97 v8 AWD - bad tires - one has cracks and leaks in cold - Fix A Flat??

[allmyEXes]

If You come across a Firestone tire that came as Original Equipment on a Ford Explorer, tell the possessor of it to burn it, shred it or throw it in a dumpster. It is believed that the Firestone tires that came stock on The Explorers were the cause of the rollover accidents.
Ford Explorer Rollover

 

[Mbrooks420]

This has been beat to death, but it wasn’t really Firestone’s fault. Ford recommended too low of a pressure to improve the crappy ride quality, and people way overreacted to a simple blow out. I had a sidewall blow out on my newer Mounty (old cracked tires I bought it with one day after purchase) and it wasnt even remotely scary.

If you ran the Firestone’s at 32 psi there’d be no issue. We ran like 5 sets of them on our 91 and on a Wagoneer.

ANY tire that’s 21 years old isn’t fit for road service.

 

[koda2000]

OP - One way or another replace your dry, cracked, leaking ancient tires with new or nearly new tires. Driving around on old tires is dangerous. Driving a tall SUV on old tires can cost you your life.

 

[ELeBlanc]

only one is obviously cracked and leaking. all are old but one is the black sheep.

 

[koda2000]

only one is obviously cracked and leaking. all are old but one is the black sheep.

If you're AWD it's very important to have all 4 tires to be as near as possible to the same diameter. Brand new tires from different manufactures can vary in diameter even when they are the same size. With AWD it's best to buy tires in sets of 4 and rotate them regularly.

Also, you have to be concerned about how old tires are. Cracks on the outside aren't the only thing to worry about. Tires have a coded manufacture date on them. I'd say tires older than 6 years of use or 10 years from the build date (irregardless of how much thread is left) should be replaced.

how can i decode tire manufacture date - Google Search

 

[imp]

If You come across a Firestone tire that came as Original Equipment on a Ford Explorer, tell the possessor of it to burn it, shred it or throw it in a dumpster. It is believed that the Firestone tires that came stock on The Explorers were the cause of the rollover accidents.
Ford Explorer Rollover

@allmyEXes
I've always believed that. After critically looking over the Explorer rear suspension, I decided it was conventional in every way, not capable of causing multiple-failures, as Firestone claimed. And, I happened to be driving a '96. imp

 

[koda2000]

From what I understand the real problem with the Firestone tires was that the Ford tire pressure info sticker showed the tire pressure to be much to low (26-28 PSI IIRC). Couple this with the fact that many people don't check their tire pressures regularly and it's easy to understand why Explorers had blowouts resulting in rollovers.

 

[Mbrooks420]

Agreed. Starting at 26 can easily bring 22-24 with a good weather change. Add a fair amount of mileage and you’re bound to have problems. I ran ATXs for at least 150k and never had a single problem. We weren’t the types to rely on door stickers for pressures and ran them like all our trucks and SUVs between 35-40.

Ford takes the majority of the blame here.

 

[RandomNerd2000]

You don't need to be driving on tires that old, you really don't, dry cracked tires are bad, and that spare is even worse. You really need all five. $200 for used tires is HIGH btw, here a good set mounted on your rims runs $125 all day long, and I've had luck with $100 or less at any junkyard except one.


I'd steer clear of those Goodyears too, I had a set last winter I got for $40, on the matching OEM rims holding air, and I'll NEVER have another set. They're a waste of money when you can do better. I know several people who run Chinese tires, and they swear by them, the ones I'm linking are sworn by around here, although I've never had a set.

$72.98 - Milestar Grantland 235/75R-15 tires | Buy Milestar Grantland tires at SimpleTire

 

[imp]

@Mbrooks420 @koda2000 OK, if you guys know of incorat rect stickers......but was that confirmed, or claimed by the Japanese lawyers? As I think about it, generally, tires do not "blow out", if low on air, they get hotter and hotter, until the rubber becomes too soft to stay together, and parts. Before that happens, there is plenty of warning that something is wrong. I read Ford's investigators proved there was incorrect placement of cords in sidewalls during manufacture. Regardless of blame, I can say truthfully that having been driving for 60 years now, I have had plenty of flat tires occur while at speed, with quite a variety of vehicles, including my '93 Cobra at 70mph, R.F., and have never experienced a "blow-out". Lucky? imp

 

[Mbrooks420]

If the low pressure wasn’t a factor, why did they correct the stickers? It decreases the already poor ride quality. Of course the Ford engineers found something wrong with the tires. That’s their job. A guilty defendant ALWAYS has expert witnesses that back up third argument, as long as they have the money to pay for them.

 

[imp]

If the low pressure wasn’t a factor, why did they correct the stickers? It decreases the already poor ride quality. Of course the Ford engineers found something wrong with the tires. That’s their job. A guilty defendant ALWAYS has expert witnesses that back up third argument, as long as they have the money to pay for them.

@Mbrooks420
As the unyielding skeptic, has anyone seen the defective pressure stickers? The idea did not originate as internet hocus-pocus?

 

[RandomNerd2000]

I have in fact seen the old 26 PSI stickers, I'm looking at a 96 sport as we speak that needs a LOT of work, it states 26 PSI, still has an untouched Wilderness AT underneath. The stickers are very real and common.

 

[Mbrooks420]

They weren’t defective. Ford intentionally lowered the pressure to make the ride better since it was trailing ride comfort in its competition.

 

[koda2000]

I have in fact seen the old 26 PSI stickers, I'm looking at a 96 sport as we speak that needs a LOT of work, it states 26 PSI, still has an untouched Wilderness AT underneath. The stickers are very real and common.

I'm pretty sure our old '97 had the 26 PSI sticker, but I did not mean to resurrect this topic again. It's be covered multiple times in the past.

 

[Mbrooks420]

Explorer door stickers still have them. There’s just an amendment sticker next to the door jam sticker. My 96 never had the recall sticker added.

 

[Centaurus5.0]

Mine has two stickers that say 26psi..

 

[imp]

Looking at this chart, I'm trying to see whether initial 26 psi in tires is really all that dangerous. Say 26 psi at 70 degrees, when the tire reaches 120 degrees, it's pressure rises to 31 psi. 120 degrees is not unusual for tires; I've felt them on long sustained trips, and could not keep the backs of my fingers on the sidewall, sure it was over 120. 31 psi is not an unusual running pressure for tires carrying average load.

Did they decide the recommendation of 26 psi WAS the cause of the tire failures? And was it ever explained why so many rolled over? imp

 

[J_C]

Walmart has BFGoodrich Rugged Terrain T/A P235/75/15 for $79 each + $15 mounting/balancing/stem (if bought there, $25 if bought elsewhere).

https://www.walmart.com/ip/BFGoodrich-Rugged-Terrain-T-A-Tire-P235-75R15-XL-108T/680065983

You can ask what the manufacture date is before committing to them, so you aren't facing cracked tires again as soon as you would be if you buy used.

However, there is a possibility your tire is leaking at the bead if very cold, or out the valve stem not the cracks. I have one tire that recently developed valve stem leaking and trying to inflate it in cold weather, I needed to give it a shot of spray silicone to get it to seal. Eventually I'll get around to replacing the core in that valve stem. They cost about $3 for a two pack of stems at Autozone or Walmart, etc (then swap the cores out), or you can get a 4 pack of cores and the tool on Amazon for under $2.

https://www.amazon.com/Slime-20088-4-Way-Valve-Cores/dp/B0020T17J2

 

[toypaseo]

^^^ The BFG Rugged Terrain T/A might be discontinued. Might be a good choice for the spare tire though

Don't even consider the BFG Rugged Trail, AKA "Rugged Fail"...