[eye30]

OK so the car is just 24 months old but has ONLY covered 12,000 miles.

Should one be expecting to have to renew all 4 tyres now?

Tyres are - Hankook Optimo 185/65R15

Car was in for its 2nd year service.  When I collected it, I was informed that I need 4 new tyres as the ones on the car are showing signs of perishing on the sidewalls, sidewalls splitting and tread lifting.

I have a "limited warranty" for the tyres which details the manufacturers compensation scheme.

The warranty indicated that up to 25% of usable tread i.e. after allowing for the 1.6mm minimum required by law, this means the tyre tread has not to be less than 5.65 mm they will replace AT NO COST to the car owner.  Mine are now showing just on 5mm so I miss out on claiming 100% replacement.

Due to the tread wear I may be able to claim a "prorate"  % refund based on tread left. But that would be a decision by the tyre manufacturer not the garage.  Based on this I would expect to receive circa 70%.
Now that would be OK but that only covers the cost of the tyre.  Fitting/balancing plus any extra cost for alloys I have to cover.  So now this may not be a good deal!

Also, before the manufacturer will consider the claim I have to buy 4 new tyres of exactly the same brand and type and then send the 4 duff tyre to them for checking.

So the question of the day is:

Now how long would you expect your tyres to last, excluding tread wear?

[Shambles]

Bad news for such a short distance

Now how long would you expect your tyres to last, excluding tread wear?

Me? I will probably replace all 4 when I've covered 50,000 miles, even if they don't need replacing (I've already covered over 30,000 miles). Then again, your driving routes are different to mine, which are predominantly motorway cruising.

[bulldog180]

I would have said that is a bit quick for that to be happening to the tyres

[sparki30]

Hi eye, I would go to a couple of independent tyre dealers to get a second opinion.

[2i30s]

as sparki30 said,see a few tyre dealers about your fast wearing tyres and even try a dealer that sells those tyres and see what they say.

[Dazzler]

That's a bit premature.. I would have thought tyres should last at least 5 years if used regularly with limited mileage...

[LuciferDarklord]

They will blame it on something else I reckon - make up something like 'under inflation causing overheating of the sidewalls'  Just get some other decent tyres and forget the nasty plastic things the factory puts on.  I'm assuming for yu to claim anything you need to replace them with the same brand, and I bet you cant claim twice, so your stuck with the next set.

[accim]

On my previous Elantra, the Hankook got "bald" quite soon also and you could see cracks in the walls, but they didn't even think that there are problems with the tires.. It was or my driving, not enough inflated tires or the wheels geometry.. Warranty and tires..pff not an easy one  

[Goldfish_8]

Is it the inside, outside or both sidewalls on the tyres which are cracking?  Are they cracking, ie showing deep lines on the sidewalls, or is it just surface crazing very shallow lines? Also did they say whether the tyres were wearing evenly across the tread width? If just the inside then that could suggest that the geometry is out as mentioned above, possibly too much positive or negative toe which would cause the inner sidewall to overheat as the inner part of the tyre would get scrubbed more. This would also show as the tread blocks lifting / tearing up more readily, as the tyre isn't rotating straight.

I would be inclined to go to a reputable, recommended independant tyre fitter for an opinion, as some dealers have ties to some tyre bays, and the multi nationals are more interested in getting you to part with your cash.

Very few cars come from the factory with the settings spot on, as long as they are within the tolerances they are deemed ok, but the tolreances allow for + or - toe and camber and castor on the front, which on an i30 is not adjustable with stock suspension.

I am running an i30 with the optional 18" wheel tyre combo and lowering springs. The original Khumos where badly scrubbed on the inside as all four wheels had too much negative toe. Also with the lowering springs I have an additional negative 1 minute of camber on each wheel over standard. Got the toe corrected and the wear and inside edge temperature after a run reduced.

To get anywhere with the warranty, I think it would need to be shown that the alignment is within Hyundais given specifications, as if not then the tyre co could say their product has not been used correctly.

Mark

[eye30]

Is it the inside, outside or both sidewalls on the tyres which are cracking?

I've now had the time to look at the tyre in more depth, pardon the pun, and this is what I can see, given that I'm no expert in tyre technology.

The side wall look OK both inside and out except for slight scuffing etc on the sidewall on the outside.

The tread is NOT worn on any side - it had worn uniformly across the whole width.

BUT .....  the cracking is in the groves of the tread pattern.  To me they looks bad.

[2i30s]

i got my rims done 100kms after i bought my car and the wheel alignment was out heaps.not to good for a brand new car.imagine if i had done 5.000kms with my frontend alignment out.  [bald front tyres]

[Lorian]

Weird.  maybe worth asking the dealer to replace them under warranty (worth a go).

You might want to check when the tyres were manufctured, I think all tyres have this now (not sure):

http://www.bridgestone.com.au/tyres/passenger/care/age.aspx

[eye30]

maybe worth asking the dealer to replace them under warranty (worth a go).

Tried this one see previous post re warranty liability reproduced below.

My next step is to contact the UK distributors and give then details of the code numbers on the tyre casing and ask if there has been any recalls or other issues with this batch of tyres.

"The warranty indicated that up to 25% of usable tread i.e. after allowing for the 1.6mm minimum required by law, this means the tyre tread has not to be less than 5.65 mm they will replace AT NO COST to the car owner.  Mine are now showing just on 5mm so I miss out on claiming 100% replacement.

Due to the tread wear I may be able to claim a "prorate"  % refund based on tread left. But that would be a decision by the tyre manufacturer not the garage.  Based on this I would expect to receive circa 70%.
Now that would be OK but that only covers the cost of the tyre.  Fitting/balancing plus any extra cost for alloys I have to cover.  So now this may not be a good deal!"

[andys101]

What looks bad to you will not look that bad in reality.
Your garage is possibly short of work.
Put some photo's up.

[eye30]

Here are photo's I took today.  
The cracking is in the outer groves of the tread, not the middle groves and NOT the sidewalls:

[Shambles]

I think you need a full geometry check on the wheels. The camber of the wheels may be too great and is putting undue stress on the outer edges of the tyres causing them to be torn away from the carcass.

I'd get them changed in a heartbeat regardless of who ends up paying...

[eye30]

But they sure do look perished.

Shambles (or anyone else),

Do you have the same tyre - Hankook Optimo k415 - 185/65r65?

If so what are yours like as your car is younger than mine but has covered twice as many miles. Picture would be appreciated.

Cheers.

[Shambles]

I have Kumho 225/45 r17 and covered 31400 miles

Click for larger pics

[eye30]

Yours look as smooth as a babies bottom - no cracks.

[andys101]

Its cosmetic, dont worry about it.

[2i30s]

I have Kumho 225/45 r17 and covered 31400 miles

Click for larger pics

you got your moneys worth out of those tyres.

[2i30s]

Here are photo's I took today.  
The cracking is in the outer groves of the tread, not the middle groves and NOT the sidewalls:

they look like very old tyres

[eye30]

Its cosmetic, dont worry about it.

ps I can see the steel webbing underneath the cracking

[eye30]

they look like very old tyres

Car is 24 months old and covered 12,000 miles (19,300 km)

I'm wondering if they have been in stock for sometime before placing on the car.

There is no date stamp on the tyre so does anyone know how to read tyre codes, especially to find the date of manufacture?
I've looked at Hankook's web site but can't see info.

[sparki30]

Hi eye

This link might help, its a bit long winded but explains various date codes.

http://www.carbibles.com/tyre_bible.html

[andys101]

look for DOT _ _ _ _ 

The 4 numbers mean the week and year of manufacture

Still looks cosmetic.

[Goldfish_8]

Hi Eye,

I would get the geometry looked at, as one side is more worn than the other. Looking at the tread pattern in the second picture there is more tread on the right than the left. The tyres are assymetric, and the pattern is mirrored about the centre on the tyres, and on the right you can see the remainder of the groove which leads to the outside edge on the left this has worn away.




Mark

[eye30]

Cheers for the link, DOT code and comments re tyre wear.

According to the DOT code the date is showing as 2607 i.e. week 26 year 2007 so they were only 3 months old when I bought my car, assuming week 1 is first week in January.

[murrayhewitt]

So they are now a bit over two years old.. the cracking is just the rubber starting to dry and harden. This happens with all tyres, but some factors such as heavy UV, heat or chemical exposure can accelerate the process. It is purely cosmetic - the rubber is not the critical structural component.. that is the casing (made of polyester and steel). Obviously, if the rubber was falling off the tyre that is a different story, but hardening cracks are inevitable with any tyre.
Tyres that are more than about three years old have far less grip than new ones, which is why we replace ours every three years regardless of wear. This was especially important when using winter tyres in canada - they drastically lose elasticity and grip after a couple of years through the hardening process.

[andys101]

So they are now a bit over two years old.. the cracking is just the rubber starting to dry and harden. This happens with all tyres, but some factors such as heavy UV, heat or chemical exposure can accelerate the process. It is purely cosmetic - the rubber is not the critical structural component.. that is the casing (made of polyester and steel). Obviously, if the rubber was falling off the tyre that is a different story, but hardening cracks are inevitable with any tyre.
Tyres that are more than about three years old have far less grip than new ones, which is why we replace ours every three years regardless of wear. This was especially important when using winter tyres in canada - they drastically lose elasticity and grip after a couple of years through the hardening process.

What he said.... i TOLD you..