NHTSA Complaint #10436100 — 2011 SUBARU LEGACY

WHILE DRIVING ON A RURAL PAVED ROAD OUR CAR COULD NOT AVOID A POTHOLE DUE TO ONCOMING TRAFFIC. THE IMPACT OF THE POTHOLE WAS SEVERE, THE CAR ALMOST WRECKED. THE POTHOLE WAS NOT HUGE AND THE CAR WAS ONLY GOING 35 TO 40 MPH. AFTER PULLING TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD TO DETERMINE DAMAGE, IT WAS DECIDED THERE WAS NONE AND WE CONTINUED WITH THE SHORT TRIP, AND THEN BACK HOME. THE FOLLOWING DAY WHILE DRIVING ON THE INTERSTATE, WE DISCOVERED THERE WAS A SEVERE SHIMMY IN THE DRIVE TRAIN. AFTER THE WEEKEND, WE TOOK THE CAR TO THE DEALER. ONCE INSPECTED, IT WAS DETERMINED THE CAR HAD TWO BENT RIMS ON THE SAME SIDE AS THE POTHOLE. I WAS TOLD THIS WAS THE NATURE OF LOW PROFILE TIRES. I REQUESTED A MEETING WITH A REPRESENTATIVE OF SUBARU. TWO WEEKS LATER, I HAD THAT MEETING. IN THE MEAN TIME, I TOOK THE CAR TO TWO DIFFERENT REPUTABLE TIRE SHOPS. BOTH OF WHICH HAVE TOLD ME THIS WILL ALWAYS BE AN ISSUE WITH LOW PROFILE TIRES AND PARTICULARLY THIS LEGACY AND THESE RIMS. EACH OF THE TWO SHOPS HAVE HAD NUMEROUS CUSTOMERS WHO HAVE HAD SIMILAR ISSUE, RELATED TO HAVING LOW PROFILE TIRES. AS IT HAS BEEN EXPLAINED TO ME, THERE IS NOT ENOUGH RUBBER BETWEEN THE RIM AND THE ROAD TO PREVENT THESE TYPES OF ISSUES FROM HAPPENING. THE TIRE ACTUALLY COLLAPSES AND SQUISHES DOWN COMPLETELY THIS ALLOWS THE RIM TO HIT THE ROAD. MY CONCERN IS THAT HAD MY WIFE BEEN DRIVING ON AND INTERSTATE HIGHWAY AT A HIGH RATE OF SPEED THIS COULD HAVE BEEN A SERIOUS OR FATAL ISSUE. AFTER MEETING WITH THE SUBARU REPRESENTATIVE, I ASKED WHY SUBARU DID NOT HAVE SOME SORT OF CUSTOMER NOTICE ABOUT THESE LOW PROFILE TIRES AND THE RISKS ASSOCIATED WITH THEM IN THE OWNERS MANUAL. IF THERE WERE CONSUMER AWARENESS OF THESE TIRES, I WOULD NOT HAVE BOUGHT THIS VEHICLE. MY CONCERN IS THAT THERE IS NO CONSUMER AWARENESS ON THIS MATTER AND ONE ONLY HAS TO WONDER HOW MANY ACCIDENTS HAVE BEEN OR WILL BE CAUSED BY THESE TIRES. *TR