Punctured 3 Yokohama Geolander's last weekend

[grolly6]

So, I was driving up the Hurly(gravel road north of Pemberton) and on my way in a got a rock puncture in the center tread area of one of my tires(left rear tire). I put on my spare, continued on and then patched the damaged tire with a plug once I reached my destination. On the way back out, I punctured both my front right and my front left tire! I wasn't driving more than 50km/h at any time and I had dropped my tire pressure to below 30psi prior to touching any gravel. Also, I took that same route in a Honda Element last year at much higher speeds with average tires and no problems so I suspect that the Yokohama Geolander tires are not well suited to gravel roads.

Anyway, I'll be buying some BFGoodrich All Terrain KO tires to replace those Geolanders that I no longer trust.

Anyone else have troubles with Geolander tires on gravel roads(lots of sharp rocks)?

[grolly6]

I thought I should add that I wasn't using the Geolander AT/S tires, but the I-T's (G072's, meant for snow/ice conditions).

[FalcoColumbarius]

I use Yokohama Geolandar AT/Ss (LT235/75R15s) and I run them at 42PSI. I've done a great deal of FSRs, including the Hurley Pass. Only time that I got a puncture was in my previous set of Geolandars that were P235/75R15s (six ply rather than the ten ply LTs) whilst driving into a construction site in West Van, it was a No. 8 Robertson 1 1/4" screw. What was it that punctured your tyres?

Falco.

[grolly6]

I use Yokohama Geolandar AT/Ss (LT235/75R15s) and I run them at 42PSI. I've done a great deal of FSRs, including the Hurley Pass. Only time that I got a puncture was in my previous set of Geolandars that were P235/75R15s (six ply rather than the ten ply LTs) whilst driving into a construction site in West Van, it was a No. 8 Robertson 1 1/4" screw. What was it that punctured your tyres?

Falco.

I believe sharp rocks cut their way through the treads. I'm guessing that smaller, jagged rocks got stuck in the treads and then they were hammered through the tread faces as the tires rolled along. The reason I think it was the rocks is that there were no nails, screws, or other objects in the holes. And, all the holes were quite large, requiring multiple plugs to seal. I'm definitely going to stick with stronger tires from here on in. It was a real ordeal to limp home on that last puncture as I didn't have enough plugs to seal it properly so I had to stop every 1 km or so and add more air. By the time I hit Pemberton, there were no businesses opened that could sell me more plugs, repair the tire, or sell me another tire. Oh, and those cans of liquid sealant that they sell at service stations are useless. The liquid just squirted out of the hole I had. I ended up calling BCAA for a tow back to Vancouver. That was one heck of a scary ride as the tow truck driver was doing 125km/h around corners with my Delica cinched down on his flat deck. As my buddy joked: "Well, at least you made it back to Vancouver faster than if you still had 4 good tires and you didn't spend a penny on fuel".

[FalcoColumbarius]

Wow, that's wild. I remember driving up this one deactivated road that had sharp scree from minor landslides strewn across it in three different places, still no puncture. That was on the P rated Yokos, as well. When were your tyres made?

Falco.

P.S.: The reason I ask is I'm wondering if the rubber was old enough that it was breaking down or delaminating. FC

[grolly6]

Wow, that's wild. I remember driving up this one deactivated road that had sharp scree from minor landslides strewn across it in three different places, still no puncture. That was on the P rated Yokos, as well. When were your tyres made?

Falco.

P.S.: The reason I ask is I'm wondering if the rubber was old enough that it was breaking down or delaminating. FC

I'm not sure when the tires were made as the previous owner installed them. The tread was still very good on them, I'd say around 70% left and there were no cracks or other indications that the tires were getting old. I did a little more reading and it appears the iT/S model of Geolanders is marketed as being excellent for the snow. So, maybe the rubber is softer to stay pliable in the snow? Do you think the hot weather last weekend could have made them even softer and more succeptible to puncture? Regardless, I'm not going to trust them any longer. It's time for new tires:-(

[FalcoColumbarius]

There is a code on your tyre, it looks a bit like this:



The four numbers in the relief mark the year and week the tyres were made, the tyre in the picture was made in the 36th week of '07.

Falco.

P.S.: Two links to get information from:
Tyre Manufacturer Codes

Wikipedia: Tire Codes

[jessef]

if you want the best compromise with durability (sidewalls/compound puncture resistance) and on-road driveability, the Goodyear Silent Armor's are hard to beat.

The Yoko, Toyo, BFG's don't hold a candle for those two tire characteristics when placed together which is why it's been the tire of choice for CN railroad and mining service trucks.

The Duratrac's have slowly been replacing the silent armor's but they aren't as durable.

http://www.goodyear.ca/en-CA/tires/wrangler-silentarmor

You can open debates on comparisons with other tires but the silent armor's material construction and years of constant industrial use show the consistency of the toughness.

Even today if you ask an honest and knowledgeable tire 'expert' many will select this tire for the two traits above.

[grolly6]

There is a code on your tyre, it looks a bit like this:



The four numbers in the relief mark the year and week the tyres were made, the tyre in the picture was made in the 36th week of '07.

Falco.

P.S.: Two links to get information from:
Tyre Manufacturer Codes

Wikipedia: Tire Codes

The closest thing I saw to a code like that was the numbering: D3580U - 2

Geolander number

I looked very closely and there were no date stamps like the one you indicated. Perhaps these are JDM tires?

[grolly6]

if you want the best compromise with durability (sidewalls/compound puncture resistance) and on-road driveability, the Goodyear Silent Armor's are hard to beat.

The Yoko, Toyo, BFG's don't hold a candle for those two tire characteristics when placed together which is why it's been the tire of choice for CN railroad and mining service trucks.

The Duratrac's have slowly been replacing the silent armor's but they aren't as durable.

http://www.goodyear.ca/en-CA/tires/wrangler-silentarmor

You can open debates on comparisons with other tires but the silent armor's material construction and years of constant industrial use show the consistency of the toughness.

Even today if you ask an honest and knowledgeable tire 'expert' many will select this tire for the two traits above.

Thanks for the pointers! Having worked in the mining/exploration business long ago, I have a lot of respect for whatever tires they use today. Back when I was a summer student(late 1980's), I saw that the other younger guys in the camps would drive the company trucks like maniacs on the dirt roads and really give the tires(and trucks) a beating...