DOT, no DOT, law, insurance, life

[rdorman]

On the DOT street legal issue. I talked to two officers yesterday. While they did not do any research in this area they both fealt that if it is treaded with no visiable problems, escpecially since they come from a major manufacturer, that you would not be given any problem with the tires. This is in Ohio.

As DV pointed out that does not mean that they are legal to the letter of the law. I did some searching of the Ohio revised code and could find no more than the two officers relayed to me. Still looking forward to what DV has to add.

On the insurance front. My agent said, in writing (which I kept), that he did not see an issue with the tires.

PLEEEEEEEEEEEESE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Still have not gotten much feedback on the life of the tires etc. Specifically I am speaking of the Goodyears available from Rodger Krause racing, group B under Cobra tires.

Thanks folks!

[Turk]

We put NON DOT tires on our cars for better performance. OK, some of us do it for looks.
It is obvious higher performance NON DOT tires are better than their street cousins.
How is it that those tires (admittedly better) than the $60.00 Firestones or whatever, are a disqualifier for insurance.
I undestand they don't have a DOT sticker on them. Many that did were deemed to be not good tires in the past. Remember Ford Explorer and the tire problems that car had?
I guess I don't get it. This is a good study of government regulations run a muck.

Better tires are NOT allowed on our cars!!

TURK
If they were not better, racers would be sneaking around and using DOT street tires on the track.

[Chaplin]

Turk-
I may be wrong on this (and I am sure someone will tell me so if I am), but although non-Dot tires may be better from a performance standpoint, i.e., better traction, I don't know that they are better for purposes of daily driving. For example, non-DOT performance tires may not have the same sidewall construction as a DOT tire and may be more subject to blowouts when coming in contact with road debris. So, although you may get better traction with a non-DOT tire, it may be susceptible to blow out when hit by something.

And this is just a general question for everyone who uses the Good Year Blue streaks. In addition to the non-DOT/DOT issue, I have been reluctant to buy them because they are bias ply. Wouldn't you get a much better ride/handling with a new radial tire??

Mike

[RallySnake]

Rick,

I was able to streach the wear for the thin Hoosier Autocrosser tire for 9 months. I didn't drive the car much and with the alignment set to zero toe all round I got maybe 3000 miles before the cord started peeking through.

The Hoosier Road Race tires have much thicker tread. I ran a number of long rallies including the last Starlite to Las vegas and one autocross. They were good for about 6000 miles. The 295 series rears would not hold air without tubes. When the shop took them off the car they collapsed like big black trash bags. That made me stop and think, "man, I did 160 on those things"!

As a contrast, my new Toyo Proxy S/T tire have about 2500 miles on them now and show very little wear. This includes a number of skid pad sessions, too.

Paul

[rdorman]

I think you where saying what should be obvious. Common sense in government, insurance and regulations!!!

I would imagine that it might be true that they are not DOT certified because of all it take to become so. Look at the links I provided and the actual tests and standards are listed. It would certainly take a few bucks to go through that process.

On another note. I can not speak for the Goodyears that I am looking at (hence this thread) but I do have some experience with racing slicks. They are very light and that weight has to come from somewhere! It is not usually from the internal structure but from 1/2 plus tread plus much thicker rubber on the side walls to help protect the 'carcass'. I guess I should expand on the internal structure thing. They are purpose built. There is enough internal structure so that they can perform there intended function to peak ability. If they hit something or run over something, they go flat. The environment and intended use allows for this. I would think that the fully treaded Goodyears would be less of a compromise, still suitable for the street but also provide a higher level of adhesion.

A couple people have mentioned the Blue Streaks. Is that what is being sold in the group 'B' tires at Rodger Krause? Hard and slippery compared to what? A BFG T/A radial?? Hard to imagine! Hoosier TDs. Not so hard to imagine.

Thanks

Rick

FOR THOSE OF YOU THAT HAVE RUN THEM, PLEASE GIVE YOUR TWO CENTS

[rdorman]

The road race tires you refered to, is that the Hoosiers or the Goodyears that I have been refering to?
Thanks
Rick

[rdorman]

TTT

[ncstanger]

Hey guys,

Working for an insurance carrier has given me a considerable amount of knowledge on the subject of insurance. To deny a claim an insurance company has to have a specific exclusion for the cause of the claim. Read your policies guys! There is a lot of information in there. Also, as a general tip you the insured generally tells the insurance companies WAY too much. I wouldn't worry about telling your agent something as they will lie to the carriers to keep the premium. One more thing, if you ask your agent about it get it in writing. If the information he/she gives you is incorrect then they have insurance just to cover such mishaps.

Kevin

[decooney]

For me the choice came down to what "felt" safer when pushing the car in turns and letting it fly once in a while with 15" tires on a back road.

In a 427 Cobra, short wheelbase car, with 500+ horsepower, the generic BF/Goodrich TA Radials and other comparable 15" tires seemed a little risky in my book - when pushing the car on the street. My last car had BFGs, with a little less horsepower, and it was right on the edge for the street. Being an ex-Karter, my tendency was to keep looking for something stickier than regular old 15" street radials. So, I opted for the big Goodyears. They pick up rocks a bit, wander a bit and find grooves, but provide me with a little more assurance that the car is not going to come right out from under me in a brisk turn or under heavy acceleration. I built the 2nd car to drive it, not just look at it and polish it, so the extra benefit of having nice looking tires was cool, but NOT the primary reason I use these tires now instead.

However, are they a safer tire overall? Thin Sidewalls? Poor puncture resistance?, probably not safer in this way, at all! In turns, and under acceleration and braking... yes, to me, its better and much more surefooted. The 15" tire search never ends; and it still comes up at least once a month on ClubCobra.

[rdorman]

You touch on the handling. Would you say the difference is dramatic versus BFGs? How much life are you getting from a set?

By the way, this is the response I got from Roger Kraus

"The B tires are not not dot, they are on back order at Goodyear for approx 2 more months (i hope) Goodyear is moving from Chile back to Ohio so we may have production delays! It is not recommended to run non DOT tires on the road but some people do it. We cannot recommend it however. Roger Kraus."

Thanks

Rick

[Pete C]

rdorman,

The Goodyear B tires from Kraus are so much better than the BFGs there is simply no comparison as far as performance is concerned. I have the treaded tires for street and the slicks for track and while I dont push the car on the street, the feel is very similar. I always feel safe with the Goodyears and I always felt that the BFGs were about to break. As for construction, the tires are very light weight and as you would expect, thin walled. I'm sure their resistance to road hazzard damage is poor but as Duane says the improvement in handling is so marked that the trade off is justified in my mind.

Cheers, Pete

[rdorman]

PLEASE!!!!!!!!! WOULD SOME ONE TELL ME WHAT KIND OF LIFE THEY ARE GETTING OUT OF THE TIRES!!!!!!!!

I am all for the lighter weight. I shudder to think what my 9.5 inch PSE's with a big BFG weighs. I wear a hernia belt every time I have to but those things on!

Thanks

Rick

Do any of you run some of the puncture stuff in the tires and if so, what was your reasoning?

[rdorman]

Really like the look of your car. Is that Jamo and Turk I see parked with you?? Pretty shady company

Who is parked behind you?

Rick

[Pete C]

Thanks Rick!

I really love the old girl! And yes, the other cars are Jamo's (now Fred's) Turk's (now ?), Pat's (now Bony's) in U-2 Driver's driveway. It seems that everyone but me got a case of aluminum poisoning! As for tire life, figure about 10,000 miles.

Cheers, Pete

[rdorman]

The last of my questions to be answered now has! 10,000 miles is PLENTY. I am ordering a set today.

Thanks everyone!

Aluminum! If I wanted to drive a beer can I would

Just kidding. The bare aluminum look is very cool. I wouldn't buy one if I was going to paint it. I live in Columbus so hope to see you all at the Fling again.

[decooney]

Rick

I'm friends with Pete and we've talked about these tires a few times before Pete got them. I asked around quite a bit before I bought them too. I had heard stories about these tires before I got them, losing air, getting punctures easily, etc, and so far they have been great. I don't have 10K on them though... Pete's estimate of 10K lifespan is probably right on. One reason might be that they don't sit there and spin an shred like BFGs being hammered by an HP motor under your hood! They will look good on your PSE wheels too. I'm going to keep running them until something evident makes me want to switch, or until someone comes back with a Z rated 15" tire again; which will probably never happen. Be sure to stay away from side lanes on roads and freeways where the little rocks are; your inner fender-wells will hate you if you go there...