CHD Dad wrote:
Small tires like mine are limited to 65mph. I have read too many posts to recount that there is "doom and gloom" to those who speed past that.
1) I would think tire manufacturers have some sort of margin of safety built in vs. going 70 and the tire exploding.
2) I read over and over not to go over 65mph so there HAS to be a reason - right??
There is a reason but it's not what folks think. The nat'l association of Tire manufacturers has worked with their members to write a set of "standards" that all of them agree to. This standard is then often integrated into legislation or rule-making on the part of the relevant government agency. (This is what Associations do)
These "Standards" are carefully tested and thought out to protect the manufacturers from unnecessary and frivolous law suits and have little or nothing to do with the actual speed at which you can run the tire.
In fact ALL such automotive parts that have a direct relation to human safety must be tested to at least 1.5 times the recommended ratings.
There is absolutely no reason you cannot tow these tires at 70 or more as long as they are correctly inflated and not overloaded. Now all manufactured things have tolerances, defects in materials and workmanship and at times even design flaws which can all contribute to early failure. You cannot guarantee that there will not be a problem.
As for speed contributing to overheating I have to disagree with one poster. Truly excessive speed MAY cause a tire to overheat, but there is an offsetting cooling factor of the increased airflow over the tire and the fact that the faster the vehicle goes the less contact area is actually made with the road. (assuming your TT doesnt have large spoilers on it) Now admittedly this is getting into the arcane but the physics dont change.
