Greetings,

I did a search for the topic of my post...nothing. So I'm wondering....I've got rears that have 80% left and fronts that I'm not wanting to replace till spring (I don't drive but 3-5 days a month from December to April). I know very well what worn rears do for handling. I'm wondering what kind of handling quirks I can expect from fronts with 80% used. From what I can tell, I get a lot more pushing in corners. Thanks for any insights.

 

Worst case is same as overly worn rears: death. Only difference is you plow into it instead of spinning in. Either way, get new tires.

 

See....that's what I thought...its new rubber ASAP!

Thanks! I guess my experience tonight cemented your advice. I had accelerated to get into the right lane to turn. When I turned sharply, nothing I haven't done before, no brakes or other no-no's...(ie shifting...letting off gas) I noticed I wasn't grabbing as usual...sort of pushed way out (yes, another car was in the lane going the other direction...ie..a target). I slid towards the center a bit more than I had planned (don't yell, but it was dry, but cold..32). I didn't get THAT close...but I could see it happening....when YES, I grabbed and made the turn...albeit a bit slower than I'd thought...

That's why I posted...I have a feeling it was more my worn fronts than the cold, dry pavement. Thanks.

 

One piece of advice. When you start pushing, unwind the wheel. Extremely counter intuitive, but you don't want to overload the front tires. They'll regrab much sooner if you unwind.

 

Even with new rubber, the fact remains that 32 degrees is very cold for a high performance tire and car. When you get new rubber, try not to get over confident. Being overconfident can get you into serious trouble.

 

At 32 deg. F, I would blame the temperature and technique more than I would blame the tires, especially if the front wasn't loaded before initiating the turn. Even when warm, my car pushes if I just crank the wheel around without setting the front end with a little deceleration first.

 

[QUOTE]Originally posted by payneinthe
Worst case is same as overly worn rears: death.

 

Although blunt, payneinthe is correct. Most likely senero is you go to make a sharp turn on a city street with ice or slush and the car will go straight into the curb or another car. So in addition to new front tires, you get to rebuild the front suspension, or maybe just an alignment if you didn't hit the curb to bad; if you hit a parked car, well you can imagine. Get tires.