> While load rating is an important factor in tire safety it 
> is not the only factor. There are plenty of our vans running
> around with very heavy duty tires that handle and brake 
> poorly in some situations because of their tread design
> and compound. Are they safer tires just because they are
> index 99 or 102? Not really.

Agreed. Not all tires of the same load rating are the same. Rated load
capacity is merely a starting point. It simply eliminates from your field of
choices those tires that (as per Volkswagen and/or the D.O.T.) are unsafe
for use on Vanagons, and therefore should be ruled out entirely. (Some of
them may be great tires, but not for a Vanagon.)  Among what's left, there
are still good tires and lousy tires. So once the insufficiently rated tires
have been eliminated, you must still choose wisely among the remaining
options.

See www.busdepot.com/details/tires.jsp for more on this.

- Ron Salmon
  The Bus Depot, Inc.
  www.busdepot.com
  (215)  234-VWVW

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