Ultremo recall- any luck

garyspain

Has anyone actually received a new pair of tires from the recall yet? I've been waiting weeks after both of mine failed as they said. I've gone back to conti gp 4000s which are miles better anyway.

pabloweaver

garyspain wrote:

Has anyone actually received a new pair of tires from the recall yet? I've been waiting weeks after both of mine failed as they said. I've gone back to conti gp 4000s which are miles better anyway.

a fave rant of mine ... :evil:

I didnt have the luxury of returning them as the bike shop I bought them from refused to believe the sidewall could have failed like it did after 2 rides ...they said " the rep will just laugh if we send these back "

However ( and I know this is not the answer to the question ) I did buy another pair and nearly 2k miles in them later I have had no no problems at all, so fingers crossed when you get yours back they will be the tyres you thought they were in the first place !

2nd pair have been great.

Gazzaputt

I've a bulge in the centre of the rear tyre is this sign of it going?

garyspain

Yep, that's where mine started

System_1

You shouldn't have to return them. Go to this page and download the 'Ultremo R defect notice'. It tells you what to do, in short all you need is a photo of the bulge and a photo of the production code from the inside of the tire then email it to ultremo@schwalbe.com, and if it's one from the affected batch a new one will get sent out.

garyspain

Done that 3 times now, still nothing

FOAD

Well I did it once for one tyre, and once for another tyre..both times they sent me two replacements and two innertubes within days, the first time more Ultremo R's, the second time (2 weeks later) Stelvios as a temporary measure until they had Ultremo R .1's in stock!

Are you emailing the right place? They couldn't have been any quicker with my replacements, I even asked for a change of colour which was no problem.

blackrockracer

I returned my 2 tyres to my LBS and they exchanged them for a pair of pro3's. They are happy enough to sort the warranty issue with schwalbe themselves.

Gazzaputt

Well emailed Schwalbe let's see what happens.

1878

Although mine were showing no sign of trouble, I took advantage of Wiggle's voluntary recall and was refunded after only a couple of days.

A shame as I was rather impressed with the tyres but didn't really want to take the chance. Oh well, I suppose I got 500 miles for free out of them.

Steve

garyspain

SORTED

Understandably, it is very important that we address all issues of this nature
and this we are doing as a matter of urgency. To this end, I will dispatched
replacement tyres for you as soon as possible. As a remedial measure I am
sending you a pair of Stelvio tyres which are the forerunner to the Ultremo.
Whilst I can't pretend that the Stelvio offers the same level of performance*
as the Ultremo; which, as its name suggests, is our ultimate road tyre, it
will at least keep you on the road until we can send you the Ultremo
replacements. The cause of the problems with the Ultremo R how now been fully
ascertained at the factory and, in fact, whilst correcting the production
issues which caused the problem the opportunity has also been taken to further
enhance the performance of the Ultremo R by reducing the rolling resistance by
an additional 10%. The new Ultremo tyre will be known as the Ultremo R.1 in
order to distinguish it from exiting Ultremo R tyres.
I will understand completely that if you are racing or competing and require a
top performance tyre, that you may need to purchase an alternative brand of
tyre in the meantime. But I can assure you that as soon as we have stock of
the new Ultremo R.1 I will send a pair out to you. Under no circumstances
should the existing tyres be used, not even as a turbo trainer tyre. Please
dispose of the existing Ultremos and preferably also cut them in half to put
them beyond the use of anyone else. Whilst I fully understand and appreciate
any concerns you may have, please rest assured that our technicians have fully
investigated these issues and all aspects of the production process. I trust
that your experience with these replacement tyres will restore your confidence
in the Ultremo R and the Schwalbe brand.

Thank you again for your patience and understanding.

Many Regards,

Tim Ward

nferrar

Good news they're sorting it for you now, I wouldn't have been happy waiting several weeks either! I've been waiting for mine to develop the dreaded bulges but have about 1500 miles on them now and no sign so I guess I'm 'safe'.

term1te

Rather disappointed I didn't hear about the recall until I'd binned a pair, whilst on holiday in the Alps. One blown sidewall, although I did hit a stone so I'll let them off that one. When replacing it I spotted that the rear had a bulge across the centre and one side, so replaced it at the first opportunity to be safe. The next bike shop had a limited range of road tyres so ended up riding the Marmotte on some tractor tyres.

pity as the Ultremos felt very fast, gone back to Conti now.

Gazzaputt

Got an email yesterday say Schwalbe UK are sending a interim replacement pair out until the R1 are available.

thejesusandsedischain

also got my email today telling me my pair of interim tyres have been dispatched two days after i sent my email.

FOAD

As I mentioned, my first warranty claim a month back had them send me another pair of Ultremo R's, however after I found out they were now sending Stelvios as an interim measure I emailed them again and they agreed to send me a pair of Stelivos and asked that I didn't ride the Ultremos that they had given me, as they couldn't tell even by batch numbers which ones were duff.

22 miles later and just before a descent that would have hit about 45mph, I felt a slight knobbliness (is that a word) on my back wheel. The tyre had bulged very slightly and worn through to the white core! This could only have happened over a mile or so I am sure because the feeling of the wheel was only obvious for a few seconds as it probably reached its max deformity.

If you have R's, get 'em changed I urge you. I am not for one second put off by having the new versions when they come out however. Never had a puncture with them and the CS has been brill.

Gazzaputt

Anyone know when the R1 will be available?

pabloweaver

as previously posted I'm on my 2nd pair after the first ones failed ( before the recall ) .

2nd pair have thousands of miles in them with no prob.

Despite this, are they all being recalled and should I be sending these back until the shiny new R1 version comes out?

miurasv

I received a pair of Stelvios plus a pair of inner tubes today. When the Utremo R.1 is released they will send me a pair of those too.

I had first sent my email to ultremo@schwalbe.com on Friday last week at 3.05 pm with details of the tyres and the required pics of the bulges, serial number and bar code. I didn't hear anything at all for a few days so looked into it further so I wondered if the emails were going to Schwalbe Germany. Anyway, on Tuesday I sent an email to info@schwalbe.co.uk and I also called Schwalbe UK on 01952 602680. I was put through to Tim Ward. He checked his emails and he had received mine. He explained that he would send me out some Stelvios and would send the new Ultremo R.1's when they come out too.

I had an email from Tim yesterday saying the Stelvios had been despatched (unfortunately in Kermit Green as this is the only colour they have). The email also asked that I cut out the sections of the tyres with the bar codes and serial numbers of both tyres and send them to Schwalbe UK which will be cheaper than sending the whole tyres. So I've recived the Stelvios and 2 inner tubes and will be getting the Ultremo R.1's when they receive them. So excellent service from Tim Ward at Schwalbe UK.

incog24

Considering how quickly this problem appears to develop on the tyre, are they only accepting returns of obviously bulging ultremos, or just any ones?

miurasv

incog24 wrote:

Considering how quickly this problem appears to develop on the tyre, are they only accepting returns of obviously bulging ultremos, or just any ones?

In the interest of safety I think they should all be recalled. Schwalbe say themselves that the tyre can suffer from 'catastrophic failure.' People could be seriously or even fatally injured in the event of a blow out.

ademort

miurasv wrote:

incog24 wrote:

Considering how quickly this problem appears to develop on the tyre, are they only accepting returns of obviously bulging ultremos, or just any ones?

In the interest of safety I think they should all be recalled. Schwalbe say themselves that the tyre can suffer from 'catastrophic failure.' People could be seriously or even fatally injured in the event of a blow out.

A manufacturing error means that a certain number of Ultremos were of a sub-standard and prone to bulge or burst. Thats why Schwalbe ask you to send a photo of the product code on the inside of the tyre, so they can then compare it to there records. Also the new Ultremo R1 is available mid-November.
Ademort

FOAD

I have had 4 Ultremo R's go, the first two from the same pair about a month apart. The second set were the replacements.

The bulge really can appear in just a few hundred yards (you can feel it as soon as it's there).

The first set I had to send pics, after that when they owned up to the fact that they couldn't tell which ones were defective and which ones were OK, I was told by Tim not to ride on them under any circumstances - they know that if someone dies because one goes they are proper f***** at Schwalbe.

They are now replacing undamaged Ultremos with just a serial number without damage as far as I know. I last replaced a pair were about 2 months back though so things may have changed.

ademort

This is the product recall notice as published http://www.bicycleretailer.com/news/new ... /2754.html
It seems to me that Tim Knows more than Schwalbe.
Ademort