MICHELIN PILOT SPORT TIRES Complaints

15,000 miles and 22/32 (70%) tire tread evenly worn available. The tire tread completely separated from the sidewall of the tire. This is a common and known problem with this tire. Many cases are presented on various online forums with photos and documentation.

Rear tires have alarming wear on the inside, where the inside sidewall meets the tread. This is identical to the other complaints that are logged on NHTSA about Michelin Pilot Sport 4S rear tires on Tesla Model S Plaid cars. Tires are: Michelin Pilot Sport 4S 295/30 ZR21 102Y XL BSW. Specifically, the right rear tires loses pressure and needs to be reinflated. The left rear tire, according to inspection, actually looked worse, but is not yet losing pressure. This is impossible to see or know about without removing the tire or putting the car on a lift, since it is on the is inside sidewall/tread of the rear tire. There is high danger of a blowout because of some type of defect (camber/suspension or tire) which cannot be seen by the consumer. I would have never known about this if the tire technician had not alerted me, and probably would have had a high-speed blowout.

Inner tire tread only wears significantly to the point of failure. This may be a factory alignment issue or other but is noted in many forums. I was losing air quickly and based on research saw this was a common issue with these specific cars. The tread appears fine at 8000 miles but when removing the wheel from the car you can notice the inner surface only is worn to the point of failure with the inner belt showing is parts. I was able to remove the wheel and see the issue before experiencing a blowout while driving.

The contact owns a 2022 Tesla Model S equipped with Michelin tires, Tire Line: Pilot Sport 4S Tires, Tire Size: 295/30/ZR21, DOT Number: 4M5203DX4321. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, TPMS warning light was illuminated. The contact took the vehicle to an independent mechanic where it was discovered that the tread inside both rear tires had severely worn to the extent that the wires inside both tires were exposed. The contact was informed that the failure could have led to a severe tire blowout. The mechanic also informed him that the failure was caused by a vehicle misalignment. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and the contact was informed that a diagnostic test was needed to determine the cause of the failure. The tires were not replaced. The failure mileage was approximately 10,000.

The OEM Michelin rear tire used on the 2021 and 2022+ Tesla Model S has a serious safety defect which results in extreme wear/tread separation at the inner sidewall/tread junction. Numerous defective tires are shown on this thread, among others: https://teslamotorsclub.com/tmc/threads/plaid-21%E2%80%9Drear-tire-woes-factory-defect.269394/ Both Tesla and Michelin report the tires are nationwide backorder (likely due to the number of tire failures in the field). Thus far, Tesla and Michelin have taken NO action on proactive tire replacements, despite repeated requests. (Perhaps they are awaiting accidents with fatalities first?) Please take action to secure a recall as this defect is extremely difficult to note as the tire tread separation occurs most often at the inner sidewall of the rear tires, a nearly impossible area to inspect.

Michelin manufactures this tire specific for the Tesla Model S plaid vehicle. This tire wears pre maturely from the 300 rating most times under 10,000 miles causing tread separation on the inner wall. This specific wear can only be seen once the tire is removed from the vehicle. This is a well know issue on tesla forum boards and Michelin is not only not assisting with the issue, they are on back order for this tire that is specific for the Tesla Model S plaid. Not only did Michelin design a tire for this vehicle that wears well short of the rating, they are also not making enough to replace the worn out\defective tires. The tread separation is on the inside of the tire not visible to the driver that could potentially lead to a catastrophic accident if the tread separates at a high speed. The tire size is 295/30/21.

Tire size 275/40/ZR 19. Unexpected tire wear. Have replaced twice in one year. Each set lasting about 5k miles. Current set lost air without puncture. All tread gone. verified proper inflation and appropriate driving style on AWD vehicle. Front tires are different size and appear to have held up better. Last incident led to flat tire and the need to change to spare on the side of a highway

Both Michelin 225/40 ZR 19 Pilot Sport 4S front tires had severe "chunking", or tread peeling, on them after only 8,000 miles. Atlantic Tire (Bayamon, Puerto Rico), the sole distributor and service center of Michelin in Puerto Rico, informed me that approximately 30 other Genesis G70's had recently made warranty claims regarding the front tires with severe "chunking". They informed me not to drive the vehicle until the tires are replaced.

The contact owns a 2019 Kia Stinger equipped with Michelin Tires, Tire Line: Pilot Sport 4, Front Tire Size: 225/40/ZR19, DOT number: HCUJ00HX4118; and Rear Tire Size: 255/35/ZR19, DOT number: HCN401FX4118. The contact stated while his wife was driving 55 MPH, the driver-side rear tire experienced a blowout. The contact stated his wife was able to veer to the side of the road, where she replaced the tire with assistance. The contact stated that as his wife returned from her trip, he inspected the front driver side tire and the front and rear passenger’s side tires and noticed that the top tread on those tires was separating. The dealer and manufacturer were notified of the failure and referred the contact to the tire manufacturer for assistance. The tire manufacturer offered a discount for new tires. The front driver’s side tire and the front and rear passenger’s side tires were not replaced. The tires were the original equipment. The approximate vehicle and tire failure mileage were 23,600.

I purchased this vehicle in 2020 and it came with these tires. THREE of the four tires either had a bubble or repeatedly lost air around 28000 miles. These are very unsafe tires and unlikely a road hazard damaged three of the four.