Demotivational Poster by Very Demotivational.com

One of the most fun parts of doing this job is getting email from readers, usually with questions about their own tire/wheel situations. Here's a note I received a little while ago from a reader named Tom:

"I read your article re: the new Yokohama AVID Ascend and am wondering if you could tell me how you believe they compare to the company's Envigor model. I had pretty much settled on the Envigor for my 2005 AWD Volvo XC Wagon (215/65/16), but read some things that suggested they weren't too good in light snow or on ice. Given the Ascend's gripping ability, I thought you might be able to offer some insight on how you think they'll do in ice/snow conditions relative to the Envigor. I hardly ever drive in such conditions, but if I get caught in them, I'd like to have a tire with good performance.

Also, since my care came with V speed rated tires, I'm only considering V or H. Do you think that's wise or do you think T would be fine?"

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Photo © Shelby American

Racing and tuning legend Carroll Shelby passed away yesterday at the age of 89.

Others will eulogize Mr. Shelby and review the details of a well-lived life much better than I can. I will only say a few things from a personal perspective.

Photo © Jonathan P. Lamas

I loved Carroll Shelby's vision:

To me, above all else, Shelby had a vision of what a hardcore muscle car should look like that may never be equaled. His designs incorporated a brooding, big-shouldered, air-scooped aggressiveness that touched something deep in the souls of auto fans, as if he had reached into another dimension and come back with the Aristotelian essence of "car." Sitting next to a GT500, even the mighty Corvette Stingray ends up looking more like a delicate flower than a hot rod.

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Photo © Sean Phillips.

Would you give your mom a set of tires for Mother's Day? Would your mother think that was a cool gift or a dud? According to Hankook Tires' Tire Gauge Index, a quarterly poll that looks at attitudes and opinions on all facets of driving, more than 33% of female respondents "would not mind" getting a set of tires for Mother's Day, and fully 38% "would love it."

This makes total sense to my wife. "Giving Mom a set of tires says: 'I want you to be safe!'" she said in response to an informal poll. "It also means that she doesn't have to go to the tire store and deal with salespeople, sizing issues, or figuring out what kind of tires to buy. You've taken care of it all for her." What Mom doesn't want a child to put some thought and effort into a gift rather than just ordering the same old flowers?

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A gentleman came into my shop last week and asked us to take a look at his wheels and tires, as he was experiencing a rather significant vibration. He was pretty sure at least one of wheels was bent, but not sure which one. Diagnosing vibration is what we do all day, so we took the wheels off and spun them on the balancer. When we brought him back to take a look, we showed him that they were all nicely round, but we had found the source of the problem. Our customer was driving a BMW 635ci with a very nice set of wheels from a BMW 540i. The person who had sold him these wheels had assured them that of course they would fit - they came off another BMW, after all!

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