change wheels front to back !

[jpliddy]

thank you all for your valued input on this subject im not a fast driver and take bends and approaches farily steady for safety and to prolong life of tyres .and fuel economy . as the power and speed of cars today is way too fast for safety on our Roads and built up areas i do have sympathy for cyclists and children trying to cross roads ! only my thoughts !

[StanC]

Originally Posted by classicswede

No 100% best tyres at the front. The front wheels do most of the braking and point you in the right direction. All the rear wheels do is put the power down.

In very slippy conditions you can drive with near to no grip at the rear and good grip up front. Turn that the other way around and you will head directly into the first wall you see.

Sorry, but no! In 90% of emergencies, or in skids, or side-slides it's the rear wheels that lose grip first. It's true that the front wheels do the steering and most of the braking in normal circumstances but, provided there is at least 3.0 millimetres of tread, they will cope and the important thing is to keep the handling stable, which depends upon the rear wheels (which might have less downforce) having superior grip. This is why Formula 1 cars tend to have wider rear treads and if you've ever used a skid pan (as I have with a double-decker bus) you'll know what I mean.

I always keep the least worn tyres on the rear, with either rear- or front-wheel drive. This has served me well in 1.3 million miles of driving/motoring, which has inevitably included the (very) occasional sharp manoeuvre.

Stan.

[Laird Scooby]

Originally Posted by StanC

Sorry, but no! In 90% of emergencies, or in skids, or side-slides it's the rear wheels that lose grip first. It's true that the front wheels do the steering and most of the braking in normal circumstances but, provided there is at least 3.0 millimetres of tread, they will cope and the important thing is to keep the handling stable, which depends upon the rear wheels (which might have less downforce) having superior grip. This is why Formula 1 cars tend to have wider rear treads and if you've ever used a skid pan (as I have with a double-decker bus) you'll know what I mean.

I always keep the least worn tyres on the rear, with either rear- or front-wheel drive. This has served me well in 1.3 million miles of driving/motoring, which has inevitably included the (very) occasional sharp manoeuvre.

Stan.

That's very true and why manufacturers build in brake-bias valves into the cars, some are load sensing to help prevent rear wheel lock-up so grip is maintained.

Certainly if the back end loses grip, even in a FWD car that doesn't torque steer, it's hard pulling the car back to where it should be going as the back end is wagging around like a randy dogs tail when he sees a pack of bitches.

The trick is to make sure the back end has grip at least equal to, if not greater than, the front.

[Zebster]

Originally Posted by classicswede

No 100% best tyres at the front. The front wheels do most of the braking and point you in the right direction. All the rear wheels do is put the power down.

In very slippy conditions you can drive with near to no grip at the rear and good grip up front. Turn that the other way around and you will head directly into the first wall you see.

Wrong, the rear tyres also have to prevent the car sliding sideways and resulting in the car becoming uncontrollable (oversteer), hence why all reliable sources will instruct you to fit the grippiest tyres on the rear.

[MiniNinjaRob]

Grippy tyres on the rear? Thats no fun at all......