Tires: New Kid on the block from Hankook.(Vantra RA18)

[Derek up North]

In case they discontinue the RA08, it seems they now have the Hankook Vantra LT RA18 in 185R14 and 195R14 sizes.

http://groovyautomotive.com/vantra-lt-ra18-tires-austin-tx#u=/Line:1796/DisplayAll:0

http://www.hankooktire.com/uk/passenger-cars/hankook-vantra-lt-ra18.html

[Jaunt]

I was in the market for RA08's, good to know!

[DanAatTheCape]

when I googled the tires, all I found was tyres - as in australia & the uk.

 

please post if you find any in the USA

[zero]

I have bought from this California company many times with tires shipped to my front door.  

[Totem]

22 hours ago, Derek up North said:

In case they discontinue the RA08, it seems they now have the Hankook Vantra LT RA18 in 185R14 and 195R14 sizes.

http://groovyautomotive.com/vantra-lt-ra18-tires-austin-tx#u=/Line:1796/DisplayAll:0

http://www.hankooktire.com/uk/passenger-cars/hankook-vantra-lt-ra18.html

so do the specs of these meet or exceed those of the RA08? just curious.

My RA08 are going on 6 years old i think I will be needing new if not for dry rot reasons in a couple years probably right>?

[Derek up North]

I don't know what the difference is between the 2 though I notice that they call the new RA18 a 'Summer' tire and the older as a '4 Season'. If the RA18 is better or worse in Winter is anyone's guess.

[linda s]

The RA18 sounds like a nice upgrade. Better mileage and longer lasting. Not being an all season tire might be a problem for some

http://megatyre.co.nz/content/2012/12/hankook-ra18-light-truck-tyre-update/

Linda S

Well it looks like the RA18 is an M+S tire but has a less aggressive tread than the RA08 which is why they are marketing it as a summer tire online. Confusing

[Derek up North]

1 hour ago, DanAatTheCape said:

when I googled the tires, all I found was tyres - as in australia & the uk.

please post if you find any in the USA

I already did, unless Texas is no longer in the USA!

http://groovyautomotive.com/vantra-lt-ra18-tires-austin-tx#u=/Line:1796/DisplayAll:0

[Derek up North]

4 minutes ago, linda s said:

The RA18 sounds like a nice upgrade. Better mileage and longer lasting. Not being an all season tire might be a problem for some

http://megatyre.co.nz/content/2012/12/hankook-ra18-light-truck-tyre-update/

Linda S

" Rolling resistance has been reduced resulting in a reduction in fuel consumption by an incredible 13%! Also, the RA18 will do 12% more mileage than the Hankook RA08 it replaces."

Yes, I find it incredible too! A 13% reduction in rolling resistance perhaps, but rolling resistance is but a small part of the fuel consumption equation. Aero drag is the biggie!!

 

I've no idea what the difference is between "reduction in fuel consumption" and "more mileage". Sounds like marketing hype from someone who couldn't explain the difference either.

[Totem]

as long as they can handle a 6700 lbs payload over them at blazing 55 mph speeds i think we have my next tires.

[Derek up North]

They seem to be about the same price.

http://www.tires-easy.com/185-14/hankook-tires/ra18/tirecode/2001939

[zero]

The Federal Ecovan tires like I have also claim less rolling resistance.  They claim 34% less rolling resistance and 10% better wet braking.  Dealer near me in northern Michigan sells them.  

[DanAatTheCape]

8 hours ago, Derek up North said:

I already did, unless Texas is no longer in the USA!

http://groovyautomotive.com/vantra-lt-ra18-tires-austin-tx#u=/Line:1796/DisplayAll:0

curious, did you actually get a quote from them on that tire?

[Derek up North]

No. Why?

[DanAatTheCape]

2 minutes ago, Derek up North said:

No. Why?

curious if they are legit.

[payaso del mar]

8 hours ago, Derek up North said:

unless Texas is no longer in the USA!

we're waiting for them to depart.  they keep saying they're going to, but we think they like our Federal $ too much..............

[Totem]

14 hours ago, payaso del mar said:

we're waiting for them to depart.  they keep saying they're going to, but we think they like our Federal $ too much..............

Actually Texas is only ranked 29th in the "takers" list of states that take in fed dollars.. New Mexico however, is ranked 2nd only to Mississippi (ranked number 1 "taker"..

In fact Texas GDP is so strong that they don't even charge state income tax.. So technically speaking the US government will send troops in before they would allow succession. Its a cash cow made of oil pure and simple.

[payaso del mar]

On ‎05‎/‎19‎/‎2016 at 9:20 AM, Totem said:

GDP is so strong that they don't even charge state income tax

they make it up in other areas....TX property taxes tend to run well over NM ones, and the sales tax in EP is >8%

if you lived in TX, you'd realize how much of that secession bluster and BS you hear.  I tend to think the fed gummint would send troops in before they'd allow ANY state to secede.  I seem to recall something about a prior incident.....

as long as you're trashing NM, let me help you:  it even beats Mississippi for school performance.  bottom of the nation several years in a row.  lots of history going into that dynamic, going back to a few hundred years before the Mass. Bay colony......but I like the place, for many of the same reasons JD cites for leaving NY.

 

now back to tires.  sorry for detour.

[Jaunt]

I just got a quote from the local Big O Tires here in Colorado for the new RA18's, for $107/tire, 6 tires with installation, nitrogen, lifetime balance, etc etc. for ~$930

I'm probably gonna pull the trigger soon..

 

[zero]

$930 for 6 mounted tires sounds like a crazy high price to me.  $155 each is ridiculous.  Last set of six 8 ply-rated tires I got (two years ago) were $88 each including mounting, balancing, and the new correct metric valve stems.  Your installer must have gold-dust mixed in with his nitrogen.  Regular air is free last I checked and is already 70% nitrogen.  Good enough for me.

[Derek up North]

56 minutes ago, jdemaris said:

Regular air is free last I checked ...

It's getting harder and harder to find 'free air' around here. There's 1 gas station in town where it's free. All the others you have to plug quarters into a little wall mounted compressor. But the tire shops are still free, of course.

I must have led a charmed life. I have never had to take a tire back to be rebalanced. Mount, balance, install, good to go. Tire rotation? No, except they sort of maybe get rotated when swapping on snow tires/4-seasons.

Is Big-O tire charging shipping on top of the $107/tire?

[jjrbus]

There are many compelling reasons to use pure nitrogen in vehicle tires.   #1 is it allows tire store owners to make more money. #2 If properly processed and thats a big IF, it will contain no moisture, water in tires is a bad thing.  Of course the people mounting the tires slop bead lubricant which contains water all over and inside the tire so there goes that advantage.  When inflating with nitrogen what happens to all the bad nasty air that is in the tire, does it go away, does nitrogen purge it? So what percentage of nitrogen is actually in a tire, it is not 100% pure as claimed.

#3 Nitrogen does not migrate through the tire the way air does so tire pressure remains more stable. I am suppose to be checking and adjusting tire pressure on a regular basis so what is the advantage there? Tire pressure is always fluctuating anyway, a tire facing the sun will have more psi than a tire in the shade. 

Of course if they do not use bead lubricant and vacuum the tire to remove all that nasty air it might be a good idea?  

If I were driving in the Daytona 500 where lots of $$$$ were at stake and every micro advantage helps, I would use it, but not for rolling down the highway at 65 MPH. So for me it is good old 78% nitrogen.       

I think this myth is busted, at least as far as I am concerned.

                                                    Jim SW FL

[Jaunt]

1 hour ago, Derek up North said:

1 hour ago, Derek up North said:

@jdemaris

@derek up north

 No shipping on the tires from big o... they're $81/tire from online tires for the RA08's but then the shipping evens out the price.  I haven't even seen anyone selling the RA18's yet in the U.S. so that was cool I thought.

Without nitrogen and lifetime balancing it drops to about $850 including tax.  I'm going to be living in my rv full time traveling long distances so I'm not concerned about getting the cheapest tires possible, tires are an area where im not willing to skimp out.

Edited May 23, 2016 by Jaunt

[jjrbus]

If I were going to be putting lot's of miles on I would also consider better tires, my tires will mostly sit and dry rot due to lack of use.  I will attempt to sell the present tires when they are 5 years old and use that money towards the purchase of another cheap set.

[Derek up North]

From the internet, but ties in with what I think and what I've read over the years.

Q: Is there any noticeable advantage to inflating tires with pure nitrogen instead of air? Does this result in any improvements in performance or fuel consumption?

I know of an auto dealership that is automatically adding $199 (plus HST) to the cost of all its new vehicles to inflate the tires with nitrogen. Is this really necessary and is this additional cost reasonable?

I have been using regular air for more than 50 years and have found it to be generally satisfactory.

A: There is much hype about nitrogen, and it is just a lot of hot air. It is a money-maker for dealerships offering to fill your tires for $20, but this $199 is a new high. In addition, it is a ripoff of the highest order. If nitrogen was free, sure I’d use it — why not? But really, it offers so little advantage over compressed air it is not worth one extra dime.

The air we breathe and the air that is compressed in your tires is already 78 per cent nitrogen. Pure nitrogen is used in big commercial aircraft, some long-haul trucks and elite class race cars. In aircraft and race cars, it is used because a pure gas (instead of a mixture of gasses like compressed air) lets the engineers predict exactly how the tire will react when it is stressed by heat. Heat causes the tire to enlarge (we are talking about small amounts here) and so the racing engineers can get optimum pressures.

In aircraft, the tire undergoes tremendous stress: warm at takeoff, deep below freezing at altitude and then back to normal temperatures when the landing gear goes down. The impact of landing creates a huge heat spike. In a situation like this, the engineers need to be able to predict every reaction of the tire.

However, when you are driving down the highway, you don’t need this degree of predictability. On a hot day, your tire will increase pressure by a few PSI. Do you care if it is 2.2 extra PSI or 2.7 psi? If you need that information, then get nitrogen and carry a computer with you to calculate how that affects maximum grip. For most of us, life works fine with compressed air.

The reason compressed air is a little less predictable is that it contains some moisture that was in the air when it was compressed. The water vapour causes the unpredictability. However, most good garages have water traps on their air compressors. If they are functioning and emptied, there will be little water vapour.

Fuel economy depends on maintaining proper air pressure. It does not matter what gas is in the tire. If it is inflated properly, the fuel economy will be the same.

http://www.wheels.ca/news/why-nitrogen-in-your-tires-is-a-waste-of-money/#sthash.z1gRO6xY.dpuf

 

[jjrbus]

When I was a young man getting out of the military, Ford Motor company trained me to sell cars.  I worked at 3 stealerlerships, Ford, Plymouth and Mercedes.  The big ripoff back then was rustproofing and fabric treatment.  An untrained person would go around the car with a punch and hammer and punch holes in the car and spray some goop in the holes, then plug the holes with little rubber plugs.  The doors would be opened and they would spray a can of some other goop on the seats.   I don't remember the 1970 cost but would be like $500 today.

The company's that did the service were separate company's and when the   hit the fan they went bankrupt, leaving the car owner with no recourse.  Seems like they cannot gaff people with rustproofing anymore so now they have moved up to nitrogen in the tires.   Another big scam here in Florida is dealer fees.  What you pay the dealer to keep tract of the paper work.   Here the fee's can be in the $700 area.  The law is if you charge one person the fee you have to charge everyone.  Now if you are a cranky old poop and not going to buy rustproofing, nitrogen in tires or accent stripes, you can raise the dickens with them and they will succumb and deduct the "dealer fee" from the price of the car.  Legally on paper they are still charging you it. 

On the bright side, I did not work for Plymouth long but I had a Road Runner Super Bird for a demo   I think it was a 440 with a 6 pack and automatic.     Jim SW FL

[zero]

I've never lost a tire yet from using air as found for free on planet earth.  The larger molecular structure of nitrogen means nothing to me.  Good tires are not going to leak, regardless of the size of the molecules. I heard the same claims in reverse when auto air-conditioning went from R12 to 134A.  134A has the smaller molecules and it more leak prone IF you have leaks anyway.

Can't say the prospect of a little moisture inside a tire scares me either. My tractor tires have been filled with beet juice for 20 years and are still working fine.

I'd also like to know how a tire installer can install a tire and NOT get air in it, before filling with nitrogen. Or are they pulling a vacuum on the newly mounted tire like an AC system before filling? If so, WHAT A WASTE OF TIME AND MONEY.

I am also not a believer that more dollars always buys a better tire.  Sometimes yes, and sometimes no.  I've had some great results with some very cheap Asian tires.

[Jaunt]

13 hours ago, jdemaris said:

I've never lost a tire yet from using air as found for free on planet earth.  The larger molecular structure of nitrogen means nothing to me.  Good tires are not going to leak, regardless of the size of the molecules. I heard the same claims in reverse when auto air-conditioning went from R12 to 134A.  134A has the smaller molecules and is more leak prone IF you have leaks anyway.

Can't say the prospect of a little moisture inside a tire scares me either. My tractor tires have been filled with beet juice for 20 years and are still working fine.

I'd also like to know how a tire installer can install a tire and NOT get air in it, before filling with nitrogen. Or are they pulling a vacuum on the newly mounted tire like an AC system before filling? If so, WHAT A WASTE OF TIME AND MONEY.

I am also not a believer that more dollars always buys a better tire.  Sometimes yes, and sometimes no.  I've had some great results with some very cheap Asian tires.

There are machines that do multiple inflation/deflations to ensure its filled completely with nitrogen, but damn man just let it go... how did this thread get so derailed?

Anyways, no Chinese tires for me, ever.  To each their own.  

[linda s]

Every tire built has a code to tell you where it was manufactured. Just check it and know for sure. People think Hankook's are Korean made but lots of them are made in China

http://www.tiresafetygroup.com/tire-dot-plant-codes-sorted-plant-code/

Linda S

[zero]

5 hours ago, Jaunt said:

There are machines that do multiple inflation/deflations to ensure its filled completely with nitrogen, but damn man just let it go... how did this thread get so derailed?

Anyways, no Chinese tires for me, ever.  To each their own.  

You are the one that brought up the subject of nitrogen, not me. I say it is marketing hype and BS.  If you feel otherwise, good.  The economy loves consumers who shop like you do.  Like you said, "to each is own."

As far as you never buying Chinese tires?  Good luck on that.  I remember people saying the same about Japanese products in the 50s and 60s.  Now here we are - on a forum dedicated to little RVs built upon Japanese trucks.  Right now, as I understand it, every automotive brake rotor in the world - including all USA cars - is made in China.  I'm sure if China keeps ramping up, the same will be said for other key items in the auto industry.

[Totem]

16 hours ago, jdemaris said:

I've never lost a tire yet from using air as found for free on planet earth.  The larger molecular structure of nitrogen means nothing to me.  Good tires are not going to leak, regardless of the size of the molecules. I heard the same claims in reverse when auto air-conditioning went from R12 to 134A.  134A has the smaller molecules and it more leak prone IF you have leaks anyway.

Can't say the prospect of a little moisture inside a tire scares me either. My tractor tires have been filled with beet juice for 20 years and are still working fine.

I'd also like to know how a tire installer can install a tire and NOT get air in it, before filling with nitrogen. Or are they pulling a vacuum on the newly mounted tire like an AC system before filling? If so, WHAT A WASTE OF TIME AND MONEY.

I am also not a believer that more dollars always buys a better tire.  Sometimes yes, and sometimes no.  I've had some great results with some very cheap Asian tires.

Don't forget JDE that for us chemistry educated folks we are wise enough to know that plain old air as we breathe it is composed of over 78% N2 just as is... LOL .

[Jaunt]

@jdemaris

I mentioned it in passing, talking about a fully loaded quote from a tire shop, I'm not the one ranting, writing paragraphs about why its bullshit, basically arguing with yourself. 

I used to be an auto tech for 11 years and never sold anyone on or ever paid for nitrogen, so pull your head out of your @$$ and take some deep breaths dude.

Edited May 25, 2016 by Jaunt

[jjrbus]

6 hours ago, Jaunt said:

@jdemaris

I mentioned it in passing, talking about a fully loaded quote from a tire shop, I'm not the one ranting, writing paragraphs about why its bullshit, basically arguing with yourself. 

I used to be an auto tech for 11 years and never sold anyone on or ever paid for nitrogen, so pull your head out of your @$$ and take some deep breaths dude.

Kind of a harsh response for a community of like minded people trying to help each other.  Not all responses on forums are directly for your benefit and are read by many people from all walks of life and knowledge levels many of whom will never post on a forum. 

Keeping in mind that the printed word without facial expressions and body language often leads to misunderstandings of the intended message.     

[Back East Don]

Just to add to the discussion,

Last year I needed to pull the trigger on new tires.  To start, I am picky about tire performance.  I once replaced the nearly new set of tires my Corolla came with because I hated the performance.  The new tires made that car handle completely differently.  Night and day difference like in sloppy, sliding all over to riding on rails different.

With 7 new tires for the RV, I wanted to minimize the hit to my wallet too.  I considered the Goform and a couple other tires I found on the web.  Lots of people here have had good luck with some really cheap tires.  In the end I approached this from a value proposition that use with most things such as tools or other gear.  There is no mystery, some things are made better than others.  Tires too.  In the end I went with the Nexen tires.  Korean made (wife's home country) and is a company that was primarily truck tires in Korea.

I also like dealing with local businesses when I can.  So I went to a couple indie shop in the area and asked for the owner.  These shops are also listed as installers for Tirerack and TireEasy along with others.  I told them, I could order tires online and have them install them but would rather give them the opportunity to sell me the tires as well.  One shop I've done business with before came pretty close to the web price.  It was a small cost for the convenience and assurance of buying local.  Sure Tirerack will take care of you but it is not the same as a local shop.

So I bought these last year but due to family illness, we only made it out for one trip last summer.  Last fall and this spring, we've had more of a chance to put some miles on these and thus far I am very happy with the road performance with these.  Very solid feel on the road.

Quick check on TireEasy doesn't list them but a web search for Nexen SV820 185R14 shows Walmart with them in stock for $89 each.  With free shipping to a local store, this is almost as cheap as I bought mine last year.

[Derek up North]

Old kids on the block:-

There used to be available SV-820 branded tires from Woosung, Signet & Jupiter. All seemed to have identical tread patterns. Who owned who, who actually made them and what their relationship is/was to Nexen, I know not.

http://www.ratwell.com/technical/TirePhotos.html#jupitersv820

Edit:

" Nexen (Woosung), Signet, Atlas, Roadstone, Jupiter, Rodian, all the same SV-820"

http://www.vvwc.ca/modules.php?name=Forums&file=viewtopic&t=3027&view=next