pennetta

I called the Dunlop Tires Customer Service number and spoke to a rep. I explained the problem many are of us are having. She said that Dunlop has been aware of the situation and has corrected the tread problem. They have added "Tread Crossbars" which reduces tread squirm and eliminates the condition that leads to the tire noise. She said that she is not aware of a way to look at the tires and visably see the upgrade, but she said that any tires that you would get now would be the new ones. She said generally no one keeps a big stock of this tires so all available tires would be the new ones. She could not give me a specific tire manufacture date.

Sans

If there is a way to tell we'll find it. I took pictures of the front and rear treads to compare the old Dunlops with the new ones (my new ones are reportedly on back order so it may take a few days/week to get them).

pennetta

Disregard above. I also emailed Dunlop last night and I got their response right after I wrote the above. They said they are not aware of any problem with my specific tires. I will post their email tomorrow. I am on my Treo 650 and can't copy and paste between different applications.

pennetta

Sent by: Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company Consumer Relations 728 1144 East
Market Street Akron, OH 44316 Voice #: 800.321.2136 Fax #:
330.796.6829

Dear David:

Thank you for your email. We are always concerned when we learn that we have
failed to exceed a customer's expectations with regards
to our product or service.

There have been no unusual problems with the Dunlop SP Sport 01 DSST tire in
either size you indicated. Without inspecting the tire in
question we could not comment as to it's cause or condition. This tire has not
undergone any recent modifications, nor have we been
made aware of any planned modifications in the near future.

Dunlop relies on a network of retail locations to determine warranty
eligibility. In the event your BMW vehicle dealer would decide
not to assist with your situation, your tires are still available and have not
been inspected by an authorized Dunlop retailer we
would then suggest you do so. You can locate your nearest authorized retailer
on the internet at
http://www.dunloplocator.com/dunlop/locator. Alternatively, you can also call
us here anytime Monday - Friday, 8:30 AM - 5:00 PM EST
at 800-321-2136. Any of our Consumer Relations Representatives would be happy
to assist in locating a Dunlop dealer in your area.

Sincerely,

Steve McKay
Consumer Relations
Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company

Rudy

pennetta, what makes you believe the email over the live person? The email sounds pretty boiler-plate to me. The person you talked to may have been telling the truth...

pennetta

I was sort of endorsing the results of the phone conversation to you all. We all try to help each other by sharing reliable information When I got the email contradicting the phone call, reliability went out the window.
Since the Bridgestones are not going to be available to my dealer anytime soon, they are ordering the Dunlops. I forwarded the email to my dealer as the Dunlops have not come in yet.

wassy

I tried to allude to this fact that Dunlop/Goodyear reps are clueless.. It took me many many phone calls to get a non-standard response. They all say there is no problem with the tire. That is Bullsh*t. Insist on and push the rep to seek further assistance.

Bottom line is that they apparently altered the tire to try and help with the problem. We'll know in 5-6000 miles if it works! right?

I went throught the exact same stuff that Penetta did. thought I even made a post of it.

Sans

Strange. My dealer did about 1 minute of work, called me back and said the tires would be replaced. No haggle, no nuthin'. He even quoted the PUMA case (which I purposefully did not mention). The new Dunlops are on back order so it may take a while to get them - but heck, that just gives me reason to trounce my existing rubber.

pennetta

Just got called, my Dunlop tires came in today. Getting them on Tuesday.

DTAHT

Why not go with a really good non runflat tires? Will BMW pay for 50% of any tire you want to get? You have a compact spare to take care of emergencies. From everything I have heard, the ride quality, handling, braking are all improved with the use of more conventional high performance tires.

And, if you have leased the car and your conventional tires have worn down, you can keep the #$*#! runflats and return them to BMW when you turn in the car.