After all this, it's the #$*!#* Tires??

[lizst]

Hi everyone,

I'm waiting for a call from my mechanic (who I've used for years, and trust completely), but for the first time, I have a feeling that he won't come up with any magic. I decided to make the wait a little easier by coming here in search of help.

I love my '89 Festiva; she's a little rusty, a little dinged 'n dented, but wonderful, reliable, easy on ga$... well, you all know all this sort of thing, so I needn't continue this "love-list" ...

I've taken great care of her, kept up with whatever has needed work, but now, finally .... this could be it.

Tires! No one makes them any more!

I took her in yesterday, with symptoms of mildly shaky front-end, I was picturing all sorts of possible horrors ...
He said the tires have "dry rot" ... I replied that I'd just recently noticed, happily, how good my tire treads still looked. He said; "Well yeah, treads are in great shape, but the tires underneath 'em are rotting, so the shaking is from the treads slipping & sliding around.... and there's a bubble...."

He added that he'd checked all his books, all the tire companies .... and came up with nothing!
. The call I'm waiting for this morn is; last night he thought that, just possibly, there maaay be one place; he would speak to them in the morning and get back to me. Well, no call yet, which makes it seem likely that his "one place"... isn't.

So, if anyone has any ideas, suggestions, or *hellllp!*, I'd really appreciate it!

Thanks much,
Liz



_____
And never let your Questing be domesticated.
-- Mary Daly

[MTec007]

you may have to buy online, but 12" tires can be found. here is one result http://www.discountedwheelwarehouse....ShowLarge=True

[FestivaPower5583]

TireRack.com Has The Factory Yokohama 145SR12 And The 165/70R12 BOTH O.E Sizes. I Just Ordered A Set Of The 145SR12's For $52.00 Each Plus Shipping. There Are Still Companies That Make 12" Tires. Some Wal-Marts Have 145SR12 Tires In The "Trailer Tire" Section, Just Be Sure To Check The Load & Speed Rating. If You Still Need Help Locating Some Tires, Let Me Know. -Jeff

[Ogrestiva]

Hi, it may be usefull for you to put your location in your profile so peoople can best direct you to whatever you need. I know of many places to get tires, but it would help to know where you live and where you are willing to travel to

[Pu241]

Ogrestiva is correct about adding location.

You can add your location to your profile as follows:

Go to User CP (top of the Page in the blue bar)
Control Panel(left side of screen)
Edit Profile-scroll to bottom of page to location.

[chrisofna]

I assume your running the stock 12s. Try to find Geo Metro 13 inch steelies for it, 13s still exist, lol.

[rcottle]

A friend of mine in the tire business has found me a set but I am holding off on buying them - I would like to convert to 13" or 14". If you are near pennsylvania my be able to help.

[RichardLSU]

Upgrade to aspire suspension, get 13's. Problem solved.

[Pu241]

Upgrade to aspire suspension, get 13's. Problem solved.

Can get 13" wheels without an aspire swap and it's a lot easier said than done!
Besides she only needs tires to be back on the road.
12" tires can be had, they're just not as available as they used to be.

[JPT]

I would look at this as a chance to upgrade to 13 inch (or larger) rims and tires. 12s are hard to find. Tires are a necessity and if your car is one that you rely on all the time, then the tires need to be easy to replace.

[big_ty2003]

I have a set of 4 nice 12'' ones on rims I'll sell you for $120 shipped

[blkfordsedan]

From what I was told by several local tire shops, the 12" tires are all imported into the states, usually by container loads, once or twice a year. When a shipment hits the shores, most tire places have plenty of them. However, as the year progresses, the sell out and can't get them until the next shipment (which could be another year). Don't know if it's true, but it seems plausible. Thanks to a tweaked rear axle, I've accumulated a collection of mis-matched single 155/80R12 tires, all with good tread. Last time I bought a complete matching set of tires, the tire store gave me $20 per tire trade-in on 4 mis-matched used tires. They said they could easily sell them when supplies of new tires are unavailable.

FYI: If you anticipate the need for tires in the near future and can afford it, I would recommend buying them NOW (or even extras). This goes for any size, not just 12's. As the Fed begins Quantitative Easing, prices of commodities like oil will increase, inflation will set in, and the value of the dollar will be weakened. As a result, prices on anything petroleum based will start to increase (along with everything else).

[zoe60]

I'd put 13's on it. Made mine handle better and ride smoother. I wouldn't go back to those crappy old 12's if you paid me! Hope the language isn't too much LOL.

[David88]

I want 12's! Good 12's. I want new Falkens! 145 70 12

Read line seven of the description.

http://tinyurl.com/27wlhn7

[DriverOne]

Buying new 12" tires will definitely solve your problem, but I have to agree with the others that have mentioned going with larger wheels. Because the drive axle on the left side is shorter than the drive axle on the right, you probably experience shuddering at highway speeds with the stock 12" tires. That's coming from mismatched lengths, and if you didn't have the strut holding the passenger side wheel there, it would be flying around in large circles at the end of the axle! Upgrading to a larger wheel will reduce the shuddering due to weight, and adds better steering control. However, if you do upgrade your wheels, I highly recommend you hold on to the 12" wheels and tires if you have a harsh winter where you live so that you can mount those in the snowy months, because as I'm sure you may already know, Festivas rarely get stuck in the snow, and a big reason is the thin tires. Hope this helps.