NHTSA Complaint #10060773 — 2002 VOLVO S60

I HAVE A 2002 VOLVO S 60 AWD WITH THE OPTIONAL 17" X 7.5" "THOR" WHEELS AND PIRELLI TIRES. I HAVE BEEN THROUGH 3 SETS OF PIRELLI TIRES IN LESS THAN 20,000 MILES. PIRELLI IS NOT INTERESTED IN THIS ISSUE AS REPEATED ATTEMPTS TO CONTACT THEM HAVE PROVEN UNSUCCESSFUL. DUE TO THE ONGOING PROBLEMS I AM HAVING WITH MY VEHICLE'S TIRES, I HAVE BEEN RESEARCHING THE PIRELLI TIRES COMBINED WITH THE VOLVO S 60 AWD AND HAVE FOUND MANY ALARMING STORIES REGARDING SAFETY CONCERNS WITH MY VEHICLE COMBINED WITH THE PIRELLI TIRE. MANY SOURCES INDICATE PROBLEMS WITH PIRELLI TIRES, ESPECIALLY ON THE S 60 AWD WITH 17" WHEEL OPTION. I AM ON MY 3RD SET OF PIRELLI TIRES, MY CURRENT SET OF TIRES HAVE BEEN BALANCED BY THREE DIFFERENT PIRELLI DEALERS AND I AM STILL EXPERIENCING PROBLEMS WITH WARPING AND CUPPING, TO THE EXTENT THAT MY FRONT TWO TIRES NEED TO BE REPLACED AGAIN. I SEE THAT THERE IS A STRONG POSSIBILITY THAT I COULD EXPERIENCE A TIRE BLOW-OUT BECAUSE OF THE WEAKENED SIDE WALLS THESE TIRES RIDE ON COMBINED WITH THE WEIGHT OF MY S60 AND IT'S AWD SYSTEM. IN MARCH OF 2002, DUE TO LOOSING CONTROL OF MY 2002 S60 AWD, I WAS INVOLVED IN A SERIOUS TRAFFIC ACCIDENT THAT RESULTED IN AIRBAG DEPLOYMENT. IT WASN'T UNTIL AFTER MY ACCIDENT THAT I HAD LEARNED THE REASON I LOST CONTROL OF MY VEHICLE. APPARENTLY, LOST CONTROL OF MY VEHICLE BECAUSE OF A FRONT TIRE SIDE-WALL BLOW OUT, THIS OCCURRED BECAUSE OF A RAPID LANE CHANGE I WAS FORCED TO MAKE TO AVOID A OUT-OF-CONTROL DRIVER. BECAUSE OF MY ONGOING TIRE PROBLEMS AND RECENT RESEARCH THAT I HAVE CONDUCTED, I HAVE NOW REALIZED THAT THERE IS INDEED A SERIOUS SAFETY ISSUE WITH MY TIRES. THIS IS SHOCKINGLY REMINISCENT OF THE FORD EXPLORER / FIRESTONE TIRE INCIDENTS. PLEASE INVESTIGATE THIS SITUATION IMMEDIATELY ON ALL S 60 AWD 7" WHEEL/PIRELLI TIRE FITMENTS. I AM SERIOUSLY CONCERNED WITH THIS SAFETY FLAW THAT VOLVO HAS OBVIOUSLY OVERLOOKED AND FEEL THAT YOUR IMMEDIATE ATTENTION TO THIS MATTER COULD LEAD TO PREVENTABLE INJURY OR EVEN DEATHS. *AK