[ace3]

picking up my car any day now from Austin, and have to make the trek back to Omaha after getting the first service done.

looking at the weather for mid next week, the lowest temps i should see are in the high-30's. Roughly 37- to 43-degrees once i get into KS. TX and OK are just fine.

I'm not driving at night at all. Leaving from Dallas around 8am should put me in Omaha between 5 and 6pm. That's when it starts really getting cold around here.

Any thoughts?


Also ... any better Interstate weather forecast sites than this?
http://www.weather.com/activities/driving/interstate/?from=drivfl

 

[Stan]

You'll be fine. Just be careful the first few miles in the mornings. If you're worried wait until rush hour is over and temps have risen a bit. Use stock tire pressures (check 'em).

I don't know about interstate weather, but I like the detail from wunderground.com.

 

[ace3]

Thanks, Stan.

I'm really not terribly worried about temps in Dallas (or the rest of TX for that matter). I suppose as long as there isn't any standing snow on the ground anywhere in between (which I doubt), then i should be in the clear.

i'm worrying too much about this, i'm sure.

 

[Evl]

i'm worrying too much about this, i'm sure.

Hey someones got to do it!

Did we ever get a minimum safe temperature? I gather this has something to do with the "glass transition temperature" of the rubber.

I'll be driving home in dec or jan from NJ. Who knows what the temps will be, but below freezing is a safe bet.

 

[Racer X]

I believe there is a warning about tires below 15F degrees. Maybe it is only the A048s.

Greg

 

[Graydon]

14 degrees F is what it says on the tires.

 

[Stan]

At 14 F the AO48s start to freeze...and when they thaw they won't be fully functional. At the very least you can experience sidewall cracking. Don't let them get that cold!

 

[Evl]

Thanks for the info! Sounds like I have a pretty good chance of it being warm enough when I get the car. Now as along as its dry enough I won't have to bum a ride up there in a minivan with my winter tires in the back.

 

[Z3convert]

So does this mean that if my car is in the garage for the winter and we get a few nights were the temps dip to around 0. I may have a problem with my tires?

Now I'm going to have to heat my garage.

 

[Graydon]

So does this mean that if my car is in the garage for the winter and we get a few nights were the temps dip to around 0. I may have a problem with my tires?

Now I'm going to have to heat my garage.

I hear ya... I was gonna leave the A048s on year round and just not drive the few times a year when it snows... but now this means 2-3 months per year I'll have to switch to other tires.

 

[Z3convert]

Maybe I shouldn't of laughed when I read an offer about free tire warmer bags with purchase. (No offense - I know the person offering is a sponsor. I just know I am not a good enogh driver to make good use of them).
But maybe I will use them to tuck my car to bed at night with.
No Foolin!

 

[Graydon]

At 14 F the AO48s start to freeze...and when they thaw they won't be fully functional. At the very least you can experience sidewall cracking. Don't let them get that cold!

Not to say I don't believe you (because I do and I saw the warning on the side of the tires), but do you know of any studies or websites that explain why/how this happens? I'm guessing it's not just R-compound rubber since I hear the AD07's have the same temperature warning. I'm just wondering how bad it would be if they saw, 10, or even 0 degrees F.

 

[ace3]

14 degrees!?!? damn .. i wasn't even planning on driving if it were below 32 degrees.

Works for me! Thanks!

 

[Stan]

>>>Not to say I don't believe you (because I do and I saw the warning on the side of the tires), but do you know of any studies or websites that explain why/how this happens? I'm guessing it's not just R-compound rubber since I hear the AD07's have the same temperature warning. I'm just wondering how bad it would be if they saw, 10, or even 0 degrees F.<<<

I'll look into this...but I think the 14 F warning is for the AO48s and that the AD07s can tolerate lower temps. EDIT: Still looking...can't find the AO48 stickers with the car information. I see that Hoosier and Toyo suggest 32F or above for storage of their r-compound tires to avoid freezing the rubber. Couldn't find anything for Kumho race rubber.

I haven't seen good info on this from Yokohama but if you read the care instructions for other r-compound tires they make a big fuss about it. Sidewall cracks are mentioned but I get the sense that other (bad) things occur.

 

[Lotus Fury]

My Yoko AVS's were crap under 50 degrees. Hard as rocks, and they slipped like no other until I put a few miles on them. Even after getting "warmed up" they still were at best 75% of above 50 degree weather. Never had any cracking issues & my car was outside in temps as low as -5 degrees. I dove in temps in the teens, was careful though.

 

[Evl]

Not to say I don't believe you (because I do and I saw the warning on the side of the tires), but do you know of any studies or websites that explain why/how this happens? I'm guessing it's not just R-compound rubber since I hear the AD07's have the same temperature warning. I'm just wondering how bad it would be if they saw, 10, or even 0 degrees F.

Well my sole source on any tire info is "The Racing & High Performance Tire". I just finished my first read of it a little while back, but it definitely requires another pass to understand it all. Hence I'm still asking questions here, but if you want to learn more about tires, its a good book.

 

[Nathan111]

My experience is that the 048s are actually pretty good as long as it's above freezing. They are better in the cold/wet than the Yokohama AVS Sports I had on my old car.

Switched to Dunlop DS-2 Ice/Snow tires this morning. Initial impressions are that the tires have a lot less grip but do not make the car unstable at speed. It's about 40 and raining here now. It's supposed to snow tomorrow, so I waited about as long as I could.

 

[Stan]

>>>My experience is that the 048s are actually pretty good as long as it's above freezing. They are better in the cold/wet than the Yokohama AVS Sports I had on my old car.<<<<

It's claimed to be a grippy tire that works over a broader than usual temperature range. Next year there is rumoured to be an AO48 "S" version coming out with softer rubber for even more grip...

 

[Mark]

Maybe I shouldn't of laughed when I read an offer about free tire warmer bags with purchase. (No offense - I know the person offering is a sponsor. I just know I am not a good enogh driver to make good use of them).
But maybe I will use them to tuck my car to bed at night with.
No Foolin!

You need to know what you're doing to get the most out of your tyres,

but you can get caught out driving it easy (not pushing it) on cold tyres.

Best to be aware of v.low grip of cold tyres and only experiment when you've got lots of road space on no traffic.

 

[Z3convert]

You need to know what you're doing to get the most out of your tyres,

but you can get caught out driving it easy (not pushing it) on cold tyres.

Best to be aware of v.low grip of cold tyres and only experiment when you've got lots of road space on no traffic.

This is good information. The tires as well as the engine in this car definetly need time to warm up before pushed. However, I am thinking about insulating my attic. (Not really that much work and the garage will be more tolerable during the winter months) My main catalest to do this would be so my tires don't get ruined. Am I crazy?