re: Maruti Suzuki Swift : Tyre & wheel upgrade thread Quote:
Originally Posted by MutantX guys, i am extremely confused. I would be taking delivery of my all new swift this week. I plan to change the OE - MRF ZV2K (165 80 R14) to 185 70 R14 or 195 60 R15 (upsize). Been to a few dealers, 3 our of 5 don't recommend Yokohama A drive since one says tyres are prone to pulling to one side and the other says extreme tyre noise. Many seem to recommend Michelin & Goodyear (GP3 or mileage max). The doubts I have are as follows:
1. Michelin are atleast 20% more expensive than other brands. But does michelin do a good job of keeping the road noise to the minimum. Do michelin offer good road grip and enhance ride quality when compared to Yokos or Goodyear?
2. Are Yokos prone to pulling to one side and are they really noisy?
3. How good is MRF ZLO - One dealer says they are the best performance tyre available at the market at present? kinda confusing!
4. Are pirelli tyres made of soft compound rubber? will they suite indian road conditions?
5. If I upsize to R15, will the FE drop? I am asking this because SWIFT Zxi has R15. I hope you understand my concern. |
How on earth will a tyre pull to one side? What happens when you do rotate your tyres.... will they now pull to the other side? It's amazing, the sheer BS some of these people come up with.
I've had Yoko A-drives on my Swift for 3 years, and done 43,000 km in them. They've got very good grip... I've never had a tankslapper despite frequent spirited driving (even more so now after getting the piggyback ECU chip) and have never had extended skating sessions when I've stood on the brakes. The FE never dropped either... I've somehow always managed 16kpl on my VDI since day one. You havent mentioned whether you're getting a diesel or petrol but the tyre upsize will not really drop your FE more than a couple of tenths, if at all.
Michelins are more expensive... I've had a friend who blindly followed the advice of his dealer and bought (much more expensive) Michelins and his car is no quieter or grippier than mine. We're both running 195/60/R15s.
I have a personal bias against MRFs from disappointing past experiences and I haven't used them in 5 years on any of my cars, so I'd be ill-equipped to comment on them.
In short, they're tough, they're hassle-free, they offer great grip, and they last long if you maintain your tyre pressures well and do your rotation/aligment/balancing every 4-6 months.*
I would recommend blindly getting the A-drives. You won't regret it.
Last edited by ghostrider : 8th November 2011 at 13:36.
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