Front Tire Tribulations

[groundeffect]

Hey guys!

So, I went out on an errand run the other day (a 150km run for milk and bread ). The steering felt a little washy and needed more force in the turns. I pulled over for a closer look. The tire treads were fine, no nails, so I looked further to the side wall where I noticed some cracks… lots!!

On looking closer at what looked like dry rot cracks… wasn't, couldn't be. I ride everyday, so these tires haven't been siting for longer then a couple days, ever. They had just over 11,000km on them, but only the front right tire had the issue.

I grabbed a bottle of water from the trunk and splashed some down the side wall looking for a leak. Down on one knee with my ear close to the tire I heard some hissing and loads of tiny bubbles from from all of the 8-10 cracks!! You know that sinking feeling in your stomach when you know something is wrong… yeah, big time!

Not thinking I needed a tow just yet, I started towards the nearest gas station with an air pump. Precious air pressure was escaping with every rotation and bump I hit. I knew with every sharp swerve and turn that leaned on my right front tire the cracks grew a size or two.

Easing through the downtown core at near rush hour I finally found a gas station that didn't have an "out or order" sign taped to it. Tire pressure is between 15+/- 2 psi by spec, and I've always run on the higher end at 17psi. I blasted it up to spec at 17psi and motored towards home along a route with other stations along the way.

I had Ride-On in both tires, it didn't even get a chance to work since it only works on the treaded parts of the tires, not damaged side walls as in this case. In the end I had both front tires replaced with new ones as a set, even though it was only the right front tire (with 11,000km on each) that had the cracking issue. I have no idea what caused the cracking and the tire was not covered underway warranty. I hear tires are simply not covered, period.

(Image of a few of the cracks attached - note the gold dots on the tire is a marker dot - me tracking the expansion of the crack)

All ok now with new front tires! :thumbup:

 

[fastfraser]

hyea:Obvious flaw in the tire. I would give the manufacturer a call .

 

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

DAMAGED TIRE

It's interesting that that the letters are damaged....what's with that......dry rot is age and sun ( uv rays ).....and this suddenly occurred at 11000 km's and only on one front tire....if it is a defective tire it sure took a long time to appear .....if you have any local tire shop/s with tire guru's id'd show it to them and get an expert opinion...NOT THE DEALER.......Mike.....good luck with this mystery.....please keep us posted......:thumbup:

 

[Dudley]

Some almost look like knife cuts made by someone having little strength and just kind of scraped the tire several times in one spot. The ones on the bead are a mystery.

 

[thehawk]

Possible animal damage?? They really look strange!

thehawk

 

[IGETAROUND]

:agree:nojoke

hyea:Obvious flaw in the tire. I would give the manufacturer a call .

 

[Bob Denman]

:agree: X2... That sure looks wonky... :shocked:

 

[BajaRon]

Are these cracks all the way around the tire or just in a certain area? It may be the picture but it does not look like dry rot. It looks more like physical damage of some kind. Could also be a defective tire.

Strange either way.

 

[DynamoBT]

Could you have scraped it up against something rough at one time?? Definitely weird.

 

[NancysToy]

Are these cracks all the way around the tire or just in a certain area? It may be the picture but it does not look like dry rot. It looks more like physical damage of some kind. Could also be a defective tire.

Strange either way.

:agree: The failures appear to follow the tire plies.

 

[groundeffect]

Appreciate the replies, guys!

Those cracks are basically in one area, there was about 8-10 or them in the span of about 8 inches only on one side, on one of the front tires. No, it was rubbed up against anything and no, I don't think any animals got at it, haha. Definitely strange, indeed! I think it will continue to be a mystery though - it is not being covered, I didn't any kind of reasoning and new tires are installed and I'm rolling again.

 

[BajaRon]

Appreciate the replies, guys!

Those cracks are basically in one area, there was about 8-10 or them in the span of about 8 inches only on one side, on one of the front tires. No, it was rubbed up against anything and no, I don't think any animals got at it, haha. Definitely strange, indeed! I think it will continue to be a mystery though - it is not being covered, I didn't any kind of reasoning and new tires are installed and I'm rolling again.

I'm glad for the new tires. It is hard to tell from the pictures but I think catastrophic failure could well have been in your future had you not discovered this.

What did the dealer tell you? Any ideas of how this happened?

 

[sabunim5]

Sorry to hear of your misfortune. Glad you made it safely to a solution. :thumbup:

 

[CyncySpyder]

Glad you found it before total failure & thanks for posting about it

I'm assuming this is a stock tire, right? Once I can walk again I'm going to check the tires on Teds Red Sled just to make sure ours are ok. I'd hate to think what could have happened to you if you hadn't caught it when you did :yikes:

 

[bikeguy]

That's one of the weirdest things I've ever seen. At first it looks like some kind of cracks like weather cracking but the damage to the raised letters looks more like physical damage like some kind of scrape. When they dismounted the tire did they flex the tire and try to see how deep the cracks were and whether they looked like some kind of natural cracking or some kind of external damage? Also, it looks like most of the cracks start with a puncture mark. If the damage is confined to just a relatively small area of the tire, I'd be inclined to think it's physical damage caused by - who knows? In any case, glad you caught it before it became a seriuos problem. If you find out for sure what caused it, we would sure like to know.

Cotton

 

[Bob Denman]

That's one of the weirdest things I've ever seen. I'd be inclined to think it's physical damage caused by - who knows?

 

[groundeffect]

Hey guys.

Ron: Basically the dealer agreed it was very odd, but still no warranty and no views on how it happened. Yep, glad it was noticed before something bad happened.


Cyncy: Yes, stock tire


Cotton: Thanks for the notes, still no idea what really happened, just happy to have new tires now.

I've pass it by a few other shop guys I know and they tend to think it is a fault in the tire.

This is a good reminder to keep checking your tires on pre-ride checks everyone and pay close attention to the feel of your steering and handling.
Cheers.

 

[mrb]

I remember years ago following an interstate rider (Honda 500/4) on a dirt road here in OZ. He pulled over, I stopped and he was using a can of Finilec to try and reinflate the rear tyre. The Metzler tyre pattern had a heavy centre groove and the goo was flowing out this centre groove all around the tyre :shocked: - the tyre had split into two down the centre line.!!

I saw him at another rally some months later and he mentioned he took ther Metzler tyre back to the importers and they replaced it free.

He had then taken a weekend to tidy up several mechanical issues that been the result of his long interste trip. One of these was the luggage rack that had a broken support each side and had drooped to rest on his rear mudguard. His number plate on the mudguard was held in place with just one central self tapping screw....... you gussed it- this is what had cut the tyre into two dead down the centre line groove.:yikes:

Sorry this does not help your issue but a bit of light relief.

 

[AMTJIM]

The stock rear tire on mine had 2 columns of tire weights 4~5 inches long on the rim. When I changed over to Kumho (ECSTA?), the stock tire that was removed had tread depth pattern that went from flat to tread 180 degrees from flat. The Kumho only needed a couple weights, rolls very smooth, much better and was way cheaper than the Kenda.

 

[xpeschon]

The bottom line is that tire companies manufactor tires and store them (or ship them out) to businesses then the tire sets on the shelf or the warehouse for MANY years before it actually gets sold and put on vehicles, thus dry rotting in much faster then a tire manufactored for only a short time. Not sure out spYder tires have the DOT number I believe all tires by law have to put the serial number on each and every tire. but see below from the internet:

DOT SERIAL NUMBER

The "DOT" symbol certifies the tire manufacturer's compliance with the U.S. Department of Transportation tire safety standards. Below is a description of the serial number. Starting with the year 2000, four numbers are used for the Date of Manufactuer, first two numbers identify the week and the last two numbers identify the year of manufacture. Prior to year 2000 three numbers are used for the Date of manufacture, first two numbers identify the week and the last number identifies the year of manufacture. To identify tires manufactured in the 90's a decade symbol (a triangle on its side) is located at the end of the DOT serial number

X Joe