Potenza G3 Review - With Final update....

tsk1979 · 12th April 2005, 15:30

Hi guys,
I recently put a potenza GIII on my Indica DLS around 6K back and been through some pretty windy roads and high speeds. The tyres are 185/60R13 tubeless and directional.
Here's my take.
Ride quality:
Blows the ZVTS completely. Potholes are better damped and that jar is missing. And my rims are much happier. No more bending rims in small potholes(A typical Tata Indica/go problem). Many bangalore roads are stones mixed with mud. So no more teeth chattering drives. The damping has me impressed, though i have heard that goodyear is even better. this is with maintaining 32f and 30r pressure, Tata recommends 30 load and 28 no load. Steering feels bit heavier though(Its mecahnical Power steering in DLS).
FE:
Minor drop i feel. I am getting 13.8 instead of 14, or is it that my driving has become more hooliganish? I guess no change would be more appropiate here
Performance:
Herein lies the difference. No more sideways slides. Routes where tyres were screeching and car sliding, now all i feel is extra bodyroll with the tyres firmly holding there own. They outperform the car. On wet roads its like a dream. Aquaplaning is rare. At high speeds the car feels more planted. Great confidence booster

.

Overall a great tyre, but then nothing is perfect. The breaking is same, if not worse than my semi worn out ZVTS. As long as you manage to not lock the wheel its fine. But once the skid starts seems you are on ice. They dont smoke, dont leave deep skid marks. They just start sliding, and this is on hard tarmac. ZVTS even in a skid would slow down the car quite a bit, but would smoke a lot and would leave large patches of rubber. I guess Bridgestone went on a rubber saving spree. And this has happened not once but thrice. The air pressure i used to maintain with the ZVTS is the same. I think straight line grip needs to improve, or softer rubber needs to be put, but maybe that will lessen the life.

To sum it up

Pros:

Great ride
Great cornering
wet performance
stability
Tubeless

Cons:

Straight line breaking
Tubeless
Directional

Edit : 30,000kms

these tyres continue to amaze me. the only problem faced so far is one leaky valve, but then its nothing to do with tyres.
No punctures, no bursts and I get great FE too.
The tread depth is still quite a it as compared to original. I follow the practice of rotating tyres and getting balancing alignment done every 10000kms.
Another thing I have noticed is fewer bent rims. Though they are 60 profile, the overall height of sidewall is similar to 165/65 and I guess increased footprint affords better cushioning.
Indica is no sports car, so going for 205/55 etc., is a waste. I think this is the best upsize for the indica, neither too skinny nor extra wide to harm the performance/FE or foul up the suspension.

speedsatya · 12th April 2005, 15:40

Quote:

Originally Posted by tsk1979

Hi guys,
I

.

Overall a great tyre, but then nothing is perfect. The breaking is same, if not worse than my semi worn out ZVTS. As long as you manage to not lock the wheel its fine. But once the skid starts seems you are on ice. They dont smoke, dont leave deep skid marks. They just start sliding, and this is on hard tarmac. ZVTS even in a skid would slow down the car quite a bit, but would smoke a lot and would leave large patches of rubber. I guess Bridgestone went on a rubber saving spree. And this has happened not once but thrice. The air pressure i used to maintain with the ZVTS is the same. ITo sum it up

]

tsssk tssssk,

surprising to see you say that the braking has not improved.
actually in my car with 165/60r13 gIII,the braking ,the cornering ...everything has improved.its has just changed the dynamics of my car.now i am able to take corners at greater speeds.
and you can really feel it.

no matter how hard i brake,the car just refuses to skid or losse traction.
also the understeer that was so much evident with the ***** 155/65r13 goodyear gt3 is almost non existent.

Quote:

think straight line grip needs to improve, or softer rubber needs to be put, but maybe that will lessen the life.

GIII already has a very soft compound.also has a lesser service life than regular tires.

i am more than happy with my tires.i dont think there is anything to complain about except its price,

Quote:

Pros:
Great ride
Great cornering
wet performance
stability
TubelessCons:
Straight line breaking
Tubeless
Directional

What do you mean by "tubeless" in both pros and cons???????

aveek · 12th April 2005, 15:42

Hey, I got GIIIs as well... same specs, put 'em on my OHC, and yeah, have pretty much the same take on them. Except the skids - haven't got any yet... will lock up on an open, free road one of these days and see what happens...

One thing though: you put Tubeless in BOTH, PRO and CONS... what the...?!!

Shan2nu · 12th April 2005, 16:23

Quote:

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hey, I got GIIIs as well... same specs, put 'em on my OHC, and yeah, have pretty much the same take on them. Except the skids - haven't got any yet...

Yup, no major skids here. I just heard one chirp when i broke from 150-60kmph.

I think the problem is the mass and weight of the Indica. Satya has a Zen, Aveek has a City 1.5 (?) and i have a City Vtec. And all off them are considerably lighter than the Indica.

The Citys have a larger wheel base and track so weight is better distributed under hard braking. So, it's no surprise that the GIIIs aren't helping the Indica break like they do on our cars.

Shan2nu

tsk1979 · 12th April 2005, 16:24

Quote:

Originally Posted by speedsatya

no matter how hard i brake,the car just refuses to skid or losse traction.
also the understeer that was so much evident with the ***** 155/65r13 goodyear gt3 is almost non existent.

Maybe then ZVTS is better than Goodyear and as good as Potenza in straight line braking!

Quote:

Originally Posted by speedsatya

What do you mean by "tubeless" in both pros and cons???????

Tubeless is a pro because of safety, performance etc., etc., and it is a con because if you suffer a puncture on a lonely highway, or even a national highway, its impossible to locate a tubeless repair shop. Maybe the Innova will change that?

speedsatya · 12th April 2005, 16:32

but i have seen people driving with nail on their tubeless tires.all you have to do is simply fill air at more regular intervals.

the only con i feel about a tubeless tire is that you may not notice a puncture immediately

aveek · 12th April 2005, 16:36

Quote:

Originally Posted by tsk1979

its impossible to locate a tubeless repair shop. Maybe the Innova will change that?

Well, what I have done is that I have kept my stepney stock, and have kept a spare tube as well, just in case of multiple breakdowns. I got this instant inflata-thingamalajig that dad got from god-alone-knows-where, so i use that....

I didn't get the Innova thing tho... do pardon my ignorance and inform me of this revolution(?)...

Quote:

Aveek has a City 1.5 (?)

Yeah...

tsk1979 · 12th April 2005, 16:46

Quote:

Originally Posted by aveek

I didn't get the Innova thing tho... do pardon my ignorance and inform me of this revolution(?)...
Yeah...

Innova has tubeless tyres in some trims. So if number of innovas go as high as toyota believes you will see a lot more tubeless cars on roads. Demand will lead to tubeless repair shops cropping up in towns and highways too

Shan2nu · 12th April 2005, 16:51

Quote:

Innova has tubeless tyres in some trims.

NHC also comes with tubeless. So, the evolution has already started. At 2000+ cars a month, they'd better have enuf repair shops.

Shan2nu

Shan2nu

speedsatya · 12th April 2005, 16:57

newer qualis 's ,all Volvo's have been running on tubeless tires since the last one year .

jesal · 22nd April 2005, 15:33

Quote:

Originally Posted by speedsatya

newer qualis 's ,all Volvo's have been running on tubeless tires since the last one year .

not really the FS model and lower have tube tyres with 175 size. i have the GS and it came with 195 tubeless Bridgestone potenzas

Revvhead · 5th May 2005, 19:46

Well, the puncture on a tubeless will show once you stop and rest for a bit.
as far as highway driving goes, i made sure all 5 tyres were there, so even if i did have a puncture!!!! -
and for emergencies- i.e two back toi back punctures with no repair!!!, I kept one tube from my previous tubed tyre
in the back, if you cant repair the tubeless, then put in the tube, inflate and dont drive like a maniac & you will get where you are going to

nitinbhag · 5th May 2005, 19:59

When I got my Goodyear NCTs some days back, the dealer sold me a tubeless puncture repair kit for 750 Rs.. Have doubts on the self-usability of this after watching the tyre shop guys fix a tubeless puncture. Do Tbhpians have any experience of this?

simran · 5th May 2005, 20:29

I got my tubeless repair kit for Rs. 250. wonder why he charged you that extra 500.

And the fixing of the puncture is discussed in another thread that goes by the title of 'tubeless tyres'. Search for 'tubeless' and you should be able to locate it.

lamborghini · 9th May 2005, 16:14

Hey Tsk,
really good review.
Planning to go for these in a couple of months once our corolla/accords tyres wear out.
Mods, shouldn't this be in the T-BHP accessory review section?

12th April 2005, 15:30	#1
tsk1979 Team-BHP Support Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: San Jose, CA Posts: 23,727 Thanked: 23,112 Times View My Garage	Potenza G3 Review - With Final update.... Hi guys, I recently put a potenza GIII on my Indica DLS around 6K back and been through some pretty windy roads and high speeds. The tyres are 185/60R13 tubeless and directional. Here's my take. Ride quality: Blows the ZVTS completely. Potholes are better damped and that jar is missing. And my rims are much happier. No more bending rims in small potholes(A typical Tata Indica/go problem). Many bangalore roads are stones mixed with mud. So no more teeth chattering drives. The damping has me impressed, though i have heard that goodyear is even better. this is with maintaining 32f and 30r pressure, Tata recommends 30 load and 28 no load. Steering feels bit heavier though(Its mecahnical Power steering in DLS). FE: Minor drop i feel. I am getting 13.8 instead of 14, or is it that my driving has become more hooliganish? I guess no change would be more appropiate here Performance: Herein lies the difference. No more sideways slides. Routes where tyres were screeching and car sliding, now all i feel is extra bodyroll with the tyres firmly holding there own. They outperform the car. On wet roads its like a dream. Aquaplaning is rare. At high speeds the car feels more planted. Great confidence booster . Overall a great tyre, but then nothing is perfect. The breaking is same, if not worse than my semi worn out ZVTS. As long as you manage to not lock the wheel its fine. But once the skid starts seems you are on ice. They dont smoke, dont leave deep skid marks. They just start sliding, and this is on hard tarmac. ZVTS even in a skid would slow down the car quite a bit, but would smoke a lot and would leave large patches of rubber. I guess Bridgestone went on a rubber saving spree. And this has happened not once but thrice. The air pressure i used to maintain with the ZVTS is the same. I think straight line grip needs to improve, or softer rubber needs to be put, but maybe that will lessen the life. To sum it up Pros: Great ride Great cornering wet performance stability Tubeless Cons: Straight line breaking Tubeless Directional Edit : 30,000kms these tyres continue to amaze me. the only problem faced so far is one leaky valve, but then its nothing to do with tyres. No punctures, no bursts and I get great FE too. The tread depth is still quite a it as compared to original. I follow the practice of rotating tyres and getting balancing alignment done every 10000kms. Another thing I have noticed is fewer bent rims. Though they are 60 profile, the overall height of sidewall is similar to 165/65 and I guess increased footprint affords better cushioning. Indica is no sports car, so going for 205/55 etc., is a waste. I think this is the best upsize for the indica, neither too skinny nor extra wide to harm the performance/FE or foul up the suspension. Last edited by tsk1979 : 8th September 2006 at 13:23.
	(1) Thanks

12th April 2005, 15:42	#3
aveek BHPian Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: Bangalore Posts: 294 Thanked: 2 Times	Hey, I got GIIIs as well... same specs, put 'em on my OHC, and yeah, have pretty much the same take on them. Except the skids - haven't got any yet... will lock up on an open, free road one of these days and see what happens... One thing though: you put Tubeless in BOTH, PRO and CONS... what the...?!!
	() Thanks

12th April 2005, 16:32	#6
speedsatya Senior - BHPian Join Date: May 2004 Location: bangalore/manga Posts: 3,169 Thanked: 738 Times View My Garage	but i have seen people driving with nail on their tubeless tires.all you have to do is simply fill air at more regular intervals. the only con i feel about a tubeless tire is that you may not notice a puncture immediately
	() Thanks

12th April 2005, 16:57	#10
speedsatya Senior - BHPian Join Date: May 2004 Location: bangalore/manga Posts: 3,169 Thanked: 738 Times View My Garage	newer qualis 's ,all Volvo's have been running on tubeless tires since the last one year .
	() Thanks

5th May 2005, 19:46	#12
Revvhead BHPian Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Bombay Posts: 450 Thanked: 21 Times View My Garage	Well, the puncture on a tubeless will show once you stop and rest for a bit. as far as highway driving goes, i made sure all 5 tyres were there, so even if i did have a puncture!!!! - and for emergencies- i.e two back toi back punctures with no repair!!!, I kept one tube from my previous tubed tyre in the back, if you cant repair the tubeless, then put in the tube, inflate and dont drive like a maniac & you will get where you are going to
	() Thanks

5th May 2005, 19:59	#13
nitinbhag BHPian Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Singapore Posts: 262 Thanked: 2 Times	When I got my Goodyear NCTs some days back, the dealer sold me a tubeless puncture repair kit for 750 Rs.. Have doubts on the self-usability of this after watching the tyre shop guys fix a tubeless puncture. Do Tbhpians have any experience of this?
	() Thanks

5th May 2005, 20:29	#14
simran BHPian Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Gurgaon Posts: 171 Thanked: 13 Times View My Garage	I got my tubeless repair kit for Rs. 250. wonder why he charged you that extra 500. And the fixing of the puncture is discussed in another thread that goes by the title of 'tubeless tyres'. Search for 'tubeless' and you should be able to locate it.
	() Thanks

9th May 2005, 16:14	#15
lamborghini Distinguished - BHPian Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Mumbai Posts: 6,144 Thanked: 5,864 Times View My Garage	Hey Tsk, really good review. Planning to go for these in a couple of months once our corolla/accords tyres wear out. Mods, shouldn't this be in the T-BHP accessory review section?
	() Thanks