BRIDGESTONE POTENZA TIRES Complaints

TWO FRONT TIRES WORE OUT PREMATURELY. DEALER SAYS THE REMEDY FOR THIS PROBLEM IS TO ROTATE THE TIRES AND KEEP THE APPROPRIATE TIRE PRESSURE. *AK

WITHIN 9 MONTHS OF VEHICLE PURCHASE I HAD THREE FLAT TIRES AND REPLACED THE BRIDGESTONE POTENZA TIRES WITH A DIFFERENT BRAND RATHER THAN RIST ADDITIONAL FAILURES. *AK

6/2001 PRIUS; MILEAGE ~20,000; BRIDGESTONE POTENZA 175/65/R14RX ORIGINAL TIRES; WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 40 MPH ON SURFACE STREETS, REAR RIGHT PASSENGER TREAD SEPARATED FROM THE TIRE. DEALER RECOMMENDED GOING TO TIRE VENDOR FOR WARRANTEE REPLACEMENT. PLAN TO PURSUE ISSUE WITH TOYOTA.*AK

THE FRONT TIRES AFTER 19.500 MILES INSIDE EDGE OF TIRE DOWN TO STEEL BELT. OUTSIDE EDGE OF TIRE LOOKED BRAND NEW. CONTACTED DEALER AND THE THE DEALER INSPECTED THE CAR. THEY RECOMMENDED REPLACING THE TIRES AND ALIGNING THE FRONT END AT A WHOPPING FEE OF $732.00 AND TOLD ME THAT THIS WAS NORMAL TIRE WEAR FOR 19K MILES. I TOOK THE CAR TO TWO DIFFERENT TIRE SHOPS AND WAS ASSURED THAT THIS IS NOT NORMAL AND THAT A NEGATIVE CAMBER OF THE ALLIGNMENT WOULD CAUSE THIS TYPE OF WEAR PATTERN. I DO NOT DISPUTE A TIRE OF THIS CALIBER WILL WEAR QUICKLY. THE WEAR PATTERN IS WHAT I DISPUTE. THIS CAR HAS AN ALLIGNMENT PROBLEM!! I PURCHASED TWO NEW YOKOHAMA TIRES WITH THE SAME SPECKS AS THE ORIGINAL BRIDGESTONE TIRES AND HAD THE FRONT END ALLIGNED AND WILL MONITOR THE WEAR VERY CLOSELY AND REPORT BACK MY FINDINGS. *AK

POTENZA 175/65/R14XL (OEM TIRES) WHICH ARE SPECIFICALLY MADE FOR THE PRIUS, WEAR QUICKLY AND ON THE EDGES. THIS RESULTED IN MY TIRE TREAD HAVING A 1/32 RATING, WHILE THE MIDDLE OF THE TIRE STILL HAD A LONG LIFE LEFT.*AK WHEN MAKING SHARP TURNS AT LOW SPEEDS (ESPECIALLY WHEN THE CAR IS COLD), THE STEERING WHEEL WILL VIBRATE (SOMETIMES AUDIBLY, SOMETIMES NOT). WERE THIS TO HAPPEN AT EVEN A SLIGHTLY HIGHER SPEED, ACCIDENTS MAY OCCUR. THIS PROBLEM HAS BECOME MORE FREQUENT IN THE LAST FEW WEEKS. IT NOW OCCURS AT LEAST EVERY OTHER DAY.

CONSUMER STATES LESS THAN 24000 MILES THREE OF THE VEHICLE TIRES WERE REPLACED DUE TO SIDEWALL FAILURE. T16565R1478F. *AK

THERE IS A TIRE SEPARATION PROBLEM WITH THE LATEST SET OF BRIDGESTONE TIRES THAT WE RECEIVED FROM THE TOYOTA DEALER FOR OUR PRIUS. THE ORIGINAL TIRES WERE RECALLED DUE TO PREMATURE WEAR. THE REAR LEFT TIRE SEPARATED AND MY DAUGHTER LUCKILY WAS ABLE TO CONTROL THE VEHICLE ON THE FREEWAY AT UNDER 55 MPH. SHE NOTICED THE PROBLEM IMMEDIATELY WHEN SHE GOT ON THE FREEWAY OR SHE MIGHT HAVE LOST CONTROL. FOR AN EXAMPLE OF THE SEPARATION, SEE: HTTP://WWW.FIRESTONE-TIRE-RECALL.COM/PAGES/ADVOCATE/11-13.HTML WE HAD THE SAME PROBLEM WITH THE LEFT REAR AND SAME NEW CONDITION AS LINK ABOVE.*AK

CONSUMER NOTICED WHILE TRAVELING ON WET ROADS 30-35 MPH AND MAKING A SUDDEN STOP BRAKES LOCKED, TIRES DID NOT GRAPE, VEHICLE STARTED SLIDING UNDER ANOTHER VEHICLE ,RESULTING IN A CRASH. VEHICLE IS NOW ON 2ND REPAIR. *AK

I PURCHASED FOUR NEW BRIDGESTONE "POTENZA RE900" TIRES FOR MY 1999 TOYOTA CAMRY LE SEDAN FROM COSTCO WHOLESALE (72800 DINAH SHORE DR, PALM DESERT, CA 92211 (760) 202-1362) IN EARLY MAY. TWO WEEKS LATER WHILE DRIVING TO MORNING CHURCH (APPROX. 45 MPH) I HEARD A LARGE "BOOM" AND DISCOVERED THE LEFT REAR TIRE HAD EXPLODED. I DROVE TO THE NEAREST GAS STATION WHERE THEY INSTALLED THE SAME MODEL SPARE TIRE. I RETURNED TO COSTCO AND THEY REPLACED THE SPARE WITH A NEW BRIDGESTONE POTENZA RE900 TIRE. LAST SATURDAY EVENING ABOUT 6:00PM (JUNE 21, 2003) WHILE DRIVING HOME TO PALM SPRINGS ON HIGHWAY 10 AT APPROXIMATELY 55 MPH, I HEARD ANOTHER LOUD NOISE AND DISCOVERED ANOTHER BRIDGESTONE POTENZA RE900 TIRE HAD EXPLODED. LUCKILY, SOMEONE STOPPED AND REPLACED IT WITH THE SPARE SO I COULD GET HOME. AGAIN, I RETURNED TO COSTCO WHERE THEY REPLACED IT WITH ANOTHER BRIDGESTONE POTENZA RE900 TIRE. IN MY OPINION, COSTCO'S MANAGER, AWARE OF THE PROBLEMS WITH THIS PARTICULAR TIRE SHOULD HAVE: 1. IMMEDIATELY PULLED THEM FROM THE INVENTORY SO THAT THIS MODEL COULD NOT BE SOLD TO OTHER CUSTOMERS 2. REPORTED THIS COSTCO MANAGEMENT... WHO, IMMEDIATELY, SHOULD HAVE PULLED THEM FROM THE INVENTORY OF EVERY STORE 3. REPORTED THIS INCIDENT TO BRIDGESTONE/FIRESTONE 4. REPORTED THIS INCIDENT TO THE NHTSA. WHAT SHOULD BE MY NEXT RECOURSE OF ACTION? I LOOK FORWARD TO RECEIVING A PROMPT RESPONSE CONCERNING THIS VERY SERIOUS MATTER. SINCERELY, MILDRED MADSEN. *JB 1370 ADOBE WAY PALM SPRINGS, CA 92262 EMAIL: [email protected] PHONE: (760) 323-4683. *JB

THE TIRES ON OUR 2001 PRIUS CONTINUALLY FAIL AFTER ABOUT 15,000 MILES. WE HAVE HAD STATE INSPECTIONS FAIL BECAUSE OF TREAD WEAR, REFUSED SERVICE AT BRIDGESTONE DEALERS BECAUSE OF TREAD WEAR. WITH LESS THAN 50K MILES WE ARE WORKING ON THE THIRD SET OF TIRES. WE CHECK PRESSURE AND ROTATE OUR TIRES REGULARLY. SINCE TOYOTA CLAIMS THERE ARE NO REPLACEMENTS AND NO TREAD WEAR WARRANTIES, WE THINK THE CAR SHOULD NO LONGER BE ALLOWED ON THE US MARKET. *NLM