Mix Tires bad idea ?

If you have to run different tires, run them on the rear. Different tires on the front can cause the differential gear to be constantly turning, a bad thing. Worse, when you go to stop, the weight shifts to the front and the rear tires are slightly 'off loaded.' Having squirrely rear wheels is less bad than having your front wheels fighting over who is really going to stop.

GOOD LUCK!
Bob Wilson

 

Bob,

I know you have a much better understanding about such things than I'll ever have, but I am wondering how to make sense out of your post.

I think the OP is suggesting the purchase of two new tires to put on the rear wheels. The question is whether this will cause any of the problems listed.

You suggest having the different tires on the rear wheels, but I'm wondering how any same-sized tires would be the "different" ones. I've been told that in this situation the newer or better tires should be on the rear wheels to avoid "drift" or premature loss of control (at least loss of control before front tire loss).

Having said this (and acknowledged my lack of understanding), can you tell me what I've misread or misunderstood in your post?

I'm interested because I'm facing a similar situation. I'll need to get two new tires when I have 16,000 on the others. I'd prefer not to buy two new Integrities, so please advise.

Thank you!!

 

I went back and re-read the original posting and I'd misunderstood. I was thinking 3 identical and a 4th odd until a replacement came in. But I see he is proposing two front and two rear being different. IMHO, no problem.

If I had to run one of four tires different, I would go with putting the mixed tires on the rear. But as for mixed front and rear, I've been doing that for two weeks with:

175/65R14 - rear and now front
175/70R14 - front and now rear
​

I did this so I could compare the two tires and handling. So far, I like the 175/70R14 and have ordered two more and will retire the worn out 175/65R14s. I will keep the best 175/65R14 as a full-size, spare.

Bob Wilson

 

Regarding the OP's question, there's no problem installing two new tires of a different brand, and the rear axle is the appropriate place. Put the best two of the old tires on the front axle.

Today I was faced with a similar situation when the RF tire on my 2004 blew out at speed (Bridgestone Potenza RE960A Pole Position tires). My wife was driving and hit debris on the highway. The car handled well and once we determined the tire was flat, we pulled over to the right shoulder.

I replaced the tire with the compact spare, took over the driving task, and was pleasantly surprised that the car's handling was not bad considering the narrow width of the spare. One finding is that the tire wrench produces barely enough leverage to loosen the tire lugs which were previously tightened to 76 ft.-lb (by me). I had to step on the end of the wrench (therefore, applying ~150 lb to the wrench-end) to provide sufficient loosening torque.

I visited my local America's Tire store (Mission Viejo, CA) and was offered a great allowance on my old tires which were at 6/32". The salesman was trying to encourage me to buy 4 tires instead of 2. The problem was that the Potenza RE960A tires were on back-order status, so I did not have the option to buy 1 or 2 Bridgestone tires.

The good news is that I left with 4 Pirelli P3000 tires for $200 out the door (which includes tire mounting/balancing and state sales tax).

The bad news is that those tires have a maximum tire inflation pressure of 35 psi (this is not a typo) so I no longer can run 42/40 psi, since I am not the type of individual who feels comfortable ignoring printed warnings on the tire sidewall...

 

Quite sensible and a good buy with the trade-in.

I was able to find the P3000E at TireRack but in only one size.

GOOD LUCK!
Bob Wilson

 

I was in a similar situation, having to replace one of the rear Goodyear Integrity tires with a Pirelli P3000. After tire rotation, the one Pirelli is now in the front.

Goodyear rpm is 855
Pirelli rpm is 852.8

This is about the same as a 1/16" difference in tread, or about 0.3%

I haven't noticed anything bad in handling or mpg, but I'll probably rotate the tires ASAP.

 

Nokian is popular with owners in the US East and Midwest.

Have you taken a look at tirerack.com which has a relatively large selection available (however the tires for your size are quite expensive):
TinyURL.com - shorten that long URL into a Tiny URL

If they will ship to Canada, this might be a reasonable choice for you...