Bald tires and bad memories

Problem: What happens when your recollection of the past lies in sharp contrast with that of another individual regarding the same experience? Whose recollection of the events of that experience is more reliable in the absence of either empirical data or third party verification? How do we factor in past experiences or the bias of personal pride? What factors (both physiological and psychological) determine how perception of experience imprints on memory?

Example: A gouge on the inside of the passenger side front tire of the ASTRO has been discovered revealing its metal guts. OK! So how did it get there? This is the question that I posed to my wife: "Do you remember hitting anything with the van recently?" "Nope!" she says, "but you hit the curb all the time turning into the cul-de-sac." (I had not yet revealed to her that there was a gouge on the tire.) "Really!" I said in disbelief, "how many times have I done so in the last while?" "3 or 4," she informed me.

So here are all the factors that I am considering. A.) I have no recollection of hitting the curb even once in the last 6 months. B.) Char is not given to lying (in fact it may well be beyond her cognitive ability to do so) C.) I am well aware of my lousy reputation as a poor driver in spite of my shining driving record in the last 20 years. D.) I have not driven van regularly – in fact Char has (this can be verified by the countless people who have commented on our van being parked at the local liquor store which is across from her work). E.) I am sharply aware of my own pride in protecting against another accusation of my poor driving record. F.) There may in fact be almost no way of verifying Char's report or mine by some external method.

Anybody heard of good deal on tires recently?