Tire question for the experts on here

[Trblmkr]

I posted this in the Mustangs Room as well...

During the recent accident with my Cobra, they had to replace the left side with 2 brand new tires the BF Goodrich G-Force T/A KD.

The new tires are not the same model as the ones on my right side. The right side has BF Goodrich T/A Comps (17K miles on them). The left side has BF Goodrich G-Force T/A KD.

Now my question for you guys is..would it be safe to take the two new tires and put them on the front or back (which is better)? Take one of the old tires and put it on the left side so I'll have two new one on the front (or back) and the two old ones on the opposite end.

These tires are the Z rated tires and they are directional. There is an arrow on the tire that states which direction they are to rotate when mounted on the car.

When you order them they have to be ordered by either the left side or the right side.

These prices are from tirerack.com

245/45YR17 Left $239
245/45YR17 Right $239

I've been told by several people that the tires aren't that old yet for it to cause a problem going against the arrow on the tire.

Would a tire place pro-rate a tire exchange if going against the direction specified on the tire???

Give them my older tires in exchange for a price break on the newer ones ??

 

[supersp0rt]

BFG g-force KD tires are very nice (and pricey) tires. they have a very soft compound which is very good for launching. i would put them out back and run there there. however, they are a very good all-around tire, so...if you ever need new ones up front i would recommend those as well.

 

[DLV]

Right and Left? - no go.

I can't believe your insurance pulled this crap on you. No way should the tires on the right and left be different. I had a similar problem, at low speed a lady in a RV merged into me and shredded my passenger fender. The tire also got gouged. My insurance company, which is provincially supplied (like one insurance corporation for a whole state), tried to replace only the left front. Well the body shop manager said he couldn't let it leave with two different tires on the front as he would be legally responsible if I had an accident, as this affects the handling. I talked with some friends and they said I shouldn't even have two different kinds on, all four should be the same. I called my SVT dealer and spoke to the sales manager. He confirmed- all four should be the same. My car only has about 2000 miles on it, so the tires had lots of tread, but would be mismatched. So I talked to the manager for the local insurance office and he conceded. Four new tires, coming right up. If you can't get your insurance to cough up for two more, I would definately trade your Comp's in for a break on a couple of more G-Forces. The two G-Forces on the back is better than your set-up now, but not the best. And that's not even taking into account the directional tread. Not a good idea to run against it- you probably wouldn't get R/H coverage either, but I'm not positive. BTW, I went with Pilot Sports, which aren't quite as grippy as the G-Forces.

 

[monkeywrench]

NO NO NO

I am by no means an expert, but here's my advice anyways:

Leave the tires where they are.
The G-Force tires have an asymmetric tread pattern, meaning specific tires have been developed for the left and right side of the vehicle. Left side tires are not the same as right side tires. Also on these tires the outside tread blocks are different than the inside tread blocks (asymmetric), so you can't just take it off the rim and turn it around to meet the directional requirements.
I'm sure your local tire shop will tell you the same thing.
Hope this helps.