Gotta up the air pressure near the max for best performance - otherwise
your van will be squirrely and  all over the road. Don't ask how I know!!

John

On 4/23/2013 7:53 PM, Max Wellhouse wrote:
> I've been very pleased with my Altimax's on my 96 Legacy Brighton
> Wagon.  Guess I didn't realize that they had the "innard" to tacke the
> Vanagon's weight.
>
> Good luck with the shopping regardless....
>
> DM&FS
>
> On 4/23/2013 7:49 PM, Dennis Haynes wrote:
>> When you were a kid did you have a bicycle with the non-pneumatic
>> (solid or hollow core hard tires)? Remember at some point getting a
>> bicycle with pneumatic tires and what an improvement that was? Well
>> even back in 1986 VW knew that something different was needed in the
>> way of tires and many of the later vans were delivered with the
>> 205/70-14 XL tire. In the final days of the Eurovan the standard tire
>> was a 225/60-16XL. For those that do not want to upgrade their wheels
>> my current choice is the General Altimax. It is reasonably priced, has
>> the same (actually slightly higher) ratings as the original Michelin
>> MXL 205/70-14 XL and is a true all season tire with the M+S rating.
>>
>> 14 tires for larger vehicles are becoming harder to find. I'm looking
>> for performance tires in that size suitable for my 380SL and the
>> choices have become very limited. 16's may be coming!
>>
>> Dennis
>>
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com] On
>> Behalf Of Dave Mcneely
>> Sent: Tuesday, April 23, 2013 8:23 PM
>> To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
>> Subject: I hate to get a tire discussion
>>
>> going, but ................... .
>>
>> I need to get tires, and I have the original 14" steel wheels.  Right
>> now, I have Kumho 857 radials.  Some folks have complained that the
>> tires are described as "trailer tires," by some dealers.  However, the
>> Kumho web site describes them as being for vans and transporters, the
>> load range is appropriate (LT rated D), and there is no trailer
>> restriction on the sidewall.
>>
>> Hankook RA08 tires have been recommended on here, including by one of
>> the list vendors.  I looked them up on the Hankook web site, where,
>> guess what, they are listed only under the designation for "trailer."
>> They do not show up as LT tires, SUV tires, anything else.  The
>> description says, however, that they are for vans and transporters,
>> and the load range is suitable for our vehicle.
>>
>> So, before I buy a set of these, I want to know that they are not
>> restricted to trailer use.  That would not be good.  On the Kumho
>> 857s, I and at least one other list member actually contacted Kumho
>> and learned that those tires are listed for trailers simply because
>> almost no other vehicles in the U.S. call for an LT tire on a 14"
>> wheel, and so trailers are where the market is, but that the tire is
>> sold elsewhere for use on vans.  Is the same thing true of the Hankook
>> RA08?
>>
>> Thank you,
>>
>> David McNeely
>