg Vanagon Weekender "Mango", two fully locked 80 Series LandCruisers. 2017 Subaru Outback boxer. 1990 Audi 90 Quattro 20V with rear locking differential, 1990 burgundy parts Vanagon. 1984 Porsche 944, 1988 Toyota Supra 5 speed targa, 2002 BMW 325iX, 1982 Toyota Sunrader

[katstan]

[campism]

[Robw_z]

Those Vredestein 205/65R16's look tempting. Good load rating with little if any loss in power due to ~26.5" tire diameter.

-Rob

[davevickery]

[IdahoDoug]

I drove about 500 miles this weekend and continue to be impressed. They ride waaaaay better than the old, hard D rated Michelins I took off. Those were aged out but still had decent tread. On broken secondary roads with seams and patches the difference was remarkable - no gritting your teeth as every pot, bottle and CD case rattled as was the case.

Handling was another rave review. On these same secondary roads with curves (seems like every road here in the PNW follows the winding course of a river) at speed, the Van handled like a dream. On curves, bumps did not upset the line, and the carcass is so stable there was no wander in curves.

I did notice that when going straight on the interstate, the steering felt slightly "light". That's not wander, its that the steering feels unweighted as if the tires aren't as directionally stable as the Michelins were. Its an evaluation point for tires that is merely a subjective feel, not a measurable performance metric, so the van is still tracking perfectly straight but there is a slightly vague feel on center. If I were a perfectionist, I'd ask an alignment shop to put just a twitch of toe in to whatever the current settings are.

We climbed a steep, rutted road on dry, scratchy gravel we've been on before near BigFork, MT and spun much of the way the other 3 times. Didn't even spin a tire. A bit unfair as these are new, soft rubber and of course brand new deep treads, but performance is performance.

No particular improvement in crosswind sensitivity on the freeway, as the Michelins were rock steady already. The low noise on these Vredesteins was unbelievable. I don't know how they did that. Not only zero tire noise while driving (truly), but also no "slap, slap" sound when hitting freeway expansion joints. Made the van feel like a magic carpet ride.

And the toughness appears to have paid off as well. Some asshat loosened the lugnuts on one of our wheels while we were at a small lake paddling. The wheel fell off, bashed the rotor/hub and had chunks taken out of the lip, but the tire was undamaged.

Overall, this was one of the most successful tire purchases I've ever made in achieving gains in so many aspects of tire performance. I ran them at the van's recommended door plate pressures - halfway between the two tire size pressures listed. That seemed to be a good starting point as the front and rear axles seemed coordinated in handling. The van weighed 4200lbs on a scale, with a pair of kayaks and racks on the roof and a medium camping load.

If I fine tune the pressures, I'll update. We're heading to the Puget Sound fully loaded next week.

Doug
_________________
1987 2WD Wolfsburg Vanagon Weekender "Mango", two fully locked 80 Series LandCruisers. 2017 Subaru Outback boxer. 1990 Audi 90 Quattro 20V with rear locking differential, 1990 burgundy parts Vanagon. 1984 Porsche 944, 1988 Toyota Supra 5 speed targa, 2002 BMW 325iX, 1982 Toyota Sunrader

[Wildthings]