Another XRV Cracking story

[skypilot_1]

Originally Posted by Tireman9

"Zipper" condition is the result of running low air pressure. Only takes a few miles to get the fatigue failure of the steel body cord. Doesn't matter the brand or total miles on a tire. Physical evidence is relatively easy to see with just a little magnification.
There is no manufacturing process that would allow "defective" steel cords to be lined up such that the weak spot is at the point of high flexing.
Fatigue failure of steel is easily demonstrated by bending a paper clip back and forth.

RE higher failure rate. I doubt that any dealer has access to all the information necessary to make a fact based statement on failure rate.

What is true is that a majority of RVs that ahve been weighed have been found to have one or more tire overloaded for the level of inflation in the tires.

If you had sidewall cracking so severe that water was able to get to the steel then whoever did the anual tire inspection did not do a competent job as it takes a good sized crack for that to happen.
The location of the failure if due to rusted steel would not necessarily happen at same location.

Would you have any pictures of the tires?

There were NO CRACKs on the tires after they blow! Guess what I based my statement that XRV's are not like OTR trucks is the side wall thickness and the compared casing weight. Since the tires are called X..RV do you suppose maybe there constructed differently then truck tire for same weight range truck ? Would Michelin sell you them to put on your truck ? That tire dealer did all tire work for the large RV dealers in area. He was telling me his professional experience. The XRV's had less the 20k miles when I got rid of them. Ran replacements for 80k and sold coach with them still on. I am a FAA pilot/mechanic and never allow tires to be under inflated. One tire, I would say oops, three times... No way. No photos, Happen in 05.

[Tireman9]

Originally Posted by skypilot_1

There were NO CRACKs on the tires after they blow! Guess what I based my statement that XRV's are not like OTR trucks is the side wall thickness and the compared casing weight. Since the tires are called X..RV do you suppose maybe there constructed differently then truck tire for same weight range truck ? Would Michelin sell you them to put on your truck ? That tire dealer did all tire work for the large RV dealers in area. He was telling me his professional experience. The XRV's had less the 20k miles when I got rid of them. Ran replacements for 80k and sold coach with them still on. I am a FAA pilot/mechanic and never allow tires to be under inflated. One tire, I would say oops, three times... No way. No photos, Happen in 05.

I took you at your word when you said "zipper" failure of the sidewall. This is in fact a standard tire industry term for the fatigue failure of the steel cord in the sidewall of any type of tire, no matter the size or application. Close examination of the ends of the steel filaments reveals the classic failure of steel not subject to cutting but a tensile failure with the cone having a lip to one side.
As it is the inflation pressure and not the tire sidewall that supports the load I am not sure why the tire dealer believes otherwise.
I don't doubt that you checked your air pressure every morning but that does not mean there could not be a puncture, cut or valve leak happen while driving down the road. I am also sure that FAA mechanics check all the components on an aircraft but there are still failures or is it your position that every component failure is the result of a failure of the mechanic to properly maintain and inspect the parts of the aircraft?

[Tireman9]

Originally Posted by oakcreekeric

I thought I would give an update to my claim...

I was able to take the RV back to the tire store (Pomp's) and have the manager call Michelin after he inspected the tires for a second time.. Unfortunately, he wasn't successful in getting to the correct person.. he had to leave a message..

I received a call from Michelin and after a bit of phone tag.. I was finally able to speak with an adjuster... The initial offer was an 80% discount on all 6 tires.. I'll be honest, I was a bit shocked at that out of the gate.. it actually had me baffled. I quickly asked for a confirming email, as I wanted it in writing.. My mistake was not asking about mounting and balancing (according to Pomp's, that would be $100 per tire)... Needless to say.. I quickly called back.. but to my disappointment, I had to leave a voice mail..

On Monday, of this week.. I got my email.. with no mention of mounting and balancing fee's... I responded to the email asking a few clarifying questions.. and she responded and agreed to pay 80% of the mounting and balancing fee's as well..

Not too bad.. not too bad at all...

Statistics on my tires:

Model - XRV
Depth - 13/32
Mileage - 20,000
Date Code - 2511
Coach purchase - 08/12

One of my clarifying questions was something they put in the email.. they said the offer was good for 14 days.. since there are no XRV tires to be had.. I wanted clarification on that.. she mentioned that the tires would need to be re-inspected prior to tires being installed.. This is fine by me... the RV is being tucked away for the winter and I had every intention of having the new tires installed in Spring.. Michelin was ok with that..

Another clarifying question was claim processing.. the tire dealer wasn't interested in filing the claim.. as he said.. they didn't sell the original ones, and they aren't going to wait 6-10 months to get reimbursed from Michelin.. Naturally, I wasn't happy with this, but understood.. So, I made it clear to Michelin waiting for reimbursement that long was unacceptable.. they replied and insured reimbursement would be only 4-6 weeks.. I'm ok with that..

So.. I wanted to share my results.. I felt Michelin has stepped up and took care of my defective tires..

Good luck to others who have the same issues as me !!

Glad to hear that things have worked out to your satisfaction. I do have to ask if you will be filing complaints on the "defective" tires with NHTSA?

We, the RV owners need to do a better job of providing the tire DOT serial and RV VIN to NHTSA for their database for without complaints on file there is unlikely to ever be an investigation and with no investigation no recall and with no recall no improvement in the quality of RV tires.

[skypilot_1]

Originally Posted by Tireman9

I took you at your word when you said "zipper" failure of the sidewall. This is in fact a standard tire industry term for the fatigue failure of the steel cord in the sidewall of any type of tire, no matter the size or application. Close examination of the ends of the steel filaments reveals the classic failure of steel not subject to cutting but a tensile failure with the cone having a lip to one side.
As it is the inflation pressure and not the tire sidewall that supports the load I am not sure why the tire dealer believes otherwise.
I don't doubt that you checked your air pressure every morning but that does not mean there could not be a puncture, cut or valve leak happen while driving down the road. I am also sure that FAA mechanics check all the components on an aircraft but there are still failures or is it your position that every component failure is the result of a failure of the mechanic to properly maintain and inspect the parts of the aircraft?

Mr Tireman,
Do you really think Michelin or any tire manufacture for that matter is going to cover tire if there is any evidence to the contrary. The steel cords were RUSTED. My total involvement was to take casing out of my TOAD and roll it into his store. He did the rest. You can wax all you want to here. But I just won't use XRV's on anything I own. And why should anyone have to, there are many better alternatives out there. Thanks ever so much.

[oakcreekeric]

Originally Posted by Tireman9

Glad to hear that things have worked out to your satisfaction. I do have to ask if you will be filing complaints on the "defective" tires with NHTSA?

We, the RV owners need to do a better job of providing the tire DOT serial and RV VIN to NHTSA for their database for without complaints on file there is unlikely to ever be an investigation and with no investigation no recall and with no recall no improvement in the quality of RV tires.

I have no plans on doing this.. to be quite honest, I didn't know there was a pathway to do this... If you could give me the information, I would happily comply.. especially if it means it will benefit the RV community.

Can you give me a link or something ??

[NHRA225]

Don't think I'm going to complain about a Company that took Care of Me !


Sent from my iPhone using iRV2 - RV Forum

[SilverBob]

Of course, you'd be screaming bloody murder if a set of so-called "Off Brand" tires had to be replaced after 4 years, due to sidewall cracking, no matter what the company did!

I think it's hilarious that people who are so concerned about their tires that they argue about what surfaces they park on, think it's OK that their top of the line, high dollar tires turn to trash in 4 years, as long as they get a nice rebate! What about all the miles you were driving on those tires while they were slowly coming apart in years 3 and 4? Ya think there might be a safety concern there?

Maybe I'm missing something, but as far as I'm concerned, you can keep your "customer service". I'll take tires that don't have to be replaced after only half their expected lifetime.

Cheers!

[Tireman9]

Originally Posted by oakcreekeric

I have no plans on doing this.. to be quite honest, I didn't know there was a pathway to do this... If you could give me the information, I would happily comply.. especially if it means it will benefit the RV community.

Can you give me a link or something ??

NHTSA
They say
"
COMPLETE this 5-step form -- it takes about 5 minutes, and have the following information handy:

• Email Address -- To file a complaint without one or for other assistance, please call the Vehicle Safety Hotline (Toll-Free: 1-888-327-4236 / Hearing Impaired (TTY): 1-800-424-9153).
• Your VIN What's this?
• Make
• Model
• Year of your vehicle

• Any documentation you have related to your complaint, such as photos or a police report

• ALL complaints are reviewed.
• Some complaints may lead to an investigation.
• Some investigations lead to recalls.

Note: The review and investigation process MAY take a long time, but don't worry--you will be notified if there is a recall."

[mel s]

Originally Posted by Tireman9

NHTSA
They say
"
COMPLETE this 5-step form -- it takes about 5 minutes, and have the following information handy:

• Email Address -- To file a complaint without one or for other assistance, please call the Vehicle Safety Hotline (Toll-Free: 1-888-327-4236 / Hearing Impaired (TTY): 1-800-424-9153).
• Your VIN What's this?
• Make
• Model
• Year of your vehicle

• Any documentation you have related to your complaint, such as photos or a police report

• ALL complaints are reviewed.
• Some complaints may lead to an investigation.
• Some investigations lead to recalls.

Note: The review and investigation process MAY take a long time, but don't worry--you will be notified if there is a recall."

Thanks Tireman9
When my 6 Michelin tires sidewall cracked at 3-1/2 years of age I did not report them to the NHTSA...(I doubt that many people do).

That is really to bad because if every bad Michelin tire was reported Michelin might be forced to do something about their faulty tires... besides offering replacement tires at a discounted price.

BTW although Michelin did "take care of me".... I didn't even get a kiss to go with it.... (and I'm sure it was much more enjoyable and satisfying for them than it was for me).

Mel
'96 Safari

[Chuck 1935]

I also never reported my cracked, checked Michelins.
I was afraid they would offer to replace them .
I value my life far to much to put it in the Michelin Mans hands !

[Chuck 1935]

[QUOTE=Chuck 1935;2829341]I also never reported my cracked, checked Michelins.
I was afraid they would offer to replace them .
I value my life far to much to put it in the Michelin Mans hands !

[mel s]

Originally Posted by Chuck 1935

I also never reported my cracked, checked Michelins.
I was afraid they would offer to replace them .
I value my life far to much to put it in the Michelin Mans hands !

Chuck 1935
Good point!
I wish I had replaced mine with a different brand rather than accepting the Michelin replacements.
Mel
'96 Safari, (keeping my fingers crossed on 1 year old Michelin tires).

[Tireman9]

Originally Posted by Chuck 1935

I also never reported my cracked, checked Michelins.
I was afraid they would offer to replace them .
I value my life far to much to put it in the Michelin Mans hands !

A complaint to NHTSA will not result in you being offered a free set. It might result in an investigation but that will not happen as long as people do not file complaints.


Complaints to NHTSA are a separate item from working with a dealer to receive compensation.

[motojavaphil]

We were looking at rigs this past Spring. We came upon a really nice Itasca that obviously had been cared for. The tires were 2014, a real draw for us. Closer observation found a crack in one of the Michelins. The salesman had been touting the age of the tires till I showed him the crack. He still did not believe it despite both of us looking at it. Actually it was a surprise to me. I don't know much about RV tires but do know more about motorcycle tires and would not have accepted a tire in that condition on my motorcycle. Investigations by the Feds are one thing, actually doing a recall or issuing any sort of warning is another as it takes time and data. Michelin does make a lot of tires for about everything and generally they are a quality tire though a bit pricey IMHO.