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Siping Tires

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tahoe healey

tahoe healey

Yoda
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Time for my first dump question of the year.
Up here in snow country they offer sipping to get more traction. (micro slits in the tread as I understand it.)As my Healey tires are getting to be 5 years old but have less than 15k on them, would this sipping thing make tha tread softer and hold better? I'm not having problems but would like to get the max milage out of these cause they are Michelins and not readily replacable. (and mucho $$$.)
TH
 
Re: sipping tires

Hi TH,

I have never heard of that.

Being I grew up in Conn, my dad had snow tires on the Healey in the winter. I remember the first time I saw snow tires as a kid. Hey, dad, you've got a lot of nails sticking out of your tires!

When the snow melts, you could hear the studs. Hey dad, sound like my bike with the baseball cards in the spokes.

Ah yes, the good old days.
r
 
I have had some discussion on tire siping from two different tire dealers here, and basically they both claim that it is better in every way: better dry handling, better wet handling, and better life of the tires because it reduces heat.

I had my last set of tires siped for my Jeep Cherokee. I couldn't claim to notice any difference, but it was not expensive and people I trust have highly recommended it, so it seems like a good idea.

That's all I know about it. If anyone has any scientific studies on it to share, I'd be interested.
 
tahoe healey said:
Time for my first dump question of the year.
Up here in snow country they offer sipping to get more traction. (micro slits in the tread as I understand it.)As my Healey tires are getting to be 5 years old but have less than 15k on them, would this sipping thing make tha tread softer and hold better? I'm not having problems but would like to get the max milage out of these cause they are Michelins and not readily replacable. (and mucho $$$.)
TH
Click to expand...
Siping isn't something new. 18 wheelers have been using the process for several years. Also, a lot of the trucks don't use siped tires. Siping does makes the tires run cooler and you may notice some improvement in the ride. Can't answer anything about snow(I live in Texas). I spent three summer seasons in Antarctica when I was in the Navy and the vehicles did not have sniped tires when I was there.
 
In this part of the country it's primarily done to improve grip on ice, which it does. Not much difference on deeper snow. It does also improve grip on wet pavement.

This brings up an interesting point. As tire rubber ages it gets harder until it finally breaks down somewhere along the way & tread separation happens. As it hardens, it also loses grip. I'm thinking Siping MIGHT be a way to improve grip on partially age hardened tires. ---BUT--- Since it would not affect the age hardening of the carcass itself, you would still have to watch the tires & replace at a reasonable age, regardless of tread condition.

Tire rubber starts out very soft & is heat cured/hardened in the manufacturing process. This hardening process never really stops, just progresses at a slower rate. The hardening rate has many variables such as ozone & sunlight exposure, & temperature.

I've measured tires going from a hardness of 60 on the Shore A Scale, to 90 in a period of eight years. This is a very large change for the worse.

If I were doing "spirited" driving, anything over 40 mph, I personally would get new tires at around six years of age, no matter how much tread is left. There are too many stories around about older tires having tread separations. It's not worth risking life to save a few dollars.
D
 
Thanks. It was just a thought. I don't drive the Healey in the winter. (There is currently 6 1/2 feet of snow on either side of the driveway and more expected Sunday so you don't get a lot of visability going around corners.) We have had a very icy year that sipping would not help. This was just a cheap guy trying to get more out of tires for the rest of the year.
TH
 
I'm seconding what Dave Russell has said about the age of tires and the degradation of the rubber from age.

I've had an experience of tire failure from aged rubber, lots of tread, but the tire split open. In retrospect, I ignored the evident (albeit very small) cracking.

IMHO, 6 years is the most I'd go regardless of expense, and I'd say 3 years (anecdotally) for anything "spirited"...
 
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