I finally changed my tires today. It was all thanks to AP, who asked me to drive him and his service group to the airport. I was not confident enough to drive the van. So, I offered my car but only if I could change my tires in time because my left rear tire was as bald as a cue ball and it was no longer safe to drive on the highway. I instantly booked a same-day appointment at Tires Plus at 6:00 PM, which was an hour before their close time. Luckily, they accepted my appointment request.
They took just about 15 minutes to change my tires and were also very professional. They put on my new tires at the back, though KF advised me to let them know that I wanted my tires in the front. They then suggested that I kept them at the back because it’s safer on the roads of PA. KF later then explained to me that he could see their viewpoint. Here is (kinda) how he explained it: the new wheel provides more traction in hazardous weather and putting them front/back will dictate whether the traction will create understeer vs. oversteer, especially in front-wheel drive like my car. If we put the new wheels at the back, the car will tend to be understeer and we need to let off the brake and slightly turn the towards the direction of the skid to correct it. For oversteering, we need to accelerate the car in the direction we need to head to. In KF’s opinion, it’s easier to fix an oversteer than an understeer, so he recommends putting the wheels in the front for FWD. However, the mechanics at Tires Plus suggested doing it the other way, since it prevents me from fishtailing.
I personally think it’s fine, both methods try to keep me safe in different ways and I appreciate them both (KF a bit more because he explained the concept to me at least 2 times). The lesson learned is I have to check my tires regularly to make sure that they aren’t bold to the point that it is unsafe for me to drive.
Trang "Tee" Nguyen 