2002 Mercedes Benz C Class

WE PURCHASED A NEW SET OF MICHELIN PILOT SPORT 2 TIRES AT COSTCO IN POWAY, CA ON 10/8/07 FOR MY WIFE'S MERCEDES. AFTER JUST LESS THAN SIX MONTHS AND UNDER 6,800 MILES, WE NOTICED HER LEFT TIRE WAS LOW. SUSPECTING SHE HAD PICKED UP A NAIL OR SUCH, WE FULLY INFLATED THE TIRE AND DROVE THE THREE MILES TO COSTCO. THE REPRESENTATIVE THERE, PATRICK, CALLED ME TO SAY IT WAS A NAIL BUT IT HAD DAMAGED THE SIDEWALL AND THE TIRE COULD NOT BE REPAIRED. WHEN I WENT BACK TO THE TIRE CENTER, PATRICK'S SUPERVISOR, WILLIAM KENNISON, INSISTED THAT SIX MONTHS AND 6800 MILES WERE PERFECTLY NORMAL LIFE EXPECTANCY NUMBERS FOR HIGH PERFORMANCE TIRES. HE INFORMED ME THERE WAS OVER 75% OF THE TREAD ON THE FRONT TIRES (DIFFERENT SIZE THAN THE REARS 225/45R17 VS. 245/40R17) BUT ONLY 38% ON THE LEFT REAR AND 0% ON THE RIGHT REAR. I NEVER SAW THE RIGHT REAR TIRE. HIS MANAGER, HERB, WAS OFF DUTY BUT WAS SUPPOSED TO CALL ME ON MONDAY TO DISCUSS MY DISSATISFACTION. HE NEVER CALLED. I PAID $379 AND CHANGE AND LEFT WITH A NEW PAIR OF REAR TIRES. MY WIFE WILL BE 56 NEXT WEEK. SHE IS A NURSE PRACTITIONER AND PRIMARILY DRIVES THIS CAR TO WORK AND OUR DAUGHTER'S SCHOOL. IT HAS BEEN ON THREE ROAD TRIPS TO UCLA FROM SAN DIEGO SINCE WE BOUGHT NEW TIRES IN OCTOBER. THERE IS NOTHING UNUSUAL OR AGGRESSIVE IN MY WIFE'S DRIVING STYLE AND THE FACTORY TIRES LASTED 40,075 MILES. CLEARLY, THESE TIRES CAME FROM A BAD BATCH AND SHOULD HAVE BEEN RECALLED. HAD WE NOT HAD A LOW TIRE THE CONSEQUENCES MIGHT HAVE BEEN MUCH WORSE. I HAVE NOTIFIED COSTCO AND MICHELIN. COSTCO INVOICE #007750053220 DATED 10/08/2007. MEMBERSHIP #111760783421. BARRY LOVELL. *TR

I PURCHASED GOODYEAR AMERICAN EAGLE TIRES FROM WALMART IN BIG RAPIDS, MICHIGAN ON 11-18-04. THE TIRES WERE SIZE P20555R16BW AND INSTALLED ON MY 2002 MERCEDES BENZ C240 SEDAN. ON 10/2/05 I NOTICED A FLAT TIRE ON THE FRONT RIGHT SIDE OF MY CAR. UPON FURTHER INSPECTION IT BECAME APPARENT THERE WAS A CRACK AROUND THE ENTIRE CIRCUMFERENCE OF THE TIRE ABOUT AN INCH AWAY FROM THE RIM ON THE INSIDE SIDEWALL. THE DEPTH OF THE CRACK WAS ALL THE WAY TO THE STEEL BELTS. AFTER INSPECTING THE REMAINING THREE TIRES I DISCOVERED THEY WERE ALL CRACKED IN THIS MANNER. TWO WERE AS BAD AS THE FIRST TIRE AND A FOURTH WAS BEGINNING TO CRACK. I TOOK THE TIRES TO WALMART IN GARNER, MA WHERE I NOW RESIDE. THE MANAGER WAS VERY HELPFUL AND REPLACED THE TIRES WITHOUT QUESTION. HOWEVER, AFTER CALLING THE COMPLAINT IN TO GOODYEAR, IT BECAME APPARENT THEY REALLY DON'T CARE. I'M CONCERNED THERE ARE OTHER PEOPLE OUT THERE WHO WILL BE KILLED OR INJURED DUE TO THESE TIRES. IT'S APPARENT THERE IS A DEFECT BECAUSE MY TIRES EXPERIENCED 100% FAILURE RATE AND WERE PRODUCED IN TWO SEPARATE LOTS. THE DOT NUMBERS ARE DOT PJT2 4AHR 1604 (3 TIRES) AND DOT PJT2 4AHR 3704 (1 TIRE). GOODYEAR CLAIMS THERE IS NO PROBLEM AND THAT LESS THAN 1% OF TIRES ARE BAD. THIS IS NOT A STATISTIC WORTH BRAGGING ABOUT SINCE MILLIONS OF TIRES ARE PRODUCED. THE TIRES I PURCHASED CRACKED DUE TO DRY ROT AND THEY WERE LESS THAN ONE YEAR OLD. GOODYEAR IS UNCONCERNED ABOUT HIGHWAY SAFETY. THEIR ATTITUDE AT THE COMPLAINT CENTER WAS PATHETIC. I'M CONCERNED THAT THE NEW TIRES WILL ALSO BE DEFECTIVE AND I NEED ASSURANCE FROM SOMEONE THEY DO NOT HAVE AN ONGOING QUALITY ISSUE. I HAVE PICTURES OF THE DEFECTIVE TIRES AND THE WALMART MANAGER IN GARDNER, MASSACHUSETTS IS HOLDING THE DEFECTIVES UNTIL GOODYEAR VISITS HIM AGAIN. *NM

IN OCTOBER OF 2001, I PURCHASED A NEW (2002) MERCEDES BENZ C-240. IT CAME EQUIPPED WITH GERMAN MADE CONTINENTAL CONTOURING TIRES. IT IS WITH THESE TIRES THAT I AM EXPERIENCING A PROBLEM. I HAVE 19,000 MILES ON THE CAR AND ALREADY HAVE HAD TWO SLOW LEAKS IN TWO DIFFERENT TIRES (PASSENGER SIDE FRONT/REAR). THE FIRST TIRE LEAKED (AT ABOUT 17,000 MILES) BUT ABLE TO BE PATCHED. WHEN I BROUGHT THE SECOND TIRE INTO AN STS TIRE DEALER, I NOTICED THAT THEY SOLD CONTINENTAL TIRES. SINCE I HAD THE TWO PROBLEMS, I ASKED THE MANAGER IF THEY SOLD MANY CONTINENTAL TIRES AND EXPLAINED MY EXPERIENCES (IN BOTH CASES THE TIRES HAD NAILS, OR SIMILAR METAL, EMBEDDED IN THEIR TREAD). AGAIN, IN THE FIRST INSTANCE, THE TIRE WAS REPAIRED. IN THE SECOND INSTANCE, THE DAMAGE WAS TOO CLOSE TO THE SHOULDER OF THE TIRE AND COULD NOT BE PROPERLY PATCHED. I HAD TO PURCHASE A NEW TIRE. HERE IS MY CONCERN. THE STS MANAGER, ASKED ME IF MY TIRES WERE FACTORY TIRES. I INDICATED THAT THEY WERE THE ONES THAT CAME WITH THE (NEW) CAR. HE INDICATED THAT FACTORY TIRES ARE TYPICALLY MADE TO THE SPECIFICATION OF THE AUTO MANUFACTURER, NOT THE TIRE MANUFACTURER. HE EXPLAINED THAT BECAUSE THE AUTO MAKER ORDERS TIRES IN SUCH QUANTITY, THEY CAN SET THEIR PRICE. IN MOST CASES, FOR THE TIRE MANUFACTURER TO BE ABLE TO MEET THAT PRICE, THEY NEED TO ADJUST THE COMPOSITE FORMULA OF THE TIRE -- ESSENTIALLY MANUFACTURING INFERIOR TIRES. THIS WAS HIS EXPLANATION OF WHY I MIGHT BE EXPERIENCING PROBLEMS WITH MY FACTORY TIRES. HE FURTHER INDICATED THAT TIRES SOLD TO TIRE RETAILERS ARE MANUFACTURED TO THE TIRE MAKERS' STANDARDS AND WILL PROVIDE A MUCH LONGER USEFUL LIFE (HE INDICATED 60,000 + THOUSAND MILES FOR THE CONTINENTAL CONTOURING TIRE I JUST PURCHASED TO REPLACE MY ORIGINAL EQUIPMENT TIRE). THE KICKER IS THAT CONTINENTAL DOES NOT WARRANTY THEIR TIRES AGAINST ROAD HAZARDS! IF HIS EXPLANATION ABOUT FACTORY TIRES IS TRUE, THIS IS VERY DISTURBING AND I BELIEVE THAT CONSUMERS HAVE A RIGHT TO KNOW.