How does one address the directional aspect of a tire when it comes to the spare? How critical is it? Can you run a spare backwards long enough to fix the flat or will running backwards cause rapid damage?
Thanks! JD
The trick is to mount the directional tyres all the same direction. If you put a rear pointing tyre on the rigth rear, and a front pointing tyre on the left rear, you are likely to loose your rear axel as the two tyres simply turn the axel around and around as the car trys to go down the street. Also this is very bad for gas milage since the rear tyres are fighting the front tyres and it is not very good for tyre milage either. Same situation and considerations hold for tires also. Now if you mount both rear tyres backwards, then you are likely to stretch the car into a stretch limo, but be carefull as cars have stretched too far and have broken this way. If you mount all tires rearwards, not to worry, You just drive backwards and all is fine. Proper use of the spare tyre has never been solved properly. It has been suggested that the whole concept of directional tyres is too complex and tyres should only be made to rotate either way. In fact, rumor has it that the new Democratic liberal senate and congress will take this up as one of its first items, shortly after it bans ammunition for guns.
The tread is directional, the internal construction is not. You'll get less traction running it backwards, but other than that you should be fine. I would guess that it would probably wear faster, too. I would also be careful in the rain, as the tread will pump water under the treads instead of away from the tread.
Thanks for the well considered answer. That's what I was hoping to hear. I expected the difference inwater dispersion but wasn't sure if the internals became "set" after running in one direction making them fall apart if run in the opposite direction.
JD
Why would you even consider this? I just got a complete set of tires for my 300 TDT from the Tirerack.com for $258. By running tires in an unsafe manner you risk dying, among other things. Safe tires are a necessary part of owning and driving an automobile, and a few hundred dollars is not so much to pay.
I dozed off at the wheel and ran off the road in September. While my car was relatively undamaged because I just landed in the soft sand of a wash, the impact with my seat belt and steering wheel did around $100,000 worth of damage to me, or at least that's what the hospital and doctor bills total up to, and lots of pain and discomfort, not to mention three months off work and a month in the hospital.
Get safe tires or park the car because you risk going off the road just hitting a puddle if the tread is pumping water UNDER your tires. And if you do go off the road, it is unlikely that you will be lucky enough to just land in soft sand.
I guess I didn't make my concern clear enough. The spare tire, if the same as the 4 on the ground, is going to be mounted for either right or left use. Should the use of the spare be necessary, I was more concerned with the ramifications of running it backwards *until I could get the original tire repaired/replaced and back on the ground*.
JD
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