Ikon 1.6 : Apollo Acceleres : Early Tyre Wear Issues-Need Advice

[abhik]

Hi! Guys
How is it Going?
Well my Ikon 1.6 is shod with 175/70 R13 Apollo Acceleres which have done about 5000 odd kms now. I regularly inspect the tyres for even wear and off late i noticed the inner treads(1inch from the inside)of the front tyres have developed small cracks and seem to have worn slightly more than the rest of the tyre or even so to say an inch more than that portion and this wear pattern is same on both front tyres.
I have looked through the basic reasons like:-
1. Suspensions-Arms and Shockers are brand new and might have done just 2000kms max and have twice taken to Ford to get the fitting inspected and its fine.
2.Allignment and Ballancing-Have got that done thrice in the last 2000kms for the above reason and its perfect. BTW there is no camber on the Ikon and the front wheels are a little inward-set which i thought might be the reason.
3.Tyre Pressure-Again i check and maintain that regularly.
Got the tyres from B.K Tyres in Lajpat Nagar, New Delhi which is a good shop so i dont think the tyres are fake.
My Driving style:-
I usually drive hard and corner very hard and since i am doing night shifts i return at 4am when there is hardly anyone on the road so i am doing like 120-140kmph on straights and anywhere from 50-80kmph on corners depending upon the corner, with late braking and usually accelerate in corners. Again i thought this might be the reason.
Suprisingly the rear tyres look as if they dont even touch the road with no signs of wear.
And its not that the car stand in stagnant water or something and the concern is why CRACKS on that particular portion and that to not on the surface but inside the treads(The Accelere has 4 main visible ribs, this is the 1st one from the inside) and also the little wear in the same region and rest of the tyre is ok.

Just wanted an expert opinion as i was afraid that this might be a sign of a bigger problem to come or an issue i should be concerned about and i could get help from you guys on how to solve it?

[DirtyDan]

The wear is explainable by your aggressive driving habits. The cracks are more of a concern I think. The Apollo Accelere is speed rated well beyond what you describe as your limits so on paper they should hold up.

But they are not holding up. If you have a good relation with this shop that you bought them from I would go ask them for an honest opinion. They may shock you and give you one. They may even replace them under warranty. But, if it was within my budget and I was driving late at night aggressively as you do, I would retire these tyres early and opt for another tyre, perhaps a Michelin or even a tyre with a "V" speed rating. Good tyres are something I am willing to spend money on.

[abhik]

Originally Posted by DirtyDan

The wear is explainable by your aggressive driving habits. The cracks are more of a concern I think. The Apollo Accelere is speed rated well beyond what you describe as your limits so on paper they should hold up.

But they are not holding up. If you have a good relation with this shop that you bought them from I would go ask them for an honest opinion. They may shock you and give you one. They may even replace them under warranty. But, if it was within my budget and I was driving late at night aggressively as you do, I would retire these tyres early and opt for another tyre, perhaps a Michelin or even a tyre with a "V" speed rating. Good tyres are something I am willing to spend money on.

Agree with you dan but was planning to sell of the car and when i bought the tyres i thought of getting alloys so i thought i should settle with these for the time being else would have gone in for Yokos as i could'nt compromise and buy cheap tyres even if it meant for a short time. But you know the speeds i do at night is not that great as i only push as far as the road conditions permit me and also considering the higher speed rating of these tyres they should have held up. But is this something to do with the car's front bias weight distribution and thus higher stress on the front tyres while cornering and braking?

[abhik]

guys any other suggestions? i am planning to take the car to bk tyres tomorrow and get them to check it if it needs replacement or maybe rotate the tyres??

[Xehaust]

I dont know why but the difference in wear from the front and back tyres is because the front tyres take all the stress of turning and weight of the engine.

[iraghava]

The tyres are not fake sor sure, that phenomenon has still not hit the tyre industry. And in any case BK is a very reputed dealer so you can be reassured about that.

As for the problem, the only likely culprit seems to be either the rear suspension or an alignment problem but it's kinda hard to tell without pictures. My advice would be to go to Atul at BK Tyres & ask his opinion about this problem & the likely solution to it.

[rks]

Originally Posted by abhik

Well my Ikon 1.6 is shod with 175/70 R13 Apollo Acceleres which have done about 5000 odd kms now. I regularly inspect the tyres for even wear and off late i noticed the inner treads(1inch from the inside)of the front tyres have developed small cracks and seem to have worn slightly more than the rest of the tyre or even so to say an inch more than that portion and this wear pattern is same on both front tyres.

Your problem looks like either one-sided wear or spot wear. See the table under "Diagnosing problems from tyre wear" in the website below:

Car Bibles : The Wheel and Tyre Bible Page 2 of 2

Quoting from this website, if it is one-sided wear (throughout the circumference of the tyre) the likely reason seems to be "Improper wheel alignment (especially camber".

If it is spot wear (i.e., one-sided, but not throughout the circumference) then the possible reasons given are:

1. Faulty suspension, rotating parts or brake parts
2. Dynamic imbalance of tyre/rim assembly
3. Excessive runout of tyre and rim assembly
4. Sudden braking and rapid starting
5. Under-inflation

By the way, are you still on stock rims and if so, what is the width of these rims (should be minimum of 5J for your tyre size)? And precisely what tyre pressures do you maintain and do you set them when tyres are cold? Another possibility that occurred to me is that there may be some fouling with brake parts or steering components on the inside of the front tyres, which is possible if you have wider wheels with incorrect offset.

[abhik]

Guys as i mentioned allignment is perfect and have done it quite a few time to ensure it is after i spotted the wear.
Secondly the wear is even on both front tyres but only on the inside
I have got all components checked brakes,suspension, steering etc all are well.

Originally Posted by iraghava

The tyres are not fake sor sure, that phenomenon has still not hit the tyre industry. And in any case BK is a very reputed dealer so you can be reassured about that.

As for the problem, the only likely culprit seems to be either the rear suspension or an alignment problem but it's kinda hard to tell without pictures. My advice would be to go to Atul at BK Tyres & ask his opinion about this problem & the likely solution to it.

i know Jitesh there who is one of the owners son and has the know how. Who is Atul?

[maestro]

1) Try an alignment at some other place than where you normally do it. My vehicle had considerable differences in the toe-in at 2 different shops.
2) Wear on the lower wishbone bushes may also cause this problem.
3) Trust your tyres are not overinflated.

[iraghava]

Originally Posted by abhik

i know Jitesh there who is one of the owners son and has the know how. Who is Atul?

Atul is his elder brother & has more experience & know how.

[Technocrat]

I am not sure if this is relevant here but one of my friend's Alto's front tire got chipped away on Expressway i.e. a chip from tire just flew away & it was an Apollo Acceleres.

[iraghava]

You mean a piece of rubber?? Was it from the sidewall or from the tread?

[Technocrat]

Yes & I think it was from the tread.

Similar thing had happened to my Cousin's Bridgestone at front & again in an Alto but they were at the end of their life.

[iraghava]

If it's the tread then it's a manufacturing defect. Ask him to go the dealer & get then replaced under warranty.

[mail4loys]

I too own Ikon 1.6 and this had happened to me too. I was running on stock Bridgestone tubed tires. The tire looked normal when viewed from other side. One day when i removed one of the front tyre for puncher i noticed that the inner tread was almost flat. Within few days i took it to the dealer. He told that it was a balancing problem. So i took it to a tyre shop he inspected it an recommended to do balancing the tyres. I changed the tyre and now i'm running on Apollo Acceleres for the front two tyres and stock bridstone tubed tyres on the rear.

I had to do balancing and front suspension change for this issue. Now i had done 5K with Apollo Acceleres and the tyres looks good!