Wilsons Sandbox

 Hi fellow klr650 riders ! I know that many of you appreciate the Avon Gripster tires and I do as well for their good performance on dual purposes bikes. I bought a set of them in spring 2014 that developped severe sidewall cracks within a year. I noticed those cracks in the middle of this summer and obviously there was no way I could continue to ride safely with those. So, being satisfied with their performance, I ordered another set of the same, believing that Avon was a responsible company who would honor the warranty (http://www.avonmoto.com/warranty/standard-warranty). I know, I am naive. As a matter of fact, it has been over two months without a sign of life from Avon or its distributor in Canada PartsCanada. I bought the tires at A Vicous Cycle who opened the claim at Parts Canada, but apparently they cannot get more information than myself on this issue. Be warned if you buy Avon tires and expect them to respect their warranty you might be in for a big deception. I just hope that the second set will last a little bit longer. Oh, by the way I know about tire dry rot, and I took proper care of the tires during the short time that I had them. And even though they were stored in a cold shed during winter, there is no f***g way that they could be cracked that bad after a year. I had several other motorcycle tires stored the same way at the same place that did not develop this problem. It definitely has to do with the rubber quality (or absence of) of those two specific tires. Take a look at the pictures and judge for yourself. https://goo.gl/photos/mswk2Tq8GMqMQA3p6 I know this will not solve my warranty issue but at least it reduces my frustration by sharing my experience with other people who might get in the same situation. Salutations, JL

I know there are serial numbers on US car tires that tell you the date of manufacture.  Any numbers on bike tires?   While I cannot see your pictures, I suspect these tires were new old (very) old stock from a tire distributor.  When buying something perishable like tires, I try to buy from a high volume source to get fresh stuff.   Jeff     -----Original Message----- From: jocelynlabreche@... [DSN_KLR650] DSN_KLR650@yahoogroups.com> To: DSN_KLR650 DSN_KLR650@yahoogroups.com> Sent: Mon, Sep 28, 2015 4:54 pm Subject: [DSN_KLR650] Beware of Avon tires warranty     Hi fellow klr650 riders ! I know that many of you appreciate the Avon Gripster tires and I do as well for their good performance on dual purposes bikes. I bought a set of them in spring 2014 that developped severe sidewall cracks within a year. I noticed those cracks in the middle of this summer and obviously there was no way I could continue to ride safely with those. So, being satisfied with their performance, I ordered another set of the same, believing that Avon was a responsible company who would honor the warranty (http://www.avonmoto.com/warranty/standard-warranty). I know, I am naive. As a matter of fact, it has been over two months without a sign of life from Avon or its distributor in Canada PartsCanada. I bought the tires at A Vicous Cycle who opened the claim at Parts Canada, but apparently they cannot get more information than myself on this issue. Be warned if you buy Avon tires and expect them to respect their warranty you might be in for a big deception. I just hope that the second set will last a little bit longer. Oh, by the way I know about tire dry rot, and I took proper care of the tires during the short time that I had them. And even though they were stored in a cold shed during winter, there is no f***g way that they could be cracked that bad after a year. I had several other motorcycle tires stored the same way at the same place that did not develop this problem. It definitely has to do with the rubber quality (or absence of) of those two specific tires. Take a look at the pictures and judge for yourself. https://goo.gl/photos/mswk2Tq8GMqMQA3p6 I know this will not solve my warranty issue but at least it reduces my frustration by sharing my experience with other people who might get in the same situation. 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For those who cannot see the pictures in Google+, I created an album in Yahoo right here : https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/DSN_KLR650/photos/albums/1531153532  

Just to offer a small bit of anecdotal support to the OP I purchased a 2006 KLR with original tires a few months ago. Had only 2400 miles on the bike and tires. 9-10 year old tires and showing NO signs of cracking!  Sent via my Samsung Galaxy Note 4 smartphone -------- Original message -------- From: "jocelynlabreche@... [DSN_KLR650]" DSN_KLR650@yahoogroups.com> Date: 09/29/2015 5:14 AM (GMT-06:00) To: DSN_KLR650@yahoogroups.com Subject: Re: [DSN_KLR650] Beware of Avon tires warranty   Hi, Good point. I checked that, and the front one had been manufactured in 2013 and the rear on in 2012, so they were "fresh" enough to last at least a year without developping severe dry rot, supposedly... JL

Tires can crack for lots of reasons.  Age, improper storage, non-use and owner neglect.  The rubber in tires is effected by ozone and this will cause cracking.  Ozone is naturally occurring and is also produced by electric motors or anything else that makes a spark.  Engine exhausts also produce ozone.  So if you stored these tires where there were any motors running (freezers, air compressors etc) this may be the cause of your tire issues.  A tire that is not used will crack sooner than a tire that is being used regularly.  UV and chemicals can also cause cracking.   If you have a problem with a tire you bought from a dealer, this would be the first place to start any satisfaction for you.  You will need a few things before talking with the dealer.  You ll need your sales receipt (unless you are on friendly terms with your dealer) you will also need the make & model of the tire and the manufacture s  date code.  This is a four digit number right after the DOT code.  The first two digits would be the week of manufacture and the last two digits are the year.  So if you had a number of 2813, this would mean your tire was made on the 28th week of the year 2013.  Tiers can set in a warehouse for a long time sometimes before being sold.  If they were ever stored improperly during this time this too could be a cause of early cracking.   If your dealer can t or won t help you, then you need to take all this information to the distributor.  I d suspect they will tell you to deal with the dealer.  If all this fails then you need to contact the manufacturer or contact a lawyer.  Tire cracking can be hard to prove who is at fault so winning in a small claims action might be difficult.  The dealer is there to help you and you may need to contact them several times but keep after them.   Good luck and let us know what you find out. Fred http://www.arrowheadmotorsports.com     [b]From:[/b] DSN_KLR650@yahoogroups.com [b]Sent:[/b] Monday, September 28, 2015 5:54 PM [b]To:[/b] DSN_KLR650@yahoogroups.com [b]Subject:[/b] [DSN_KLR650] Beware of Avon tires warranty       Hi fellow klr650 riders ! I know that many of you appreciate the Avon Gripster tires and I do as well for their good performance on dual purposes bikes. I bought a set of them in spring 2014 that developped severe sidewall cracks within a year. I noticed those cracks in the middle of this summer and obviously there was no way I could continue to ride safely with those. So, being satisfied with their performance, I ordered another set of the same, believing that Avon was a responsible company who would honor the warranty (http://www.avonmoto.com/warranty/standard-warranty). I know, I am naive. As a matter of fact, it has been over two months without a sign of life from Avon or its distributor in Canada PartsCanada. I bought the tires at A Vicous Cycle who opened the claim at Parts Canada, but apparently they cannot get more information than myself on this issue. Be warned if you buy Avon tires and expect them to respect their warranty you might be in for a big deception. I just hope that the second set will last a little bit longer. Oh, by the way I know about tire dry rot, and I took proper care of the tires during the short time that I had them. And even though they were stored in a cold shed during winter, there is no f***g way that they could be cracked that bad after a year. I had several other motorcycle tires stored the same way at the same place that did not develop this problem. It definitely has to do with the rubber quality (or absence of) of those two specific tires. Take a look at the pictures and judge for yourself. https://goo.gl/photos/mswk2Tq8GMqMQA3p6 I know this will not solve my warranty issue but at least it reduces my frustration by sharing my experience with other people who might get in the same situation. Salutations, JL

I agree with all your points, which are very good by the way. However, in my case there was no chemicals, nor ozone, nor electric motors in the area where my tires were stored. I don't abuse or neglect my tires or the bike in general. Maybe storing the bike in a cold shed is not the best place but I had not much space available in my living room I did exactly as you say, first go to the dealer, then try the distributor (through the dealer) and even the head office. And I keep on following up with the dealer every second week but they don't seem to have more leverage than I do in this issue. Anyways, I really don't expect much from that claim, it is more a matter of principle than anything else. I sincerely do no think that it is acceptable (whatever the use of the tires) that they could get is such a bad shape after a single year of use. Thanks, JL