2005 Chrysler Pt Cruiser Convertible

CATASTROPHIC TIRE FAILURE AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS DUE TO TREAD SEPARATION - COOPER RESPONSE TOURING 205/55 R16 91H ON 2005 CHRYSLER PT CRUISER. TREAD DEPTH = 5/32, TIRES WERE NEW ON USED CAR PURCHASED IN 07/2014. NO DRY ROT OR VISIBLE CRACKING ON TIRES, 23K MILEAGE ON TIRES. IN 07/2018, TWO OF THE TIRES IN THE SET OF 4 WERE REPLACED DUE TO THE BEGINNINGS OF TREAD SEPARATION (WOULD NOT BALANCE). I AM A FORMER TIRE DEVELOPMENT ENGINEER FOR A MAJOR US TIRE MANUFACTURER AND I HAVE ANALYZED HUNDREDS OF FAILED TIRES RETURNED TO THE MANUFACTURER. BASED ON MY ANALYSIS, I BELIEVE THAT THIS TIRE FAILED BY DELAMINATION OF THE TREAD DUE TO IMPROPER CONSTRUCTION OR CURING AND NOT DUE TO A TIRE PUNCTURE. SINCE 3 OF 4 OF THESE TIRES HAVE FAILED, I BELIEVE THAT THE ENTIRE BATCH MAY BE DEFECTIVE.

CHRYSLER PT CRUISER CONVERTIBLE 2005, REPEATED LOSS OF AIR, TIRE FLAT, TIRE BLEW OUT ON HIGHWAY, TIRES REPLACED MULTIPLE TIMES. GOODYEAR REPORTS RIM ISSUES. CHRYSLER NON-RESPONDENT, GOODYEAR SIMPLY REPLACES. RESEARCH YIELDS MULTIPLE COMPLAINTS ON MULTIPLE WEBSITES STATING THE SAME ISSUE. THIS IS A ROAD HAZARD AND SAFETY ISSUE. *TR

LEASED A 2005 PT CRUISER CONVERTIBLE, DREAM CRUISER SERIES 4 IN NOVEMBER OF 2004. FIRST FAILURE OF THE TIRES WAS THE PASSENGER SIDE REAR TIRE IN AUGUST 2006. I WAS PARKED SOMEWHERE WAITING FOR SOMEONE AND WHEN THEY WALKED BACK TO MY CAR THEY NOTICED THAT I HAD A BULGE IN THE TIRE DUE TO A CRACK IN THE SIDEWALL. HAD TO GET THE VERY EXPENSIVE TIRE (GOODYEAR - 205/50/17 RS-A) REPLACED, WITH ONLY APPROXIMATELY 13,000 MILES ON THE CAR. NEXT FAILURE WAS IN OCTOBER OF THE SAME YEAR. DRIVING AT 35 MPH AT THE END OF A LINE OF THREE CARS WHEN ALL THREE HIT THE SAME POTHOLE. THE FIRST TWO CARS DIDN'T HAVE A PROBLEM, MY PASSENGER SIDE FRONT TIRE COMPLETELY BLEW OUT THE SIDEWALL AND I HAD TO HAVE AN EMERGENCY REPLACEMENT, THIS TIME WITH JUST UNDER 15,000 MILES ON THE CAR. BOTH TIRE DEALERSHIPS SEEMED TO CASUALLY ACKNOWLEDGE THE FACT THAT THEY HAD SEEN SEVERAL PROBLEMS WITH THESE PARTICULAR TIRES ON THIS PARTICULAR MODEL OF CAR. DEALERSHIP DIDN'T KNOW HOW TO HANDLE THE PROBLEM EXCEPT TO GIVE ME A NUMBER FOR CHRYSLER. CHRYSLER DOESN'T DEAL WITH TIRES AND THEY DIRECTED ME TO GOODYEAR. GOODYEAR SAID IT WAS DUE TO ROAD HAZARDS AND THEY WERE NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY OF THE COSTS AND COMPLETELY DENIED HAVING HEARD OF ANY OTHER PROBLEMS WITH THIS TYPE OF TIRE. *NM

ON THE INCIDENT DATE, I WAS TRAVELING ON THE FREEWAY AT ABOUT 78 MILES AN HOUR (IDAHO FREEWAY SPEED LIMIT IS 75). THE OUTSIDE SIDEWALL OF THE LEFT FRONT TIRE COMPLETELY DISINTEGRATED CAUSING THE TIRE TO COME COMPLETELY APART. IT WAS LITERALLY FILLED WITH ASH FROM THE RUBBER. THE TIRES ARE ON A 2005 PT CRUISER CONVERTIBLE TOURING EDITION AND HAD ONLY 19000 MILES ON THEM. THEY HAVE ALWAYS BEEN MAINTAINED WITH 36 OR MORE POUNDS OF AIR AND THE AIR PRESSURE HAS BEEN CHECKED MUCH MORE OFTEN THAN NORMAL DUE TO THE FACT THAT THEY ALWAYS LOOKED LOW. I HAD JUST CHECKED THE AIR IN THEM TWO DAYS BEFORE. ABOUT 15 MILES PRIOR TO THE TIRE EXPLODING, THE CAR HAD A VERY DISTINCT PULL TO LEFT WHICH I ATTRIBUTED INITIALLY TO WIND LOAD FROM THE SIDE OF THE CAR, APPARENTLY IT WAS NOT WIND. THESE TIRES ARE A DEATH TRAP WAITING TO HAPPEN. *NM

DT: THE CONTACT WAS DRIVING ON JUNE 8, 2005 WHEN HE HEARD A PING SOUND COME FROM UNDER THE VEHICLE. THEN THE DRIVER SIDE TIRE BLEW OUT. THERE WERE NO ACCIDENTS. WHEN HE TOOK IT TO THE DEALERSHIP THEY SAID THERE WAS A PUNCTURED MARK ON THE TIRE. THEY SAID IT WAS NOT DUE TO A DEFECT IN THE TIRE. THE TIRE IS A GOODYEAR, SIZE I 205/50R17XL. THE CONTACT DID NOT UNDERSTAND WHY THE PUNCTURE MARK DID NOT CAUSE THE TIRE TO GO FLAT. *AK UPDATED 11/16/2005 - THE TIRE WAS A GOODYEAR EAGLE RS-A. ON OCT 7,2005 THE CONSUMER HEARD THE SAME PING NOISE UNDER THE VEHICLE AGAIN. THE CONSUMER PULLED OFF THE ROAD TO INSPECT THE VEHICLE AN FOUND THAT THE DRIVER'S SIDE FRONT TIRE BLEWOUT. IT WAS THE SAME BRAND AND MODEL TIRE AS THE FIRST FAULTY TIRE WITH THE SAME DOT NUMBER. *NM