Why don't we get a decent mileage from our tires?

[RHD]

Compared to a modern tire, the mileage we get from a 21" or 19" is pathetic, considering the high price we pay for them.
What mileage have you experienced?
Your thoughts folks.

[Jordan]

I would think it's because they know we don't drive Model A's as much as regular cars, so if they made tires that lasted 30-40,000 miles, the majority of owners would only buy one set of tires the entire time they owned the car. So i think they're purposely made out of poor rubber so they don't last.

[mhsprecher]

I would also suspect that these are old design tires. Sales are limited, so they companies put no R&D into the tires.

I have only owned my car for a year, so I have no idea how long the tires last, but the odometer has just over 6K on it, so I assume the tires where new at 0 miles. I would be surprised if my tires lasted to 10k miles.

[stouchton]

I find it interesting that my Model A weighs almost as much as my Camaro - 2700lbs vs 2950lbs (someone please correct me if I have the Model A weight wrong!).

My Camaro tires have >6" tread width in contact with the road, and the stock tires were probably around 5".

Much more contact area, thus lower PSI - contributes to lower tire wear in my book.

Is it more complicated than this?

[Michael M]

What is the mileage we could expect? I believe that mine have about 3K on them and the tread is good, but I don't know what to expect.

[Ross/Kzoo]

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My theory is that the tread contact area is much smaller than a modern car given a slightly less weight for the A.

[brum1]

Unfortunately the radial tire has us bias plied

[CarlG]

In the mid 50's my dad always ran Sears tires that had a "time" warranty rather than a mileage warranty. Since he was putting a ton of miles on his car, and a lot of it was in the Arizona mountiains, Sears got to replace a lot of tires for him. Not long after that, Sears changed their warranty to miles.

As to the wear on Model A tires, a very slight mis-alignment will wipe out a pair of tires in no time at all. Don't ask me how I know that!

[George Miller]

I'v got 18,000 miles on my 21" tires. Back in the day we only got about 30,000 on the 15" tires. That was before radials.

[columbiA]

I had 14,000 miles on the 19" Firestone tires on my coupe.There was still almost 1/2 tread left,but because I cruised a lot @ 60 mph in OD,I decided to replace them.If I cruised @ 45,then I would have left them on a lot longer.It is most important that the wheel alignment be correct.

[Mitch//pa]

Most guys are riding with the toe not set properly and loose wheel bearings or frt end play. even excessive steering box play causes wear

[BILL WILLIAMSON]

Originally Posted by Mitch//pa

Most guys are riding with the toe not set properly and loose wheel bearings or frt end play. even excessive steering box play causes wear

Well, Son, many are probably lazy like me & don't check the pressure offen' enuff!!. Minerva had 19" Firestones & began to be stiff on slow turns. I shook her side to side & the tires didn't even look low. Dang, they had ONLY 12 Lbs pressure!!- Dad

[glenn in camino]

20,000 miles on Model A tires is about the maximum you can expect. The alternative is 16 inch radials on 1935 wheels but that will make your car look funny.

[Tom Endy]

I have put 44,000 miles on my Victoria in the past 20 years. I am on the third set of tires and they have about 50% of the tread left. They have all been Firestone. The first set was made in Australia before the molds were shipped back to the USA.

Front end alignment out of whack will wear out tires in a hurry. I try to rotate mine every 5 or 6 thousand miles.

I drive the car everyday and often put interstate miles on them at 55-60 (in overdrive).

Tom Endy

[Fred K-OR]

If I remember correctly, and that is maybe an invalid assumption, that back in the good old days, a person did not get many miles on a tire. Thus are the current "new" ones any different than in the old days? I don't think so.

[Jordan]

I know of several people here who have gotten only 6,000 miles out of a set of WW firestones (myself included). One guy restored a vicky and all 4 were worn out by 6,000 and his car was set up correctly. A guy who finished a fordor around the same time got the same out of his tires. Maybe it's the hotter pavement in Texas?

[larrys40]

on average I have gotten about 16K out of the firestones... I called Coker one day and asked them what the average mileage would be out of the firestone/goodyears... and they said about 8-10 K, maybe..? They said because it is softer than the more modern tires. I do rotate mine every so often and tend to run a couple of pounds extra. Personally I prefer the Firestones. I think they steer well and seem to wear well... and I like the way they look best.

I guess I've gotten a pretty good track record out of them.. but like everyone else it would be nice to get a few more miles out of them. On the flip side tires do age and the older they are the less safe they are. I find Garfields the worst of the bunch. They steer as hard as the rubber on them which seems to be harder than most ( probably an age thing).

Larry Shepard

[Ed Saniewski]

In 10 years and 20,000 miles my 19 inch Firestone's were just about worn out on my roadster. I replaced them just before leaving for the MARC meet in Lexington this year. I have a set of Universal 21 inch on my 29 pick up with 7,000 miles and they seem to be wearing down faster. But at 2/3 the cost of the Firestone's, if I get 15,000 miles out of the Universals,I guess I would be happy.

[Mike V. Florida]

5000 on the last set of firestones bought several years ago. Universals on there now several thousand very little signs of wear.

They seem to make these tires for trailer queens.

[Dave in MN]

I started with new tires and since then I've put 68,000 miles on my car over the last 12 years. About 18,000 miles ago, I replaced two of the four. 9,000 miles ago I replaced two again and they still had good useable tread (30-40%) I am also factoring I have two spares that I have cycled in during those miles and they remain on the car as 1/2 worn. Unless my logic or math is in error, it appears I have gotten on average better than 40,000 miles on a set. I do have my toe-in set at a slim 1/16".

Is this making sense? It appears to be on the high side of what most are reporting.

The tires are Firestone...purchased at Snyder's.

They are whitewalls...so they are probably better tires...right? Excuse me...I couldn't help but stir the pot a little!