Radial Tyres - Pros & Cons

mithun · 25th January 2006, 20:00

Can someone throw some light about the Pros & Cons of Radial Tyres ?I've heard that Radial Tyres are not suitable for very bad roads or Off-Roading. is it true ?

nitrous · 27th January 2006, 01:57

There are no cons for radial tyres. They are new technology. They provide better grip, better ride comfort, better puncture resistance,etc..

Whoever told u that radials are not good for bad roads are not educated and i suggest u stay away from their advice.My 'in-house' driver/mech tells me that radials are bad for my sumo stating they eat up my suspension.Thats a heap of bu11.

Tubeless radials are newer technology.They are safer than 'tube-type' radials.

Rehaan · 30th January 2006, 04:35

Quote:

Originally Posted by nitrous

My 'in-house' driver/mech tells me that radials are bad for my sumo stating they eat up my suspension.

More like the suspension eats up the radials in the sumo's case!!! Its a common problem, strange uneven (kinda jagged) wear.

Mithun,
Radials are the way it is. Maybe back in 1991 you could still choose between your radial and 4 ply nylon(?), but now this is the only way it is!

cya
R

speedsatya · 30th January 2006, 13:08

the only con for people used to premier padmini tires is that radial tires cannot be retreaded

tsk1979 · 30th January 2006, 15:15

About the bad road thing its not completely true. A radial will survive almost all bad roads, except ruts. So if you drive on roads with sharp edges where you have to get offroad on the shoulder frequently, a radial will get damages soon, and stay away from tubeless as tubless sidewall punctures cannot be repaired reliably.
Also if you drive in a village where the road has "ruts" due to tractors and other heavy vehicles with high ground in center. radials will get their sidewalls screwed up more easily.
Other place where radials are not good(Atleast normal ones) is sand. There those classic jeep tyres the likes of which were seen in gypsy of old will do better, if you want radials go for offtoad ones if your driving condition is as mentioned above.
About ruts, look at this image
Link
These are deep ones, but you get the idea.

Beeman · 30th January 2006, 16:41

I might be wrong but more and more tyres seem to be radial tyres, i guess they seem to be becoming the industry norm. Just like tubeless tyres seem to be getting more common now days then before. And people used to say they are dangerous get punctured more often and other such stuff. I think we are generally resistant to change and adopting new tech .............what sa you ppl?

tsk1979 · 30th January 2006, 16:51

Unless you plan to drive in conditions I mentioned in my post above, go for tubeless.
More safety and reliability.

DRC · 30th January 2006, 17:20

Quote:

Originally Posted by nitrous

There are no cons for radial tyres. They are new technology. They provide better grip, better ride comfort, better puncture resistance,etc..

Whoever told u that radials are not good for bad roads are not educated and i suggest u stay away from their advice.My 'in-house' driver/mech tells me that radials are bad for my sumo stating they eat up my suspension.Thats a heap of bu11.

Tubeless radials are newer technology.They are safer than 'tube-type' radials.

I dunno why people talk like that... I heard one guy telling, Power steering is bad for busses.

Anyways.. But for the re-tread part, I don't see anything against the radials..

mithun · 31st January 2006, 04:26

What are the things to look upon when buying a new set of radials ?

Stratos · 31st January 2006, 06:17

Quote:

Originally Posted by mithun

What are the things to look upon when buying a new set of radials ?

Most importantly they should be tubeless. Get the ones, which are balanced on both comfort and grip.

Rudra Sen · 31st January 2006, 07:22

Quote:

Originally Posted by speedsatya

the only con for people used to premier padmini tires is that radial tires cannot be retreaded

ELGITREAD from Coimbatore does radial retreading. They're doing it for more than ten years.

Mpower · 31st January 2006, 08:08

Truck radials are retreaded at least 2 times before they are disposed. Car retreading is not very popular.

Rehaan · 31st January 2006, 11:01

Quote:

Originally Posted by mithun

What are the things to look upon when buying a new set of radials ?

Tell us what car you have..
Tell us what your budget is...
What your driving style is..
What kind of roads you drive on...
and what you want from a tyre the most (eg. high speed stability, comfort, braking, wet performance, insane grip levels, long life, etc)

cya
R

speedsatya · 31st January 2006, 11:08

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rudra Sen

ELGITREAD from Coimbatore does radial retreading. They're doing it for more than ten years.

i know that radials can be retreaded but are they safe to drive after that

Rudra Sen · 31st January 2006, 11:13

Quote:

Originally Posted by speedsatya

i know that radials can be retreaded but are they safe to drive after that

ELGITREAD claims 25000km after retreading. This was in the year 1993. You can check out their current claims through net....

I haven't done it because I do not go for retreading.

25th January 2006, 20:00	#1
mithun BANNED Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Cochin Posts: 2,195 Thanked: 268 Times	Radial Tyres - Pros & Cons Can someone throw some light about the Pros & Cons of Radial Tyres ?I've heard that Radial Tyres are not suitable for very bad roads or Off-Roading. is it true ?
	() Thanks

27th January 2006, 01:57	#2
nitrous Senior - BHPian Join Date: May 2004 Location: UAE/Lon/Madras Posts: 6,965 Thanked: 333 Times View My Garage	There are no cons for radial tyres. They are new technology. They provide better grip, better ride comfort, better puncture resistance,etc.. Whoever told u that radials are not good for bad roads are not educated and i suggest u stay away from their advice.My 'in-house' driver/mech tells me that radials are bad for my sumo stating they eat up my suspension.Thats a heap of bu11. Tubeless radials are newer technology.They are safer than 'tube-type' radials.
	() Thanks

30th January 2006, 13:08	#4
speedsatya Senior - BHPian Join Date: May 2004 Location: bangalore/manga Posts: 3,167 Thanked: 741 Times View My Garage	the only con for people used to premier padmini tires is that radial tires cannot be retreaded
	() Thanks

30th January 2006, 15:15	#5
tsk1979 Team-BHP Support Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: San Jose, CA Posts: 23,695 Thanked: 23,484 Times View My Garage	About the bad road thing its not completely true. A radial will survive almost all bad roads, except ruts. So if you drive on roads with sharp edges where you have to get offroad on the shoulder frequently, a radial will get damages soon, and stay away from tubeless as tubless sidewall punctures cannot be repaired reliably. Also if you drive in a village where the road has "ruts" due to tractors and other heavy vehicles with high ground in center. radials will get their sidewalls screwed up more easily. Other place where radials are not good(Atleast normal ones) is sand. There those classic jeep tyres the likes of which were seen in gypsy of old will do better, if you want radials go for offtoad ones if your driving condition is as mentioned above. About ruts, look at this image Link These are deep ones, but you get the idea. Last edited by Rehaan : 13th March 2020 at 10:58. Reason: Old post, but editing it to fix a small problem with mobile page formatting :)
	() Thanks

30th January 2006, 16:41	#6
Beeman BHPian Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Treasure island Posts: 335 Thanked: 2 Times	I might be wrong but more and more tyres seem to be radial tyres, i guess they seem to be becoming the industry norm. Just like tubeless tyres seem to be getting more common now days then before. And people used to say they are dangerous get punctured more often and other such stuff. I think we are generally resistant to change and adopting new tech .............what sa you ppl?
	() Thanks

30th January 2006, 16:51	#7
tsk1979 Team-BHP Support Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: San Jose, CA Posts: 23,695 Thanked: 23,484 Times View My Garage	Unless you plan to drive in conditions I mentioned in my post above, go for tubeless. More safety and reliability.
	() Thanks

31st January 2006, 04:26	#9
mithun BANNED Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Cochin Posts: 2,195 Thanked: 268 Times	What are the things to look upon when buying a new set of radials ? Last edited by Stratos : 31st January 2006 at 06:16.
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31st January 2006, 08:08	#12
Mpower Senior - BHPian Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Bangalore Posts: 10,399 Thanked: 1,735 Times View My Garage	Truck radials are retreaded at least 2 times before they are disposed. Car retreading is not very popular.
	() Thanks