Avoiding Inflated Notions of Soft Ride
Question: I own a 1983 Toyota Corolla, which has 35,000 miles on it. I will soon have to replace the original tires and would like to know if there is any way to know what kind of ride to expect from any one type of tire. I would like to purchase a tire that will cause the car to have a softer ride.--J.H.
Answer: The factor in tires that exerts the greatest influence on the car’s relative ride comfort is inflation, but some minor factors may influence your choice of tire somewhat.
Every car carries a tag, mounted in the door frame or glove compartment, that provides recommended tire inflation. The manufacturer’s recommendation is based on a compromise that yields the best comfort, handling, tread wear and traction.
If you reduce the amount of tire pressure, you may run the risk of rapid tread wear on the sidewalls of your new tires. Overinflated tires can cause premature wear on the center of the tread. Overinflation also could reduce control on rain-slicked streets.
In addition to the car manufacturer’s recommendation, every tire has an allowable maximum air-pressure rating listed on the sidewall of the tire. Most tires have a maximum allowable air pressure rating of 32 pounds per square inch, when measured cold. Some newer tires go all the way up to 35 psi.
It’s not advisable to stray too far from the recommendation of the car’s manufacturer, however. Going up to the maximum pressure will result in a harsh ride and reduced handling in certain situations.
But you do have few options in tire choice. Generally, you should avoid an all-season tread design because the knobby tread pattern will yield a somewhat harsher ride. The same goes for wider-than-normal tires. I would suggest you look for a conventional rib design of the same size as your original tires.
Some tire dealers may recommend that a radial tire belted with synthetic fibers, instead of steel, will provide a softer ride. I doubt that that will really make any difference.
The bottom line to all this is that you probably can’t significantly change your car’s ride by changing tires. You’d have a lot more luck by looking into new shock absorbers.
Q: I have a 1985 Mercury Grand Marquis with a fuel-injected, 302-cubic-inch engine. It starts and runs fine when it is warm or cold outside. But when it is raining or damp outside and the temperature is in the upper 30s or 40s, the car starts up all right but stalls after the first few blocks. I have to restart it at every stop sign or hold my foot on the accelerator. Once it is warmed up, it runs good. What is the problem?--J.T.
A: Your fuel injection is a very complicated, computer-controlled system that could have almost any type of glitch in it or in the numerous sensors that feed it information.
But I have a feeling that your problem may be fairly conventional. A lot of older cars with carburetors and breaker-point ignition systems display the very type of problem you describe.
Moisture may be causing a partial short circuit somewhere in your high-voltage ignition system. You should inspect for moisture inside the distributor cap, on the outer surface of the spark plug ceramic insulation or on spark plug wires. You may have a cracked distributor cap or your spark plug wires may have a break in their insulation.
You may also try various commercial ignition sealants, which are sprayed onto the engine when it is cold. Be sure you pick a dry day to use the product so you don’t trap moisture inside the system.
