L300 Tire Question!

Discussion in 'Saturn L-series' started by WGRG3, May 3, 2004.

  1. WGRG3

    WGRG3 Guest

    Right now I have a Saturn L300 with factory tires on it. I think they
    are Firestone Firehawks. They seem a little stiff and I can feel every
    little bump in the road. Do you think these tires will break in and give
    me a smother ride after a few thousand more miles? Right now I am at
    about 2200 miles on the L300. Or do you think that I should go with
    another brand of tire, that would give me a Smoother Ride? Thanks in
    advance fo any advice, on this.
     
    WGRG3, May 3, 2004
    #1
  2. WGRG3

    marx404 Guest

    First assure thet the tires are at thier proper air volume and not over
    filled, as this can cause a harder ride. There are other brands of tires
    that you can try that will give a softer ride, but give the firestones a
    chance to break in if they are brand new. Typically, the L300 already has a
    pretty smooth ride, but maybe you have some bumpy roads?

    marx404
    www.saturnofstuart.com
     
    marx404, May 3, 2004
    #2
  3. WGRG3

    Blah blah Guest

    Tires dont break in, they wear out. If anything they get harder with age
    as they bake in the sun.

    I'm guessing the max pressure on these tires are rated at 44psi. If so
    (while they are cold) try running them at 37psi. Do not go below 35psi.
    Tires are not to be run lower than 80% of their max cold pressure.
     
    Blah blah, May 3, 2004
    #3
  4. WGRG3

    WGRG3 Guest

    I keep them at the recommended tire pressure of 30psi. The placard on
    the door says 30psi for all 4 tires. When I got the L300 all the tires
    only had 25psi in them! Was all this due to the car sitting on the lot
    for awhile, or what? I get the worst ride on some of our Freeways that
    have the serations cut into them to drain rain water. The only problem
    there, is I travel that freeway every day!! I was just wondering if
    there is a tire out there that woudl give me a smoother ride on Freeways
    with these serations cut in them?
    Thanks!
     
    WGRG3, May 3, 2004
    #4
  5. ....using the sign on the door is how I understand to set tire pressures. I
    run mine proportionately a little higher (a couple of pounds) to support
    occasional spirited driving...
     
    Jonnie Santos, May 3, 2004
    #5
  6. WGRG3

    Blah blah Guest

    Then you probably have 35psi max tires, go ahead and go by the sticker.
    The sidewalls give max psi as well but people tend to buy the wrong
    tires after the first set. (50 psi tires for a LS1???) Tires loose air
    pressure through permeation. Also if you filled them on a hot day and
    check them on a cold night you would have less pressure.
     
    Blah blah, May 3, 2004
    #6
  7. WGRG3

    Blah blah Guest

    Not sure what you mean by spirited driving. If you're running 37psi in a
    35psi tire you will wear the center tread out as it would be making the
    most contact to the ground. Opposite goes if you run to little. Good way
    of wearing out a tire and making things dangerous. You want to make as
    nice and even contact with the ground as you can.


    Btw Cooper makes some good tires.
     
    Blah blah, May 3, 2004
    #7
  8. Not sure what you mean by spirited driving. If you're running 37psi in a
    For your average driving to and from work, yes. You should definitly
    follow mfg specs. However, for example, you are supposed to
    intentionally over-inflate your street tires (10-15psi) when
    autocrossing ("spirited driving"?). The reason is that you don't want
    to roll your sidewalls under when cornering hard.

    -rj
    98SL2
     
    richard hornsby, May 3, 2004
    #8
  9. Keep in mind that the larger the wheel (16" vs. 15"), the lower profile the
    tire needs to be to maintain the same overall height. The shorter the
    sidewall gets, the less they "absorb" bumps and road noise. If you are
    comparing a 50 or 55 series 16" tire to an equivalent diameter 65 or 70
    series 15", you are likely to notice more harshness with the 16", the price
    you pay for better handling. The reason for larger wheel diameter is to
    allow short, stiffer sidewalls that flex very little during cornering,
    keeping the tires flat on the road.

    Dana
     
    Dana Rohleder, May 4, 2004
    #9
  10. ....door sticker on my 97SL2 for 185/65-15's is 30 psi fronts and 26 psi
    rears. I'm usually running 32/28 on 205/55-15's (Z rated) and my use of the
    word spirited simply means a little faster in the turns or higher freeway
    speeds than I would drive if my Mom were in the car. However, an
    occasionally redline shift and hearing/smelling an inside, drive wheel go up
    in smoke pulling out of a tight, 2nd gear turn might happen too with a heavy
    foot - it's those damn Eibach springs and that torquey 1.9L motor - I'm sure
    it's not me! (grin)
     
    Jonnie Santos, May 4, 2004
    #10
  11. WGRG3

    marx404 Guest

    My Contis on my 94 SL2 are rated at 44 psi, the door sticker suggests 34/32
    (front/back). I fouind a comfortable medium, 36 fromt, 34 back and have had
    no bad wear so far after 2 yrs. I tried the recommended tire pressure and
    the tires looked and felt almost flat! On my wife's 93 SL1, she keeps oem
    recommended tires on it and abides by the door sticker suggested air
    pressure.

    Yes, WGRG, do abide by the door sticker with the oem tires. In some cases,
    the car may have sat on the lot and your particular dealer didnt properly
    inflate them, ergo your troubles.

    There are many many other tires that ppl swear by that will give you a
    smooth ride on bumpy roads. However, I drive many new L300s and havent had a
    bumpy ride yet.
    I like Dunlops, heard good things about Coopers and BF Goodrich tires to
    name a few.

    marx404
     
    marx404, May 4, 2004
    #11
  12. WGRG3

    WGRG3 Guest

    So it probably is not my tires after all. On a pure asphalt road I get a
    smooth ride, it is only on a Freeway with those serated groves that I
    get a rough ride. By rough I mean a very anoying vibration, that really
    shakes you up.The funny thing is that under 60mph I do not get a rough
    ride it is only when I am doing over 60mph!? On side streets, and most
    paved roads it is pretty smooth, maybe because the speed is low? So if I
    was going to switch tires which tire would be the best one suited for
    this type of road? Would I need a High-Speed tire? I guess what I really
    want is a Smooth ride on any type of road. Like I said this vibration
    can get very anoying, and I am driving on it every day! Thanks!
     
    WGRG3, May 4, 2004
    #12
  13. WGRG3

    ZeroXOneB Guest

    When we bought my wife's 01 LW300 and my 01 Honda Accord EX-V6 3 years
    ago, I noticed immediately the Firestones on the LW300 felt much stiffer
    than the Michelins on the Accord. The are of the same size, 205/65-15,
    and the tire pressures are set according to the factory recommendation
    sticker on the door jam. About a month ago with about 33K miles on the
    LW300, we replaced the Firestones with Continentals. We noticed right
    away that the Conti's are softer than the Firestones as well. I think
    the Firestones are just stiff and I don't recall they ever gotten softer
    even to the wear bars. Make sure the tire pressure is set correctly and
    hopefully you'll get used to them.
     
    ZeroXOneB, May 4, 2004
    #13
  14. WGRG3

    WGRG3 Guest

    Thanks for the input on this. I do not think I will be abe to get used
    to these Firestones, but at least I know what to switch to when I get a
    new set of tires. And that would not be another set of Firestones!!
     
    WGRG3, May 5, 2004
    #14
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