Tire failure due to strut rub on the front end of my 2005 GTO.

- Abingdon, MD, USA

Front tire tread came off due to premature wear of passenger side tire. Driver side tire ready to fail. Cause seemed to be currently under investigation from nhsta. Dealer rotated the tires in the past and has not commented. Was denying any problem with car. Extremely dangerous. Odometer reading at tire failure 25515 miles. Currently going back to dealer to see if they will resolve issue as was expected.

- Fresno, CA, USA

The contact owns a 2005 Pontiac GTO. The mechanic noticed that the passenger side front tire sidewall was worn down to the steel belt. The failure was noticed while the vehicle was on a lift receiving an oil change. The tire has not been replaced. The vehicle has not been diagnosed. The purchase date, engine size, correct VIN, and transmission type were unknown. The current and failure mileages were 11,073.

- Nassau, NY, USA

The manufacturer of the 2005 Pontiac GTO has chosen a standard wheel/tire combination and wheel alignment specifications that cause excessive tire wear to the front passenger and driver's side tires. The proper alignment as set by the manufacturer's standards is in negligence to potential safety standards and good practice for a performance type car. During regular driving it is probable and likely that the inside of both front tires will rub in a dangerous fashion on the suspensions components (namely strut) causing the tire to fail prematurely. The failure is such that the tire becomes a serious safety hazard specifically exposing the tire steel belts prior to the visible "wear bar" indicators being exposed. One proper correction to limit the possibility of continued tire rub would be to align the camber in a fashion that is more specific than the manufacturer's standards. After having an alignment at the manufacturer's certified service center, this correction was not performed and the manufacturer was further negligent while not properly informing the owner or the service center staff about this tire rub issue. After having the tires rotated at the aforementioned service center the tires were not properly inspected for safety. The excessive tire wear was visible at approximately 18,000 miles. At this point, the front tires had failed and should have been replaced under warranty due to the factory alignment settings. During the first 12,000 miles on the car the original front tires had been damaged in such a way that steering alignment could not be maintained. This was observed from the service center staff. At that point on the said mentioned day, the rear tires were also failed. The service center was not properly informed about these issues causing an unsafe situation.

- Omaha, NE, USA

My 2005 Pontiac GTO is showing excessive front tire treadwear on the inside sidewall and tread. Also gets severe vibration/shimmie from the front when driving over 50 mph.

- Orlando, FL, USA

Tires rubbed to the cord on the inside seemingly from the strut issue I have read about online. One tire wore itself flat. I went in to replace the tire, and found all four tires needed replacement. Replaced all four B.F.goodrich tires with similar toyo tires.ak

- Ferndale, MI, USA

After reading cleveland's newsnet5 report about front tire problems on the 2004-2005 GTO, I realized I have had a similar problem. I had to replace my tires at 24,400 miles due to the right front tire being severely cut and worn on the inside tread. Since my tire tread was about half way worn, I chose to replace all instead of one, or two. I discovered the problem during a routine tire rotation, and did not see any sign of abnormal wear when I rotated them at 20,000. I immediately took the car to Firestone and had an alignment done. The right front was off slightly negative camber causing the tire to rub against the strut the clearance is very close when properly aligned. After replacing the tires with pirelli pzero M+S 245/45-17 I had the technician verify clearance with the struts, and he said you can see light meaning the clearance was close. I have logged 10,000 miles on these tires and have rotated them twice noticing very minor inside wear and slight wear indications on the struts themselves. Since I have lifetime wheel alignments with Firestone, I have had the alignment checked 4 times since then with minor camber and toe adjustments up front. My primary concern is a minor misalignment can shred a tire in 4,400 miles, or less. Thank you for your attention.

- San Diego, CA, USA

Front tire causes rubbing on the front strut, namely and more commonly the passenger's side strut. This is evidenced by a rubbing mark on the strut body, and many times wear marks on the tires themselves. The tire sidewall rubbing in this area could easily cause a blow out, especially if the owner doesn't inspect the tires and suspension well, or isn't aware of the potential problem. In light of the Ford-Firestone tire problems, I believe this is a situation that should be researched.

- Brick, NJ, USA