I recently had to replace a Goodyear Invicta GS tire that had a 70,000
mile warranty. The tire had literally disintegrated after 40,000 miles
and air was leaking through the side walls. The Goodyear dealer told me
that the tire was manufactured eight years ago, as determined by the
serial number, hence the oil had leeched out of it over time, causing it
to fail. I checked my receipt on the purchase and discovered that I had
only purchased the tires five years earlier. THIS MEANS THE TIRE WAS
THREE YEARS OLD WHEN THE DEALER SOLD IT TO ME. If you read the fine
print in the tire warranty, it will tell you that the warranty for tread
life and defects is only good for a MAXIMUM of FIVE years from the date
of manufacture. Thus, when you buy a three-year-old tire your actual
warranty is only two years, regardless of tread life any defects.
After I bought a replacement, I learned how to read the DOT manufacture
date myself, which is the last three digits of serial number. The first
two are the week of manufacture and the last is the last digit of the
year. For example, 300 would be the thirtieth week of 1990. The
Goodyear S4S replacement I bought THREE MONTHS ago has a serial number of
404, meaning it was manufactured in the 40th week of 1994! So it also
was three years old when it was sold to me as a "new" tire.
BTW, the Invicta GS and S4S tires were purchased at two different
Goodyear dealers in two different regions of the country five years
apart. Therefore, this practice is apparently widespread and has been
going on for some time.
Is the age of tire important? Yes, for three reasons. 1) It reduces
your _actual_ warranty as stated above; 2) according to the Goodyear
dealer himself, tires begin deteriorating immediately after manufacture;
3) you have no clue as to conditions that tire has been stored under,
which could also significantly reduce tire life; and 4) when you pay good
money for "new" tires you should get NEW tires!.
If you MUST buy Goodyear tires, as I will never do again, don't take my
word for it, CHECK THE DATE. Do NOT accept tires that have not been
manufactured in the last year, anything older will impact the actual term
of your warranty.
If you currently own Goodyear tires, check the date. If it is over a
year from your date of purchase, you have been defrauded concerning the
length of your warranty. Take your receipt and your tires to the
Goodyear dealer you purchased it from and bitch like hell! E-mail me at
<dmeadow@juno.com> and let me know. I am keeping count of the incidents
discovered for submission to the proper consumer protection authorities.
I have complained in writing about this practice to Goodyear, with no
response.
I have sent this message to the car lists to which I belong, please feel
free to pass it on to any E-mail list or newsgroup you think is
appropriate.
David Littlefield
Houston, TX
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