Cracks in New Tires: Causes & Solutions

Hi!
Yesterday, a colleague put his VW bus on a lift, and we happened to notice that the rear tires were cracked right next to the rims! There are deep cracks all around, about 4mm deep and several centimeters long! The front tires, which are under less stress, are also starting to show signs of this. The worst part is that you can't see it from the outside; you really have to get under the car. I'm worried that in the worst-case scenario, these tires could completely burst on the highway.
Now for the best part: The tires were installed as new tires in October 2003 by a car dealer and have the DOT number 0902 (unfortunately, the seller didn't pay attention to that at the time).

Do we have a legal basis for this? What should one do in such a case?
We definitely want to go and show him what's what - for €280, you can expect more, right?

m;

Hi,
Try using the warranty for defects.
After a certain period of use, the burden of proof may shift, and one should ensure that the damage was not caused by consistently low tire pressure. However, I believe there is still a good chance of success, provided the dealer is still in business and the tires have not been retreaded.
Regardless of what DOT number is printed on it, a tire should not look like that after a year of use. However, there is a particular brand where it seems to be a known issue that cracks will appear after no more than two years.
At least, after receiving massive complaints, they eventually agree to provide replacements.

Regards,
Olli.

Hey, quick question, what brand are those tires?

I had the exact same problem with my Dunlops when they were 1.5 years old. They were 205/40 R17 tires, but that shouldn't happen.
The tire pressure was always fine, and I only discovered it by chance when I was changing the tires.

I then sent the items to Dunlop, but it didn't help. They only responded that I had been driving with insufficient tire pressure (although that was absolutely not the case).

My conclusion: I will never buy Dunlop products again.

Hi,
I wouldn't necessarily agree with that.
Low air pressure and its consequences can be easily detected. Material defects can also be readily identified.
What's interesting about this type of cracking, which occurs either at the bead seat of the rim or in the sidewall, is that it has only been observed for about 5 years.
So far, only Conti tires of various types and sizes have been affected. The brand you mentioned is not (yet) part of the Conti group.
It seems that there was a change in the formulation at some point, which could affect the long-term stability of the rubber.
I can easily imagine that all manufacturers might be affected by this.

Best regards from Berlin.
Olli.

olli wrote:

... It seems that there was a change in the formulation at some point, which could affect the long-term stability of the rubber. I can easily imagine that all manufacturers might be affected by this. Best regards from Berlin. Olli

Soot --> Silica

"Definitely, you should be very careful with the tires now. The cracks (even if they seem superficial) can allow water to enter the tire. This damages the tire's casing. This accelerates the tire's degradation. You usually won't notice much of this process until the tire fails. Perhaps someone used a pressure washer directly on the tires? I would definitely be very cautious with the tires."

No, the tires were not treated with high-definition cleaner or anything similar by us.

The cracks are also on the inside, right along the edge of the rim.

m;

Hello,
Does it have any extreme modifications to the suspension on the axle? Like camber? Or has the load capacity been exceeded, which has caused a change in the camber?

Best regards, Robert.

No, we haven't changed anything.

If you look at the rear axle of the T3, you'll notice that the camber hardly changes when the suspension compresses, because the transverse link has both mounting points oriented perpendicular to the direction of travel.
It has double crossbars at the front.

The tires are also registered, so they should be allowed to be used.

m;

I once had a similar problem with two Fulda Carat Extremo tires, which developed several longitudinal cracks on the inside after about a year. I only discovered them by chance! I had ordered them from Reifen-direkt, and after filing a complaint, I received a full refund about nine months later!