Any - Avon ZV7 Tyre - Deryck

I have just failed an MoT due to two Avon ZV7 (225 55 17) fitted to the rear axle. Tread depth, etc was not a problem, but the cracking / tearing between the tread blocks had exposed some of the cords

Is this something to be expected on tyres two years old and 23k miles?

Any - Avon ZV7 Tyre - skidpan

Is this something to be expected on tyres two years old and 23k miles?

Of course its not. Unless stored in direct sunlight tyres should not crack for at least 5 or 6 years.

At 2 years old I would speak to Avon direct. I had 4 Michelins that had cracks at 4 years (not as bad as yours judgeing by your description) and Michelin organised ATS to remove and return them for testing. I received £193 for the remaining tread.

Only condition was they were under 6 years old. Just look for the date code on the sidewall.

Any - Avon ZV7 Tyre - Deryck

Tyres were from Week 4 and Week 19 2017. I have sent a message to Avon to see what they come back with. I would have to recover the tyres from the garage but that shouldn't be a problem

Any - Avon ZV7 Tyre - edlithgow

Unless stored in direct sunlight tyres should not crack for at least 5 or 6 years.

Parking (or for that matter, driving) in direct sunlight would presumably be equally damaging, and pretty hard to avoid even in the UK.

That said, an MOT tyre failure due to cracking after 2 years, sunlight or no, is clearly a fault (rather than just cosmetic damage), and the manufacturer should, (and I'd guess will) compensate the OP for it.

Edited by edlithgow on 13/03/2019 at 01:46

Any - Avon ZV7 Tyre - DRC406

I have just noticed that my two ZV7 are showing slight cracks at the bottom of the tread grooves after 13 months and only 5k miles! previous ZV5' had no problems.

Any - Avon ZV7 Tyre - Deryck

I have just noticed that my two ZV7 are showing slight cracks at the bottom of the tread grooves after 13 months and only 5k miles! previous ZV5' had no problems.

I was told slight cracking is normal but the cords on mine are clearly visible - try deflating the tyre and pushing the sidewall around the site of the cracking to see how bad this is.

I have returned the tyres to the supplier and completed a form. I hope to hear back within a week or so. If my tyres were close to changing I would not have bothered, but I think I have at least until the end of the year before they needed a change at about 30k-ish

Any - Avon ZV7 Tyre - Andrew-T

I have just noticed that my two ZV7 are showing slight cracks at the bottom of the tread grooves after 13 months and only 5k miles! previous ZV5' had no problems.

I replaced my Avons a year or two ago and noticed that the new set was made in Serbia, while the earlier ones were from UK IIRC. That may be a contributory factor?

Any - Avon ZV7 Tyre - Deryck

I replaced my Avons a year or two ago and noticed that the new set was made in Serbia, while the earlier ones were from UK IIRC. That may be a contributory factor?

No, the tyres were UK made - still waiting to hear back!

Any - Avon ZV7 Tyre - b8

fwiw, my car passed MoT with advisory about all 4 tyres today.

On inspection, the inner most groove either started to have cracks or had a long crack running along the base of the groove.

ZV7 are UK made and are just over 3 years old. Total mileage, about 2.5k as this car is only used as a runabout.

Previously, I had same problem with a Continental Premium Contact 2 which was bought as a replacement on same car, but to be fair, the tyre was 7 years old. The other three 8 year old Uniroyals were fine.

Going to return to UniRoyals as I feel these are softer compound tyres and less likely to crack. eg. Rainsport 3

Any - Avon ZV7 Tyre - Andrew-T

ZV7 are UK made and are just over 3 years old. Total mileage, about 2.5k as this car is only used as a runabout.

It may depend on the tyre size, but the ZV7s I have had fitted in the last few years were from Serbia. I must have a look at them tomorrow ....

Any - Avon ZV7 Tyre - Falkirk Bairn

My Avons have a corner of the Union Jack on them - Made in England - part of the reason I bought them.

I used to buy Michelins but they are upping sticks & closing Dundee - so no Michelins for me.

Any - Avon ZV7 Tyre - Andrew-T

ZV7 are UK made and are just over 3 years old. Total mileage, about 2.5k as this car is only used as a runabout.

It may depend on the tyre size, but the ZV7s I have had fitted in the last few years were from Serbia. I must have a look at them tomorrow ....

Done that - there is a small amount of incipient cracking in the outer sipes after 17K miles and more than 3 years. Inner ones are not cracked.

Any - Avon ZV7 Tyre - b8

I just rechecked my 185/55 15" ZV7 tyres. They are all made in Serbia. I earlier wrongly quoted they were made in UK.

Edited by b8 on 13/11/2019 at 18:46

Any - Avon ZV7 Tyre - thunderbird

My Avons have a corner of the Union Jack on them - Made in England - part of the reason I bought them.

Means sod all. Remember the City Rover, made in India and fitted with a Union Jack badge at Longbridge and sold to total fools as a British Car.

And MG are no better. Saw an advert recently where they described themselves as a "great British Brand" with no reference to the fact that the cars were made in China. On their website they say "Our much-loved British brand has been re-launched with the financial backing of one of the world’s largest car manufacturers, which allows us to stand tall in the global market." and go on "The current range of MG models, that were designed and engineered at our 69-acre site in Longbridge, Birmingham, include the MG3, MG ZS and MG GS" with no a single mention I can see on the site about the cars Chinese origin. There is no obvious mention anywhere on the site about the cars origin that I can find.

Robbers in the past and even with different owners they still are.

Any - Avon ZV7 Tyre - Deryck

I never did hear back from Avon as the tyres had not been returned to them! I was not impressed with the tyre fitters.

I am going to try a different fitter when I need tyres as he takes more time over fitting and uses protection for the rims and actually uses a torque wrench on the wheel bolts

Since I posted this query back in March I got rid of the car for a Mondeo which came with new tyres on the front from a Chinese manufacturer. I will how these go