Spec'ing Tires For City Driving
Evan Lockridge
Contributing Editor
When it comes to spec'ing tires for trucks working in city driving, applying the old adage "tires is tires" to your purchasing decisions can cost you some big bucks.
One of the biggest mistakes truck fleet managers make when it comes to buying tires is not considering what a tire is designed to do, says Michael Burroughes, product manager for Michelin North America.
"We go through great pains to design tires and the components in them for specific purposes," he says. "There is a certain range of flexibility as you go to the left or right from the core activity of the tire [where] it will perform at a reasonable level, but as you vary too far, you are compromising your investment."
Even though a tire for urban applications may cost more than one designed for linehaul or even regional use, the difference in price will be more than made up in additional performance - from longer life to more retreads.
"If you put a linehaul tire on a truck that's doing city driving, you will probably get a lot of chipping and chunking of the rubber as well as more sidewall damage due to hitting the curbs," says Al Cohn, technical marketing manager for Goodyear.
You also can expect your tires to wear faster. That's because a tire made for over the road use is generally designed for reduced rolling resistance and to help improve fuel economy in a low-stress environment.
"When you think of a truck that's going over the road, there is a very low abrasion rate," Burroughes says, "Whereas in city work you are doing a lot more starts and stops, turning and backing up, which puts a lot of lateral forces on the tire. You need to have a tire that's going to be optimized to be able to resist that lateral abrasion."
Today's truck tires designed for city driving have more robust sidewalls than linehaul tires. They offer extra protection against the impact of curbing, potholes and other things you are more likely to encounter in an urban environment. Tires designed for city driving also differ in other areas, including the types of rubber compounds, tread patterns and tread depths.
You also have to take into consideration such factors as what kind of truck you're operating and under what climate.
"The needs you would have in the North or Northeast would be different than what you would have in the Southwest or Southeast," Burroughes says. "When you think of city work and you are looking at a concrete mixer, you are going to have different needs from someone who is delivering restaurant supplies or groceries."
Even though a truck may be involved exclusively in city driving, it may end up having to serve an entire metro area, which can mean putting as many as 300 miles a day on a set of tires. In such a case, a tire designed for regional rather than urban work may better suit your needs.
When choosing tires, also keep retreading in mind. Because tires used in city driving don't get as much mileage as those used in over the road applications, especially on the drive axles, they are ideal candidates to be retreaded.
In selecting tires for city applications, both Cohn and Burroughes recommend consulting a tire professional.
"A lot of guys think they know every option and understand tires completely, but that's usually not correct," Cohn says. "A tire professional will know the latest compounds, tread designs and ensure you get the right tire."
Many tire makers also offer valuable information online to help you select the right tire for urban conditions, Burroughes notes.
