Re: Indica gets the Apollo Acelere(EDIT: 2 new ones now!) my aging bridgestone S322's (tubed, 165/65 R14) in the indica turbo were replaced with Acelere's
The following were the competition
Bridgestone S322 tubed, 165/65 R14 @ 4600/tyre
The reason I liked the bridgestones were that they had suffered all the abuse i had thrown at them ( the rest of the car was not as durable - rim bends, broken intercooler brackets, broken wood panels for the speakers etc) but at 4.6k per tyre, for a tubed tyre, it was pure highway robbery, especially when considering the fact that....
MRF ZTX 165/65 R14 @3400/Tyre
it could do everything the S322 could, and was cheaper. I had almost finalized it when...
Michelin XM1+ 175/65 R14 @4500/tyre
Given the fact that they were cheaper than the bridgestones, but were generally recommended. But 4.5k for the tyre was a bit pricey. I was willing to experiment with tubeless and the so called magic carpet ride, but as i was buying 5 tyres, 23500 was a bit steep for my pocket, since my budget was 25k for 5 tyres and 3 rims. I decided i would give the dealer a last chance and offered to buy them for 4400 per rim. I said that i would rather take the 4050 that i had been quoted for the acelere which I had been offered elsewhere, when he offered
Apollo Acelere 175/65 R14 3900/Tyre
We shook hands and got the tyres immediately. Unfortunately couldnt get new rims, so drove around with tubes for a while. Got the new rims and re fitted them, and the difference is HUGE. I also had a minor suspension repair done, and comparing them to 5 year old S322's is hardly fair, but the ride quality and braking are much better, especially with more progressive stopping than the knife edge feel of the S322's
Took the car on a shakedown cruise, got one of the wheels punctured by a piece of wire, I'm sure which would not have dented the S322's. but they held their air , and i finally figured out when i got suspicious about the noise.
drove the car from bhubaneswar to tvm in around 34 hours at three digit speeds in the hot sun, and the tyres were flawless. they were subjected to moderate abuse, one of the new rims has a minor bend, but I had been dreading sidewall ruptures for a whole week, but thankfully none so far. I've been extremely satisfied, and yup, they're amazing VFM! |