Tire Siping

[freightdog]

I am at Discount Tire in Flagstaff looking to buy new BFG MTR's (33x12.5) and one of my buddies says hey I have 4 in the back with 460 miles on them - the guy brought them back because he did not like them on his Jeep. Then he said "they are siped" - He explained siping and of course I bought the tires for $500 - Just wondered if any of you in the Cruiserhood had strong feeling either way about siping?

 

[baloo]

My tires and my wife's tires are siped and I really don't/can't prove they are any better or not. As for lasting longer we'll see, but it sounds cool!

 

[rightlane]

educate me, please. what is siped?

 

[jhstatts]

Yeah... more info, please.

 

[84Bruiser]

Siping tires = cutting them in a diagonal pattern.

It's 'supposed' to help in snow, it's done in CO all the time. Does it work? Dunno. I've never done it.

/edit
I don't want it to sound too extreme, they just cut a little bit into the tread, so... 1 big knob becomes a couple small ones that can move independently.

 

[Man Jerk]

Siping will improve their wet/icy traction. It will probably increase the road noise a bit. You my friend, just got a great deal on tires. BTW, they are either the BFG MT's or the Goodyear MTR's. Not both. Either way it's all good.

 

[woody]

siping = slits in the tread blocks, no rubber actually removed. I've done it to my last 4 sets of street and offroad tires, and it does make a nice difference in wet and icy traction. I usually only sipe the center blocks on a mudterrain tire.

Any tire shop with a plow truck probably has the tires siped all to hell....least the shops around here all do.

It's said to decrease tire temperatures and help increase tread life...doubt it does much, but any little bit helps.

mine are hand siped like: http://www.4x4wire.com/toyota/tech/sipe/
shops should have a machine siper, and you can control depth and width of the sipe, but not frequency.

 

[freightdog]

Tire siping is the process of cutting small slits, or grooves, into the tread blocks of tires in order to provide better traction in adverse weather conditions. The sipes allow the tread blocks to spread on contact with the ground, which helps expel water from the tread and provides better bite. Practically every all-season, mud+snow, and all terrain tire marketed today is siped in the factory mold, yet few mud terrain tires are siped. The traction benefits of siping, along with the purported increase in tire life due to improved heat dissipation from siped lugs........ - http://www.4x4wire.com/toyota/tech/sipe/

.: INCREASED TIRE TRACTION
Siping improves your traction on wet and icy roads.
.: LONGER TIRE LIFE
Siping allows a decrease in heat build up in many cases extending tire life.
.: SOFTER RIDE
Siping can enhance your tires shock absorbing features.

They claim all the above - at Discount -

I notice that the tires are actually much quieter than the Goodyear MTR's I had on the 60 - the ride is a bit softer - I also hope that the tread life is increased 10 - 20% -

Oh and the they are BF Goodrich MTR's - here in AZ they go for about $175 a tire plus $20 for siping.

I will go out and shoot a couple pictures so you all can see siping!

 

[60wag]

I understand the siping concept. I makes sense to me but I can't understand why the manufacturers don't do it when the tire is made. If it shortened the life of the tire, that would make sense, but if it extends the life AND inproves traction - why not do it at the factory? I don't think the cost of doing it is the reason.

 

[freightdog]

If it actually extends the life of the tire - maybe it is pure capitalism!

I read that most semi rigs have siped tires because it extends the tire life by up to 21% - but they had no data to back it up......but it makes sense if it reduces the temperature of the tire -

 

[hullendersauce]

mine are siped....

 

[woody]

the vast majority of tires actually are siped from the factory. Only high traction MT tires are not, and even that trend is changing with many new tire models.

There are concerns with chunking of the tread due to siping, and this is possibly a reason why many MT's are not siped from the factory....I know my siped SX's displayed some of that, but the BFG MT's on my daily driver have not.

 

[NorCalDoug]

I have a set of 285 MTRs that are siped and a set of 315s that are not siped. The siped tires did seem to have better wet traction. All the snow driving I've done has been in fairly deep snow, so I don't think I have a good feeling for how it handles in snow (as far as siping is concerned). The siped tires are a little louder on the road, but it's not much of an increase -- sounds more like bicycle wheels with cards in the spokes -- a light slap, slap, slap sound when you're driving slowly down the road can be heard sometimes.

I didn't sipe the 315s only because I didn't want to spend the extra $10 per tire that they wanted to charge -- I'll sipe them myself as I find time. Typically they only sipe half way down into the center lugs on the mud terrains -- they offered to resipe at a later time if I wanted it done again.

I did find some chunking with a couple of the tires, but nothing too dramatic.

 

[Civil1]

When I bought my BFG M/T's I wanted to have them siped, and the guy at the tire store told me that siping voids the factory warranty. I am going to have my done when I get my new wheels, whenever that may be. Don't know if all factory warranties are void or just BFG or any at all. He may have just been full if shiiiite. Anyway I believe them to make difference, the wifes Volvo has siped tires and it seems to handle better in ice and snow.

 

[freightdog]

BFG / Goodyear / Firestone - it does not void the warranty -

Michelin it does -

 

[HZJ60 Guy]

I sipe all my truck tires. Period.



TB

 

[Civil1]

BFG / Goodyear / Firestone - it does not void the warranty -

Michelin it does -

Yeah, that is what I was thinking. The guy at sears was an ass, and they caused me alot of problems,(broke two wheel studs for starters) not to mention that I believe one of them broke into my truck the same night that I had it in their shop.

Rant Rant Rant off.

 

[Mike S]

Siping and Siping tools

Here is a link to a site that explains tire Siping.

Electrical tire sipers are available if your sheetrock knife seems too tedious, or if you juct gotta have another tool... GO HERE

...There are concerns with chunking of the tread due to siping, and this is possibly a reason why many MT's are not siped from the factory....I know my siped SX's displayed some of that, but the BFG MT's on my daily driver have not.

Normally, only the inner lugs are siped, since the outer lugs are where most of the 'chunking' happens,

 

[rightlane]

so would it be worth it purely for the heat dissipation benefit? i'm in the desert and have no need for wet, icy, snow traction. but i do drive on hot hot hot roads.

 

[WALoeIII]

I think a tire that has the sipes cut too deep is prone to chunking much more easily. Done right - I see no downside.