Fifty150

As they say, "life in the big city". Another one of the things that divides us. People in big cities, like me, are so far removed from the day to day realities of the rest of the country. Big cities tend politically influence the nation's policies and economy without consideration for everyone else who is not in the big city. In New York, the “low income” threshold for a family of four is $83,450 per year. In Los Angeles, it's$77,500. Making ends meet for a family of four in San Francisco requires a household income of $92,139, according to MIT's living wage calculator.Jun 28, 2018 San Francisco families earning $117,000 qualify as 'low income' https://www.cnbc.com/.../families-earning-117000-qualify-as-low-income-in-san-francis... We have people earning 6 figure incomes for work which in some parts of the nation, is paid at a federal minimum wage. Cost of living and standards of living are different. As I look around me, nobody except for me has an old car. My truck is over 10 years old. Every bartender, store clerk, coffee shop barista, et al are driving new cars. A waiter in SF can bring in hundreds of dollars in cash tips every night, over a thousand in unreported income a week. He can buy a Transit Connect in cash. A waiter in another part of the country making the federal minimum wage, may not even qualify for credit to buy a $22,000 car when he only makes $14,500 a year.

We used to have shop classes in high schools. Wood, metal, auto, electrical, drafting, horticulture, printing.....those kids did repairs for the actual school building, and other nearby city facilities. Auto shop used to do service work on city vehicles. Print shop made year books, produced business cards, letterhead, et cetera. If a kid took shop in high school, he/she learned everything needed to graduate into a trade. The Shop Program was eliminated for several reasons. Unions did not want high school kids taking union members jobs. Parents wanted the money allocated for college prep, sports, and arts. Then came talk of money for computers, and basic supplies like paper and pencils. Kids were not signing up to take shop. And believe it or not, kids don't want to take science classes (too hard). Budget cuts, plus lack of interest, eliminated Drivers Ed, JROTC, Arts, Science, and Shop. To satisfy all the thespians, musicians, pole dancers, fashion designers, FBI sketch artist, chefs, broadcasters, mimes........The City opened a School of Arts (SOFA). More cost effective to put them under one roof, and protect them from all the other kids who beat them up. There is now a technology program which may turn to a Technology School. A School of Science was developed for biology, physics, chemistry, MythBusters geeks, meth labs, and bomb builders. School of Business also absorbed the foreign languages. No interest whatsoever in a School for Trades, or a War School of Political Science to ready teenagers for military service. Ongoing joke is that they are starting a 4H Program and teaching indoor marijuana production. San Francisco does not have 4H. Our boys don't get to know sheep up close and personal.

Awesome! Thanks mrtn.

Good for you. Whomever receives them is getting a lot of help from you. A set of tires is so expensive, that it could equal someone's grocery budget for a month. Actually, any vehicle maintenance can be out of reach for a lot of people who are low income. If you're barely getting by, an oil change or brake job can impact your food budget. Tough choice. Nobody ever listens to me, because I am Nucking Futs. For years, I have been trying to interest people in a non-profit garage. Provide job training for automotive maintenance skills, and poor people get work done fro reduced or no cost, based on a sliding scale. Ask dealerships for sponsorships with training material, shop supplies, tools, parts.....all which they can write off. Train unskilled workers and provide job placement. And the most important part of all is providing vehicle maintenance to people who cannot afford expensive repairs. So that a single mother has a safe vehicle, with working brakes, to drive her children around in. But again, I am Nucking Futs.

Thank you. A few questions in regards to OEM wheel. What are the specs for the OEM wheel? My OEM is 16", with 215/55R16 size tires. What are the wheel's width, backspace, offset, lug pattern, et cetera? In other car forums, moderators make it a "sticky" at the top. So that you don't have to search through 10, 20, 30 threads, in order to find basic information like TSBs, recalls, et cetera.

One of you guys needs to make a video like this one, with your Transit Connect and your new tires.

I would go back out there, set up some glue traps, and get those little vandals.

Without telling everyone what you spent, since it's nobody's business what your financial standing is, where the tires cheap enough that you saved a significant amount of money? That factors in with "are they worth it"? Since I bought tires on Amazon, it's not a secret what the pricing is, and I don't care if someone knows how much I spent, save, whatever......The GreenBall Kanati in size 35X12.5R17 was priced at $160 per tire, with Sears installing for $19.99. A BFGoodrich in that same size is about $300 depending on the retailer, plus mounting, balancing, valve stem, TPMS service, road hazard coverage, rotations, disposal, shop supplies, et cetera. I'm with you. It's a pickup truck, so the ride quality isn't going to be great with any tire. And you're right. As far as real quality, who knows. When I buy the tires for half the price of something that is known to be good, I don't expect much. When the tire holds air, it's "worth it" until it stops being round.

In case it helps anyone here, I have used the same set of tires on my pickup truck for the last 10 years. Approximately 60,000 miles. Hankook DynaPro ATM RF10 Overall, I am satisfied that my set of Hankooks did everything that I wanted them to do, and lasted as long as they did. DynaPro ATM style is not offered in 215/55R16. But if another Hankook style looks like a good fit for Transit Connect, I would consider buying it. Hankook is now OEM on several makes and models. Pricing has gone up since they now have a track record. Maybe not the best tire for performance. But good enough for an economy tire. When I purchased the Hankook tires, this was a new tire on the market. Most of the Jeep & pickup truck owners I knew used BFGoodrich & Goodyear. But a few guys like me, always bought the cheapest tire on the market, because when you deflate tires to drive offroad, tires cut and puncture easily. If I spend the extra $100 on a tire, it would still get cut or punctured when offroading. No retailer will pro-rate or replace a tire that you damaged rock hopping. The tires rode for as comfortable as can be expected in a truck. It's a truck, so road noise was not a factor and did not bother me. Traction was better than i thought. With full air @ 50 PSI, it held up to every load of bricks, and towed whatever I hitched behind it - boats, motorcycle trailers, race kart, and a few small subcompacts. Traction was sure & solid on soft soil, in snow, rocky terrain, and every off-road condition I encountered on camping, hunting, and fishing trips. Never lost control or hydroplaned in heavy rain and standing water. Tread always grabbed onto pavement when braking, and truck never went into a skid. Recently developed a slow leak in 1 tire. The sidewall was damaged. Most likely from rubber aging and deteriorating. But then again, offroad use with lower PSI, bouncing off and rubbing against rocks, city parking "curb rash", could all be factors in tire damage. A quick look revealed that tread depth was still acceptable, and the lugs still had sipes. If the rubber were not splitting, cracking, and falling apart after 10 years of constant abuse, and parking outdoors with UV rays from the sun, I would keep the tires and drive them until bald. Maybe I can convince a cobbler to re-sole my boots or make campfire sandals with my old tires. Hankooks have been replaced by GreenBall Kanati Mud Hogs. If these do not suffer catastrophic failure, I could have them for the next 10 years. Probably will not keep the truck longer than that.

I am so jealous. I would love to have the room in my apartment for that. Most of the equipment is not expensive. The problem for me, is that I have no place to install all of the equipment. I would also love to have a lift, a transmission fluid exchanger, and the list goes on. Tools are not cost prohibitive. Real estate is what sets me back. I can buy all this stuff, but have no place to put it.

motive, means, and opportunity

High 5

After reading the warranty, it seems like nothing is covered. Unless the tire is defective. Meaning that what you describe does not sound like the tire was defective, and your tires are simply worn down because of normal use. I think what they would consider a defect would be tread separation. If through no fault of your own, and they will try to blame you, the tread comes off. It could happen. But not likely to happen.

Owners of AWD SUV tend to overestimate their vehicle's ability, and their own driving skills. I've learned over the years that even if you do not have a great amount of experience driving in snow, reducing speed makes a world of difference. I see a lot of people actually cutting in and out of traffic, and speeding beyond the posted speed limit (meant for dry roads) in those little cross-over type sports utility vehicles which do not have a true 4 wheel drive system. Most people that I know with 4 wheel drive, like with a Jeep or truck, would never drive like that.

It all depends on the part. Certain brands we are familiar with, just because we see them everywhere. But that doesn't make it good. Dorman, Wagner , Four Seasons, Champion, Fram.........you've heard of the brand, but the parts are nothing special. I find that unless it is a specialty aftermarket part, like FlowMaster muffler, Eibach shocks, & PowerStop brakes, your best bet is OEM. Buy a Motorcraft part for your Ford. What good is saving $5 on a thermostat, if it doesn't work?

Hokum! Sounds to me like the service advisor was feeling you out to see what else he could talk you into. There is no way that your tires could be that worn, at 15,000 miles. Almost 20,000 miles on my OEM tires, and they still look new. Looks don't mean anything. Go measure the tread. There are several popular ways to check your tire tread depth. One easy way is the penny test. Simply insert a penny into your tire's tread groove with Lincoln's head upside down and facing you. If you can see all of Lincoln's head, your tread depth is less than 2/32 inch and it's time to replace your tires. Check Tire Tread Depth | Goodyear Auto Service https://www.goodyearautoservice.com/en-US/tire-basics/tread-depth

One of the worst collisions I've seen was a guy on a motorcycle hitting a deer on the freeway. Luckily for me, wildlife in The City is usually limited to small animals. But lately, coyote, mountain lion, wolf, fox, peregrine falcon have all been seen roaming the streets. Hopefully, they will prey on the seagull, pigeon, raccoon, and skunk. In San Francisco, Animal Care & Control officers have a membership card. I wonder if that is a Ford OEM Colt Automatic Rifle, or an aftermarket accessory. And no, that is not my address. Just a coincidence that they are on 5150 whatever street. Dog catchers are not coming to my house fully armed, with search warrants.

We used to be able to depend on war, plague, famine, poor health, and economic conditions to keep the population in check. That no longer works. We haven't had a good war in very long time. Only minor skirmishes that do not kill enough people. A big war is needed to reduce world population. Technology in sanitation, pest management, & medical care has taken away plague & poor health. In today's world, too many people have access to basic vaccines, antibiotics, pesticides, and sticky glue traps. In the U.S.A., there is enough food available that there is no excuse for anyone to be hungry. I don't have the answer to why people don't eat, but there is enough food for all. Politics is the barrier. And I'm not a politician. I can't figure out how to fund feeding. The world food supply is abundant. Without economic and political barriers, everybody in the world could eat. The French & Germans learned the hard way back in the 60's when they taxed our chicken. In the U.S.A., all that we have for population control is motor vehicle deaths and violent crime. Not that I advocate for taking population control into your hands, and simply running over and killing all of the extra people who do not need to be alive.

In my photo, the seats are in the flipped down for cargo position. If you already have the cutouts in the right position, you are already ahead of the game. No need to mark and cut yourself. Are the anchor points also intact? From what I have seen, not being a body shop worker, 1st generation and 2nd generation are different. I believe that all the 2nd generation, 2013 - present, would have the same parts. For your 2014 model, it was imported as a wagon with seats. The seats were then removed so that the vehicle can be sold as a van. This will explain why your floor kit already has the cutouts for the seats to anchor to. Find any 2nd row bench seat, and they should fit, as long as you also source all of the mounting hardware. Now what are you planning to do about seatbelts?

Are those low price tires from a Chinese company which nobody has heard of?

From what little I know, tires are kind of a "gray market". Around here, a handful of distributors sell all the same tires, to different tire shops and garages. Different distributors may have access to particular brands and sizes, then trade amongst themselves to control pricing. The shops never know what may be available at what price, as it could change daily, depending on what each distributor wants to do. They could announce sales, rebates, et cetera to push certain brands, styles, sizes......or hold back and price up something popular. Suddenly, there is an artificial lack of availability for snow tires, where they will make you order & wait for delivery, to justify a higher price. When if fact, they have a warehouse full, because the factory produced a large volume right before winter. Shops who move higher volume, get better availability, and lower pricing with incentives. Smaller shops sometimes have to pay a distributor more than what a retail customer may pay from a larger shop. But that is how a free market works. That is how Wal*Mart can buy & sell volume at lower price points. Now comes the online sellers. They have muscle to flex. They can order more from a factory than a regional distributor. They can command a larger shipment, with priority. They can sell at a huge discount because they are getting distributor pricing, and selling directly to the end user. The problem now, for the end user, is how do you get that tire installed. Most people that I know, do not have the equipment to mount & balance tires. Independent tire shops will charge up to triple for installation if you carry in the tire. Wal*Mart charges $13 per tire. Costco wants $15 per tire. But they will only install an OEM size tire onto an OEM wheel. They will not install a different size tire onto an aftermarket wheel. Independent shops and garages have quoted $30 - $40. Chains like Big-O, Firestone, Midas, et cetera all have franchisees who could set their own pricing, quote low, then add on hidden charges later. Same way the $19.95 coupon oil change becomes $50 out the door. Some tire shops refuse to install any tire which they didn't sell. Independent shops will not accept your shipment, knowing that you are not going to stay home from work, accept 4 tires from the delivery person, then drive around with 4 tires in your car, from shop to shop, looking for installation. I remember loading 4 tires into my pickup, driving them over to drop off at a tire shop, then going home to drive my car over to the shop. But I figured that if I am saving $100 per tire, then it's not so bad to pay for the installation. But pricing isn't a fair comparison. Amazon.com has 215/55R16 sized tires around $50. But those are tires from Chinese brands nobody has heard of. As opposed to walking into a tire store and being quoted $150 for a brand that you have heard of like Goodyear, Firestone, BF Goodrich, Toyo, et cetera. I'm taking the chance that here in The U.S.A., unsafe, unrated tires cannot be sold. Or that at least Amazon.com is not selling illegal tires. Supposedly, tires sold in The U.S.A. must meet regulatory standards. https://www.nhtsa.gov/equipment/tires https://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/regulations/title49/section/393.75 But the truth is that there is very little oversight and enforcement.

Here is the OEM part, if it helps. But I am pretty sure that you will need something aftermarket.