2002 Mercedes-Benz C-Class Tires & Wheels Problems

ON JAN 2, 2010, WHILE DRIVING HOME FROM A MOVIE IN MY 2002 MERCEDES C230, THE CAR SUDDENLY AND VIOLENTLY BEGAN PULLING TO THE RIGHT. I FIRST THOUGHT I HAD A BLOW OUT. I WAS DRIVING ON A FREEWAY AND AM NOT AWARE OF HITTING ANY THING THAT MIGHT HAVE CAUSED THE FAILURE. WHEN I STOPPED, I FOUND THE RIGHT FRONT TIRE WAS FLAT. THE FOLLOWING DAY I TOOK THE FLAT TO MY TIRE SHOP WHO INFORMED ME THE RIM HAD A CRACK IN IT, AND THAT CAUSED THE TIRE TO DEFLATE. I ORDERED A NEW WHEEL FROM THE LOCAL MERCEDES DEALER, WHO TOLD ME IT IS NOT UNCOMMON FOR WHEELS ON THIS MODEL TO FAIL. MERCEDES REFUSED WARRANTY. I CONSIDER THIS A SIGNIFICANT SAFETY FAILURE AND ASKED THE SERVICE MANAGER WITH THE LOCAL DEALER, KIMBALL MOTORS, TO PRESENT IT TO MERCEDES FOR WARRANTY AND/OR SAFETY REPLACEMENT. THE CAR IS BEYOND THE NORMAL WARRANTY PERIOD. MERCEDES REFUSED TO TAKE ANY ACTION. BOTH THE PEOPLE WHO REPLACED THE TIRE, BIG BRAND TIRE, AND THE PARTS PEOPLE AT THE DEALER, KIMBALL MOTORS, TOLD ME THEY SEE "SEVERAL FAILURES LIKE THIS" EACH YEAR. IN MY 50 PLUS YEARS OF DRIVING FOR PLEASURE AND COMMERCIALLY, I NEVER EXPERIENCED A CRACKED WHEEL AND SUBSEQUENT TIRE FAILURE. I WAS DISAPPOINTED THAT MERCEDES FAILED TO TAKE AN INTEREST IN THE FAILURE. I HAVE THE WHEEL, AND HAVE A DIGITAL PHOTO OF THE FAILURE IF THAT WILL BE OF ASSISTANCE. *TR

WE PURCHASED A NEW SET OF MICHELIN PILOT SPORT 2 TIRES AT COSTCO IN POWAY, CA ON 10/8/07 FOR MY WIFE'S MERCEDES. AFTER JUST LESS THAN SIX MONTHS AND UNDER 6,800 MILES, WE NOTICED HER LEFT TIRE WAS LOW. SUSPECTING SHE HAD PICKED UP A NAIL OR SUCH, WE FULLY INFLATED THE TIRE AND DROVE THE THREE MILES TO COSTCO. THE REPRESENTATIVE THERE, PATRICK, CALLED ME TO SAY IT WAS A NAIL BUT IT HAD DAMAGED THE SIDEWALL AND THE TIRE COULD NOT BE REPAIRED. WHEN I WENT BACK TO THE TIRE CENTER, PATRICK'S SUPERVISOR, WILLIAM KENNISON, INSISTED THAT SIX MONTHS AND 6800 MILES WERE PERFECTLY NORMAL LIFE EXPECTANCY NUMBERS FOR HIGH PERFORMANCE TIRES. HE INFORMED ME THERE WAS OVER 75% OF THE TREAD ON THE FRONT TIRES (DIFFERENT SIZE THAN THE REARS 225/45R17 VS. 245/40R17) BUT ONLY 38% ON THE LEFT REAR AND 0% ON THE RIGHT REAR. I NEVER SAW THE RIGHT REAR TIRE. HIS MANAGER, HERB, WAS OFF DUTY BUT WAS SUPPOSED TO CALL ME ON MONDAY TO DISCUSS MY DISSATISFACTION. HE NEVER CALLED. I PAID $379 AND CHANGE AND LEFT WITH A NEW PAIR OF REAR TIRES. MY WIFE WILL BE 56 NEXT WEEK. SHE IS A NURSE PRACTITIONER AND PRIMARILY DRIVES THIS CAR TO WORK AND OUR DAUGHTER'S SCHOOL. IT HAS BEEN ON THREE ROAD TRIPS TO UCLA FROM SAN DIEGO SINCE WE BOUGHT NEW TIRES IN OCTOBER. THERE IS NOTHING UNUSUAL OR AGGRESSIVE IN MY WIFE'S DRIVING STYLE AND THE FACTORY TIRES LASTED 40,075 MILES. CLEARLY, THESE TIRES CAME FROM A BAD BATCH AND SHOULD HAVE BEEN RECALLED. HAD WE NOT HAD A LOW TIRE THE CONSEQUENCES MIGHT HAVE BEEN MUCH WORSE. I HAVE NOTIFIED COSTCO AND MICHELIN. COSTCO INVOICE #007750053220 DATED 10/08/2007. MEMBERSHIP #111760783421. BARRY LOVELL. *TR

I HAVE MERCEDES C230 2002, WITH OEM MICHELIN MXV4 PLUS 205/55 R16. ONE TIRE WAS BLOWN AND REPLACED 3 YEARS AGO. NOW ALL TIRES DEVELOP HUGE CRACKS ON THE EDGE OF TREAD AND SIDEWALL AS WELL AS INSIDE OF TREAD. TIRES ARE IN BETWEEN 5/32ND AND 7/32ND TREAD WITH 40K MILES, AND WOULD BE GOOD TO GO FOR ANOTHER 2 YEARS EASILY. BUT, ACCORDING TO MERCEDES AND MICHELIN DEALERS (LES SCHWAB) TIRES UNSAFE TO DRIVE! I CALLED MICHELIN 866-866-6605 NOVEMBER 03-07, AFTER 30 MIN CONVERSATION WITH LES SCHWAB MANAGER INVOLVED, MICHELIN ADMIT MANUFACTURING DEFECT, AND OFFERED 45% OFF NEW TIRES PURCHASE. HERE IS WHAT MICHELIN OFFER ACTUALLY MEANS: 1) 45% DISCOUNT APPLY ONLY TO MICHELIN AND SAME MXV4 PLUS IS $205/EA AND IT MEANS $820 X0.55 = $451 TO PAY. 2) I MUST PAY DISMOUNT + MOUNT + BALANCE + DISPOSAL FEES, WHICH IS $20 PER TIRE X4 = $80, SO TOTAL OUT OF MY POCKET BECOMES $531 +TAX! *JB

I PURCHASED GOODYEAR AMERICAN EAGLE TIRES FROM WALMART IN BIG RAPIDS, MICHIGAN ON 11-18-04. THE TIRES WERE SIZE P20555R16BW AND INSTALLED ON MY 2002 MERCEDES BENZ C240 SEDAN. ON 10/2/05 I NOTICED A FLAT TIRE ON THE FRONT RIGHT SIDE OF MY CAR. UPON FURTHER INSPECTION IT BECAME APPARENT THERE WAS A CRACK AROUND THE ENTIRE CIRCUMFERENCE OF THE TIRE ABOUT AN INCH AWAY FROM THE RIM ON THE INSIDE SIDEWALL. THE DEPTH OF THE CRACK WAS ALL THE WAY TO THE STEEL BELTS. AFTER INSPECTING THE REMAINING THREE TIRES I DISCOVERED THEY WERE ALL CRACKED IN THIS MANNER. TWO WERE AS BAD AS THE FIRST TIRE AND A FOURTH WAS BEGINNING TO CRACK. I TOOK THE TIRES TO WALMART IN GARNER, MA WHERE I NOW RESIDE. THE MANAGER WAS VERY HELPFUL AND REPLACED THE TIRES WITHOUT QUESTION. HOWEVER, AFTER CALLING THE COMPLAINT IN TO GOODYEAR, IT BECAME APPARENT THEY REALLY DON'T CARE. I'M CONCERNED THERE ARE OTHER PEOPLE OUT THERE WHO WILL BE KILLED OR INJURED DUE TO THESE TIRES. IT'S APPARENT THERE IS A DEFECT BECAUSE MY TIRES EXPERIENCED 100% FAILURE RATE AND WERE PRODUCED IN TWO SEPARATE LOTS. THE DOT NUMBERS ARE DOT PJT2 4AHR 1604 (3 TIRES) AND DOT PJT2 4AHR 3704 (1 TIRE). GOODYEAR CLAIMS THERE IS NO PROBLEM AND THAT LESS THAN 1% OF TIRES ARE BAD. THIS IS NOT A STATISTIC WORTH BRAGGING ABOUT SINCE MILLIONS OF TIRES ARE PRODUCED. THE TIRES I PURCHASED CRACKED DUE TO DRY ROT AND THEY WERE LESS THAN ONE YEAR OLD. GOODYEAR IS UNCONCERNED ABOUT HIGHWAY SAFETY. THEIR ATTITUDE AT THE COMPLAINT CENTER WAS PATHETIC. I'M CONCERNED THAT THE NEW TIRES WILL ALSO BE DEFECTIVE AND I NEED ASSURANCE FROM SOMEONE THEY DO NOT HAVE AN ONGOING QUALITY ISSUE. I HAVE PICTURES OF THE DEFECTIVE TIRES AND THE WALMART MANAGER IN GARDNER, MASSACHUSETTS IS HOLDING THE DEFECTIVES UNTIL GOODYEAR VISITS HIM AGAIN. *NM

HAVE 2002 MERCEDES C 230 COUPE, 18000 MILES, ORIGINAL OWNER. HAD FLAT TIRE, RIGHT REAR, NO PUNCTURE NOTED BY TIRE REPAIR SHOP. SHOP STATED TIRES ALMOST TOTALLY WORN, WITH 2/32 TREAD ON RIGHT REAR AND 4/32 ON LEFT REAR, BOTH CENTER TREAD MEASUREMENT. FRONT TIRES A LITTLE BETTER. MICHELIN TIRES. BUT FOR INCIDENTAL FLAT TIRE WOULD NEVER HAVE THOUGHT TIRES NEEDED TO BE REPLACED AT 18000 MILES OR PROBABLY MUCH SOONER THAN THAT. NEEDLESS TO SAY, DEALERSHIP STATES NO WARRANTY ON TIRES. HAD ROUTINE SERVICE AND NOTED VEHICLE HAS ALWAYS PULLED TO RIGHT AND HAS HAD HARD POUNDING NOISE WHEN GOING OVER SLIGHTEST BUMP. DEALER STATED NO PROBLEMS NOTED IN PULLING TO RIGHT OR IN THE POUNDING NOISE. SINCE FLAT TIRE, VEHICLE HAS BEEN AT DEALERSHIP AND HAS HAD STABILIZER BAR CONNECTING LINKS, TORSION ROD REPLACED. PROBABLY SHOULD HAVE BEEN REPLACED LONG AGO. QUESTION WHETHER DEFECTIVE STABILIZER BARS CAUSED TIRES TO WEAR MUCH FASTER. NO INDICATION FROM DEALERSHIP. BELIEVE MERCEDES BENZ SHOULD BE PLACED ON NOTICE OF CONDITION. CONSEQUENCES COULD HAVE BEEN DISASTROUS. MERCEDES BENZ AND/OR MICHELIN SHOULD ADVISE OF POTENTIAL LOW LIFE EXPECTANCY OF THEIR TIRES. TIRE SIZE, ORIGINAL EQUIPMENT 225/45 ZR 17 91Y. *AK

IN OCTOBER OF 2001, I PURCHASED A NEW (2002) MERCEDES BENZ C-240. IT CAME EQUIPPED WITH GERMAN MADE CONTINENTAL CONTOURING TIRES. IT IS WITH THESE TIRES THAT I AM EXPERIENCING A PROBLEM. I HAVE 19,000 MILES ON THE CAR AND ALREADY HAVE HAD TWO SLOW LEAKS IN TWO DIFFERENT TIRES (PASSENGER SIDE FRONT/REAR). THE FIRST TIRE LEAKED (AT ABOUT 17,000 MILES) BUT ABLE TO BE PATCHED. WHEN I BROUGHT THE SECOND TIRE INTO AN STS TIRE DEALER, I NOTICED THAT THEY SOLD CONTINENTAL TIRES. SINCE I HAD THE TWO PROBLEMS, I ASKED THE MANAGER IF THEY SOLD MANY CONTINENTAL TIRES AND EXPLAINED MY EXPERIENCES (IN BOTH CASES THE TIRES HAD NAILS, OR SIMILAR METAL, EMBEDDED IN THEIR TREAD). AGAIN, IN THE FIRST INSTANCE, THE TIRE WAS REPAIRED. IN THE SECOND INSTANCE, THE DAMAGE WAS TOO CLOSE TO THE SHOULDER OF THE TIRE AND COULD NOT BE PROPERLY PATCHED. I HAD TO PURCHASE A NEW TIRE. HERE IS MY CONCERN. THE STS MANAGER, ASKED ME IF MY TIRES WERE FACTORY TIRES. I INDICATED THAT THEY WERE THE ONES THAT CAME WITH THE (NEW) CAR. HE INDICATED THAT FACTORY TIRES ARE TYPICALLY MADE TO THE SPECIFICATION OF THE AUTO MANUFACTURER, NOT THE TIRE MANUFACTURER. HE EXPLAINED THAT BECAUSE THE AUTO MAKER ORDERS TIRES IN SUCH QUANTITY, THEY CAN SET THEIR PRICE. IN MOST CASES, FOR THE TIRE MANUFACTURER TO BE ABLE TO MEET THAT PRICE, THEY NEED TO ADJUST THE COMPOSITE FORMULA OF THE TIRE -- ESSENTIALLY MANUFACTURING INFERIOR TIRES. THIS WAS HIS EXPLANATION OF WHY I MIGHT BE EXPERIENCING PROBLEMS WITH MY FACTORY TIRES. HE FURTHER INDICATED THAT TIRES SOLD TO TIRE RETAILERS ARE MANUFACTURED TO THE TIRE MAKERS' STANDARDS AND WILL PROVIDE A MUCH LONGER USEFUL LIFE (HE INDICATED 60,000 + THOUSAND MILES FOR THE CONTINENTAL CONTOURING TIRE I JUST PURCHASED TO REPLACE MY ORIGINAL EQUIPMENT TIRE). THE KICKER IS THAT CONTINENTAL DOES NOT WARRANTY THEIR TIRES AGAINST ROAD HAZARDS! IF HIS EXPLANATION ABOUT FACTORY TIRES IS TRUE, THIS IS VERY DISTURBING AND I BELIEVE THAT CONSUMERS HAVE A RIGHT TO KNOW.