Like you, a decade ago (perhaps even less), that would have annoyed me and I would have allowed it to alter my mood for awhile. I also agree that life can provide reasons to look at things in a new light and gain a different perspective. Call it perspective or whatever someone wishes, I’m all for it. As an aside, as someone who always “tried to keep things in nice condition” I now also try to embrace the Japanese philosophy of wabi-sabi - in short, and probably butchered Western explanation - the belief that there is beauty in imperfection. In the case of material possessions, that patina, wear and tear and signs of use tell the story of the item and thus have value and beauty. Personally, and as someone who cherished aesthetic perfection in objects, this resonates with your first point and about ‘trying not to worry about inconsequential things’.
Anyway, you didn’t ask about that! You asked about tyres thickness, rims and bad roads…
100% agree - any classic I have owned has had lovely thick tyres, even on cars that were considered sports cars, and not only were most relatively comfortable but also avoided damage far easier. Car makers have added run flats, made more and more vehicles run on low profile tyres and then tried to engineer in ride quality with expensive suspension components. I am sure there will be a justification of fuel economy/manufacturing costs/handling or some other claim but it does seem counterintuitive, especially when the general conditions of the roads is taken into account.
