Two choices to replace odd 17-inch tires on Torrent

John Mahler

SPECIAL TO THE STAR

Q: I recently purchased a 2006 Pontiac Torrent AWD. The original Bridgestone Dueller P235/60R17 tires have very little tread left after 60,000 km. I find these tires very noisy. I would like a year-round tire; I live in Calgary with the odd snowy day, but have always driven on all-season tires.

I am finding very limited options with this size of tire. I mainly use my vehicle for city driving.

What would you recommend?

A: Your Pontiac does have an unusual size, aimed at keeping you coming back to the GM dealer for tires. However, there are two excellent tires available at independent dealers for you. They are the Goodyear Fortera TripleTred and the Toyo Versado CUV.

As I say they are both great products but they are quite different. The Goodyear (if you choose it, must be the TripleTred; there are many other Fortera models), it will provide the better winter traction. It is, however, noisier than the Toyo. The Toyo is a less aggressive tread pattern, but it is very quiet and smooth.

For your Calgary winters I would lean towards the Goodyear TripleTred.

Q: I currently have a set of Hankook winter tires size P245/65R17 on a set of 17-inch six-bolt rims. These were off my Trail Blazer. I have purchased a 2010 GMC Terrain with Michelin P235/55R18 all-season tires. If I purchased the appropriate five-bolt wheels, am I able to use these Hankook winter tires on my new Terrain this coming winter?

A: Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but the swap will not fit. The wheel diameter of the new Terrain is 28.2 inches. The diameter of the tires from the Blazer is 29.5 inches. So the Hankooks are too tall and will likely rub under turns that require full turning lock on the steering.

Another problem is that I do not know of anyone making a 17-inch wheel for your new truck. In fact there is no one making 18-inch wheels for it either other than GM. Last winter GM ran short of wheels and stopped selling them at parts departments, so folks had to use their OE wheels for winter tires. Perhaps this fall with more of these vehicles on the road, someone else will tool up and start making wheels at a reasonable price.

Q: My 2007 Honda Civic needs new tires. We have proper winter tires for it so I don’t necessarily need an all-season. An actual summer tire is an option as well. These are the 16-inch tires.

A: If you want a summer sports tire, the best available is the Dunlop Direzza Sport Z1 Star Spec. This is basically an autocross tire. Moving down from that extreme, the Dunlop Sport Maxx is an ultra-high perforamnce summer tire that works well in all conditions.

The Fuzion HRi (Bridgestone) is excellent value as is the BFGoodrich g-Force Sport. The last UHP tire I would consider is the General Exclaim UHP; good price great performance.

In touring tires, look at the Michelin HydroEdge and the General Altimax HP. Either of these is top notch and will keep the Civic gripping.

Q: It’s time to get some summer tires for our Audi A4. Do you have any P235/40R18 recommendations? We want a decent summer tire, but don’t need a killer sticky tire.

A: Here are my choices for summer tires in your size that are good but not killer sticky good. In order: Hankook Ventus V12 Evo (new design, bargain priced), Goodyear Eagle F1 Asymmetric (new, somewhat hard riding), General Exclaim UHP (made by Continental, great tires at a bargain price), Fuzion ZRi (Bridgestone sub-brand), BFG g-Force Sport, and the Yokohama Avid ENVigor (new all-season but has good ride and reasonable grip plus long tread life).

Of course the ultimate tire for ride and quiet and grip is the Michelin Pilot Sport PS2 but you pay for it.

Q: In the spring of 2008 I bought new Falkens for my A4 and they were great. These are summer tires. I use Bridgestone Blizzaks about four months of the year. When the tires were approaching 20,000 km, they started to howl. At first, I thought it might be bearing noise, as I have had that problem previously. But as winter approached and I changed to my Blizzaks, the noise disappeared.

This spring, when I put the Falkens back on, the howling noise returned. The tire tread is still at least a quarter of an inch. They run balanced with no vibration. The tread appears good, but perhaps at this depth, the tread pattern has begun to make a lot of noise. Do I have any recourse with Falken?

A: Certain tires like to howl, and they like it more as they age. It is a function of tread pattern, tread depth, heat cycles and wear pattern. At 20 K, it is doubtful that Falken would consider any kind of an adjustment. But it can’t hurt to try. Give them a call, explain the situation and see what their reaction is. I have not had anyone write to me about Falken customer service good or bad, so please let me know what happens.

If you have to keep them on the car, you could try flipping them to the opposite sides of the car so they turn in the opposite way. That sometimes calms tires down after some more miles are put on them.

You can do this with uni-directional tires as well, just be aware that you do not have as much grip as you may expect when roads are wet. This is not a long-term solution.

Update: The reader phoned Falken’s head office in California. They were concerned but offered no help.

Email tire questions to John Mahler at thetireguy_1@hotmail.com. Please include vehicle’s make, model and year, tire brand and size, as well as your name, address and phone number. Due to volume, personal replies cannot be provided.

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