How long do tires last in Thailand?

[Kwasaki]

Not had an xray yet, 6 years and Goodyear tyres still OK, maybe the silicon stuff that gets put on em works well, some family have tyres much older and still look OK, but if I was selling tyres I would tell everyone to change them after 1 year.

[WarpSpeed]

The second mechanism of tyre ageing is oxidation involving oxygen and ozone from the air compromising the strength and elasticity of the rubber and the integrity of the rubber to steel bond. Basically heat and oxygen cause cross linking between polymer chains (causing the rubber to harden) and scission of polymer chains (leading to reduced elasticity).

Thirdly, breakdown of the rubber to steel-belt bond will occur due to water permeating through a tyre and bonding with the brass plate coating on steel belts. This causes the steel to rubber bond to weaken leading to reduced tyre strength and reduced heat resistance. If compressed air used for inflation is not completely dry, tyre strength will be affected over time. Even unused tyres will become more brittle, weaker and less elastic with exposure to water, air, heat and sunlight.

Hmmmm another valid argument for nitrogen? Seems so and a strong one too..

[Ace of Pop]

Tyre Plus only fill with Nitro, you get a Card and can use it to get a Pressure Check at any of their branches Also they get to You PDQ if you get a flat. Suppose other's do too but ive only used T.P. Plus the Staff are not a load of gormless dorks you generally find in the Yellow Place

[chiang mai]

The second mechanism of tyre ageing is oxidation involving oxygen and ozone from the air compromising the strength and elasticity of the rubber and the integrity of the rubber to steel bond. Basically heat and oxygen cause cross linking between polymer chains (causing the rubber to harden) and scission of polymer chains (leading to reduced elasticity).

Thirdly, breakdown of the rubber to steel-belt bond will occur due to water permeating through a tyre and bonding with the brass plate coating on steel belts. This causes the steel to rubber bond to weaken leading to reduced tyre strength and reduced heat resistance. If compressed air used for inflation is not completely dry, tyre strength will be affected over time. Even unused tyres will become more brittle, weaker and less elastic with exposure to water, air, heat and sunlight.

Hmmmm another valid argument for nitrogen? Seems so and a strong one too..

So what, tyres filled with nitrogen become impervious to the effects of water heat and sunlight, get real!

[WarpSpeed]

Ermm did someone say that? Big conclusion you jumped to. No, but the inside air which is where the penetration comes from, not externally as the tread is not the thinnest part of the tire and if air penetrated inwardly the tire would leak outwardly given the increased pressure within the tire over outside pressure. The internal air does not have moisture in it when filled with nitrogen and as such does not run as high a temperatures nor do they fluctuate as much because of the lack of moisture in the air.. I just got real!!! How about you?

[Spoonman]

Tyre Plus only fill with Nitro, you get a Card and can use it to get a Pressure Check at any of their branches Also they get to You PDQ if you get a flat. Suppose other's do too but ive only used T.P. Plus the Staff are not a load of gormless dorks you generally find in the Yellow Place

Must be a Thailand thing cause I just spoke to a friend in AUS who manages a Tyre Plus store and if you want nitrogen it's $5.00 a corner.

Ive got a Parker Tyre Saver 3.0 here at home so Nitrogen fills are the norm for me.

http://www.parker.com/portal/site/PARKER/menuitem.de7b26ee6a659c147cf26710237ad1ca/?vgnextoid=fcc9b5bbec622110VgnVCM10000032a71dacRCRD&vgnextfmt=default&vgnextdiv=&vgnextcatid=6473474&vgnextcat=TYRESAVER+3.0&Wtky=

[chiang mai]

Ermm did someone say that? Big conclusion you jumped to. No, but the inside air which is where the penetration comes from, not externally as the tread is not the thinnest part of the tire and if air penetrated inwardly the tire would leak outwardly given the increased pressure within the tire over outside pressure. The internal air does not have moisture in it when filled with nitrogen and as such does not run as high a temperatures nor do they fluctuate as much because of the lack of moisture in the air.. I just got real!!! How about you?

"but the inside air which is where the penetration comes from, not externally as the tread is not the thinnest part of the tire and if air penetrated inwardly the tire would leak outwardly given the increased pressure within the tire over outside pressure".

"the inside air which is where the penetration comes from, not externally"

Go to bed and call it a night.

[WarpSpeed]

Sorry I spoke over your head, that's not uncommon with people of your apparent shortcomings on topics such as this. It's morning here fool!! Don't just make antagonistic comments, give YOUR explanation instead. Waiting in great anticipation to hear "Mr. Authority's" "educated" opinion... I'm guessing your clueless as most uneducated trolls like you are..Seems your AV comment "tired of the idiots" should more apply to the member who pinned it..

[chiang mai]

Agreed, keep going WS, convince us of your argument.

[WarpSpeed]

You're counter point is what's missing. My point is already made and valid, where's yours? Oh I forgot, you're only trolling not really contributing..

[Kwasaki]

The second mechanism of tyre ageing is oxidation involving oxygen and ozone from the air compromising the strength and elasticity of the rubber and the integrity of the rubber to steel bond. Basically heat and oxygen cause cross linking between polymer chains (causing the rubber to harden) and scission of polymer chains (leading to reduced elasticity).

Thirdly, breakdown of the rubber to steel-belt bond will occur due to water permeating through a tyre and bonding with the brass plate coating on steel belts. This causes the steel to rubber bond to weaken leading to reduced tyre strength and reduced heat resistance. If compressed air used for inflation is not completely dry, tyre strength will be affected over time. Even unused tyres will become more brittle, weaker and less elastic with exposure to water, air, heat and sunlight.

Hmmmm another valid argument for nitrogen? Seems so and a strong one too..

Maybe ' Argon ' would be the better way to go.

[chiang mai]

Anyone who has ever looked at the inside of a used tyre will recall that there is very rarely any damage to be seen, any damage and/or wear to a tyre manifests itself on the outside of the tyre, notably on the sidewall.

The argument that the contents of the tyre is responsible for its degradation simply doesn't hold water, sure I can believe that the small amounts of water found in air add to the tyre's degradation but proportionately the ratio of adverse element contact is far greater on the outside of the tyre than the inside and that is where most damage and wear is visualized.

[WarpSpeed]

So with that narrow scope of thought you're applying, tell us, to you, what constitutes wear internally? Is it something you THINK you can see? Do you see the tires cord/belts from inside? Or conversely do you see them on the outside? The outside is far thicker with much more rubber product between the cords and the belts which are nearly as internal as you can go. That outside surface is also constantly wearing away so in essence being refreshed to a new surface continually, do you think that's happening internally? Rhetorical questions because the answer is no in both cases, so the most obvious (for some) continuous damaging exposure to the cords/belts is the INTERNAL gas not the outside in terms of heat and moisture content and the constant fact that it is exposed to captured, contaminated gas. The heat on the outside is constantly being drawn away from the tire by air cooling and things like water/rain but internally it gets continually hotter and thus the cord/belt separation they are referring to in your link is internal damage more then exterior when speaking of heat and moisture.

[Spoonman]

Air eating tyres ? I have never heard of this. can you please elaborate a bit more on that Transman

[chiang mai]

I believe that the primary purpose of filling tyres with nitrogen is to avoid blowouts as described here:

"In Québec in the last four years, three fatal accidents involving heavy vehicles were directly attributable to the bursting of tires. The degradation of the rubber under the effect of heat is the main cause. In fact, under some conditions when the temperature reaches a sufficiently high threshold, several physical and chemical phenomena occur inside the tire and in the volume normally occupied by the air that fills it. The heating of the air inside the tire helps raise the internal pressure, and the degradation of the rubber by the oxidation produced by the increase in temperature seems to cause a reaction characterized by a release of heat that can lead to the explosion of the gases thus produced inside the tire. There are few apparent indications for detecting the start or scope of the degradation with or without pyrolysis (a phenomenon that requires the presence of oxygen)".

http://www.irsst.qc.ca/en/-project-study-of-the-possible-causes-of-bursting-of-tires-on-heavy-duty-trucks-and-identification-of-potential-solution-scenarios-0099-4830.html

Clearly there is a degrading effect on the inside of the tyre caused by heat and moisture, although since the inside of the tyre avoids sunlight and UV and is exposed to only minimal amounts of moisture, the effect of those things is likely to represent only a small proportion of the damage caused to external surfaces. Yes, oxidation of the rubber inside the tyre is caused by heat build up which is reduced from external surfaces whilst the vehicle is in motion. But wheeled vehicles tend to spend the greater percentage of their time parked hence oxidation of the rubber inside a tyre is more likely to be a very minor factor compared to that experienced on the outer surfaces.

In conclusion, nitrogen fill in tyres were designed to stop performance and racing cars from having blow outs, the benefits in that area are undeniable since dragsters, formula cars and the like are prone to such things by virtue of the torque they generate. But for ordinary passenger vehicles, even slightly powerful ones, even in tropical climates, I doubt there's any advantage whatsoever.

[Ace of Pop]

WRC Ice Tyres are weird. Indoors at Worksop Temp they feel sticky and shiny, outside at below Zero the Compound feels , and looks normal in about 60secs..

[Spoonman]

Air eating tyres ? I have never heard of this. can you please elaborate a bit more on that Transman

It's whats "in" the air, stuff that can eat your lungs, rot some plastics and rubber, especially in conjunction with the sun. Oxidizing too.

Take me, used a lung puffer for years in London, threw it away after a couple of weeks in LOS.

Ahhh ok cool cool. that means tyres will last a lot longer out here if the air is not eating them. good to know.

[circusman]

How is that tire cleaner/polisher? I imagine if you use that alot, you could preserve the tire better. Maybe they will not harden up as fast?

Wrong. Those products are not good for the material tires are made of. Google it.

[Spoonman]

Air eating tyres ? I have never heard of this. can you please elaborate a bit more on that Transman

It's whats "in" the air, stuff that can eat your lungs, rot some plastics and rubber, especially in conjunction with the sun. Oxidizing too.

Take me, used a lung puffer for years in London, threw it away after a couple of weeks in LOS.

Ahhh ok cool cool. that means tyres will last a lot longer out here if the air is not eating them. good to know.

I think it takes a lot more understanding than that, but your on the right track. Tyre compound is the key to possible deterioration from what ever angle.

Yeh tyre compound and exposure to the elements is the key. air eating them is complete crap.

[recycler]

It depends a lot on your driving style.

I don't drive slow, but no squealing rubber all the time and the first set of Michelin's on my Vigo lasted almost 100K km.

[Rorri]

How is that tire cleaner/polisher? I imagine if you use that alot, you could preserve the tire better. Maybe they will not harden up as fast?

Yep, treating 29% of tire with something the makes it glossy will work wonders (assuming 70 series tires - adjust percentage as applicable)

And how many people only clean/polish the out facing edge of the tire....

[Spoonman]

@ Spoonman

Well, if you light a fire the crap goes into the air, does the crap fly off on it's own, labeled crap, or is it mixed in with air............YES or NO.

When the air eats the tyres does it leave little gnaw marks like a mouse has had a go at them ?

[a10ams]

We got 92kms on a Fortuner on the original tyres. Would easily have gone over 100k if Toyota hadn't cautioned my wife at the 90k service.

They were good enough that when we renewed, the tyre shop bought them from us.

[sandyf]

You must be American. Slow speed and straight roads dramatically improve the mileage from a tyre. In the UK straight roads are a novelty so 30K miles is about average. The front wheel tyres are always first to show wear.

[EnglishJohn]

Get yourself a second hand bus from Bangkok. Those tires last for many, many, many years. I was looking at some the other day at the traffic lights : still working hard despite no tread and severe perishing of the sidewalls.

[thaicookingchef]

Are Michelin still the best in the world ?

[sandyf]

How can the average Jo actually tell by looking at a tire if its too hard ? I mean the tread you can check the depth, visually look at the walls but how can you actually tell or know if they are too hard ? (By hard I dont mean pressure either before some snart arse jumps in with it)

Check for hairline cracks in the sidewall just above road contact.

[sandyf]

Are Michelin still the best in the world ?

Like Carlsberg say "Probably". Pirelli may disagree.

[Spoonman]

@ Spoonman

Well, if you light a fire the crap goes into the air, does the crap fly off on it's own, labeled crap, or is it mixed in with air............YES or NO.

When the air eats the tyres does it leave little gnaw marks like a mouse has had a go at them ?

I think you and another will learn something very soon..............Watch this space...........

Im watching, will the air start to eat this space as well ?

[waoscar]

From everything i've read about nitrogen in motorsport it has nothing to do with blowouts. Nitrogen expands and contracts less than air when tempreture changes. When using air a cold tyre needs to o be below optimal pressure for car setup, as tyre comes up to racing temp pressure increases to a better level for car setup. By using nitrogen the pressure is more constant and the car better to drive on cold tyres.

When i used nitrogen in a set of new tyres in Aus they did not need pumping up for a couple years, don't know why they were just standard Bridgestones. I was rather amazed.