Which Tires Can I Still Use?

**jut703** · February 26th, 2012 09:27 PM

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.

**crazy_boy** · February 26th, 2012 09:34 PM

hindi kaya parati ka na-gutter?

**jut703** · February 26th, 2012 09:42 PM

I'm not the only user of the car. My mother has had quite a few incidents of hitting the gutter, hence the vulcanized patch on the first tire. Personally I've never hit the tires on anything, except probably a few potholes I was unable to avoid.

**mda** · February 26th, 2012 09:47 PM

Consider the Yokohama A.Drives

I've got a set as stock on our 09 FD, in your size (205/55/R16)

Relatively quiet and the price shouldn't be so bad. (~3k ea)

As to your original question, I wouldn't consider using those tires anymore. Punit and bump on the sidewall - no no.

Padala mo nalang kaya yung rim mismo sa shop?

If not, just drive sloooooooowly :O

**crazy_boy** · February 26th, 2012 09:53 PM

Originally Posted by mda

Consider the Yokohama A.Drives

I've got a set as stock on our 09 FD, in your size (205/55/R16)

Relatively quiet and the price shouldn't be so bad. (~3k ea)

As to your original question, I wouldn't consider using those tires anymore. Punit and bump on the sidewall - no no.

Padala mo nalang kaya yung rim mismo sa shop?

If not, just drive sloooooooowly :O

where do you get you A.drives? thats cheaper than the 185/65/14 i canvassed.

**jut703** · February 26th, 2012 09:55 PM

Consider the Yokohama A.Drives

I've got a set as stock on our 09 FD, in your size (205/55/R16)

Relatively quiet and the price shouldn't be so bad. (~3k ea)

I was looking a the A.Drives as well. How does it perform in terms of its grip levels? I'm having this (unsubstantiated) notion that the A.Drives are generally budget tires, having only 3 grooves. This has got me to consider the C.Drive, just because its marketed by Yokohama as better than the A.Drive. I haven't looked at its price though, but if its at the 3.5-4k range but provides better grip and is more reliable, I'd give it a go.

I'm concerned about the tires' performance because aside from city-cruising duties, I sometimes bring the car for a spirited drive at Tanay so I'd like the tires to be grippy and predictable, and during highway runs I want a tire that won't blow on me when running at around 150-200.

**vinj** · February 27th, 2012 09:30 AM

I checked with DKC a few months back and 205/55R16 A-drives was around P4.9K already.

**mda** · February 27th, 2012 10:36 AM

Originally Posted by jut703

I was looking a the A.Drives as well. How does it perform in terms of its grip levels? I'm having this (unsubstantiated) notion that the A.Drives are generally budget tires, having only 3 grooves. This has got me to consider the C.Drive, just because its marketed by Yokohama as better than the A.Drive. I haven't looked at its price though, but if its at the 3.5-4k range but provides better grip and is more reliable, I'd give it a go.

I'm concerned about the tires' performance because aside from city-cruising duties, I sometimes bring the car for a spirited drive at Tanay so I'd like the tires to be grippy and predictable, and during highway runs I want a tire that won't blow on me when running at around 150-200.

Well, I really haven't taken the car above 100 for sustained periods of time, nor have I gone at 100kph in the wet, so I can't comment on the grip.

With regards to the tire blowing on you, I'm pretty sure this will be down to the load/speed rating of the specific tire. I think the stock 91Vs will be good all the way to 200kph.

**jut703** · February 27th, 2012 11:29 AM

My Dunlop LM703s are also rated at 91V, so that means they're safe up until 240 KPH. However, tire blowouts happen way before that on poor quality tires, so I don't wanna blindly trust the tires' speed rating. Between the two though (Dunlop LM703 vs Yokohama A.Drive), which is the better tire?

Also, what are the other alternatives I should be looking at within the 4-5k price range? From what I've read, here are some notable models which I think I should be considering. Hopefully you guys could shed some light on how much these tires cost and how they perform:

Kumho Ecsta SPT
Goodyear Assurance
Yokohama C.Drive

And if there are other models that I should take a look at, please let me know.

**mda** · February 27th, 2012 11:57 AM

I always thought that the C Drives were lower end.

Apparently yung A Drive pala yung mas mababa(?) based on their product catalog/matrix
http://www.yokohama.com.au/img/matrix_passenger.gif

The 702s were known to slip in the wet. Not sure about the 703s.

Can't honestly comment on the other tires, never owned them eh.