NHTSA Complaint #11606554 — 2019 KIA OPTIMA

The contact owns a 2019 Kia Optima equipped with Continental Tires, Tire Line: PureContact LS, Tire Size: P235/45/R18, DOT Number: CNFUWD4M2622. The contact stated that while his wife was driving approximately 60 MPH, the contact felt an abnormal vibration coming the front passenger’s side tire. The contact stated that his wife heard an abnormal "booming" sound and saw in the rearview mirror what appeared to be sections of tread on the highway. The contact was called by his wife and drove to the location and replaced the defective tire with the spare and drove the vehicle to the tire dealer. The dealer confirmed that the tread had separated from the side wall. The dealer replaced the tire under road hazard warranty on the tire. The vehicle was repaired. The contact stated that his wife was driving at approximately 35 MPH when she heard an abnormal "booming" sound from the passenger side rear tire. The contact stated that his wife pulled into a parking lot and called the contact. The contact stated that when the tread delaminated from the tire part of the rear passenger wheel well was cracked by the debris. The contact was able to replace the damaged tire with the spare and drove the vehicle back to the same tire dealer. The contact stated that the dealer advised that the tire manufacturer would be contacted because the dealer reported that other customers were having tread separation failures with the same tire line. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate vehicle failure mileage was 47,800 and the tire failure mileage was approximately 10,000.