Metric Michelins!!! NISSAN, this time.

[Willy_G]

Say it ain’t so!!!

Metric tires on production vehicles in the US, again! Didn’t manufacturers learn their lesson back with the Ford & BMW tire flops in the 80’s? Oh well, I guess the Renault ownership of Nissan is steering the company’s direction, rather than reliable products the customer wants to buy, then return and buy another….

Long story long, we have an ’04 Nissan Quest that has Goodyear tires that have vibrated since day one. Several rebalances and I was done with the dealer’s Mickey Mouse Games (and I know most GY tires are crap) and started to look for replacement tires. Too bad that ONLY GY makes tires in the sizes required by the Quest. And there are no ‘Plus 0’ options. Real nice.

So as I was strolling through the Indianapolis Autoshow, I couldn’t help but to notice that the ’06 Quest had Michelin tires. Sparking my interest, I look at the tire and it has a bead protector and fairly squat aspect ratio, given the tread width…the sidewall is a real fancy set-up you would expect on a Carrera, or Lamborghini, NOT a mini-van! Then I looked for the size and about laughed my head off. It was a metric wheel & tire combo! If I remember correctly, the diameter was 480mm, or about 19”. I think Nissan really screwed up, here.

Michelin, metric tire, low production…I’ll bet those tires cost over $200 EACH to replace. At least there are a lot more aftermarket wheels to choose from, now-a-days when these Quest drivers get sticker shock at the tire shop!

Since our Quest has been such a burden (repeat disk warpages, xmission replacement, crappy tires…) I am not interested in the brand anymore and will not buy another. But do any Nissan gurus know what, if any, other Nissans are getting the metric wheel & tire set-up?

 

[Moloch]

Welcome to the wodnerfull world of nissan , my one freind went through 2 engines one tranny in 1.5 years on his altima. Coworker had engine reoplaced that had less then 5k miles in it a sentra.

 

[slugsgomoo]

those are some fancy runflat option, 225/700/480a.

The standard size is 225/65/R16, and the next option up is 225/60/17.

I don't think anyone buying a minivan is going to be too swayed by 19" rims.

for what it's worth, a 19x6.5" wheel should be EXTREMELY easy to buy tires for, once you calculate aspect ratio. And with a tire like the Dunlop FM901, wouldn't be too expensive.

given that it's part of some crap run-flat package, I don't know if that's possible.

FWIW, even 17" wheels on a minivan seem silly.

 

[bdcardinal]

we had a problem at my work with a newer nissan quest. the customer came in for a flat repair, but it was a sidewall puncture, not repairable in our book. i look in our computer and see that only GY makes a tire in that size. i call up to see if i can order one and they tell me that they will only stll that tire to dealers. customer came back and i broke the news to him. bummer for him since the vehicle had about 19k miles on it and the tires were worn out, even new ones did not come with a mileage warrenty.

 

[Black Thunder]

well metric sizes are definitely not a new thing...


and the tires sizes are only getting more ridiculous every day.

manufacturers are phasing out 14 and 15 inch rims.

you can't even find a half-ton truck with anything smaller then 16's
and now dodge has 20 inch rims from the factory? what the ****!

i just put a set of tires on a BMW last week.
the back tires were 35 series and the fronts were 40 series.

talk about a small-*** sidewall.

 

[Willy_G]

BD,

FYI, Tire Rack has the 225/65/16 GY LS2. If I recall they are about $100 each.

 

[bdcardinal]

ahh. ya the customer was gonna go to nissan and yell at them for his rapid tire wear. i kinda feel bad for customers that come in with 2004/5 cars with 20k miles and worn out tires. nissan maxima and altima owners especially. they dont realise how much the replacement tires cost when they buy their car.

just had a customer come in yesterday with a newer dodge ram that had factory 20" wheels. she had a sidewall puncture so we told her she needed a new tire. she about had a heart attack when she found out the same tire would be about $400.

when i bought my car, i knew how much replacement tires would be, mostly because i had picked out wheels i wanted and knew tires i wanted.

 

[thrace]

quote:

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I couldn’t help but to notice that the ’06 Quest had Michelin tires. Sparking my interest, I look at the tire and it has a bead protector and fairly squat aspect ratio, given the tread width…

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Those strange looking Michelins could be the infamous PAX tire. Pax run flat tires are currently on Honda Odyssey Touring and wears out in 20,000 miles or so for some. Replacement cost $200 if you can find it. Another high cost high profit item which mainly benefits the seller and not the customer. Reminds me of Michelin TRX. Another odd size by Michelin which was best replaced by buying new tires and wheels of a more regular size.