NHTSA Complaint #10584741 — 1995 DODGE RAM WAGON

WHILE DRIVING THE VEHICLE WHICH THE TIRES WERE ORIGINALLY INSTALLED (1995 DODGE B3500 RAMWAGON THE VEHICLE BEGAN TO VIBRATE. HAVING PREVIOUSLY EXPERIENCED CATASTROPHIC TIRE FAILURE WITH FIRESTONE STEELTEX TIRES, I SUSPECTED A TIRE BELT SHIFT AND STOPPED THE VEHICLE TO INSPECT, BUT WAS UNABLE TO VISUALLY SEE OR FEEL A TIRE PROBLEM. AS SOON AS POSSIBLE, I EXITED THE INTERSTATE TO INTENTIONALLY DRIVE SLOWER AND CHANGE THE ROAD SURFACE TO VALIDATE THE PROBLEM WAS TIRE RELATED. THE VEHICLE VIBRATION GREW MEASURABLY WORSE, THEREFORE I FOUND THE NEAREST TIRE STORE AND ASKED THEM TO ASSIST ME IN DETERMINING WHICH TIRE WAS CAUSING THE PROBLEM. THE SERVICE TECHNICIAN QUICKLY FOUND THE TIRE CAUSING THE ISSUE BY FINDING ONE OF THE TIRE TREAD SURFACES HAD BECOME CONVEX. THE TIRE WAS REPLACED AND UPON TEST DRIVING THE VEHICLE THE TIRE VIBRATION ISSUE WAS COMPLETELY ELIMINATED. THE CONTINENTAL CROSSCONT LX, LT225/75 R16-E RATED TIRE BELT HAD SHIFTED AND WAS DANGEROUSLY ON THE VERGE OF CATASTROPHIC FAILURE. *TR