[carboy]

Originally Posted by SS-Traveller

Will happen the coming weekend, Jaggu. Snowed under with work. Quotes are:
Bridgestones - 3400 each;
Apollo - 3200 each;
MRF ZV2K - 3500 each.

Toss-up between Bridgestones and MRFs.

Till then, it's on unavoidable running only.

SS-T - what is the size/detail of the above tyres (asking for a price comparison with whatever replacement tyres I will buy for my swift).
Also how is Goodyear as a brand when compared to JK, Bridgestone, Apollo, MRF etc?

[Sutripta]

Originally Posted by SS-Traveller

Haven't seen this happen to a radial, or at least to any halfway-decent tyre, in the last 20 years. Happens to retreaded tyres all the time is what I've seen. What's your experience of something like this? (keeping in mind that these tyres have not been abused/raced/driven at high speeds etc.)

No, You're right. Haven't seen something like this on a nonretreaded tyre for a long time. First belted, and then radials were supposed to keep the tread stable, reducing chances of this.

I stopped using JKs a long time back. Their steel belted ones were phenomenal when new. But sidewalls bulging/ cracking were a major problem. AND the steel wires would start rusting, and then snapping. You can imagine the results.
But then I've stopped using Bridgestones also. Very prone to punctures, and they could teach Exide a thing or two about brazening out of a warranty claim. (That way Dunlop was good.)

Regards
Sutripta

[khoj]

Originally Posted by carboy

SS-T - what is the size/detail of the above tyres (asking for a price comparison with whatever replacement tyres I will buy for my swift).
Also how is Goodyear as a brand when compared to JK, Bridgestone, Apollo, MRF etc?

Swift Zxi is shod with 185/70R14. My Zxi too runs on the Vectras and I have decided to keep them as I have found them to be good in several 'situations' at high speeds as well as in the wet. Though now my Swift is used for more sedate duty within the city. Another member laluks has crisscrossed most of South India on his Swift zxi also shod with the same Vectra and continues to do so. In fact he has on more than one occasion driven his vehicle on terrains with no roads at all. What has happened with SS-T is a one off manufacturing failure and that too after 50 thousand kilometers. You will agree that is a lot of mileage and maybe just a tad over what the product was designed for. I do rate the Vectras to be better than the Indian made Bridgestones as I have had terrible experiences with them. You should get at least Rs 1000/- for each tire upon exchange when brand new (just out of showroom) It always helps if you strike a deal beforehand you actually take the car for the replacement. If you know a taxi fleet owner you could get better pricing as these are an upsize fitment on the Indigo and the taxi guys love JKs.

Goodyear is a good make though not much appreciated in these circles. Our Aveo had GoodYear NCT 5s as OE and the tires were great untill they deteriorated at around 28K. During their lifetime they were very silent, grippy and no punctures. I understand that Goodyear 'Assurance' are much better and are being imported by the company. I would rate them better than all of the makes that you mention in your post. I would also recommend the Yokohama C drives. they are a good balance of price and reliability.

Originally Posted by Sutripta

they could teach Exide a thing or two about brazening out of a warranty claim. (That way Dunlop was good.)

Seems you have had an issue or two with Exide on warranty replacement, care to share. The Exide battery in my Cedia died under warranty and the Mitsubishi guys chased the Exide people and got me a fully sealed Exide "All Terrain" battery which is way better than the crappy 'Freedom' OE battery which was there earlier. Maybe I got lucky

[SPIKE ARRESTOR]

Originally Posted by SS-Traveller

Week 40, 2005 (translating to September - that's for a lot of other members, not for you, Spike! ).

Although old, but still age of tyre has nothing to do with the type of failure seen. Seems to be a one of case, resulting from Manufacturing defects (improper bonding / curing).

BTW, if this is the case the other tyres must also be from the same / similar lot

Spike

[Sutripta]

A lot is being said about the age of the tyre.
My opinion:
The manufacturer gets the benefit of doubt because of the nonverifiable history of (ab)usage of the tyre. Age (5 years) is not the issue here.
However, if SS KNOWS (but can't prove) that the tyre has not been abused, then this failure is not acceptable. SS can form his own conclusions and formulate his own responses.

What matters in a lot of cases is an admission (with no monetary involvement.), and proof of some sort that the problem is unlikely to recur because it has been noted, and taken care of.

Originally Posted by khoj

Seems you have had an issue or two with Exide on warranty replacement, care to share.
Oh the usual: your alternator overcharges/ undercharges/ hypercharges/ discharges etc. I'm sure there'll be tons of similar stories in the battery threads. My response is with my wallet. And if anyone asks me, I give my opinion.

The Exide battery in my Cedia died under warranty and the Mitsubishi guys chased the Exide people and got me a fully sealed Exide "All Terrain" battery which is way better than the crappy 'Freedom' OE battery which was there earlier. Maybe I got lucky

When a Bridgestone on my Honda failed, I got a replacement only when I escalated it with Honda. No such luck with my other cars.

Regards
Sutripta

[azeemhafiz]

Sorry to hear about the incident, but glad that everyone was safe

Much has been said about the stock tires of Swift. I had a similar experience with my stock tires on the swift, but bear in mind the profile was different (165/80 R14) being a Vxi. After i repeatedly informed about the problem to my dealer, the blatantly blamed it on Maruti and asked me to upsize the tires. One even had the audacity to blame my driving style (That may have had some doing, i must admit).

After much thought, i upgraded the tires and alloys to 195/60 R 15 (Yoko's) and it has been so far the best money i have spend on the car so far.

[jaideepshinh]

@SS Traveller: although this shouldnt happen, i suggest you pay more attention to your tread wear indicators next time. As per your pics, your rubber has gone below the tread wear indicator point clearly; so theoritcally JK was already telling you to change your tyres... (Tread wear indicators are there on all tyres btw.)

[khoj]

Originally Posted by jaideepshinh

@SS Traveller: although this shouldnt happen, i suggest you pay more attention to your tread wear indicators next time.

Guys before you jump on the wagon and start flaming SS-Traveller do spend some more time on the forum. This will help you realize that SS-T is not only an experienced driver, an avid highway cruncher but also an automotive guru in his own right. His experience about all things automotive is far richer and all encompassing than a majority of us cannot even begin to think of leave aside trying to fathom.

So make an effort to know your fellow memeber first before posting statements that are like Sooraj ko diya dikhana.

[RGK]

@sstraveller - Very fortunate that these thing did not happen during highway driving.

1. They tyres are old enough to be replaced even they had some of treads to be driven
2. But at any cost the tread should not come out in this manner - showing the quality of the manufacturing.

I had the JK's driven around 50k kms bought around 2nd week of Oct2001 in my maruti and it was doing well at the time of selling - Dec 09. One bridgestone dealer insisted that it has to be replaced even though it has some amount of life in it.
He also said the Indian manufacturers concentrate more on tyre mileage rather than quality of the rubber and also they are hard. I told my buyer to change the tires.

Generally OEM JK's are good for nothing - Eg: Swift's & Logans.
My friend waited his Logan to complete 50k and immediately switched on to Michellin and he says " now I understand how tires should be".

OT: Heard in Chennai and other places of Tamilnadu there is shortage of tires in the market. Manufacturers concentrate to supply to OEM and not to retail market.

[souravc]

Originally Posted by SS-Traveller

Last evening, the rear right tyre on my Swift ZXi came apart in a weird fashion. It's a JK Vectra 185/70R14 tubeless tyre. No deflation, but the tread peeled off from the casing @60 km/h(and damaged the rear bumper and mudguard core somewhat). It's run 51k km (in 4 years & 10 months), but still had sufficient tread left to allow me to change in the next few weeks. Take a look.

I've seen similar peeling off in retreaded tyres, but this is the first time I've noticed the same in an OE tyre.

I had a very similar experience a year back with my Swift Zxi's JK Tyre OEM tubeless..it had done 40-41K over a period 3 years and the rear left tyre burst while I was doing around 40 kmph . When I had a look at the tyre , there was clear indication of shearing , the fibres peeling off - very scary !

[bj96]

Similar experience with JK on my WagonR too. The tire was kept as spare, still it managed to disintegrate itself. Details in this post http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/1945992-post32.html

[sen2009]

All technical discussions apart, this is just Genuine Team-Bhp stuff!
You have seriously peeled off the rubber off the tyre.
Sole ukhar gaya bhichari swift ka!

[fuel_addict]

I'm shocked to see the way the tyre has got ripped off. Glad that no one was hurt and the damage to the car is under control.

I own a Swift ZXi that is also 4.5 years old and runs on the stock 185/70/R14 JK tyres. Have covered only 24K km though. This incident makes me a bit uncomfortable. One of my 5 tyres has already been replaced by a tube as multiple punctures rendered it un-repairable. That tyre is now the spare tyre.

While JK tyres have never had a good reputation, this kind of failure is unacceptable. Maruti might never learn from their mistakes. Its best to change the stock tyres when you buy any Maruti car. On the brighter side, the fact that the tyre lasted 51K km is creditable. I have seen some tyres go bad within 30K km too.

[petroguzzler]

On the brighter side, SS, your tire after peeling off looks like F1 Racing tires without grooves.

[carboy]

Originally Posted by fuel_addict

While JK tyres have never had a good reputation, this kind of failure is unacceptable. Maruti might never learn from their mistakes.

Not agreeing or disagreeing about JK quality, but repution wise, they seem to be doing well.
J.D.Power and Associates - Press Release

So, I am not sure how or what Maruti should learn?