Another common problem with these aces seems to be tyre wear.
My Liteace came with Goodyear winter (!) tyres that were quite worn in the front, especially on the outer edges. When I drove a nail into one of the rear ones and could not find exact replacements, I thought it was time to get new tyres all way round.
As it turned out, the size 185 70 R13 is not a very common one. Re-inforced, 6-ply or van tyres are almost impossible to get and if so, at a cost of over £100 a piece!
The garage assured me that car tyres would be sufficient for the weight of the vehicle and recommended Continentals on the rear axle for better grip and Avon Enviros at the front for better water dispersal. They also tried to correct the wheel alignments (tracking and ... what's the other one called?), so that wear would be reduced. I must say that this felt quite comfortable afterwards.
I now noticed (only about 5000 km later) that the front tyres again show signs of heavy wear. Not that they need replacing soon, but you can see how they rubbed off quite a bit. Looking at the profile, it did not wear down evenly, the individual stubbles look like "wedged" with the edge touching the road surface first being less worn than the one on the rear of the stubble (I hope I managed to describe this right.) The whole picture looks like the worst wear occurs when I am braking.
I was thinking about this a bit
The Aces are known for not having the most powerful brake systems (Somebody said here he would not dare going 80 or 90.). Could it be that, becaue they have a higher centre of gravity than an ordinary car, they have to rely to heavily on their front brakes, causing wear and non-optimal performance? On the other hand, I never noticed that the back was in danger of breaking out when I was trying to slow down in a bend.
Obviously, since my wheel alignments have been measured and adjusted already and all the bearings seem to be tight and working, there is not much that can be done about this technically. But what about different tyres? In Formula 1, they are always talking about hard compounds and soft compounds and how they perform on different tracks. Is there any such difference in car tyres? If I have to change again, I think I might try for Continentals at the front as well. I had good experience with them on another car.
Perhaps we can collect a bit of data here. Which manufacturers are you using?
Holger - (#1160) Holger Laux, 1 Oct 01
Hello Holger,
My Liteace came with Yokohama Super Digger tyres, which obviously have come from Japan. They seem to be quite hard wearing but I dread to think of the cost of them! The front tyres are also going through the tread quicker than the rear, I took the Liteace to kwikfit to get the tracking checked, which they did, but they could only refer to the tracking settings for a UK Liteace van which is lighter, smaller engine size, so therefore I suspect that these settings are not correct. They also informed me that it would be permitted to use 6 ply van tyres but I am a little suspicious of using those tyres.
Cheers,
Neil.
- (#1161) Eagleneil, 1 Oct 01
I'm using a set of Kumho reinforced car tyres, load index 91. I find that I need to run the front tyres at about 42psi to even out the wear pattern. The townie is top-heavy yes, plus a lot of the weight is over the front wheels. Runnibg the correct tyre pressures and the correct toe setting will result in the outer shoulder wearing more. - (#1162) David Miller, 1 Oct 01
MasterAce 4WD Manual (1990)
steel radial 195/70/14 90H
can't find a load index - but it is dark!
I run them at 35psi at the recommedation of the independent tyre dealer
42psi does sound alot - what do you run the back tyres at? - (#1163) skippy, 1 Oct 01
Look at www.tyres-online.co.uk for some good techy info.
I'm running on Marshal Steel Belted Radial 185R14 C(Korea) which I think is owned by Kumho www.kumho-euro.com
These are currently at 33psi and fairly new, so not sure about wear yet. After tracking, pulls slightly to left, but need to check ride height also.
Other markings:-
102/100P = Load indeces - 100 = 800kg, 102 = 850kg
P = Speed rating (150kmh/93mph)
The technical data shows load ratings at 65psi, so 42psi would not be excessive. - (#1164) Ray, 1 Oct 01
42 psi is fine for a reinforces tyre, but the max pressure for a car rated tyre might only be 3
8psi...
I run the rears at around 37psi. - (#1165) David Miller, 2 Oct 01
I replaced my 195/70/14 tyres with 185R14 as soon as I bought the vehicle almost 2 years ago. I always go for tyres somewhere in the mid price range of the market (these cost me about £160 for the four I think). The cheapies I find to be little better than remoulds and the leading brand names give little (if any) better wear than the lesser known brands for a lot higher price. My wife and I seem to be heavy on tyres no matter what we drive and about 2-21/2 years is about the norm for us, averaging about 10k miles pa in each vehicle. I usually put 2psi above the recommended pressure so as to reduce scrubbing of the outer edges. Too much more and steering gets light and you can lose that "feeling in control" sensation at higher speeds. I personally feel 42psi is a bit excessive but it depends upon what you feel comfortable with. My current 8 plys could easily take 42 as I used the same brand on my Hiace camper that I sold last year, they had 55psi on the back. I swapped front tyres to the back recently as they are still scrubbing a bit (4WD) and would expect to be changing them next summer, which would fit in with my usual "life of tyre regime".
Ian - (#1166) Ian Dunse, 2 Oct 01
I've just had a pair of Firestone 195/70/14's fitted to the front of my MasterAce. £90 total,inc balancing & tracking, etc.
Where my previous tyres had worn, the garage said that this may also have been due to the fact that there's power steering on a heavy front end, especially if you do a lot of 'small space' manoevering, which I do tend to do to get my wagon on the drive.
Also to remember when buying tyres, is the fact that you are sometimes spending money for the name, when infact the cheapie tyres are made in the same factory. I had this with my previous motor a few years back. Went to put Michelins on my Micra, garage said why? when these are made at same place etc, yet are less than ½price of Michelins. Thought it may be dodgy, but gave it a go and got 25K miles+ out of them!! Not bad for £25 a tyre! Stuck with them all the time I had the car. - (#1167) Phil J, 2 Oct 01
Usually I say, "Trust Toyota" but on my 91 Townace TD Auto 4WD/L4 I inflate the 185 Front tyres to 40psi. That way they look and feel right, with all the extra weight they carry. Toyota's recommendation baffles me - nearer 35psi.
I inflate the Rear to 40psi too (unladen), for the same reason. But car has the 215s on the rear which it came with, plus there is less risk of error just having to remember "40 all round" . - (#1174) Dave Mason, 4 Oct 01
Hi Holger,
My vehicle came fitted with Warrior tyres 185 70 13 and they have been on the vehicle for two years and travelled 60.000 KMs. These are standards car tyres and should be inflated to 33 PSI all round. I also spend a lot of my time towing a 20 foot boat on a trailer - no problem.
My masterace Surf has a Manual Gearbox though I don't suspect this would make any difference. - (#1279) Steve Vale, 22 Oct 01
nearside front tyre is wearing on outside, think tracking needs doing but kwickfit are unsure of settings anyone know ?
2 ltr turbo diesel super extra 2wheel drive
- (#5122) Ron Coe, 16 Aug 02
2wd? neutral +-2mm, same as spacecruiser
- (#5123) david miller, 17 Aug 02
thanx for info David, called to my local kwikfit, my tracking was spot on still the problem with tyre wear on outside of front tyres, fitter said it was probably something to do with my suspension but couldnt expand on that statement, any ideas?
- (#5211) Ron Coe, 22 Aug 02
Pump the tyres up a bit, don't horse it round corners so hard!
Oh, and try making a slight adjustment to the tracking anyway- some of that scrubbing is probably caused by the car always pulling up the camber of the road, a litle toe-out (withinn the tolerance, though) will help.
Was the tracking checked at your normal weight loading?
- (#5212) david miller, 22 Aug 02