Post by sportsguy on Jan 26, 2005 9:42:31 GMT -4
Well, it may not be the coolest, hippest thing on the go, but I can actually offer a meaningful comparison of grooved tires.
Here's the skinny:
I have run Goodyear MT/R's (31") on both my old Cherokee and my current Comanche.
The only difference other than one set fitting 15" rims and the other fitting 16" rims is this:
The set on the Comanche right now have been grooved - not siped, but grooved.
The difference being sipes are small incisions into the rubber to add many more "ridges" or edges within the tread blocks.
Grooving actually removes a small portion of rubber, kind of like a gummy worm, leaving you with another void within the tread block.
Siping has proven to help enhance traction on rocks and ice - more edges to grab the surface. Grooving does pretty much the same thing, with one real difference - there will be a smaller percentage of rubber hitting the road on a grooved tire (because grooving removes more rubber) - meaning less rubber to slide across ice, etc.
Why all this chatter - well, I'll tell you this - if you've ever thought about getting your tires grooved (or siped) - DO IT!
Same driving conditions between my two trucks AND noting the Comanche is a bunch lighter than my old Cherokee, and the Comanche manages to go a lot more places in 2wd than the Cherokee ever did.
You can feel the tires dig in and keep things moving. (Both trucks equipped with open rear diffs)
Both sets of tires performed well in the deeper snow, but on icy surfaces and packed snow (driveway, roads, etc.), the grooved tires win hands down.
I know this isn't news to anyone, but I've been so impressed by the grooved MT/R's I have, I wanted to post up.
Go see Craig Bennett - he's the groovy dude!
Here's the skinny:
I have run Goodyear MT/R's (31") on both my old Cherokee and my current Comanche.
The only difference other than one set fitting 15" rims and the other fitting 16" rims is this:
The set on the Comanche right now have been grooved - not siped, but grooved.
The difference being sipes are small incisions into the rubber to add many more "ridges" or edges within the tread blocks.
Grooving actually removes a small portion of rubber, kind of like a gummy worm, leaving you with another void within the tread block.
Siping has proven to help enhance traction on rocks and ice - more edges to grab the surface. Grooving does pretty much the same thing, with one real difference - there will be a smaller percentage of rubber hitting the road on a grooved tire (because grooving removes more rubber) - meaning less rubber to slide across ice, etc.
Why all this chatter - well, I'll tell you this - if you've ever thought about getting your tires grooved (or siped) - DO IT!
Same driving conditions between my two trucks AND noting the Comanche is a bunch lighter than my old Cherokee, and the Comanche manages to go a lot more places in 2wd than the Cherokee ever did.
You can feel the tires dig in and keep things moving. (Both trucks equipped with open rear diffs)
Both sets of tires performed well in the deeper snow, but on icy surfaces and packed snow (driveway, roads, etc.), the grooved tires win hands down.
I know this isn't news to anyone, but I've been so impressed by the grooved MT/R's I have, I wanted to post up.
Go see Craig Bennett - he's the groovy dude!
) then it's against vehicle compliance regs and they can fail your inspection because of it.
