Should I Switch to a Different Tire that may have a Stiffer Sidewall?

[madbikes]

Don't get me wrong. I do have plans to downsize to 18" as soon as I am able to better negotiate the crappy roads I could frequent.

On seemingly small potholes, the lip on of the wheel has a tendency to land on the ground, which happened twice.

TireRack currently has a closeout deal on Potenza Sport, which I am told it has a stiffer sidewall than the OEM PS4S. I am curious if I should switch to hopefully be slightly less prone to have issues.

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[Fanatic]

I would go to the nearest Discount Tire and ask to speak with the manager to see what he honestly thinks you should do in regards to your concern. That way you have that as a guarantee and then if you're still not happy, you can always return and go back to where you were with the tires.

 

[Sooner1]

I am having trouble understanding what "the lip on of the wheel has a tendency to land on the wheel" means.

 

[menikmati]

Maybe he meant the lip of the wheel touches the pothole?

 

[Fanatic]

Maybe he meant the lip of the wheel touches the pothole?

That would be scary.

https://www.warrantyandinsurance.com.au/who-pays-for-my-tyre-and-rim-damage-after-hitting-a-pot-hole

 

[madbikes]

That would be scary.

https://www.warrantyandinsurance.com.au/who-pays-for-my-tyre-and-rim-damage-after-hitting-a-pot-hole

Something similar (for a different reason) happened to me last summer. This particular wheel landed on the ground at a different spot on a separate occasion prior, so I replaced the tire and wheel

 

[madbikes]

I am having trouble understanding what "the lip on of the wheel has a tendency to land on the wheel" means.

That was a typo. It should be "tendency to land on the ground". The type of damage looks almost like the picture above.

What I'm considering is the the following, when this wheel #2 got nicked on the lip from the pothole and a bubbled tire at a different spot:

1) Buy another DT1 Pilot Sport 4S (OE Tire) and refinish the wheel

2) Buy a full set of Bridgestone Potenza Sport that is the same OE size because they are on closeout from TireRack (just a not fresh off-the-line batch they are trying to sell and very cheap). I am hoping its stiffer sidewall will help with curbing the lip of the wheel during potholes

 

[menikmati]

Can you avoid these roads altogether? I don't think it's worth it to purchase a full set of tires just for an experiment in sidewall stiffness.

 

[CTR]

Unless you move to 200TW tires I don't think the sidewall will be that much stiffer. If your wheel is falling far enough into the pothole to damage the wheel I don't think a stiffer sidewall is going to help at all. I wouldn't call the stock PS4S tires soft.

If you downsize to 18" wheels I highly recommend you go to a stiffer sidewall 200TW tire otherwise you'll probably notice a decrease in handling and steering response.

 

[MYK20C1]

Don't get me wrong. I do have plans to downsize to 18" as soon as I am able to better negotiate the crappy roads I could frequent.

On seemingly small potholes, the lip on of the wheel has a tendency to land on the ground, which happened twice.

TireRack currently has a closeout deal on Potenza Sport, which I am told it has a stiffer sidewall than the OEM PS4S. I am curious if I should switch to hopefully be slightly less prone to have issues.

I find it hard to believe that Honda would put such crappy wheel/tire combinations together for sale in the first place! Guess it’s all about money!

 

[Imped]

A stiffer sidewall is not the solution for your problem, considering your current tire has a stiff sidwall....

You need more sidewall and a bit more tire protrusion at the lip, as opposed to a stretched setup.

 

[menikmati]

I find it hard to believe that Honda would put such crappy wheel/tire combinations together for sale in the first place! Guess it’s all about money!

I personally think the PS4S is a great daily driver tire, the issue is related more to the environment/use-case or as Imped mentioned, more sidewall.

 

[CaryH]

I would not recommend downsizing I found titans 7 19x9.5....same as O.E.set up ans dropped it an inch with some Eibach springs....looks wonderful.

 

[katch922]

If you want to avoid this issue, just get all season tires, not performance low profile tires. With regular all season tires you will have way more rubber so less damage will happen to your rim. That being said, would suck driving this car with plain old all season tires.

but heck that’s some serious damage, go after the city

 

[Nothing]

I would think a track inspired performance car would be set up from factory for relatively smooth roads, not pothole roads. I understand lots of us deal with potholes of varying size and frequency but that isn't the target of the design, even if it is a civic.

It would be nice if they offered a 18" setup from factory, but it does change the dynamics a lot and springs and dampers would need to be revised to achieve a similar experience. It would almost be a different trim, which adds a lot of cost for a low volume car. Fortunately the target market for this car is not adverse to modifications and getting an 18" wheel with larger sidewall is not hard. I am surprised though how many people find even R+ damping with 19"s uncomfortable. Maybe my butt adds some damping .

I agree the only solution to potholes is more sidewall, not stiffer sidewalls. Stiffer is maybe if your tire was rolling over on sweepers, but you might have more options with wider section for less stretch or a 9" wheel that still clears the calipers.

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