Quote:
Originally Posted by patrickt
Ehhhrrrgg, Tim you mean you've never actually driven on the Firestones?
|
Like I said, "the only ones that have negitive things to say are people who have never owned them."
Tread wear ratings don't mean S#!t.
Limitations
The DOT does not test tires. It depends on manufacturers to test their own tires and report the results. Unfortunately, this system has made treadwear ratings far less useful than the DOT had originally intended because tire manufacturers are able to use the treadwear grade as a marketing tool.
It is legal and permissible for a manufacturer to give their tire a 240 rating when their competitor's equivalent tire has a 220 rating; thus creating the false impression that the 240 tire is a better purchase because it will last longer. This tendency to inflate treadwear numbers has become so common that some manufacturers may report that ALL their tires have above average treadwear grades. Some are taking normal tires and reporting a treadwear of 600 or more, or giving a 220 rating to maximum performance tires with a reputation for poor tire life (e.g. the Goodyear Eagle F1 Supercar EMT).
Trends
In general, manufacturers tend to overstate the treadwear of their tires in an effort to create the impression that their tires last a long time. The exception to this is in competition racing tires, which customers expect to have very soft rubber compounds and very short lifespans. Manufacturers tend to give their race tires low treadwear numbers (often zero) to emphasize how soft and sticky their rubber is.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treadwear_rating