Hydroplaning KM2s
- Thread starter Hilldweller
- Start date
Stan the Man
Adventurer
That's not very efficient at 15%. I chose my AT's because:
1. I DD my rig and put over 15k miles a year on it. The road manners have been awesome.
2. There is very little mud in CA. I encounter mud for 1 to 2 trips.
The AT's have gripped well on all the trails and rocks I've ever been on. I'd say my tire choice was 85% efficient :ylsmoke:
(Just stirring the pot :sombrero
bronconite
Observer
I was thinking the same thing. I'm also curious what psi the OP was running his tires at.
Hilldweller
SE Expedition Society
Skinny E-rated tires at 32 psi, 33 on the road-trip to AZ recently.
They're the skinniest 255/85-16s, I think. They were twitchy on dry pavement too.
I put the Coopers on today; I'm back to 285/75-16. I'll hit a slick concrete offramp at the next sprinkle and see what happens.
FWIW, I take a couple of dirt roads on my commute every morning and am likely to encounter a slick surface, sometimes mud. I take this route for its scenic value and the effect on my karma ---- seeing the fuzzy woodland creatures helps me keep mellow.
If I had taken the dirt route the other day I would have avoided the hydroplane zone.
Brock63
Observer
i had 33x10.5x15s on my FJ60 for almost a year....and never hydroplaned at regular highway speeds even in torrential downpours here in South Carolina....I always felt the lugs were far enough apart as to not trap water and hydroplane but maybe my tall-skinny setup made the different where it pushed water aside rather than trying to ride on top like a much wider tire would.
Glad nothing bad happened but I think this is rare....well for everyone but him. I am running Nitto Trail Grapplers on my 100 series..they are a lot wider but so far no issues there...time will tell.
Glad nothing bad happened but I think this is rare....well for everyone but him. I am running Nitto Trail Grapplers on my 100 series..they are a lot wider but so far no issues there...time will tell.
Maybe he sprang for the nitrogen?Yeah they must have been inflated with the wrong kind of air.
So out of 51 responses ~40 are positive for the tires in all conditions and have a completely different experience than the OP does, and you don't think that just maybe there might be an issue with the tires the one guy with the problem has? I have the exact same tire and on my truck they perform amazingly in all conditions. The truck will roll before the tires lose grip in dry conditions and I thoroughly tested them during the monsoon season and had absolutely no problems with hydroplaning. Siping must have been the difference! :victory:
Hilldweller
SE Expedition Society
I used an infrared thermometer on the tire tread to come up with tire pressure. At 32 psi I got 117 degrees uniformly across the tread in front and 120 across the rears. At lower pressure the tread temperatures rose in ExPonential fashion; I only had them for a little more than 10,000 miles and wear was uniform across the tread.
Redline
Likes to Drive and Ride
I would argue that 32-PSI is a very reasonable/appropriate pressure for these tires on this rig. I doubt PSI had anything to do with negative impressions of this tire.
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Hilldweller
SE Expedition Society
Me too.
There's something to be said about road aggregate and the amount of shade in that area; Georgia does have its share interesting biomasses in shady spots on the road. It's a heavily traveled road, but it's still an area that has almost no direct sunlight.
Whatever it is, it happened 4 times, 4 places. That's 4 times more than the MTR/Ks.
So that sets the standard in my book.
Brock63
Observer
Used to be terrible here around Charleston growing up as they used to mix oyster shell aggregate in with asphalt for longevity. The only problem was that after a few days of extreme heat the oils in shells would leech out into asphalt...
So the first afternoon thundershower all the oil would come to top and sit on asphalt for unsuspecting motorists or worse, motorcyclists. I remember sliding in my moms Honda Civic like I was on ice...but wasnt hydroplaning but rather skimming on layer of shellfish oil.
Learned quickly that when it starts raining after a stint of heat without moisture...to pull over or slow WAY DOWN until it had a chance to wash onto the shoulder.
It will pucker you up quick... luckily they dont do that anymore to my knowledge but old habits die slow so I always slow down on four wheels and on motorcycle I pull over for 5 minutes.:bike_rider:
So the first afternoon thundershower all the oil would come to top and sit on asphalt for unsuspecting motorists or worse, motorcyclists. I remember sliding in my moms Honda Civic like I was on ice...but wasnt hydroplaning but rather skimming on layer of shellfish oil.
Learned quickly that when it starts raining after a stint of heat without moisture...to pull over or slow WAY DOWN until it had a chance to wash onto the shoulder.
It will pucker you up quick... luckily they dont do that anymore to my knowledge but old habits die slow so I always slow down on four wheels and on motorcycle I pull over for 5 minutes.:bike_rider:
78Bronco
Explorer
There is only one way to know for certain and that is a controlled test of the same tire on the same type of vehicle. The likelyhood of this one set of 4 tires having a manufacturing defect that is causing the hydroplaning is extremely slim. Maybe consumer reports has something to say about them?
Far out thought
I wonder if GA is subject to "Black Ice" like FL is? I am refering to the layer of oil that the sun and heat cooks out of the asphalt during the hot days of summer. The oils combine with the water during and create very slick conditions. Once it rains for a while, the oils will get washed off the road.
I was warned about this when I did an intern ship at WDW. Having grown up in CO driving in real snow and ice conditions I thought it was a joke until I couldn't get a full size Bronco with BFG AT on it to stop at an intersection. I slid that bad boy a long ways until I could get it under control. In the future I drove verly conservatively during the first part of a rain storm.
The BFG KM might be very prone to these conditions. Just a guess -
I wonder if GA is subject to "Black Ice" like FL is? I am refering to the layer of oil that the sun and heat cooks out of the asphalt during the hot days of summer. The oils combine with the water during and create very slick conditions. Once it rains for a while, the oils will get washed off the road.
I was warned about this when I did an intern ship at WDW. Having grown up in CO driving in real snow and ice conditions I thought it was a joke until I couldn't get a full size Bronco with BFG AT on it to stop at an intersection. I slid that bad boy a long ways until I could get it under control. In the future I drove verly conservatively during the first part of a rain storm.
The BFG KM might be very prone to these conditions. Just a guess -
Hilldweller
SE Expedition Society
I got my first rain today with the Coopers and they didn't slide a bit. It's been in the low 100's every afternoon and hasn't rained for a while; the roads had as much greasy potential as they can get.
I've been adjusting the air pressure down gradually and will have to try 31 psi tomorrow; they're still getting hotter in the center. Will also install cam bolts and have another alignment on Wednesday (last alignment was at the dealer in April prior to going to the Overland Expo).
These tires are D-rated, btw.
I've been adjusting the air pressure down gradually and will have to try 31 psi tomorrow; they're still getting hotter in the center. Will also install cam bolts and have another alignment on Wednesday (last alignment was at the dealer in April prior to going to the Overland Expo).
These tires are D-rated, btw.
Again, it was only a theory -- The Coopers with a different tread compound, and tread design might not be the fatal combination for your Jeep.
I have heard of certian tire combinatioins playing hell with the ABS system on certian GM vehicles. In dry conditions, the tires loose a little traction and the ABS goes on full and the vehicle is unable to stop.
The Cooper seems like a good choice, and confidence in the tire makes all the difference in the world.
Keep us posted.
I have heard of certian tire combinatioins playing hell with the ABS system on certian GM vehicles. In dry conditions, the tires loose a little traction and the ABS goes on full and the vehicle is unable to stop.
The Cooper seems like a good choice, and confidence in the tire makes all the difference in the world.
Keep us posted.