[raul]

Hi Nikhil,

I am facing problems sourcing conti cp2 195/60/14 here in Mumbai, its out of stock and no one knows when it will be back, CPC plain is available though.

So its good to hear good feedback on the Falkens because they may be available in Mumbai. So in your opinion how do these Falkens compare to CPC2 in terms of comfort and high speed handling? Also thoughts on CPC plain?

[Nikhilb2008]

I think the ZE912 beats the CPC2 on almost all counts. Except life.

[raul]

That is good to hear, this opens up some options for me, think I am going to try the Falkens then. Thanks Nikhil.

[raul]

After Nikhil's good review I was sufficiently intrigued and so I have been doing a lot of research on the Falkens ZE 912 cause I do need good tyres after the unfortunate lack of stock of my first pref Conti CPC2 probably due to the recent ISI mark issue, and autoworld forums malaysia has a treasure trove on information.

The conclusions are mixed, and opinions are extreme, it's supposedly got good grip in wet and dry and is comfortable and quiet with softer sidewalls which are also problematic due to flexing at high speed cornering. Also the biggest criticism is life is shorter and rolling resistance is also higher than the Michelins so FE can be hit slightly.

There are comparisons with Michelin PP2 and it could be price but lots of folks seem to have good things to say, though there are others who absolutely hate it. It seems to be in a different class than Michelin XM1+.

Consumer research US have rated the Falken ZE912 very highly, so on the whole this tyre seems to be something of an enigma. Most folks in India including tyre dealers absolutely seem to hate it, 'don't stock it, don't recommend it.'

So me now the big decision is between the Falken's which are available at Mumbai, the CPC and the Michelin XM1+.

[raul]

So the only person who has Falken in Mumbai is Stamford and their dealer next door KS Tyres. These folks are located in CBD Belapur which is a good 40km away from my location in Andheri East.

I get in touch with the Stamford guys and the good news is he has stock, and very responsive. So I ask him to keep 4 195/60/14 aside and head out to CBD Belapur. Before leaving I call him to recheck tyre availability and don't want more than 6 month old tyres. He says he has stock and after 2 hours of driving get there to see 4 tyres stacked on top of one another, and the dates are August 08 which makes them 2 years old stock. He gives me the usual sales pitch but I am livid. A pointless exercise so give him a piece of my mind and leave.

Getting tyres in Mumbai is becoming a bit of a effort now.

[Nikhilb2008]

Dealers in India dont like it because it's sidewall is sort of soft which meant more defects.

[Nikhilb2008]

Time for another update.

There was a miniscule puncture on one of the tyres. Found out well in time and got it repaired.

The tyres continue their phenomenal performance. I really wish these tyres were more popular.

They are reaching the end of their life though. 25,000 kms done and they look good for only another 5k kms. I am hoping they last long enough for me to get decent tyres. As of now, there are no good options in the market!

[Gagzie]

Originally Posted by Nikhilb2008

Time for another update.

There was a miniscule puncture on one of the tyres. Found out well in time and got it repaired.

The tyres continue their phenomenal performance. I really wish these tyres were more popular.

They are reaching the end of their life though. 25,000 kms done and they look good for only another 5k kms. I am hoping they last long enough for me to get decent tyres. As of now, there are no good options in the market!

Hi Nikhil,

I was planning to change my stock BS 322's on City ZX Vtec as they have done their job. Although a job not done so well, as I didn't like their grip or the noise levels.

I was thinking of either going in for Energy XM2 or Falken Sincera 835. Reason for specifically asking you is that I have gone through few of your threads and you had mentioned pros and cons of all possible tyres in one of the posts. But you have experienced Falkens yourself and even though people don't have that much complaints or issues about them, they neither have good things to say. So, what do you suggest? Are they any good? Expected life of these tyres with normal usage - 20% Highway, 80% City?

Also the other issue was upsizing from stock 175/65/14 to 185/65/14 or 195/60/14 ? I'll be keeping the stock alloys and therefore not changing to 15".

Pls advice.

Thanks
G.

[Nikhilb2008]

The Falkens I used were very good. They were ZE912s. Not sinceras.

[condor]

Originally Posted by Nikhilb2008

The Falkens I used were very good. They were ZE912s. Not sinceras.

So any feedback about the Sincera's ?

[Nikhilb2008]

Nope. Nothing. Have not had the chance to use it.

[prakash_ajp]

Hello Nikhil,

It's time to change my tyres again for my Linea and this time I am upsizing to 205/55-R16. This will be my fourth set on the car, which has done close to 1.5L Kms. Last two times I had to do this, I went by your recommendation (first time to ZLO and then to Yoko's Earth-1). On both occasions your observations were spot on. I had almost made up my mind on ZLOs this time till I went to a tyre dealer in my town, who has given me two more options - MRF Perfinza and Falken ZE912. He says he can give the Falkens for 7.5K with a 5 year unconditional warranty. The Perfinza costs about 7K and the Earth-1 a little less.

I see you mentioned in another thread that you don't have much idea on the Perfinza; if that's changed, please let me know. I found the ZLO better when it comes to performance but the Earth-1 took whatever road I threw at it and lasted a bit more. I like my tyres to last long, but I can settle for anything about 40K.

Between the ZLO, Earth-1 and the Falken, which one do you recommend if I drive a lot on hilly and wet roads?

[prakash_ajp]

Originally Posted by prakash_ajp

He says he can give the Falkens for 7.5K with a 5 year unconditional warranty. The Perfinza costs about 7K and the Earth-1 a little less.

I must add that the Falkens come with 5 year unconditional warranty, including sidewall cut, stone-hits etc. I don't see the need for the 5 years as I will most likely wear them out within two years, but still sound like a good offer.

[Nikhilb2008]

My current favourite is the Michelin P3ST if you have the budget for it. Followed by the MC5/Yoko Earth 1.

Falkens are tricky. They are being sold with lots of gimmicks like warranty, etc etc but they arent the same Falkens as what I've used. They are now made in Apollo's factory under some sort of contract. They could be good. But I have no experience with them.

Perfinza is an unknown quantity. I hope to be able to try them in the next few weeks.

[prakash_ajp]

Originally Posted by Nikhilb2008

My current favourite is the Michelin P3ST if you have the budget for it. Followed by the MC5/Yoko Earth 1.

I don't think I can afford P3ST, although I did get a quote for that one as well. And my car is currently running on Earth-1. Although I find them decent, I find the ZLOs to be more interesting. Only problem is, ZLO comes only in 215 and not in 205.

Originally Posted by Nikhilb2008

Falkens are tricky. They are being sold with lots of gimmicks like warranty, etc etc but they arent the same Falkens as what I've used. They are now made in Apollo's factory under some sort of contract. They could be good. But I have no experience with them.

Perfinza is an unknown quantity. I hope to be able to try them in the next few weeks.

Thanks for the input and will wait to hear whenever you get a chance to review them. The dealer said the Falkens were imported, don't know from where. I will probe him more.

Tyres are an important component of a car; too bad the auto magazines and portals in India are not into reviewing them.