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Author
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Topic: Tire model introduction date
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dapperdan56
Member
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posted December 31, 2002 04:23 PM
  
The best tires seem to be the ones that were designed and made using the latest technology. Is there a way to determine the date when a tire model was introduced to market? Perhaps a web site or publication?IP: Logged |
CapriRacer
Member
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posted January 01, 2003 07:15 AM
The only way I can think of that a consumer (or even a dealer) can determine the introduction date of a particular line of tires is to call the manufacturer. However, most "help" lines are not oriented towards this type of information and I doubt that they would be willing to spend the extra effort to answer this type of question.Now I'll tell you the problems with your theory: 1) Most new tire lines are produced on the same assembly lines as the old ones. 2) There are so many clones of a given tire line, the introduction of a "new" line, might be merely a clone of an old one. 3) It takes about 3 years for the nature of the durability aspect of a given tire line to emerge. This would lead one to believe that "old" lines are not as good as the "new" lines, when it just might be the length of exposure. But in support of your theory: It is not uncommon for the marketing folks to position a new tire line at an elevated level compared to the line it replaces. Since there is real reluctance on the part of dealers to "let go" of a tire line the sells (and the manufacturers know this), the old line is subjected to all sorts of cost cutting measures, thereby increasing the margin of the established line.
I think there are too many variables to make this theory valid, even for a working hypothosis.
Hope this helps. [This message has been edited by CapriRacer (edited January 01, 2003).] IP: Logged |
dapperdan56
Member
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posted January 01, 2003 08:43 PM
Thanks for the thought provoking reply. I guess I committed the fallacy of over simplification in my quest for an easy way to weed out aging tire lines. I was lead to this hypothesis by what I have been reading about some tires. For instance, on page 84 of the November 2002 issue of Grassroots Motorsports magazine, the author wrote regarding Kumho Tires V700 Victoracer “Kumho started development of the V700 in 1992 and entered U.S. club racing one year later. There were several different compound changes made until 1997, but the mix has remained the same during the past few years”. On the same page, regarding Kumho Tires ECSTA V700, the author wrote “The ECSTA V700 was introduced in 2001 as a replacement for the aging Victoracer, and became eligible for national autocross competition in 2002”. Granted they are talking about race compound tires in this article, but I have read similar things about various street tire lines. I would like to avoid buying tires from what is considered an “aging” tire line, especially if the tires are soon to be discontinued, and I can’t read every article written in the world for such information. That is why I have this quest for a simple tool that will flag suspect tire lines.IP: Logged |
CapriRacer
Member
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posted January 03, 2003 05:51 AM
I, too, read Grassroots Motorsports and I pay particular attention to the tire column. I do not always agree, but generally it is right on the mark.What is complicating the issue here is the "racing" part of this. When a company is actively involved in racing, the technology moves pretty fast. But at the same time. when we are dealing with street cars used for racing purposes, the tire has to overcome the inherent shortcomings of the suspension. This MAY mean that the tire produced works extremely well for the vehicle (and driver) it is being designed for, but perform poorly on a different combination. Also, racing is used by most tire companies as a marketing tool, so well publicized wins are important. But that part of racing that is mundane - the little bullrings around the country - receive very little attention from Goodyear and Bridgestone, because they have bigger fish to fry. Which is why Kumho, McCreary, Hoosier, etc are able to be more than competitive. Hope this helps. IP: Logged | |
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