BRIDGESTONE TIRES Complaints

4 new Bridgestone WEATHERPEAK BL 235/45R18 tires were purchased for "mom’s" low mileage vehicle. 8 months / 3,850 miles later, while my daughter was driving it in the center lane of the highway, the front left tire suddenly exploded! Fortunately, there were no injuries but had there been another vehicle at her side, this might have been a different story. The vehicle was towed back to the tire dealer to have the tire replaced. Combined with Bridgestone’s known past tire issues, we are now afraid to drive on the highway on these tires!!

The front tires have excessive wear with treads appear to be peeling. 235/50/20 Please note both front tires have this issue but is worse on passenger side.

The contact owns a 2019 Jeep Wrangler equipped with Bridgestone Tires, Tire Line: Dueler H/T 685, Tire Size: 245/75/R17, DOT Number: 9BM1DHV0322. The contact stated while driving 65 MPH, the front passenger’s side tire experienced a blowout. The contact pulled off to the shoulder of the highway and replaced the tire with the spare tire. The tire was taken to an independent mechanic where upon inspection, the mechanic discovered an abnormal tear in the tire along the sidewall. The mechanic stated that the tire was a defective tire. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The tire was not replaced. The vehicle failure mileage was approximately 44,200. The tire failure mileage was approximately 4,200.

The contact owns a 2019 Nissan Armada equipped with Bridgestone Tires, Tire Line: Alenza AS Ultra, Tire Size: 275/60/R20, DOT Number: 1VNW0AAU21223. The contact stated that while the dealer was conducting a routine inspection of the vehicle, she was informed that the four tires were worn and could soon cause the vehicle to hydroplane while driving. The contact stated that upon visual inspection, she noticed that the tire treads were damaged. The contact stated that the tires were rated at 80,000 miles; however, the tires became worn after 26 miles. The tire dealer was contacted but no assistance was provided. The tires were not replaced. The tires were replacement tires. The manufacturer was contacted, but no assistance was provided. The tire failure mileage was approximately 26,000. The vehicle failure mileage was approximately 132,940.

255/R40 Passenger Front and Rear tires sustained cuts/slashes on the inside walls. Front was more severe and went flat immediately. The other went flat the following day. Subsequently, saw that my TLX may have had tire issues from the manufacturer. I didn’t know this at the time and when I called the dealer, they offered no assistance. Repairs cost almost $900 for two new tires at Firestone.

Brand new Volkswagen electric vehicle model ID.4 Pro AWD delivered to us in July 2022 after order was placed in summer 2021 and it was built and shipped from Germany. Tires were manufactured in Poland and came installed with the vehicle. Both front tires (Bridgestone Alenza Sport A/S Size 235/55R19 105T) exhibit rubber peeling where chunks of rubber fall off the tire after only about 1.25 year of driving and approximately 15,000 miles. This presents a safety concern. VW no longer installs these tires as OEM as they switched to Pirelli Scorpion Zero or Kumho Crugen starting with model year 2023. Only first two ID.4 model years of 2021 and 2022 are affected. Note there has already been a recall on Alenza Sport A/S tires but not this exact model per NHTSA Campaign number 22T021000 recalling Bridgestone Alenza Sport A/S tires, size 235/55R20 102V (DOT date codes 2422 through 2722). VW blames Bridgestone as the tire manufacturer and Bridgestone blames VW as they claim they manufactured the tires to Volkswagen specifications. Neither will take full responsibility. The vehicle comes with staggered tires and the back tires are the same but different size (Bridgestone Alenza Sport A/S Size 255/50R19 107T). I am requesting that the NHTSA approve a recall of the OEM tires on VW ID.4 2021 and 2022 model years as described herein. This peeling manufacturer defect is a well documented issue online in different ID.4 owner forums: [XXX] [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

The contact owns a 2021 Nissan Rogue equipped with Bridgestone Tires, Tire Line: Alenza Performance, Tire Size: 235/55/R19, DOT Number: (N/A). The contact stated that the vehicle was at the dealer for a service appointment. The contact was informed that all four tires were worn. The contact was informed that all four tires needed to be replaced. The tires were not replaced. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure but provided no assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 15,000.

Tires (Bridgestones) on this car prematurely disintegrate. Specifically the outer edge of the front tires are the worse. This defect is found consistently on 2021 and especially of 2022 cars made in Germany. Examples of these complaints are numerous and can be found all over car owner forums. The dealers will not help resolve and in fact usually say the tire is ‘safe’, even though chunks are falling off the tire. VW will say they don’t guarantee tires, even though they are aware the tires on these cars are defective and start falling apart at 5-8K miles. There is no recourse for us the customer than to purchase new tires at our expense. VW and the dealers are not taking the matter seriously, the worse part is misinforming people the tires are okay.

The contact owns a 2015 Chevrolet Equinox equipped with Firestone Tires, Tire Line: Sure Drive All Season, Tire Size: 225/65/R17, DOT Numbers: 1K2EJYA6V0223 and 1K2EJYA6V0123. The contact stated while driving approximately 65 MPH, the TPMS warning light illuminated. The vehicle was steered to the side of the road where the contact observed that the passenger’s side rear tire was flat. The contact stated that Roadside Assistance plugged the rear passenger's side tire and noticed that the passenger’s side front tire was also flat. The tires were replacement tires. The dealer was not notified of the failure. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was unavailable.

The contact owns a 2023 Mercedes-Benz C300 equipped with Bridgestone RFT Tires, Tire Line: Turanza 100, Tire Size: 225/45/R18, DOT Number: VRJ7V4Y. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 40 MPH, the driver's side tire exploded. The contact stated that a "0 PSI driver side front tire" warning light was illuminated. The contact stated that he observed that the driver's side tire had a portion blown out on the sidewall of the tire. The vehicle was towed to a local dealer where it was diagnosed that the blowout had been due to external sources and not tire structural integrity. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The contact stated that the vehicle was no longer equipped with a spare tire, and the contact was informed by the dealer that any type of spare tire for the vehicle was unavailable for purchase. The contact had been told by the manufacturer that the vehicle had been equipped with "run flat tires" and there was no need for a spare tire. The approximate vehicle and tire failure mileage was 2,000.