One U.S. retailer's website chock full of good tire info

John Mahler

SPECIAL TO THE STAR

Q: I thoroughly enjoy reading your responses to the various tire questions and I am absolutely amazed at the tremendous amount of information that surrounds tires. Is there a tire dictionary, or a book called "Everything you can possibly want to know about tires?" I find the information you provide all very fascinating, informative and quite confusing.

If there is a "holy grail" or tire "bible" available, I would love to have it.

A: I wish there was a book with all relevant tire information in it, but if it exists I have not found it. There are various bits and pieces in technical books from the various tire companies but these books are often very technical.

On the web, the best tire background info is at tirerack.com. Everything there has a link to more info. Every technical product spec is explained in detail if you keep following links.

Their professional reviews are right on the money as well.

But please, please, please ignore the consumer reviews unless for entertainment purposes. Large numbers of the postings have been written by people with a very limited knowledge about tires.

Q: I installed four Michelin X-ice tires on the original 15x6.5-inch size rims of my 2004 Camry last winter.

This past spring I bought four used steel rims and Michelin Destiny Tires (P205/65R15). These steel rims are 15x6 inches.

Is it okay to fit the original size tires on these half-inch narrower rims?

A: Your P205/65R15 tire is fine on a six-inch wide wheel. That size of tire can fit on rims from 5.5 inches to 7 inches. The ideal size for the tire is in fact a 6-inch rim.

Q: I am looking for a replacement tire for a 2004 Mercury Monterey minivan. I have the Uniroyal Nail Guard tires on the van and need new tires soon. The van does not carry a replacement/spare tire, so I would want something with the Nail Guard-type technology, or some type of run-flat qualities to get me through in a pinch.

What is available out there since the Nail Guard tires have been discontinued?

A: There is no current tire with the "Nail Guard" technology.

Nail Guard was a thick gooey sticky substance that would stick to anything that penetrated the tire and thus sealed the leak.

Run-flat tires cannot be installed on vehicles that do not have tire pressure monitoring systems (TPM) on them. It is a liability issue.Without the monitors, you could have a tire with no pressure, but the vehicle would not feel significantly different, nor would the tire look flat.

The tire could be driven until it failed and the car crashed.

The options are: buy a monitoring system for about $400 (the cheap ones are not reliable) and run-flat tires (about 30 per cent more costly than regular tires), or buy an air compressor and a couple of cans of tire sealant in case you get a flat and buy regular tires.

I'd go with the can of goo.

Run-flats are expensive, and usually after deflation, need to be replaced instead of repaired.

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.

Volume of mail prevents us from answering all queries or providing personal replies.

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