Problems with 2000 Chevrolet Venture TIRES

My daughter noticed that she was not able to keep air in one mastercraft a/s iv tires. as we looked at the tire together she heard air escaping, and when we touched the area of the leak, the leak got louder. i took it to the local farm & fleet (where the tires were purchased & installed as i have been told they are good at keeping up with warranties) to have it checked out. i was told that it has "dry rot", and i would have to buy another brand as the mastercraft a/s iv have been "discontinued", and i have no other recourse. i asked if they or i could file a complaint with the manufacturer, and was told no as the tires have been discontinued and are no longer manufactured. further, i was told that only 25% of the tread remains. the tires were purchased 9/08/08 & only have approximately, 20,806 miles on them, but the manufacturer rates them at 50,000 miles. the low miles makes sense as we rarely put on more than 7k miles on any of our vehicles. i am concerned that this may be a manufacturing defect in the material of the tire(s). *tr

Dt*: the contact stated while driving 20mph, there was thumping noise, and a shimmy in the front wheels. the vehicle was inspected by a dealer who determined there was a blister on the left front tire and it needed to be replaced. afterwards the replacement, the problem persisted. the vehicle was inspected by the dealer who determined the tread was worn and the steel belt was present on the right front tire. after replacing the right front tire, the left rear tire tread began to separate without warning. the manufacturer was not alerted. the tires were bridgestone insignia se200, size p225/60r16.

While driving 60 mph right rear tire exploded. consumer was able to pull over to shoulder, and changed the tire.*ak

I have 4 original firestone tires [fr680] p215/70/r15 tires that have splits in side walls by tread areas, and they also have bulges in sidewall areas. only 25000 mi. on them. i feel that i need to replace them before we have a major blow out and accident by these visible problems. with 3 children i cannot afford an accident caused by these tires. i will be keeping old tires . i went on the web sight and saw that similar problems are happening to other people??? *jb

While driving driver side front tire tread separated. firestone fr680,p215/70r15. *ak

All 4 tires contained cracks. *jb

During normal driving conditions (no rain, snow, hazards) our right rear tire failed. the tread completely separated from the tire destroying the rim abs harness cable and other for a total of 2000.00 damage. no injuries. the tires have very little wear (9000 miles). i immediately replaced all the tires with another brand. the catastrophic failure of the tire concerns me and believe the tire to be faulty. i would like to have the tire analized by an independent lab to let and to give their opinion of why the tire failed. is there a indiependent investigation lab in my area who could assist me with this problem? i'd appreciate your response. *ak (dot number: w2mb3bcb08 tiresize: 21570r1597)

While filling vehicle with gas noticed gas smell inside vehicle. also, found a gas puddle under vehicle. dealer has been contacted.*ak consumer states vehicle has always been hard to start, also while drving the right rear tire caught fire, and the gas guage was not working properly, front windshield was cracking, also the check engine light was coming on, as well as the engine oil light,and a cracked gas tank.*jb

Consumer smelled strong gas fumes and noticed that gas was pouring out, the dealer replaced the fuel regulator. *slc

We were on the freeway driving at the speedlimit of 70mph my dad said, he heard a funny sound so he attempted to pull over off the freeway there was many cars and longhaul truck approaching when the car just like it dropped and pulled us over almost causing us to get into an accident my dad got us safely to the side of the road ,and my husband and my dad got out to find the tires outside side wall had completely come out from the tire, this was the second time that this has happened to these tires, the first tire that this happened to the inside wall of the tire came out .this happened within a month of eachother .i am afraid to drive my van on the freeway, i feel these tires are very unsafe, the last time it happened we almost had an accident ,the van could have easily flipped over and we could have been killed.the tire dealerships that seen the tires said they had never seen anything like it before, the tires just came apart , the whole sides are just like someone ripped them right out. this should not happen to new tires, something is very wrong,when two tires do the same exact thing within a month of eachother, i think this says the tires are defective and unsafe.*ak (dot number: acm3bli279 tiresize: p215)

Tire blew out. took to dealership to be examined. they could not find any road hazard signs. dealership contacted manufacturer and they refused warranty. the tire was only 4 months old when this happened.( dot number: w2m3bcb259 tire size: p215/70r15 )