[Behemoth]

Originally Posted by SushilBajpai

Hi Behemoth, I have replaced my tires with Pirelli P-7 225/55 R16. This was the closest upsize and within 2.5% of the OEM tyre. Since tyre change the Yeti has clocked more than 4,000 km. The ride quality has improved considerably and the road noise reduced as compared to the Goodyear excellence.

I did have some issues with air-conditioning which were fixed during the 2nd service. They changed the compressor (free under warranty).

Thanks Sushil,
Yes, these were one of the option that I am also considering and these should give better handling and cornering capabilities due to the shorter aspect ratio. Have you felt any difference in the ride quality in terms of impact absorption due to the reduction in the profile?
Pirelli's are quite expensive and the best rate I could find recently is 9700 per tyre. These are OEM on the BMW X1 in this size.
However, just be careful to keep the right pressure in the tyres, as they also have soft sidewalls and are prone to bulging on high speed impact with potholes - I think one TBHP member reported this on his X1 sometime back.

Even my Yeti's AC compressor had been changed proactively in July 2011, due to some design issue with the N80 valve sticking - they have moved over to a new higher capacity design now. Also, they upgraded the Engine firmware at that time for better load management, which solved the cooling problem completely.

Regards,
Behemoth

[.anshuman]

Originally Posted by Behemoth

Pirelli's are quite expensive and the best rate I could find recently is 9700 per tyre. These are OEM on the BMW X1 in this size.
However, just be careful to keep the right pressure in the tyres, as they also have soft sidewalls and are prone to bulging on high speed impact with potholes - I think one TBHP member reported this on his X1 sometime back.

The Pirelli tires on X1 are runflat type, so they will have different construction that the normal tubeless tires. The Pirellis in my friend's X1 were changed to Bridgestone by BMW dealer due to some technical issue relating to alignment.

Even my Yeti's AC compressor had been changed proactively in July 2011, due to some design issue with the N80 valve sticking - they have moved over to a new higher capacity design now. Also, they upgraded the Engine firmware at that time for better load management, which solved the cooling problem completely.

Is this compressor same as the one in Laura. Do i need to get anything done in my Laura? Cooling is very good with no issues.

[Behemoth]

Originally Posted by .anshuman

The Pirelli tires on X1 are runflat type, so they will have different construction that the normal tubeless tires. The Pirellis in my friend's X1 were changed to Bridgestone by BMW dealer due to some technical issue relating to alignment.


Is this compressor same as the one in Laura. Do i need to get anything done in my Laura? Cooling is very good with no issues.

Thanks for the clarification Anshuman.

If you are not finding the cooling less, no need to worry. What was happening in my case was the AC Vent temperature was increasing from the required 3-5 Degrees celsius to 8-9 Degree very frequently and it was not able to control the refrigerant flow properly. This appears as a temporary loss of cooling, especially in stop and go traffic. Skoda moved over the the new design of compressor from June 2011 onwards and if anyone reports low cooling, they replace the compressor (takes 2-3 days to get the part approval and get the replacement done). They have to take the car for a running Scan with a laptop scanner and then log the data for the Temperature, which they submit as evidence of low compressor performance.
Just to be safe, you can get this scan done at Giriraj workshop by the VAS team.
(AFAIK, the compressor is the same in the Laura and the Yeti.)

Regards,
Behemoth

[SushilBajpai]

Originally Posted by Behemoth

Thanks Sushil,
Yes, these were one of the option that I am also considering and these should give better handling and cornering capabilities due to the shorter aspect ratio. Have you felt any difference in the ride quality in terms of impact absorption due to the reduction in the profile?
Pirelli's are quite expensive and the best rate I could find recently is 9700 per tyre. These are OEM on the BMW X1 in this size.
However, just be careful to keep the right pressure in the tyres, as they also have soft sidewalls and are prone to bulging on high speed impact with potholes - I think one TBHP member reported this on his X1 sometime back.


Regards,
Behemoth

While the aspect ratio on 225-55-16R is less than 215-60-16R, the height of the sidewall is actually higher for 225-55-16R. I find the ride quality has improved and Yeti feels more comfortable over the bumps and potholes - both at low, as well as high speeds. I have not noticed any deterioration in handling. If anything that too appears to have improved. So has braking. Besides this, the change results in 6 mm increase in ground clearance. I got the tires for Rs 9800 each.

[Behemoth]

Originally Posted by SushilBajpai

While the aspect ratio on 225-55-16R is less than 215-60-16R, the height of the sidewall is actually higher for 225-55-16R. I find the ride quality has improved and Yeti feels more comfortable over the bumps and potholes - both at low, as well as high speeds. I have not noticed any deterioration in handling. If anything that too appears to have improved. So has braking. Besides this, the change results in 6 mm increase in ground clearance. I got the tires for Rs 9800 each.

Hi Sushil,

With 225/55 R 16 tyres, the tyres are actually 10mm smaller in diameter than the original 215/60 R 16 - you would have lost 5 mm in GC with this change.


But having lower profile , wider tyres does improve the handling and cornering and the handling. You may not have felt the loss in cushioning as the Pirellis are much better than the stock Goodyears.
9800 is a good price that you got for the Pirellis and hope that they serve you well!

Regards,
Behemoth

[deutscheafrikar]

I find a slight wear on the innerside of the two front tires after about 5700 km. Actually noticed it earlier. Has anyone faced this problem.

I have seen a Yokohama 215/60 R16 95V on a Maruti SX 4 recently. Would that be good or is it not SUV material either.
MRF's wanderers aren't launched in a size that would fit the Yeti.

Cheers

[Behemoth]

Originally Posted by deutscheafrikar

I find a slight wear on the innerside of the two front tires after about 5700 km. Actually noticed it earlier. Has anyone faced this problem.

I have seen a Yokohama 215/60 R16 95V on a Maruti SX 4 recently. Would that be good or is it not SUV material either.
MRF's wanderers aren't launched in a size that would fit the Yeti.

Cheers

Hi,
The Goodyears on the Yeti are pretty bad and exhibit uneven wear and high road noise. I would recommend getting rid of them asap and also getting your alignment checked asap ! I have also changed my tyres to Yokohama c-drive 215/60 r 16 99v and there is a huge improvement in ride quality, and huge reduction in tyre noise -earlier I had to put the music system at 10 to hear the music at a speed of 100, now I am able hear it well even at a volume of 8. I even checked with a Db meter and the average sound level is 72 Db at 100 kmph, which is as quiet as my Laura which is on Primacy LCs now. Though I had not measured the sound levels with the earlier Goodyears, I suspect that it must have been around 80Db. Tyres made a huge improvement for me and it is well worth it. I was also considering AT tyres in larger size of 215/65 r16, but eventually dropped this idea as they would affect ride quality and warranty and would also be noisy.
I have also shared my experiences in the Yeti tyre thread.

Regards,
Behemoth

[shankar.balan]

I appreciate all the research done by Behemoth on the Yeti and its thingamajigs. Indeed behemoth why dont you plan a long weekend trip to Blr and come and stay with us. We can take a trip somewhere in the yeti and fiddle with it to our hearts content! I can use the opportunity to learn more about this marvellous machine which I am so glad that I bought!

[deutscheafrikar]

Originally Posted by Behemoth

Hi,
The Goodyears on the Yeti are pretty bad and exhibit uneven wear and high road noise. I would recommend getting rid of them asap and also getting your alignment checked asap ! I have also changed my tyres to Yokohama c-drive 215/60 r 16 99v and there is a huge improvement in ride quality,I was also considering AT tyres in larger size of 215/65 r16, but eventually dropped this idea as they would affect ride quality and warranty and would also be noisy.
I have also shared my experiences in the Yeti tyre thread.

Regards,
Behemoth

Surprisingly I didn't see your reply until today. Anyway have clocked close to 11 K on the yeti. I got the alighment checked at 5899 kms. But this seemed to be alright. However I rotated the tyres. Yes the OEM's do have a noise. I noticed that the Duster has MRF wanderer's, however the size of 215/65 R16. For a moment I thought good off roads here in yeti size. I've seen these Yoko you bought on a SX4.

[Behemoth]

Originally Posted by deutscheafrikar

Surprisingly I didn't see your reply until today. Anyway have clocked close to 11 K on the yeti. I got the alighment checked at 5899 kms. But this seemed to be alright. However I rotated the tyres. Yes the OEM's do have a noise. I noticed that the Duster has MRF wanderer's, however the size of 215/65 R16. For a moment I thought good off roads here in yeti size. I've seen these Yoko you bought on a SX4.

There is a huge difference between the OEM tyres and the replacement tyres in terms of road noise and grip.
But as you have already covered 11K on your tyres, you would not get any good value for them - so keep using them for another 9-10K kms and then go for a change. Some of the tyres which TBHP Yeti owners have swapped already (you can find their experiences on their threads):

Behemoth (me!) : Yoko C-Drive 215/60 R16 : Experience Good, drastic improvement after covering 23K Kms on OEM

Sushil Bajpai : Pirelli P7 225/55 R16 : Experience Good, drastic improvement in road holding and noise after covering 25K on OEM

ITNerd: Yoko HT/S 051 215/60 R16 New,(immediately after purchase , tyre buyback value 5500 per tyre. Don't know the difference cost yet)

Contessa: Pirelli P6 215/60 R16 : Experience good, drastic improvement (replaced after 22K kms?), cost around 27K for 4 tyres.

No one has yet taken the plunge of 215/65 R 16 tyres yet.. I was considering it once, but finally dropped the idea (have mentioned the reasons on my thread).

Regards,
Behemoth

[deutscheafrikar]

Originally Posted by Behemoth

There is a huge difference between the OEM tyres and the replacement tyres in terms of road noise and grip.
But as you have already covered 11K on your tyres, you would not get any good value for them - so keep using them for another 9-10K kms and then go for a change.

Behemoth (me!) : Yoko C-Drive 215/60 R16 :

Sushil Bajpai : Pirelli P7 225/55 R16 :


ITNerd: Yoko HT/S 051 215/60 R16 New

Contessa: Pirelli P6 215/60 R16 :
.Regards,
Behemoth

Hi Behemoth

You are correct. Will wait till this set needs to be changed.
11800 km now.
Yoko Geolander HT/S tyres seem good for our roads I guess.

[shankar.balan]

Im also waiting in the wings till my OEM tyres kick the bucket. I just hope that these YOKOs become more easily available in the stock Yeti Size. I don't want to upsize or deviate from the norm. I just want tougher tyres than the OEM GoodYears! I ve only done 6750 mms till now in 7 months of ownership. It will take me a long time at this rate to reach the magic mark when I will wish to change my tyres!

Originally Posted by deutscheafrikar

Hi Behemoth

You are correct. Will wait till this set needs to be changed.
11800 km now.
Yoko Geolander HT/S tyres seem good for our roads I guess.

[faraz]

Folks I have decided to upgrade the stock tyres as well after going thru various post by various members. Can't make up my mind regarding which one though. The 2 options are Yoko C drive or Yoko geolander H/T both in the 215/60/R16 configuration. Seek advise. Please help !!! Thank.

Faraz.

[shankar.balan]

If you get Geolandar H/T please go for those. They are far more capable of handling dear old Indian road surfaces than the other ones.

Originally Posted by faraz

Folks I have decided to upgrade the stock tyres as well after going thru various post by various members. Can't make up my mind regarding which one though. The 2 options are Yoko C drive or Yoko geolander H/T both in the 215/60/R16 configuration. Seek advise. Please help !!! Thank.

Faraz.

[twinoctober]

Originally Posted by faraz

Folks I have decided to upgrade the stock tyres as well after going thru various post by various members. Can't make up my mind regarding which one though. The 2 options are Yoko C drive or Yoko geolander H/T both in the 215/60/R16 configuration. Seek advise. Please help !!! Thank.

Faraz.

Faraz, I am also in the same boat but unable to source Yoko geo in Bangalore but i have sourced 225/60/16 apollo (its still within the permissible +/_ 2%).
the truth is we (yetians) don't have much option for tyre.

goodluck