The Defender is Michelin’s Standard Touring All-Season tire developed for the drivers of family cars, minivans and small crossover vehicles looking for tires that will provide a confident driving experience that helps protect those they care about most. In addition to enhancing vehicle fuel economy by meeting Michelin Green-X* low rolling resistance objectives, Defender tires are designed to deliver extra long wear, comfortable driving characteristics and all-season traction in dry, wet and wintry conditions, even in light snow.
Featuring a silica-based all-season tread compound molded into a mildly asymmetric tread design, Defender tires provide traction throughout a wide range of ambient temperatures and driving conditions. The interlocking action of Michelin IntelliSipe Technology promotes exceptional tread block rigidity that reduces rolling resistance and wear rate so drivers can save fuel without sacrificing longevity. IntelliSipe Technology also allows Michelin to increase the number of sipes in the Defender’s tread design to provide additional biting edges that enhance all-season traction in rain and light snow. Four circumferential and hundreds of lateral grooves help evacuate water from under the tire's footprint to enhance hydroplaning resistance and wet traction.
The tire’s internal structure features Michelin’s MaxTouch Construction that combines a polyester cord body and twin steel belts to optimize the tire’s contact with the road during acceleration, braking and cornering to promote even wear and predictable handling.
*Specific sizes featuring Green X technology are identified as such on the Sizes tab, as well as on the tire's SPEC tab.
Showing posts with label Tires. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tires. Show all posts
Wednesday, March 28, 2012
Thursday, September 29, 2011
TPMS - Tire Pressure Monitoring System
You might not know it, but your vehicle is most likely equipped with a tire pressure monitoring system (TPMS). This system allows you to know if, and when, your tires are under-inflated. A simple warning light alerts the driver of an issue.
Thanks to the TREAD Act, the U.S. requires certain vehicles, excluding tow trucks, step vans, and heavy-duty trucks, to be equipped with a TPMS alerting the driver when tire pressure gets low. Even with this law, many drivers cannot recognize the warning signs coming from their TPMS.
The importance of proper tire pressure
The correct level of tire pressure is a key component in getting from one place to another. Over 200,000 accidents occur annually across the United States due to insufficient tire pressure. Here are some interesting facts about the importance of tire inflation:
• About 75% of roadside flats are started by a slow leak or under inflation
• Americans could reduce fuel consumption by 10% and save a collective $2 billion a year if tires are kept properly inflated
• Using TPMS in the correct fashion could prevent an estimated 10,365 injuries and 79 deaths each year in the United States
How does TPMS help me?
TPMS is designed to provide drivers with correct tire pressure alerts and information needed to expand fuel efficiency, tire life, stability and handling, as well as lessen the need for tire maintenance. TPMS also decreases the risk of hydroplaning and regular tire wear-and-tear.
It is important to know exactly what your TPMS icon looks like on your dashboard, as a recent survey discovered that one in three drivers couldn’t identify a TPMS icon. All drivers should be educated about these warning lights to prevent hazardous situations.
This is the standard icon for the low-tire pressure warning indicator
This is the standard icon for the TPMS failure indicator
If you see a warning light like the ones shown above, know that something isn’t quite right and seek help. 44% of drivers admit they don’t pay attention to their car’s tire pressure, proving TPMS warning lights are critical for safety. If these lights appear, call your tire & automotive service professionals immediately.
Most issues with your TPMS aren’t expensive to fix and all work can be completed in a short visit. The most important step is to have the tire inspected by a tire professional. We’ve found the cause of a warning light can be fixed with a new TPMS valve service kit, installing a new battery in the sensor, reprogramming the TPMS system, or most commonly, a flat repair on the tire.
We encourage all drivers to leave tire safety issues to professionals. Many accidents and injuries can be avoided by paying attention to your dashboard’s TPMS warning lights – and trusting your vehicle(s) maintenance and repair needs to true professionals.
Each of our auto repair shop locations has the ability to check the status of your TPMS and if needed, add additional air to a low tire. Visit us for all your TPMS needs!
Thanks to the TREAD Act, the U.S. requires certain vehicles, excluding tow trucks, step vans, and heavy-duty trucks, to be equipped with a TPMS alerting the driver when tire pressure gets low. Even with this law, many drivers cannot recognize the warning signs coming from their TPMS.
The importance of proper tire pressure
The correct level of tire pressure is a key component in getting from one place to another. Over 200,000 accidents occur annually across the United States due to insufficient tire pressure. Here are some interesting facts about the importance of tire inflation:
• About 75% of roadside flats are started by a slow leak or under inflation
• Americans could reduce fuel consumption by 10% and save a collective $2 billion a year if tires are kept properly inflated
• Using TPMS in the correct fashion could prevent an estimated 10,365 injuries and 79 deaths each year in the United States
How does TPMS help me?
TPMS is designed to provide drivers with correct tire pressure alerts and information needed to expand fuel efficiency, tire life, stability and handling, as well as lessen the need for tire maintenance. TPMS also decreases the risk of hydroplaning and regular tire wear-and-tear.
It is important to know exactly what your TPMS icon looks like on your dashboard, as a recent survey discovered that one in three drivers couldn’t identify a TPMS icon. All drivers should be educated about these warning lights to prevent hazardous situations.
This is the standard icon for the low-tire pressure warning indicator
This is the standard icon for the TPMS failure indicator
If you see a warning light like the ones shown above, know that something isn’t quite right and seek help. 44% of drivers admit they don’t pay attention to their car’s tire pressure, proving TPMS warning lights are critical for safety. If these lights appear, call your tire & automotive service professionals immediately.
Most issues with your TPMS aren’t expensive to fix and all work can be completed in a short visit. The most important step is to have the tire inspected by a tire professional. We’ve found the cause of a warning light can be fixed with a new TPMS valve service kit, installing a new battery in the sensor, reprogramming the TPMS system, or most commonly, a flat repair on the tire.
We encourage all drivers to leave tire safety issues to professionals. Many accidents and injuries can be avoided by paying attention to your dashboard’s TPMS warning lights – and trusting your vehicle(s) maintenance and repair needs to true professionals.
Each of our auto repair shop locations has the ability to check the status of your TPMS and if needed, add additional air to a low tire. Visit us for all your TPMS needs!
Monday, June 27, 2011
The scramble for scarce tires
Automakers pay more as supply tightens
North American automakers are struggling with a nagging shortage of tires, caused in part by tire plant closings and rising demand for low-volume specialty tires.
Automakers are paying much higher prices -- double-digit percentage increases from a year ago -- as tire makers gain pricing power.
"We have been bombarded from every side for additional tires, and we can't keep up," said David O'Donnell, Continental Tire's vice president of original equipment in the Americas. "We are at maximum capacity, and all shifts are maxed out."
The shortage doesn't appear to have significantly crimped production plans, though automakers are scrambling to secure supplies. Earlier this year, Dan Knott, Chrysler Group's senior vice president of purchasing and supplier quality, said the company was short of premium tires for some nameplates.
"The tire shortage will not clear up over the next year," Knott predicted. "It's going to take awhile."
Automakers pay as little as $75 per tire for low-end models to as much as $300 or more for high-performance tires.
To meet demand, Continental will expand plants in Illinois and Brazil and will build a factory somewhere in North America. But this will take time. The new lines in Illinois and Brazil won't hit full production until 2013, O'Donnell said.
Continental is investing $224 million to expand its plant in Mount Vernon, Ill., plus $210 million to expand its plant in Camacari, Brazil.
Other tire makers also are maxed out. Michelin is running its North American plants at full capacity, although it has met some requests for more tires, Vice President Rob Murray said in a recent interview.
The shortages come at a time when demand is rising. According to a forecast by consulting firm IHS Automotive, automakers in the United States and Canada will buy 62 million tires for new vehicles this year.
That's up from 55 million tires in 2010. By 2016, North American demand for original equipment tires will rise to 79 million units, IHS estimates.
Fewer tire factories
Bruce Harrison, IHS Automotive's director of North American consulting, says the shortage won't be solved any time soon.
"There are a lot more tire sizes in the marketplace now, and it doesn't look like that trend is slowing," Harrison said. Producing extra tire sizes and low-volume specialty lines reduce a standard tire plant's capacity.
To make things worse, tire makers had been cutting back on North American production capacity before the recession. In 2006 and 2007 alone, four U.S. tire plants were closed, according to The New York Times.
Plant closures eliminated about 71 million units of U.S. capacity, John Baratta, president of replacement tire sales for the United States and Canada at Bridgestone Americas Tire Operations, said in a June article in Automotive News' sister publication Tire Business.
Meanwhile, tire manufacturers were opening factories in China that flooded the U.S. market with cheap tires. But in September 2009 the Obama administration slapped a three-year tariff on imported Chinese tires.
The tax started at 35 percent of a tire's value declining to 30 percent and 25 percent in the second and third years. The import tax expires in September 2012.
Tire prices have "moved up very sharply" since 2009, said Saul Ludwig, an auto analyst at Northcoast Research, an equity research firm in Cleveland. Increases in the cost of rubber and other materials used in tire manufacturing, including steel, have tightened supplies and driven costs higher.
Soaring costs
Since 2005, the combined prices of natural and synthetic rubber, carbon black, steel cord, fabric and other materials have risen nearly every year, with jumps of 56 percent in 2010, and 47 percent in 2009, Bridgestone's Baratta said.
Continental, Michelin North America Inc., Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. and other major tire makers have raised prices several times in the past few years to offset rising raw-materials costs.
Automakers and tire companies don't disclose original-equipment prices. But rising prices for replacement tires suggest what's going on in the original-equipment market.
For example, Michelin said the company has raised prices three times over the past year on car and light-truck replacement tires: an 8.5 percent increase on May 1; a November 2010 increase that the company wouldn't quantify; and a 6 percent increase last June.
Despite the headaches, automakers appear to be muddling through. During an interview last week, Tony Brown, Ford's group vice president of global purchasing, said Ford's vehicle production plans this year will not be affected by tight supplies of tires or other components.
"We have enough tires," Brown said. "We will deliver the production plan, with the tires to support those plans."
North American automakers are struggling with a nagging shortage of tires, caused in part by tire plant closings and rising demand for low-volume specialty tires.
Automakers are paying much higher prices -- double-digit percentage increases from a year ago -- as tire makers gain pricing power.
"We have been bombarded from every side for additional tires, and we can't keep up," said David O'Donnell, Continental Tire's vice president of original equipment in the Americas. "We are at maximum capacity, and all shifts are maxed out."
The shortage doesn't appear to have significantly crimped production plans, though automakers are scrambling to secure supplies. Earlier this year, Dan Knott, Chrysler Group's senior vice president of purchasing and supplier quality, said the company was short of premium tires for some nameplates.
"The tire shortage will not clear up over the next year," Knott predicted. "It's going to take awhile."
Automakers pay as little as $75 per tire for low-end models to as much as $300 or more for high-performance tires.
To meet demand, Continental will expand plants in Illinois and Brazil and will build a factory somewhere in North America. But this will take time. The new lines in Illinois and Brazil won't hit full production until 2013, O'Donnell said.
Continental is investing $224 million to expand its plant in Mount Vernon, Ill., plus $210 million to expand its plant in Camacari, Brazil.
Other tire makers also are maxed out. Michelin is running its North American plants at full capacity, although it has met some requests for more tires, Vice President Rob Murray said in a recent interview.
The shortages come at a time when demand is rising. According to a forecast by consulting firm IHS Automotive, automakers in the United States and Canada will buy 62 million tires for new vehicles this year.
That's up from 55 million tires in 2010. By 2016, North American demand for original equipment tires will rise to 79 million units, IHS estimates.
Fewer tire factories
Bruce Harrison, IHS Automotive's director of North American consulting, says the shortage won't be solved any time soon.
"There are a lot more tire sizes in the marketplace now, and it doesn't look like that trend is slowing," Harrison said. Producing extra tire sizes and low-volume specialty lines reduce a standard tire plant's capacity.
To make things worse, tire makers had been cutting back on North American production capacity before the recession. In 2006 and 2007 alone, four U.S. tire plants were closed, according to The New York Times.
Plant closures eliminated about 71 million units of U.S. capacity, John Baratta, president of replacement tire sales for the United States and Canada at Bridgestone Americas Tire Operations, said in a June article in Automotive News' sister publication Tire Business.
Meanwhile, tire manufacturers were opening factories in China that flooded the U.S. market with cheap tires. But in September 2009 the Obama administration slapped a three-year tariff on imported Chinese tires.
The tax started at 35 percent of a tire's value declining to 30 percent and 25 percent in the second and third years. The import tax expires in September 2012.
Tire prices have "moved up very sharply" since 2009, said Saul Ludwig, an auto analyst at Northcoast Research, an equity research firm in Cleveland. Increases in the cost of rubber and other materials used in tire manufacturing, including steel, have tightened supplies and driven costs higher.
Soaring costs
Since 2005, the combined prices of natural and synthetic rubber, carbon black, steel cord, fabric and other materials have risen nearly every year, with jumps of 56 percent in 2010, and 47 percent in 2009, Bridgestone's Baratta said.
Continental, Michelin North America Inc., Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. and other major tire makers have raised prices several times in the past few years to offset rising raw-materials costs.
Automakers and tire companies don't disclose original-equipment prices. But rising prices for replacement tires suggest what's going on in the original-equipment market.
For example, Michelin said the company has raised prices three times over the past year on car and light-truck replacement tires: an 8.5 percent increase on May 1; a November 2010 increase that the company wouldn't quantify; and a 6 percent increase last June.
Despite the headaches, automakers appear to be muddling through. During an interview last week, Tony Brown, Ford's group vice president of global purchasing, said Ford's vehicle production plans this year will not be affected by tight supplies of tires or other components.
"We have enough tires," Brown said. "We will deliver the production plan, with the tires to support those plans."
Monday, September 27, 2010
Home of the Free Alignment just a myth?
If you live in the US and ever listen to the radio you can't help but hear one of the great commercial going on and on about a free alignment with the purchase of new tires. So we want to clear the air about this free alignment business.
1) they do provide an alignment if you purchase 4 New Tires (PAY the operative word) the price is built in dummy!!
2) Did you wreck your car or have front end work done recently that requires an alignment? Probably not, so you do not need an alignment. Now you are paying more for your tire than you need to so you can get an alignment you don't need. Smart on the advertisers part. Most people do not know that they do not need an alignment.
3) Well my car is pulling? Again, if you didn"t wreck it... you just need tires replaced and no need for over priced tires to get an alignment.
How much do they charge for an alignment without purchasing tires? $69.95. So divide that by 4 and that's about $17.50 per tire. Could you buy tires for $17.50 a tire less. YES, so I am going to have to say that you are not getting a FREE Alignment. Don't let shifty advertising convince you otherwise. Stay alert when dealing with Big Brand Tire Stores.
1) they do provide an alignment if you purchase 4 New Tires (PAY the operative word) the price is built in dummy!!
2) Did you wreck your car or have front end work done recently that requires an alignment? Probably not, so you do not need an alignment. Now you are paying more for your tire than you need to so you can get an alignment you don't need. Smart on the advertisers part. Most people do not know that they do not need an alignment.
3) Well my car is pulling? Again, if you didn"t wreck it... you just need tires replaced and no need for over priced tires to get an alignment.
How much do they charge for an alignment without purchasing tires? $69.95. So divide that by 4 and that's about $17.50 per tire. Could you buy tires for $17.50 a tire less. YES, so I am going to have to say that you are not getting a FREE Alignment. Don't let shifty advertising convince you otherwise. Stay alert when dealing with Big Brand Tire Stores.
Sunday, December 06, 2009
Has anyone put snow tires on a minivan?
I understand you can get two, maybe three, years out of them, but I haven't had this verified. And when you're not using them is it okay to store them in the garage? Or will they deteriorate there with the heat of summer?
Please chime in if you have experience with snow tires (cost, durability, handling, tire brand, etc), especially if you have an Odyssey.
Response:
What part of the country do you live in? How much snow do you get in an average winter? Is your car front or rear wheel drive? I'm near Detroit and the last time I had snow tires was 1961, and will never use them again. Tires will age, and most mfrs will advise between 6-10 years. The are starting to put expiration date. on the now instead of the date they were made.
I haven't heard much about putting snow tires on the front of minivans but it would give you more traction in the snow and mud. But it may affect the handling and stopping of the van. Buying new rims for the tires is the way to go. That would save the cost of remounting them each year. Seems like a regular set of snow tires should work without having to special order some.
Saturday, August 16, 2008
2006 Mazda five is a tire eater--apparently others have this problem
QUESTION:
Our 2006 Mazda five is a tire eater--apparently others have this problem with inside tire wear--tires last 10,000 miles or less and get dangerous. Is there a fix and is Mazda willing to deal with this problem? Already Tried: Multiple trips to dealer for fixes and tires--none seem to work.
ANSWER:
As of today, There is no recall for this issue. There are only 2 recalls for the 2006 Mazda5.
1) Recall ID # 05V412000 - ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:EXHAUST SYSTEM
2) Recall ID # 06V463000 - LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES:DOORS:LATCH
The tire issue is not covered at this point by keep all your recipes for any tires you do buy so that if or when then do have a recall on this issue, you will be able to get your money back. Make sure you are having your tires rotated at there proper interval and have receipts for this as well.
If this car was bought used, you may need to have a 4 wheel alignment done.
Saturday, June 28, 2008
Why do tire pressure monitor show "0" for the LF tire?
Question:
I have a 2005 Yukon Denali and the "check tire pressure" continues to show. We manually checked pressure and all tires are 33 to 34 lbs. The monitor shows "0" for left front tire and we can not get it to reset. Already Tried: Reading manual and re-setting monitor with buttons on steering wheel.
Answer:
This is an indication of a failed sensor in the wheel. Have it replaced. Should run you about $110.00
Tuesday, June 03, 2008
Need to Find what size wheels will fit my car
I have searched around for a source for this question and came up with this site called SizeItUp.com. The site does require you to register an email address but information you can access if amazing. Select your vehicle up to 2009 models included and you are given the exact tire size that came on the vehicle plus any optional size. Then chose the Size you think you would like to install, like some 22" rims for example. The site will give you a list of all tire sizes and dimensions that accompany the 22" rims. They take all the guess work out of the equation. SizeItUp.com is truly a great tool to add to the Tool Box!
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