Tyre Failure Question

northpolar · February 4, 2023

I dropped my 2016 RX450h in for its annual service last week and was a bit surprised to receive an advisory that all four tyres needed to be replaced. The reported problem was not one of poor tread depth, it was driven by significant cracking of the side walls. For the last few years I have been only covering about 2,000 miles a year. Conversely, although only short distances, it has been used at least once every week. The rears were wearing so not too concerned about them but the fronts were replaced by Lexus in 2018, loads of tread remaining and I wasn't aware of there being any liklihood of such a problem occurring. The tyres are Bridgestones. Lexus have advised that the front tyres will be returned to Bridgestone for review and a technical report should be forthcoming. Just wondering if this is a one off; to be expected due to age; or if there is a known problem with these tyres. Any knowledge welcome!

Peter

Spock66 · February 4, 2023

Exposure to UV from sunlight will cause cracking, if the car is regularly parked where it's in full sun that could be a factor.

Las Palmas · February 4, 2023

Only thing strange is that if Lexus replaced 2 tyres, they put them on the front wheels. That is very poor judgement. The best tyres must always come on the rear axle if not all tyres are changed.

UV is dangerous. Bicycle helmets are needing replacement every 3 - 5 years if used daily in sunshine.

LenT · February 4, 2023

56 minutes ago, Las Palmas said:

Only thing strange is that if Lexus replaced 2 tyres, they put them on the front wheels. That is very poor judgement. The best tyres must always come on the rear axle if not all tyres are changed.

Spot on, John.

Very worrying that a Lexus mechanic would make such a basic error.

In terms of tyre life, (excluding tyre tread wear through use) it seems to be regarded as being around ten years - although constant exposure to significant UV light will reduce that. Should Peter wish to check the age of his tyres, he should look for a four digit number on the sidewall. The first two indicate the week and the last two the year of manufacture.

Duggie B · February 4, 2023

1 hour ago, northpolar said:

1 hour ago, northpolar said:

2018, loads of tread remaining

The Bridgestones on my GS 300h 2018 are also cracking on the sidewalls, same as, car is used couple of times a week and likewise I was given advisory mot last year.

Might look at replacing with Goodyears before this year's mot though.

Las Palmas · February 4, 2023

6 minutes ago, Duggie B said:

The Bridgestones on my GS 300h 2018 are also cracking on the sidewalls, same as, car is used couple of times a week and likewise I was given advisory mot last year.

Might look at replacing with Goodyears before this year's mot though.

Most of the cars we have had were on Continental. Next set of tyre for our car will be - Continental UltraContact. Rain braking A - Fuel consume B - Noise B

Few tyres are that good.

northpolar · February 4, 2023

Thanks for the feedback. Clarification on some comments above which may help clarify:

In 2018, with about 15,000 miles passed, the fronts were worn and required replacement. The rears at that time were fine and presumably original from 2016 and were retained. At last week's service, Lexus advised that all four tyres required replacement and they have all been replaced with the same Bridgestone tyres. It just seemed odd to me that the fronts and rears, with different ages, should suffer the same problem at the same time. Whilst I'm sure they have been exposed to sunshine, the car is located in London, not one of the sunshine states. Mind you, we did have crazy temperatures this summer which may have had an influence.

Peter

northpolar · February 4, 2023

15 minutes ago, Duggie B said:

The Bridgestones on my GS 300h 2018 are also cracking on the sidewalls, same as, car is used couple of times a week and likewise I was given advisory mot last year.

Might look at replacing with Goodyears before this year's mot though.

If I receive a report I'll report back here as the impression given was that I really should replace the tyres and not continue to drive on them.

Peter

Bluemarlin · February 4, 2023

40 minutes ago, northpolar said:

At last week's service, Lexus advised that all four tyres required replacement and they have all been replaced with the same Bridgestone tyres.

I think I'd have been insisting that they replace them with something different.

Duggie B · February 4, 2023

1 hour ago, northpolar said:

If I receive a report I'll report back here as the impression given was that I really should replace the tyres and not continue to drive on them

That would be good if you could give any feedback.

Thanks 👍🏻

DavidCM · February 4, 2023

I only had to read the first 4 lines of Northpolar's post to think Bridgestone.

Apparently they are renowned for cracking.I first had them in 2007 on my Porsche Cayman and had to replace the fronts after a few years because of crackling,mostly between the treads.The rears never got that far due to wear and punctures.(The downside of having tyres twice average width is twice as likely to get a puncture.

I sold the Porsche just after I got early retirement and bought 2 new Mazdas,CX7 (RX lookalike) and an MX5.Guess what...both had Bridgestones. The CX7 did most of the mileage,so cracking didn't have time to occur.The MX5 kept the original tyres for 10 years with no cracking at all.Both I and the dealer kept a close eye on them in later years just in case.

A year ago,almost to the day,I bought the RC,with Bridgestones.......

I can't get away from them...

Harrier Man · February 4, 2023

In the 80s, I had a set of tyres that were cracking early in their life; I cannot recall the make or mileage. They were sent back to the manufacturer who x-rayed them and returned them with a clean bill of health and a certificate saying that the cracking was cosmetic and the tyres were safe. Of course the garage who raised the concern had no access to x-ray equipment, nor the specialist knowledge to definitively say they were safe, so no blame there and neither do I believe they were just out to sell me another set of tyres because they did everything possible to have them returned to the manufacturer.

I am surprised however that this is still a problem as tyre technology has improved enormously over the years. I look forward to reading Peter's update once he receives the results of the review and technical report on his tyres.

JasonH · February 5, 2023

I have heard of premature cracking on, I think, another brand of premium tyres recently. This was on much newer tyres. Yours are 4 or 5 years old.

Yes UV will cause cracking but tyres have carbon black in them to resist this and driving the car releases an agent to prevent cracking but a quality tyre shouldn't crack in a few years even with light use.

I suspect poor storage or quality control on certain batches.

Having said that in the world of caravans the it's almost the law that you change your tyres at 5 years and never longer than 7 years whatever the tread wear. It's not actually law but all the caravan dealers and associations seem to think it is! This is because with long periods static the side walls can crack then blow out whilst under tow.

steve2006 · February 5, 2023

Is it UV exposure that also tends to turn the tyre sidewalls brown?
I’ve noticed that a few times with the other Lexus I had even though I used Autoglym tyre treatment regularly.

They did eventually turn back to black.

JasonH · February 6, 2023

The antiozonant in the tyres, which is added to prevent the tyre cracking, can work it's way to the surface and then it turns brown.

Harmless and it can be cleaned off.

m4rkw · February 6, 2023

I think it's generally agreed among tyre manufacturers that 6 years is the approximate safe lifetime of a tyre, so at 5 years I don't think you did too badly. I recently changed the fronts on my wife's car because they were about 5 years old. Not worth the risk to push it too far in my opinion.