Random Thoughts... [Automotive Edition]

Blind_Io said:
Anyone moving out of their parents' house or going off to college.
Click to expand...

Since it's their most prized and fragile possessions they're going to be hauling, they are unlikely to drive it wildly and therefore unlikely to crash, per statistics. Though usually the parents rent it, not the sub-25 year old.


In other news, spotted these in photos of Day 3 of the London Riots.

Masked-man-walks-past-a-b-007.jpg


_54492685_012620653-1.jpg


/cue shrieks from the Miata contingent
 
Last edited:
And I just spotted another one:

hackneycar_1967179c.jpg


What is it with burning Miatas in London? Are they setting them on fire like the Los Angeles palm trees in the 1992 Riots or something???
 
Last edited:
Forget the Miata, that's an eMac on its side in front of it! Oh the humanity!
 
Labcoatguy said:
Forget the Miata, that's an eMac on its side in front of it! Oh the humanity!
Click to expand...

Trust me, the eMac is no loss. Those that aren't dead already will be soon due to the power supply going out. Getting to the hard drive to recover data is a PITA; I'd prefer seeing the eMac on fire instead of the Miata. :p
 
Last edited:
Kenda must be one of the worst tire manufacturers ever. The former owner of my Mazda had fitted brand new Kenda tires 1k km before i bought the car. I have now driven another 3k and they don't have any grip AT ALL in the wet. Imagine my surprise when i gently braked on a offramp from the highway and the front tires locked up, merrily sliding over the asphalt with a hissing sound. Second gear burnouts? No problem, and remember that it's a Mazda 626 from 1993 we are talking about. 115 hp new. I am changing as soon as the next paycheck hits my bank account.
 
Last edited:
Kenda's tires are notorious for having no wet traction, but often have very good dry traction. They're popular for motorcyclists who live in hot areas that don't see much rain.

However, none of Kenda's car tires can pass even the minimal US DOT requirements so they're not sold in the US. I guess if it's round, black and holds air it can be sold in the EU.

If you dislike the Kendas, I recommend you avoid Cheng Shin branded products as well. They're worse, and I hear their car tires are actually sold in Europe. We don't get those, but their motorcycle tires just barely pass DOT regs and are pretty much horrific in every possible way except wear. (They also make Maxxis tires, but the stuff that gets branded as Cheng Shin is epic levels of awful. Much like Goodyear is acceptable, but their Kelly-Springfield brand is made of fail.)
 
Last edited:
Kelly was sold over here for a while, they were listed in a magazine with one positive point. "Makes a lot of smoke during burnouts." It sold well among the "redneck" population of Sweden since they now could do burnouts in their old Volvos.

On a more serious note, looking at tests as we speak to find to find a cheap(ish) tire with decent results. Don't want to spend too much on my old heap since it will probably go to the crusher next year.
 
You can't really go wrong with Goodyear's, if they're sold over there.
 
Goodyear is sold here, but is priced as a "premium" tire along with Michelin, Pirelli and a few others.
 
The second-tier Japanese brands such as Toyo and Sumitomo are pretty good in the US, and hopefully they're as good in Europe. Heck, the local Jaguar mechanic recommended Sumitomos for my XJR over the overpriced Michelin and Pirelli options.
 
Last edited:
Toyo seems like a good choice, decently priced, good results in tests and quite a few garages stock them around here. Now, all i need is the paycheck. :)
 
Spectre said:
Since it's their most prized and fragile possessions they're going to be hauling, they are unlikely to drive it wildly and therefore unlikely to crash, per statistics. Though usually the parents rent it, not the sub-25 year old.
Click to expand...
Did you know you can do some MAD elevenses in an empty '06 International (DT466E, Eaton 6-speed, air brakes, big ugly box)? More, more like 1111's, since duallies and all that.
 
Re: cheap tire discussion: I ended up getting Tigar tires for my Mitsubishi. Apparently Tigar is a Serbian subsidiary of Michelin. The tires seem to be pretty good in the wet so far and do not make a lot of tire noise. I'll just have to see how quickly they wear.

Also, this is what I think of when I see the word Tigar:

http://img535.imageshack.**/img535/4031/murleyalbumsrandompictu.jpg
 
Last edited:
93Flareside said:
You can't really go wrong with Goodyear's, if they're sold over there.
Click to expand...

My last set of Goodyear tires left me stranded in the farthest, most remote place from anywhere in the state of Utah. Never again, now it's BF Goodrich All Terrain TA KO tires on my X and I love them. I just got four nails pulled out of the tires and they were still holding air and only one four-inch roofing nail went all the way through.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top