Tire rotation

[Willie]

No one has yet mentioned the beautiful Continental tires provided on the Transit Connect. Are these standard on all TCs?

I also notice a full sized spare and am wondering if that is recommended by Ford to be included in the tire rotation. Does anyone know for sure? (If you have a guess that’s fine too, but please identify it as such and not as fact. Thanks!)

[REC]

Sorry, but I believe that to be an incorrrect statement. I mentioned the several times, but I don't believe the words "Beautiful" and Continental" may have been the ones I chose.

I drove the van approximately 8 days with them on it. They are sold and will finish their useful life on another vehicle that belongs to someone esle.

Words I would use to describe them:

Noisy, no traction, NOISY, hard as a rock when inflated to the correct (suggested) pressures, Noisey... Did I mention that? And NOISEY.

They felt a bit odd slowing to a stop as well. Like out of round...

Replaced them with the quietest tires I could find at the time. Kumho Ecsta Platinum LX, 225-55R16 blkwalls. Smooth, excellent traction (Wet & Dry), and QUIET! Treadwear rating is 600 as well. Very satisfied too.

Sorry, did I mention that the Continentals were slightly less than perfect?

Roland C.

Happily Transiting

[Willie]

So Roland, do you mean to say you found the tires to be a bit noisy? Sorry if I missed that.

I was wondering more about rotation of the spare interfering with the inflation sensing mechanism.

[REC]

No, you got it. I found them to be quite noisey. Enough so that I could not wait to get rid of them.

I went through the same issue on my last car when I bought a set of Continentals and put them on it. I went from excellent traction and minimal road noise to miserable wet traction and hideous amounts of noise. The former ride was an '02 Crown Vic LX Sport, and with the last two sets of tires before it self-ignited, I had little to no issue with road noise, and no issue whatsoever with traction - wet, dry, or otherwise. Michelin was the next to last, and the last ones were Bridgestones (tires I would not have bought had they not been a heckuva deal).

The Michelins were the same ones (model wise - Pilot Exalto A/S) I had on the Blazer Extreme that preceded the Crown. I REALLY liked them, and almost went for the same ones on the TC. (Price, weight, and noise rating won out - $100 less for four, 2 lbs per tire less with 1/32 more tread from the start, and a better test rating for noise) The Bridgestones had only about 3/32 worn off when the car burned, so they never really got a fair trial. I did like the traction they offered though. Oddly, the Extreme had brand new tires on it when I got hit, and the first set lasted up to two weeks before that - at 76K miles, and had been installed at 8300 miles. The original Good Years were taken off within a week of buying the car, and replaced with some stupidly expensive, but very crappy (but also VERY sticky) german Fulda extreme tires that lasted about 7500 miles. If the next ones lasted to 76K miles, I would say the German tires were a load of something... I drove the car the same way all along.

Leaving the question "why the different tires all the time?" Answer: Takeoffs from one of the dealerships I am in and out of frequently, and at really good prices! I got lucky with the Michelins, I got the only ones they ever had, I had a choice of approximately 48 of the Bridgestones.... It seemed they were not a very popular OE tire on Cadillacs. (Fine with me!) The Crown was a replacement due to the loss of the Extreme, and was not a car I'd have gone in search of, but it was the right price, at the right time, and I needed a car right now at that point. It was truly a nice car, but it was somewhat disheartening to pull up to an intersection and be looking at at least 10 more of them - mostly all piloted by what appeared to be little globs of silver/blue hair sticking up (barely) above the headrest. At least mine had buckets and a console! I never saw this car as more than just that - a car. It being "a car" meant that it would get by with whatever I could find at a reasonable price. The car was well maintained and provided perfect service with the exception of a failed alternator at about 38K miles, and a shudder in the trans a 114K miles (fixed by a trans flush!) I will also mention that the car pulled my (6 X 12' cargo) trailer well, and when it was not pulling the trailer, it got better than 27 MPG on the highway (at 75 on cruise).

Needless to say, the difference between the Contis and the Kumhos now on the TC van is incredble at highway speeds. The noise level is far less over most types of road surface now. The tires are also a bit oversized compared to stock, and that helps too. Kumho was recommended to me by a friend who owned a towing company, and swore they were the best tires he had ever found. So far, I have to agree - but the real test will be when they are about 50% worn, will they become as noisey as what I got rid of? My friend says they will remain quiet... We shall see! At the rate they are wearing, 50% will be in about 35K miles at the earliest. They have 13K on them today.

For the record, I also said (when the Extreme got hit) that I'd never buy another vehicle because I liked it... Well, I have to say the TC has proven that to be an inaccurate statement. I DO like it, and I find it fun to drive. Enough fun that I look forward to my daily commutes here and there.

Different strokes for different folks... This is my experience, others may not see things the same way.

Roland C.

Happily (and quietly) Transiting

[tone007]

No, you got it. I found them to be quite noisey. Enough so that I could not wait to get rid of them.

Maybe the set you got was left out in the sun too long, mine ride as smooth as silk (my opinion and also of a couple of other people who I let drive the van,) and the only noise I hear on the highway is wind.

[privateyec]

My new set have been making an intermittent hum starting at exactly 60 mph. It's kind of annoying.

[Willie]

I like the tires as well. I do get a bit of road noise, but it is a delivery van after all. I knew I wasn’t buying a Bentley!

Anyhow, I guess no one knows about including the spare in the tire rotation.

[kmoilan1]

My TC spare is painted argent / silver. The other 4 are black.. Even though the spare tire is not a temporary spare like many passenger vehicles, assuming it is because it is being used on a commercial vehicle, I don't think the spare is intended to be part of the rotation. I don't think it includes a TPMS sensor.

In the manual pg 141- 142 (TPMS Tire Pressure Monitoring System) it states:

WHEN YOUR TEMPORARY SPARE IS INSTALLED:

When one of your road tires needs to be replaced with the temporary spare, the TPMS system will continue to identify an issue to remind you that the damaged road wheel/tire needs to be repaired and put back on your vehicle.

Edited April 14, 2010 by kmoilan1

[Willie]

That’s what I was afraid of., but thanks for the confirmation.

It’s a shame though to waste that nice tire. It will probably never be used if it remains the spare position.

Frankly, I’d prefer not to have a TPMS system on my car. For 40 years a tire gauge has worked just fine for me, without any such drawback.

[bikehauler]

I just read the procedure that you're supposed to perform to reset the TPMS every time you rotate your tires. :eek5: Unbelievable. Right now I have the problem that I had objects embedded into two of my tires, one front, one rear. Didn't know if I would need to replace the tires completely, but my mechanic was able repair one and leave it in place, but the other he swapped out with the full-size spare, plugged the bad tire and made that the spare. After about a week, however, the TPMS indicator came on. I checked all the tires, even the spare. A couple were a little low, but I don't think they were low enough the set off the indicator (does anyone know what the thresholds are?). I topped them off, but the indicator is still on. Does the wheel for the spare not have a TPMS sensor in it? The manual is a bit ambiguous on this point. This is not a temporary spare, but a full-size spare. Or do they still consider the spare to be temporary even though it's full-size?

Or do I need to do the reset procedure since the vehicle probably needs to know where the spare has been placed (the manual says that the TPMS is calibrated to recognize two different pressure thresholds to accommodate the different pressure recommendations for the front and rear tires)?

[REC]

I like the tires as well. I do get a bit of road noise, but it is a delivery van after all. I knew I wasn't buying a Bentley!

Anyhow, I guess no one knows about including the spare in the tire rotation.

Willie,

Somehow, I must have overlooked this post.

You have put me in a SEVERELY depressed mood after having read this.

I can't believe my TC is NOT a Bentley. What was I thinking????

At least it LOOKS European! (LOL)

My wife refers to it as "The European Babe Magnet."

Thanks for making my day.

REC

Happily Transiting

[PetrosA]

I can say definitively that the spare rim doesn't have a sensor in it. I had winter tires put on at a Sears service center (tires were absurdly cheap...) and when I went back to get the OEMs put back on, it turned out they mixed up one of my Contis with a 16" Conti from a Focus in the next bay. Kind of, but not a completely understandable mistake Anyway, they gave me a new tire of a different type, and used the spare in place of the one that got lost. To make it work, they had to swap the spare tire to one of the running rims and because they hadn't paid attention to which running rim came from where, I had to reset the TPMS sensors when I got home - a real PITA.

[bikehauler]

I can say definitively that the spare rim doesn't have a sensor in it. I had winter tires put on at a Sears service center (tires were absurdly cheap...) and when I went back to get the OEMs put back on, it turned out they mixed up one of my Contis with a 16" Conti from a Focus in the next bay. Kind of, but not a completely understandable mistake Anyway, they gave me a new tire of a different type, and used the spare in place of the one that got lost. To make it work, they had to swap the spare tire to one of the running rims and because they hadn't paid attention to which running rim came from where, I had to reset the TPMS sensors when I got home - a real PITA.

Thanks. I guess I'll have to get those tires swapped so that I can have the running rim back on the vehicle.

Edited June 7, 2010 by bikehauler

[Willie]

You have put me in a SEVERELY depressed mood after having read this.

I can't believe my TC is NOT a Bentley. What was I thinking????

Happily Transiting

No worries, Roland! If you had bought the Bentley, you’d probably have been disappointed in its cargo capacity. Ha!