So I bought some kumho v700s and had discount mount and balance them two weeks ago, they weren't done right after I specifically said "be precise". I finally get a chance to bring it back, he takes me out and shows me the tire is visually not round... I can see it. My question is will a pour balance take a good tire and make it bad out of round? Are these tires crap? I didn't do a ton of research but I've had kumhos before and they were great! Thought these were too!

Been a very frustrating day with discount tire! First they won't rebalance because I put a stud kit on the car, and after pulling them I get this! I've bought numerous tires from these guys over the years because they price match I turner pricing but man, I just do t trust them...

 

Their balance machine should have found any abnormality on the consistency of the the treadwear. Then they went ahead and still put them on your MINI? Can't blame the Kumho's until you can blame the shop. Sorry to hear about this... =(

 

Sounds like a defective tire, or a slipped belt. Simple fix...new tire.

 

If the tire is not round then it may be defective. How many miles on the tire? Who else drives the car besides you?

The only MINI that uses the Kumho V700 (R compound competition tire)
is the MINI GP2, in 215/40-17 which is not available at tirerack in that size.
Only 225/40-18 for $239 each in closeout at tirerack.com
Treadwear 50

They are not for street use and could flatspot easily if you make a hard stop. They would wear very fast and offer little grip if it rained and the tire was a little worn. That tire is meant for the track or autocrossing. You can run it on the street but it will be a waste of rubber.

Kumho makes many other good street tires.
In 215/40-17
Kumho Ecsta LE Sport (Max Summer tire)
$98 each, 280 treadwear, $50 Rebate offer on set

For 215/45-17 or 205/45-17
For street use-
Michelin Pilot Super Sport (Max Summer tire) $70 mastercard on set of 4 tires
205/45-17 $181 each, 300 treadwear
215/45-17 $144 each
Offers both comfort and handling
On a budget-
Continental ExtremeContact DW (Max Summer tire)
205/45-17 $101 each, 340 treadwear
215/45-17 $110 each, 340 treadwear
Offer more comfort
or
Bridgestone Potenza S-04 (Max Summer tire)
205/45-17 $109 each, 280 treadwear
215/45-17 $113 each
Offers more handling

 

Well if you got the warranty with them, you should be able to replace it with no issue. Doesn't seem like something to be upset about until you are not able to replace them.

 

Thanks for the info on the tires... I'm pretty familiar with the sticky compounds as I've run R compound tires a bunch for the track and autocross, and usually run azenis on my daily. I know they don't last but love them while they do, foolish? Maybe, but its all about the fun factor for me.

Anyhow, if anyone could help with my question it would be greatly appreciated as well. Can running a poorly balanced tire for a few hundred miles make it visibly out of round and screw up a good tire? Anybody have any daily experience with the ecsta whether a mcs or a GP?

Thanks in advance, I really appreciate everyone's time!

 

Anything can happen with an R compound tire. A poorly balanced tire can cause excessive wear but so can aggressive driving (cornering and braking).

The shop will deny that it is poorly balanced and you will claim that you did not drive in a way that would have worn out the tire to cause that problem.

If there is an obvious defect in the rubber or in the tire construction you can show that to the shop and claim a warranty issue.

One thing you can do is with the out of round tire, was it checked for being in balance? If it looked out of round and the shop checked for balance and it showed it was balanced then something is not right. Would another shop that checked the tire show it was in balance?

On the other hand if the tire was out of round and then checked for balance and was found to be quite out of balance then poor balancing or perhaps loss of some wheel weights while driving could have started the problem.

Read this-
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/in...0080352AA8a1nG

A good Hunter wheel balance machine can handle a tire that is manufactured out of round (it happens) but other balancing machines may be unable to do so.

On another note- using R compound tires on the street. While they are great tires for the dry they may not function well in the wet.

For nearly the same grip, longer treadlife, usually lower cost, I'd consider an Extreme Summer tire of which there are many to choose from for the MINI-
BFG g-Force Rival (new model)
Bridgestone Potenza RE-11A (newly redone model)
Dunlop Direzza ZII (newly redone model)
Hankook Ventus R-S3

Some of the Max Summer tires are also excellent for street use, you trade off some grip for longer treadlife, and better comfort.

 

Thank you so much for taking the time to type out such a reply, I REALLY APPRECIATE IT! This community is a joy to be a part of...