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I have just noticed a significant sized bulge on the near side front tyre of my sisters '03 reg Ford Ka. The car has Continental tyres fitted all round on the standard alloy wheels and the car has only done a few thousand miles from new. Now my sister bought the car brand new from Motorpoint in Derby, so has the pan european ford warranty. So my question is does she have any redress from either Ford or Continental as this would appear to be a tyre defect?
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No I suspect not, unless you have a sympathetic dealer.
I had similar a few years back (albeit on tyres fiyyed ay local tyre depot) and they said that there was a good chance it was caused by hitting a pothole or speed hump too fast. Although they offered to send the tyre away for inspection, there would have been some charge for doing so, and a penalty (IIRC) if they proved it was not a manufacturing fault. And I'd have been without a tyre for a while...
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As it's the nearside front tyre, chances are it has been kerbed. I'm not saying for one moment that your sister is a bad driver, far from it. Parking for instance, where you drive into a space to pararell park and mount the kerb with the front tyre so that you can get the back end in can easily damage a tyre. Have a good look around the tyre wall to see if you can see any tell tale scuff marks.
Your sister, owning the car from new and having put a few thousand miles on it; I very much doubt the dealer or tyre manufacturer would be interested in investigating whether or not the tyre has a defect caused by them.
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I'm not so sure that the bulge could be due only to physical damage. If there is no other sign of physical damage, such as scuff marks on the tyre wall or wheel rim, I think it's worth filing a claim for a free replacement tyre and see what is said.
A few years back, I asked a tyre depot to replace two half-worn Dunlop tyres as they had cracked between the treads, which I had put down to their age (They were about 5 years old I think - I did only a small annual mileage with that vehicle). The depot suggested sending the tyres to Dunlop for inspection. Dunlop confirmed that the tyres shouldn't have cracked and they paid 75% of the cost of the replacements (which were Goodyears!). The tyre depot charged nothing for sending the tyres away and Dunlop made no charge for inspection.
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Does the alloy show any signs of damage.
If not, I suggest writing to Continental with the details. They are a very good company and may well offer an inspection and replacement of the tyre.
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Thanks for the replies. I have followed the advice given about looking for scuffed side walls and damaged rims but there is nothing that would indicate that it has come into contact with any kerbs. As I mentioned earlier the car is fitted with alloys as standard and as you know with alloy wheels, even the slightest brush with the kerb causes damage to the edge of the rim, but there are no marks at all on the alloy wheel. I have spoken to her and suggested it may be through bumping up or against kerbs, but she tells me that she hasn't knowingly been in contact with any kerbs.
But even so, surely tyres these days should be able to withstand the occasional light brush with a kerb. I myself have brushed and bumped up kerbs through my years of driving but have never caused damage to my tyres through doing it.
So taking the 'nothing ventured nothing gained' approach, who would she be best talking to about this problem. The Ford dealer or a Continental tyre dealer?
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In the 'old days' I think one occasionally came across a tyre where the sidewall simply came away from the carcass. Does this still happen?
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Hi,
In any case the tyre needs replacing ASAP. I think that driving at motorway speeds with this tyre will produce a lot of vibration. I replaced an old rear tyre with this symptom recently, it went out of shape becasue I have to bump up a kerb on that tyre only to get on the drive. But it was old anyway, it's surprising to find a nearly new on like that so I'd argue it IMO.
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Simon:
Personally I would go to the Ford dealer first. I got a 50% contribution from Michelin for a bulged tyre via my VW dealer who had supplied it.
If the dealer doesn't want to know, I would either contact Continental directly.
Andy
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I seem to remember getting my tyres changed in Leicester by Kwik Fit who guaranteed it against defects for up to 5 years.
The deal was they would offer a contribution based on the wear of the tyre.
In my Discovery manual it indicates that LR may be sympathetic to a fault with a tyre fitted by the manufacturer. This is all a bit academic now as the vehicle is 10 years old.
Hugo
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