[thai_tx]

Hi all,
How can you tell if the tires are directional or
non-directional?

 

[rvehock]

I use directional tires on my son's Civic and they are marked on the sidewall as to the proper rotational direction.

 

[lester123]

Hi all,
How can you tell if the tires are directional or
non-directional?

I have a 2002 Touring model, with the Mechelin tires. Just had my tires rotated by general auto service shop and they rotated back to front on each side separately. Per the manual, this would be preferable if the tires were directional. Hopefully they are??????

 

[cmdpm]

MDX tires are not unidirectional

neither the michelins nor the goodyears are unidirectional.

this means that they could be rotated in any acceptable pattern.

unidirectional tires are of a higher performance category, more expensive,have treads that have a "V" type pattern (that is designed to more effectively push water away from the tread before it gets underneath to cause hydroplaning) and must be mounted with the indicator arrow on the sidewall pointing forward when it is in the "12 o'clock" position. they should only be rotated front to back.

regards,

chris

 

[nightguy]

I'm gonna rotate today.....I assume the X Terrains on the '04 Touring are non-directional ? I don't see any arrows like on my Aquatreds. It sure would be easier if they were directional because it looks like I could just do front to back.

 

[vlam]

My local Acura dealership recommends front to back rotation my MDX.

 

[mgmdx]

... It sure would be easier if they were directional because it looks like I could just do front to back.

You can still do front to back, regardless of the tires being unidirectional or not.

 

[nightguy]

Unless I'm reading the book wrong I really should cross them but who the hell's gonna know ?

 

[Echo2625]

I always rotate front to back and it has worked well for me...

Goodyear company stores rotate for free if you buy the tires from them or pay a small fee...pay the fee once and they rotate for free for the life of the tires.

 

[jayadi]

You can tell a directional tyre is "directional" because if you were to flip the tyres, the tyre pattern wouldn't look the same (looks like it points to the other direction).

The book usually has a nice diagram showing to cross the back tyre as they are going to the front and move the front tyres straight to the back. This way you'll get almost an even wear on all four tyres. Therefore, when the time comes, you can change all four tyres together. This is good to get the best road handling.

I usually don't recommend directional tyres for normal drivers. They cannot criss-crossed and swapped over. Directional tyres are very good for cutting through water at high speed. However, they are known to generate a lot of noise. Normal drivers tend to drive at 120km/hr max and cannot really take advantage of this kind of tyre. It is more suitable for racers and pros. I prefer to choose a tyre that is quiet (ie good non-directional pattern), long life, and absorbs lots of bumps (typically a high silica compound). I really like the feeling of driving on clouds, where noise and road imperfections are smoothed out.