Two New Tires Should be Mounted on the Rear

Abstract

When the rear wheels of a vehicle lose grip on the road, a driver's ability to control the vehicle is dramatically reduced, a phenomenon called oversteer. Oversteer is an event that occurs in many rollovers and single vehicle loss-of-control accidents. Therefore, when replacing two tires, the two new tires (the tires with better tread) should always be mounted on the rear wheels. There are virtually no exceptions to this rule and it is clearly demonstrated in tests conducted by one major tire manufacturer (Michelin, 2008). The present studies examined whether people are aware of this rule by asking them where two new replacement tires should be installed on a vehicle. Results showed that approximately 75% of consumers did not know to install two new replacement tires in the two rear wheel positions. Warning systems are discussed with focus on making recommendations for improving safety communications to tire installer and consumers.