Quote:
Originally Posted by FF Drifter
So my thinking is that wider tires gives more contact patch which makes for better dry traction. However an article I read in an old Sport Compact Car (AWD wet/dry racing of some sort) overly wide tires become "boats that cars slide around on" or something to that effect.
OEM tire sizes (205/60-15) make for a contact patch of about 35 square inches (7in x 5in). I'm running 225/50-16 in the front with a fat 88 square inches of contact patch (8in x 11in) and in the latest rain I've found that I am much more prone to hydroplaning at speed. I didn't have problems like this last year when I was on factory size tires at all four corners.
Is this because my tires are much wider/bigger contact patches, or is wet traction decided solely by the tire design itself (grooves, channels, etc)?
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Problem with Theory is that it only works in certain conditions. any tire can hydroplane.
Any tire can become a "boat" as it were. The wider it gets the easier the tire can be picked up by stagnant water since, yea, more hydraulic force is acting on the area, and the weight is dispersed over a larger area, making it easier. However, that's why there's tread. The design of tread has increased to the point that at any given point, the actual width of the tire and the contact points are optimal for the evacuation of water at a given speed. If the tire wasn't designed to be a wide tire, then you're going to have problems with water evacuation.
My brains gone all mushy, so i'm not sure if that made sense.