MICHELIN DEFENDER TIRES Complaints

A 205/55/R16 tire exploded when I was driving on the freeway at 9:15 am. I had driven less than 3 miles. The tire that exploded had less than 16,000 miles. I didn't run over an object or I would have also punctured my front tire too. At the time of the explosion I didn't know what happened, but heard a loud noise that I thought was from a car next to me. Once both cars moved ahead of me, I realized the loud noise was coming from under my car. I then was able to pull to the side of the freeway. Once I pulled over I saw the tire had exploded. I took photos of the tire and took both parts to the tire shop where my tires are under warranty. I had inspected my tires the prior Monday, two days prior and didn't see an issue with any of the tires. I've never had a tire blowout before. The tire shop threw the tire away even though I asked for a report of the incident to appropriate entities. The tire shop told me the tire was under inflated or that I hit a road hazard but couldn't prove that's what caused the explosion. Also the tire shop did not show me where a road hazard penetrated the tire. In the past if a tire had run over an object this tire shop would show me the object. I have 3 of the same tires on my car which I don't trust because my tire exploded without warning.

The contact owns a 2016 Chevrolet Malibu equipped with Michelin Tires, Tire Line: The Defender, Tire size: 205/65/R16, and DOT number: B5EV01TX4919. The contact stated that the tire tread was worn in an untimely manner. The contact stated that the tires were replaced two years ago. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the quality of the tires was of a different material. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where service was denied due to the tires still having half the tread. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and informed the contact of the warranty. The failure mileage was 68,618.

Tire failed. The tire is not in my possession anymore. The tire was replaced by America's Tire. I had purchased a tire warranty. Tire failed while traveling at 65 MPH in lane 2 of Interstate 5 northbound at the 5/405 split at approximately 12:35 pm. The traffic was moderate. My vehicle was difficult to control and the noise very loud. The tire pressure warning light did come on. P 265 / 65 R17 1127 SL BSW DOT Code: 1APLV00VX4721

About two weeks after getting all new tires installed at Costco, the driver side rear tire blew out. I was driving about 50 MPH on a dry road with no debris in sight. The blowout gash was in the middle of the tire, not on the sidewall.

Michelin Defender LTX M/S size 265/75R16. 4 new tires installed less than 60 days and 1,800 miles by Costco before incident. Tire air pressure checked prior to a trip. On the trip, 1 tire rapidly deflated without warning on the freeway in Arizona. Barely had enough time to pull off the freeway and onto the shoulder. The tire showed no punctures, or tread separation, but the tire sidewalls were wrinkled and distorted. Took tire to Costco for warranty and the tire shop could not find any internal punctures and were unable to determine as to why the tire went flat. They said they have never seen a tire fail like this.

Michelin Defender LTX M/S Tire 245/55R19 While driving on the freeway at 70 mph, the tire below and tread separated causing significant damage to vehicle. The tread appears to have separated from the tire, which caused the tire to hit the sidewall and rear of vehicle, which tore off the rear bumper and damaged rear quarter panel. It appears that both steel belts and polyester carcass piles failed The tire separation occurred, unprovoked as there was no impact from debris and the vehicle had been in operation/ driving for over 30 minutes. Incident was witnessed by Highway Patrol, who appeared very surprised to see such an event occur. Costco tire, flagged the issue as it appeared out of the ordinary and shipped the tire for review to Michelin.

Tire pressure dose not hold air to recommended tire pressure. Passenger tire seem to control pressure on all four tires. Once tire pressure is inflated to recommended pressure. All four tires deflate and inflated to uneven pressure after driving. Vehicle was seen by Terry Cullen Johnsboro, Ga. They said the passenger rim need to be replaced 800.00. But I ask about the rubber oring around the valve stem replace, they said no oring on the valve stem. I ask about a valve replaced they said no a new tire is the best they could do. My gas mileage dropped to 28 miles a gal from 40. This is a critical fix for a car that has no spare tire. In addition, oil change could not be done on the transmission because there is 126,000 miles on the car is what the technician had said.

The contact owns a 2007 Dodge Ram 2500 equipped with Michelin Tires, Tire Line: Defender LTX M/S, Tire Size: 265/70/R17, DOT Number: B7KP02EX. The contact stated while driving 65 MPH, the driver’s side front tire exploded, causing the headlight module to detach and crash into the windshield of the vehicle. The contact also stated that the passenger’s side rear tire exploded, causing the wheel to fracture into pieces. The dealer was made aware of the failure. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure but did not provide any assistance. A case was opened. The approximate vehicle failure mileage was 170,000. The tire failure mileages were unknown.

I had one tire on this vehicle which had 3 times where the tire became flat. The first two flats were fixed and then when the third flat happen, the dealer said the tire could no longer be fixed. These tires were purchased at Costco. I have never had a tire have more than one flat.

DRIVING DOWN THE HIGHWAY, A 3 YEAR OLD MICHELIN DEFENDER LTX DRIVERS SIDE REAR TIRE SEPARATED AND THEN EXPLODED. BODY DAMAGE WAS $9,000 PLUS THE COST OF REPLACING ALL THE TIRES. MICHELIN AFTER 7 WEEKS RESPONDED SAYS IS WAS A CLASSIC TRAUMA TO THE TIRE FROM A POTHOLE OR ROCK SOMETIME DURING ITS LIFE. IN THE 3 YEARS I HAVE DRIVEN ON THESE TIRE THERE WAS NEVER ANY TRAUMA. THE SAME DAY I WAS AT THE TIRE SHOP, 3 OTHER VEHICLES WERE THERE FOR THE SAME ISSUE. AN INDEPENDENT TIRE SHOP AND THE BODY SHOP THAT HANDLED THE REPAIRS CONFIRMS MICHELIN TIRES DO NOT HOLD UP TO ARIZONA'S HEAT. THEY SEE MORE BLOWOUTS AND SEPARATIONS THAN WITH OTHER TIRES. HAS THE NHTSB LOOKED INTO MICHELIN TRUCK TIRES TO SEE IF THEY ARE COVERING SOMETHING UP WITH THEIR LIGHT TRUCK TIRES? IT SEEMS IF A TIRE CANNOT HOLD TOGETHER AFTER 30,000 MILES THEY NEED TO BE TAKEN OFF THE ROAD.