[OneFastLotus]

As autocrossers I think we all heard the great white hype about the new kumho tire Ecsta 710 and how it was as good as a hoosier but lasted longer and was cheaper? It was just launched with MUCH hype and circumstance on January 1st 2004.


Well....the Ecsta 710 was recalled. Got this from kumho.



Kumho Tire’s priority is safety, and we are committed to supplying our customers with the highest quality and best performing tires that are available anywhere in the world. It is with this philosophy in mind that Kumho is taking immediate action in discontinuing the sale of the ECSTA V710 Racing Tire.

The V710 has won several races and set numerous track records since it was introduced into the market on January 1, 2004. Although we have not experienced any air loss failures with the ECSTA V710 Racing Tire, we have discovered some inconsistent test results relating to tread splice and tread area durability.

The sale of the ECSTA V710 Racing Tire will, therefore, be discontinued immediately, and tires in use in the market will be collected from consumers. Kumho will replace them with either the Kumho ECSTA V700 or Victoracer tire free of charge.

An investigation into the cause of the inconsistencies has been carried out and modifications to the product and production methods have been made to ensure these inconsistencies do not re-occur.

Consumers who have purchased the ECSTA V710 Racing Tire must call the dealer where the tires were purchased or the following toll free number to arrange for tire return and compensation:

1-800-445-8646 Extension 342

Consumers will be given the choice of a free replacement of the ECSTA V710 with either the ECSTA V700 or Victoracer. They will also be provided a voucher for a free set of the modified ECSTA V710 upon its arrival.

Kumho is sincerely committed to the quality of our products and the total satisfaction of our customers. We regret any inconvenience to our customers.

Got this from my local autocross region which inked a deal with our local tire suppplier "Ken Towery" and Kumho to give special prices on the new kumho this year. As a result a LOT of our local autocrossers just purchased new sets of these now recalled tires. From our regional RE,

Let me first start out by saying how impressed I am by the way that Kumho Tires and its distributors (Towery Motorsports included) have responded quickly, professionally and generously to the situation I am about to explain. As some of you may or may not yet know, there have been some tread separation issues with the new Kumho Ecsta V710 tires that have shown up in road racing situations, and to a lesser extent in autocross applications. Effective immediately, Kumho Tires has stop sale on all V710’s and had created a recall program to deal with the situation until the next batch of unaffected V710’s ship out.

I spoke with David Wilson of Towery Motorsports/Wholesale today on this matter and he is completely on board and gearing up for the following resolutions. Kumho is offering a choice of Victoracer V700 or Ecsta V700 tires to be provided free of charge to competitors now running V710’s. In addition, as soon as the corrected line of V710’s is ready to ship, a voucher will be provided for those as well. David and Russ at Towery Wholesale have already begun the process of getting in contact with all of their V710 customers to get their preference on Victoracers or Ecstas and are stocking up accordingly to ensure that competitors will not miss any events due to lack of tires. Mounting of these replacement tires will also be available at the Towery Wholesale site, provided that the wheels and tires be brought on site off of the vehicle (they have no facilities to lift and remove wheels/tires at the warehouse). If you are not contacted by anyone from Towery Motorsports regarding your V710 purchase in the next few days, feel free to contact Russ at 502-499-2600. Towery Motorsports is also offering exchanges for all Tire Rack customers on V710’s if it is more convenient.

Again, I want to stress how truly impressed I am with the timely manor in which this was taken care of, and in the lengths Kumho has already taken to make this right with their customers. The text of the official press release on the recall is included at the end of this message. Please note that you should contact the folks at Towery Wholesale directly at the number listed above to get the fastest, local service as well as to take advantage of the mounting offer.



So much for that.

 

[James A]

Jen
Is this a road race tire or autocross, or do they have both like Hoosier?

 

[Randy Chase]

Jen
Is this a road race tire or autocross, or do they have both like Hoosier?

It is used both for road racing and autocross. It had great reviews from users. Longer life and grip comparable to the more expensive/shorter life Hoosiers.

It is now illegal to use the new Kumhos for SCCA autocross or road racing.

 

[OneFastLotus]

It is used both for road racing and autocross. It had great reviews from users. Longer life and grip comparable to the more expensive/shorter life Hoosiers.

It is now illegal to use the new Kumhos for SCCA autocross or road racing.

Illegal? Do tell! I didnt know that.

I just thought they had been recalled of the manufacturers own volition.

EDIT< I assume this is because they've been now deemed a safety hazard.

 

[ConeFusion]

Illegal? Do tell!

It was announced yesterday:
http://www.scca.com/news/press04_57.html

 

[offroadr35]

so the bottom line is that they were as good as advertised but had some possible safety problems that were luckily never discovered in the real world?

Sounds like Kumho should be able to fix whatever the issue is and have these puppies back relatively soon. Maybe we'll be lucky and they'll take the time to work on some good Elise sizes instead of all the vette nonsense

 

[James A]

This is an interesting tire, all of the road race tires I have tried take a lot of heat to get them working so they were not very good for autocross. If this tire will stick in autocross and not overheat in road racing it is something! Is the intent of Kumho to fix the problems and reissue it?
I just received a copy of "Inside Track" from Tire Rack and the Ecsta 710 is featured prmanently! Mean looking tire, they talk a lot about road racing no mention of autocross. Are there any autocross results yet that would indicate that this will be as good at the Hoosier "A" tires in autocross?

 

[Randy Chase]

Early indications and results were that the new Kumho is very close to the Hoosier. Cheaper and longer life too.

The policy of Kumho to replace all existing tires with brand new Kumhos (other models) for now and then to send out a new set of brand new 710s when they get the problem fixed (shipping, shaving, etc on them) is very commendable.

 

[John Stimson]

The problem is with the consistency of the bond where the tread rubber is spliced together. It seems that all they have to do is work on the bonding technique, so I don't expect any changes to the construction or the compound. It will be the same great tire, just available a bit later than expected.

 

[DCNSX]

so- No-one has heard of any incidents/accidents that caused this recall? That's great news the way Kumho handled it. I have Kumhos on my '94 Rx-7 and like them for street use.

 

[sonza68]

Looks like the V710 is back.

 

[thegit]

Looks like the V710 is back.

but still moot for SCCA.
m

 

[John Stimson]

They have been reinstated by the SCCA Board of Directors, and the Solo Events Board already ruled that they are legal in the Stock and Street Prepared categories for the remainder of this season.

The replacement tires are on their way to customers now.

That doesn't seem moot to me. In fact, it's very un-moot, because I now have competitors who not only will have V710s, they also still have full-tread Victoracers with which to spank me at the more gravelly events

 

[thegit]

So they get three sets of tires for the price of one set??
That is not sporting...:huh:
m.

 

[LeftyS7]

Bad mouthing Kumho?

Kumho was terrific about replacing the V710. They took back the recalls, gave a set of Victorace tires in their place and a new set of V710s once re-released. The autocross drivers in my club thought the V710s were fabulous and couldn't wait to get them back. I've used Victorace for track days and autocross as have most of the autocrossers in our Miata Club. The Victorace weren't as good as last year's Hoosier autocross tires but could be used for both types of events and did have a longer life than Hoosiers. I used the new Hoosier steel radials this year on our Miata and HATED them. Three were corded after six, two driver, events, the fourth, that wasn't corded, leaked air. The worst experience I've ever had with a Hoosier product. I replaced them with last year's model and was much more successful. But last year's model has been discontinued.

 

[brownsa5]

Lefty,

It seems the new Hoosiers require more pressure to be effective. I have been running A3SO4's this year and agree that I don't like them as much as the 03's. I have not run them with my 03's back to back. They do not have the turn in of the old tires, but the breakaway is more progressive. They are wearing well.

Interestingly, I ran an autox school a couple of months ago - 2 sets of newer hoosiers were trashed (40-50 runs). One set was R compunds on a Miata - only a few runs old. The tread splice separated near the outside of the tread. The story from Hoosier is that the new tires require more camber - I presume the tread splices are stressed in camber challenged cars. I have noticed slight signs of separation in my 04's - hopefully not fatal. Interestingly enough, my S03's fared well - no cords showing after 75+runs!

I am a little concerned about the lack of available camber in the Elise - especially with the Hoosiers. I hope the level of suspension development in the Elise compensates. I don't want to replace Hoosiers after each event.

Steve

'94 Miata CS
'05 Elise Saffron(?) LSS/Touring (next batch of orders)