NHTSA Complaint #11193600 — 2015 TOYOTA SIENNA

RECENTLY OBTAINED ~60K SERVICE AT DEALERSHIP. ADVISED THAT MICHELIN PREMIERE A/S TIRES PURCHASED JUST 15K MILES PREVIOUSLY WERE MEASURED AT 4/32" IN THE FRONT AND 5/32" IN THE REAR AND SHOULD BE REPLACED. SEVERE SCALLOPING OBSERVED ON THE OUTSIDE EDGE OF THE TIRES. THE SET OF FOUR TIRES WERE PURCHASED A ONE OF THE LARGE, US, WHOLESALE CLUB STORES. THE TOYOTA SERVICE WRITER STATED THAT MY WIFE THAT SUCH STORES CARRY INFERIOR QUALITY TIRES, THOUGH THEY MAY BE BRANDED AND LABELED THE SAME AS THE MODELS CARRIED BY TOYOTA. I CONTACTED MICHELIN ABOUT THIS CLAIM AND WAS TOLD THAT IT IS FALSE. THE TIRES ON THIS VEHICLE HAVE BEEN ROTATED ROUGHLY EVERY 5000 MILES OR SO DURING SCHEDULE PREPAID MAINTENANCE ON THE VEHICLE. THERE WAS A MECHANICAL ISSUE NOISE FROM THE FRONT END IN MARCH OF 2018, JUST AFTER THE NEW TIRES WERE INSTALLED. TOYOTA REPLACE THE FRONT-RIGHT AXLE SHAFT, WHICH DID NOT RESOLVE THE PROBLEM. ULTIMATELY, BOTH FRONT WHEEL BEARINGS WERE REPLACED. TOYOTA PERFORMED THE WORK UNDER WARRANTY AND STATED THAT AN ALIGNMENT WAS NOT NECESSARY. IT COULD BE ENTIRELY COINCIDENTAL, OR THE AXLE AND BEARING WORK COULD HAVE EVERY THING TO DO WITH THE EARLY DEMISE OF AN $800 SET OF TIRES. HOWEVER, AFTER MUCH RESEARCH ONLINE, IT SEEMS THAT I AM NOT THE ONLY ONE WHO HAS EXPERIENCE THE ISSUE WITH A SET OF HIGH QUALITY TIRES LASTING 15 TO 25K MILES, THOUGH WARRANTED FOR MUCH GREATER RANGES IN THE AREA OF 60 TO 70K. IT APPEARS THAT THERE ARE MANY PEOPLE WHO HAVE HAD ISSUES WITH EARLY ABNORMAL TIRE WEAR. TOYOTA IN MOST CASES BLAMES THE DRIVER, OR THE TIRE MANUFACTURER. IT WOULD SEEM CLEAR TO ME THAT THE PROBLEM IS WITH THE VEHICLE. TOYOTA MUST BE RESPONSIBLE FOR PURCHASING AND/OR REPLACING TIRES AND PERFORMING NECESSARY ALIGNMENT OR SUSPENSION MAINTENANCE TO RESOLVE THE ISSUE.