>I too have noticed front end loss of traction on diesel/I4 vans and poor
>rear wheel traction a the same time!. Anyway, I weighed my van a year or so
>ago and posted the results, here they are again:

Tire choice has a HUGE effect on handling. Good tires will hang on
well in corners wet & dry, most won't howl, and at the limits of
adhesion will creep noticably, giving you warning not to push much
harder.

Poor tires will howl in corners, slip & slide (often suddenly) and
lose grip in the wet. And possibly result in your death and that of
others... AND your beloved van. The choice is yours. Most will make
the wrong one. I have driven Hiaces with LT tires, and these are most
cartainly NOT confidence-inspiring. I'd NEVER fit them to MY vans.

Vanagons supposedly handle extremely well, but that will be in
particular with performanvce tires, NOT light-truck tires
(rim-protectors).

My 1984 Type 2 Caravelle was fitted with an iron 3.8 V6. Wearing
decent-but-not-performance Japanese boots, it never skated the front
tires, though when pushed in bends it understeered badly due to the
heavy engine. In the wet on sharp slow bends I had to avoid putting
the power down hard, or the rear would slip sideways a little... not
enough to give fright, but a warning.
--
Andrew Grebneff
165 Evans St, Dunedin 9001, New Zealand
<andrew.grebneff@stonebow.otago.ac.nz>
Seashell, Macintosh, VW/Toyota van nut