[vex]

Originally Posted by josh18_2k

what use is information without a source? as far as i can tell, everything you quoted could be from the guy at les schwabb
all the arguments in this thread seem to be speculation. i've never seen/read about a tire failure due to stretching, altho the internet is pretty vast. i have however seen a properly sized tire dismount itself on track during a drift run. that was some comedy

I was going to put it up, but thought better of it. I'll have to hunt it down again, but it was on a simple site I found. Though, if you do not agree with something inparticular I've quoted from I'd like to know what and why.

also please leave the whole grip racing performance aspect out of this.. no one is claiming a streched tire offers better traction, so i dont know why it keeps being brought up. i rarely see any drift people try to lecture about grip, and when they do im usually the first to rectify the situation lol

Just out of curiousity as the geometry is deformed, tire pressure is altered (maximum tire pressure--do you still put in the recommended amount, are you eyeballing it, or some other means outside of manufacturers spec)?

An unrelated, but potentially critical note, is that the vertical pressure secondarily effects the range of tire carcass motion, which in turn can dramatically affect tire temperature. For example, low tire pressure can result in the rubber turning hard, and blowing out the entire sidewall. This can happen in a remarkably short time on an underinflated tire operated at high speeds.

http://www.ibmwr.org/otech/tirestuff.html

Furthermore stretching tires can run aground upon other design features such as Michelin's Stress Equilibrium Casings:

A radial casing design that more evenly distributes the forces of acceleration, cornering, and braking throughout the contact patch, allowing for design enhancements in the shoulder and the use of softer, better gripping compounds.

http://www.michelinman.com/glossary/#s

From an engineer:

There is a phenomenon called "tire stretching" where the tire is mounted on rims wider than the range published by the tire manufacturers. This is done strictly for looks.For practical purposes, the sidewall is taken out of the picture, and the vehicle might as well be riding on solid rubber. (Maybe that's next?) I've heard of a couple of cases where the tire bead pops off during cornering - result is a ruined rim.

http://www.eng-tips.com/viewthread.c...=161928&page=3

I can continue if you'd like, but you get the issue (note I haven't said one way or the other besides saying that stretching is purely aesthetic).

Sidewall defelction from what I've seen from properly maintained tires comes to about 0.3 inches give or take depending on lateral G's. I can secure that data more than likely with little issue.