NHTSA Complaint #11309997 — 2017 CHEVROLET CORVETTE

WHILE GETTING NEW TIRES (15K MILES) AT THE TIRE STORE ON MY CORVETTE Z06 THE MANAGER TOLD ME THAT I HAD A BENT FRONT WHEEL. I DIDN'T RECALL HITTING ANYTHING SIGNIFICANT THAT COULD HAVE CAUSED THIS. HE STATED THAT HE COULD BALANCE IT BUT COULDN'T BE SURE IT WOULDN'T HAVE ISSUES. I BEGAN TO NOTICE A TIRE NOISE THAT WAS COMING FROM THAT SAME WHEEL. I MADE SOME MEASUREMENTS (RADIAL RUN-OUT) AND REALIZED IT WAS QUITE BENT (.057IN RUN-OUT). IT IS COMMON KNOWLEDGE BASED THAT GM REFUSES TO ADMIT THAT THEY HAVE A DESIGN FLAW SO I DECIDED TO BUY SOME AFTERMARKET WHEELS AS I DIDN'T WANT TO PAY FOR THE POOR AND DANGEROUS DESIGN. AT THE TIME OF INSTALLING THE NEW WHEELS I MEASURED EACH OLD WHEEL TO SEE IF THEY ARE BENT. AT LEAST THREE IF NOT ALL FOUR ARE BENT TO VARYING DEGREES AND ONCE AGAIN I DON'T RECALL HITTING ANYTHING. AS A MATTER OF FACT GM SELLS THIS MODEL OF CAR AND MAKES CLAIMS THAT IT IS THE BEST TRACK CAR (CORVETTE) THEY'VE EVER RELEASED. MY CAR HAS NEVER BEEN ON A RACE TRACK AND IS A NORMAL DAILY DRIVER. FROM A SAFETY PERSPECTIVE I REALIZED AT THAT TIME THAT ONE OF THE REAR WHEELS WAS ACTUALLY CRACKED AND VERY BENT. THE WHEEL COULD HAVE CAUSED ME TO HAVE AN ACCIDENT IF IT HAD CRACKED FURTHER AND AT THE WRONG TIME. I HAVE TAKEN THE WHEELS AND ALL MEASUREMENT DATA TO GM TO TRY TO GET THEM REPLACED AND GM'S STANCE AT THIS POINT IS THAT ALL BENT WHEELS ARE THE CUSTOMERS FAULT. TO MAKE IT MORE CONFUSING GM CAN'T GIVE A CONSISTENT STORY ON WHAT DEFINES A BENT WHEEL. AS OF FILING THIS COMPLAINT I FOUND 199 SIMILAR COMPLAINTS WITH THE SAME GENERATION OF CORVETTE. HOPEFULLY GM WILL BE HELD ACCOUNTABLE FOR THE POOR WHEEL DESIGN BEFORE SOMEONE GETS HURT BECAUSE OF A CRACKED WHEEL. I HAVE ATTACHED PICTURES OF THE WHEELS SHOWING THE CRACK AND MAX RUN-OUT ON EACH OF THE FOUR WHEELS.