Siping tires

[ungermm]

Siping (sigh-ping?) tires is a technique in which grooves are made across the tires. In this case, tiny razor cuts (microsiping) made by a machine across the surface.

Yesterday I got a couple of tires from a tire store and they wanted to know if I would like the tires siped. The salesman said it would increase the tire traction and wear life for only $12 each. He even had a little demonstration in which he sprayed a smooth surface with water and you could pull a small section of a siped tire and compare it to a section that hadn't been siped. The siped tire sample was harder to pull across the surface. Was this a little trick involving capillary action. I was skeptical and wanted to educate myself before making a decision. Increasing tire traction and extending the tire life while keeping the integrity of the tire seems contradictory to me.

So, for street tires in a mild climate what do you think? or

Jerry

[myopels]

Unger, I have had a few sets of tires siped as you said. They seem to perform very well. I have 17 inchers on my manta and GT and they corner great along with everything else. If you want to do it, I reccomend that you do it before you run them on the street, otherwise they have to dig out the rocks and will charge you more.

[RallyBob]

Siping will work better on:

snow
ice
water
dirt
mud

On dry pavement, you will have noticeably more tread squirm, and probably quite a bit less ultimate grip. It shouldn't affect wear either way, unless you drive very hard, in which case the tires will feather and wear funny with additional sipes.

I've done a lot of siping on rally tires and tires used on mixed format surfaces (Mt Washington hillclimb which is part dirt/part pavement), and there is always a certain gain/loss proportion when you modify any tire.

I suspect this will also void the manufacturer's warranty (not necessarily the retailer's however, if they do the work themselves).

HTH,
Bob

[wrench459]

Originally Posted by ungermm Siping (sigh-ping?) tires is a technique in which grooves are made across the tires. In this case, tiny razor cuts (microsiping) made by a machine across the surface. So, for street tires in a mild climate what do you think? or Jerry

For a street tire I'm guessing long life is your major concern. The tire manufactures has went to great lengths to give the public a quality tire.
Grab the one with the highest treadwear rating.

Originally Posted by RallyBob On dry pavement, you will have noticeably more tread squirm, and probably quite a bit less ultimate grip. It shouldn't affect wear either way, unless you drive very hard, in which case the tires will feather and wear funny with additional sipes. I've done a lot of siping on rally tires and tires used on mixed format surfaces (Mt Washington hillclimb which is part dirt/part pavement), and there is always a certain gain/loss proportion when you modify any tire.

For performance you'll want a softer tire compound. You might even groove and remove half the tread of a new tire. Racing aint cheap.

[ggl]

Originally Posted by wrench459 For a street tire I'm guessing long life is your major concern. The tire manufactures has went to great lengths to give the public a quality tire.

I agree, if improving a tire's performance was as easy as siping them, all tire manufacturers would offer siped tires straight from the factory

That's not to say that siping a tire can't improve it's performance under certain conditions, like Rally Bob mentioned, but for a street tire .... I'd buy a decent quality tire and leave it alone

There's always the possiblity the tires they sold are so badly constructed that siping them actually helps of course

[ungermm]

I came across this article which covers a few aspects on tire siping. Tire stores that provide the service for a fee unanimously agree that siping is great. However, just about everyone else...not so enthusiastic.

To Sipe Or Not To Sipe | KOMO News - Seattle, Washington | News Archive