Re: stock tires do not suck

[Bill Hussey <vfrboy@home.net>]

Khan Klatt wrote:

> I'll let you know when I go out and buy some Toyo's. Regardless of
> whether you happen to be right or wrong, my GA's are wearing out, and
> I'm not about to buy GA's again.
>
> I expect the Toyo's to perform better, and if the addition of the
> Toyos drastically changes my experience on the hill, I'll let you
> know that too.

No doubt you will get better performance, my argument is simply that the stock
tires are very good at what they do.  Show me a tire that is as predictable, has as
much grip (not much granted, but this is a comparison so bear with me), lasts as
long, and is equal or less than the GA's in cost.  Personally, I'm a Michelin fan,
and the MXX3's do it for me.  When these GA's die, if I haven't traded in the Jetta
yet, I'll probably throw on the Michelins.  For me, more grip is in order, but the
stock GA's do not "suck", that is my whole argument.

> The GA's are more like touring tires than they are performance tires.
> Put the touring tires on the GL. Put performance tires on the GLX.
> For goodness sake, in some time trials, these cars go 0-60 under six
> seconds! We didn't buy the GLX's because they're the cheapest Jetta's
> out there. We bought them because they're the fastest Jettas out
> there.

But again .. enthusiasts make up a very small percentage of Jetta owners.  For VW
to spend A LOT more money on sportier tires would be a waste.

> Maybe the rain in Washington is more slippery than it is in NJ? ;)

I will say this.  Metro-area roads have considerably more oil and residue than
country roads in the middle of nowhere.  Most of my poor-weather thrashing has been
in Vermont, New Hampshire, and upstate NY.  Roads in my area (13 miles from
Manhattan) are absolutely crap when they get wet, but that's the road's fault, not
the tire's.

> Darn, you took away my only flame material. I guess I'm going to have
> to write a civil response. Jerk. Just when the list was going to get
> interesting... ;)

Sorry .. I'll consider these points next time.

> I still maintain that the GA's are not the performance tires that I'm
> looking for in this car. If the Toyo's don't fix the problem, and the
> problem is with 2WD like you suggest, I'll be selling my Jetta faster
> than you can say "Quattro".

A little FYI, front wheel drive is the least optimal of all configurations for
really going fast.

Bill
'98 GLX