Which Tires Can I Still Use?

**jut703** · February 27th, 2012 02:20 PM

The C.Drive also has a more sophisticated tire groove pattern, which is rather similar to the Dunlop Sport 01 which our Altis came with:

C.Drive

Sport 01

The A.Drive on the other hand has a simpler 3-groove design:

Which is more like the LM703 (which I really wouldn't wanna try again if I had the choice, given its poor showing in terms of quality):

**jut703** · February 28th, 2012 11:06 AM

Oh yeah, back to my original question, which of these tires are still safe to be used?

Originally Posted by jut703

I have 3 out of 5 tires for our Altis which seemingly have defects, but I need to know which two I can still use until I get my tires replaced.

Here's the first tire, a Dunlop Sport 01 (205/55 R16), currently my spare tire. It was punctured twice on its sidewall, and it seems to have developed a bump:

Here's the second tire, also a Dunlop Sport 01, which by the way are the stock tires the car came with. There's seemingly a tear on the sidewall:

The third tire is new, less than a month old, a Dunlop LM703. Less than a week with the tire, it developed a large bump on the sidewall. More recently, the bump started developing tiny cracks:

I'm going to try and get the LM703 replaced under warranty, as it's practically new. I doubt that the Sport 01's will get replaced as well though, what do you guys think? My guess is that Toyota will just say it's wear and tear. The car's 2 years old by the way, and has around 35000 km on the clock.

Lastly, if I really do have to get all 3 tires replaced, what other brands do you suggest? I'm thinking of getting the tires not from the dealer anymore, as the pair of LM703's I recently got totaled over 12k, with wheel balancing included.

I've heard that the Kumho Ecsta is rather decent, how much would those tires cost in 205/55 R16 form?

Thanks guys.

**vinj** · February 28th, 2012 11:19 AM

To answer your question: None

On what to get, the A-Drives come as standard on the Civic with 16" tires and feedback is generally good.

**mda_** · February 28th, 2012 11:43 AM

Originally Posted by vinj

To answer your question: None

On what to get, the A-Drives come as standard on the Civic with 16" tires and feedback is generally good.

the A drives are pretty good. much better than any dunlop LM series. these came stock with the civic FD (1.8S) and ours are still pretty decent even after 4 years and over 40,000 KMs.

the kumhos are okay as well, i think these are stock on the newer hyundais. haven't used them for a long time though (over a year old pa lang on our hyundai).

Only good experience i had with dunlops are with the LeMans RV (RV501) way back in our old CRV. the LM (701, 702 and 703) all gave me headaches (experienced a sliding tail, pothole blowout, and numerous bubbles on the side walls)

**lowslowbenz** · February 28th, 2012 01:02 PM

Where have you been driving?

**jut703** · February 28th, 2012 01:53 PM

The A.Drives seem to have generally positive feedback. Any comments on the fact that it's locally-made? I've got a friend who has a Civic 1.8S, he opted for a set of Ecstas over A.Drives because he says that the locally-made A.Drives are more prone to blowouts. These are at about 5k a piece, yes?

Also, how does the A.Drive compare to the Dunlop SP Sport 01?
And, what about the A.Drive versus the Ecsta SPT?

**jut703** · February 28th, 2012 01:55 PM

Originally Posted by lowslowbenz

Where have you been driving?

Personally, I just use it when strutting about the metro, as well as the occasional highway/provincial back-road run. The punctures were all incurred with my mother behind the wheel, mostly through hitting the gutter, such as in parking lots.

**jut703** · March 1st, 2012 08:38 PM

I've just contacted DKC for pricing of the following tires, all 205/55 R16:

Kumho Ecsta SPT - 4.1k
Dunlop SP Sport LM703 - 4.3k
Yokohama A.Drive - 4.9k
Bridgestone Turanza ER300 - ~6k (no stock, pending price increase)
Dunlop SP Sport 01 - 6.8k
Yokohama C.Drive - no price, no stock, per order basis

I guess I'll be going with the Kumhos then.

**mda** · March 1st, 2012 08:46 PM

Been reading reviews and forum feedback of the LM703, grip isn't great either.

The Ecstas seems like a good choice at this point.

**jut703** · March 18th, 2012 03:00 PM

Just to update, I've finally gotten a pair of Kumho Ecsta SPTs. Got them at DKC for 4.1k a pop.

Right now, I'm running a weird combination of tires - Dunlop LM703 on the front/left side with about 1000 km on it (still pretty fresh, about a month old), Dunlop SP Sport 01 on the front/right side (came with the car, about 50-70% tread life), and the Ecstas at the rear.

I'm just waiting for the replacement of my other LM703 which had a bump on the sidewall, and this would replace the front/right SP Sport 01 which will be relegated to spare-tire duties as it's almost a 3-year old tire.