Bumps on sidewall of tires?

[bertheep]

Hi...
I recently bought 4 new Goodyear Marathon tires for my 2005 Safari. Two of the tires have some bumps on the side wall. A bit hard to describe, but they are like waves. There are maybe two or three "waves" on each tire. They are not very big, but they are noticeable when I rub my hand along the tire and can be seen from certain angles. Is this something I should worry about? Should I go back to the dealer who installed the tires?

Thanks in advance for any help.

Bert

[Wingeezer]

I had exactly the same thing on the Marathons that came on teh AS we bought used.

At first I was concerned about them, but as I recall, info that I found on this forum indicated that they were not a cause for concern. No doubt others will comment.

I ran the trailer with the Marathons for two seasons including two cross country trips and had no problems.

I have now changed the tires as they were 5 years old. I replaced them with Towmasters bought at Jackson Centre. They don't appear to have the same sidewall bumps.


I wouldn't worry too much about them, although since you just bought them, wouldn't hurt to discuss with the tire shop.

Brian

[r carl]

That is normal, dont worry, they are not about to expload yet.

[charliejw]

I had Goodyear's for my truck with the same bumps. They were NOT made in the USA. Used them for maybe 40k miles before I decided to dump them for a good set of General tires. My AS Marathon tires were made in Alabama and don't have the bumps.

[overlander63]

"Dents" in the sidewall are normal, "bulges" are usually a cause for concern.If the bumps go inward, that's where the steel belts in the tread are attached to each other. Outward bulges can be from the belts coming apart internally.

[DaveFL]

Here are a couple of pictures of a 12 year old Michelin tire before then after about 100 miles.
Could only see bumps with right agle of sun.
If you look carefully you will see the blowout is at the same spot of the left bubble, so I wouldn't run the bubble except to the dealer next time, just my $1400 opinion(yes, I replaced all 4 of the 12 yr old tires).

[ROBERT CROSS]

If you look closely at this pic you can see several vertical lines,(one thru the R letter another L) these are indentations not bubbles.

Inie ok...outie not!!

[bertheep]

Thanks for all of the replys. Especially those who sent photos. The photos that Robert Cross sent represented exactly what I have. I have some "innies" and no "outies". I am much relieved...thanks. I am grateful for the forum, as I did not want to go to the place that installed the tires for fear that they would say that there was no problem and then i would wonder if they were just trying to satisfy me or if they were telling the truth. Sad that I have that cynical attitude eh? Anyway, thanks to all of you.

Cheers...
Bert

[r carl]

Originally Posted by DaveFL

Here are a couple of pictures of a 12 year old Michelin tire before then after about 100 miles.
Could only see bumps with right agle of sun.
If you look carefully you will see the blowout is at the same spot of the left bubble, so I wouldn't run the bubble except to the dealer next time, just my $1400 opinion(yes, I replaced all 4 of the 12 yr old tires).

It doesnt appear the 2 pics are the same tire and wheel as they are indexed differently.

[Phoenix]

I've never had a blowout on a Michelin tire. However, it at least held together. The Marathon blowout I had only left the bead on the wheel with a few shreds of tire cord, and big chunks of rubber all over the road.

Which Michelin model was the one with the blowout?

[JBinKC]

I shredded a GYM, luckily with no damage to the trailer. Since then, I have replaced all four tires with new GYMs, installed steel valve stems, added a tire pressure monitor system, had the wheels load-test balanced, and added a high-quality tire gauge to the glove box. Before my blowout I had my head XX XX XXX.

[Phoenix]

When we first got our Bambi in 2005, I figured all the Marathon failures were from underinflated tires and people driving 80 mph. However, after keeping our tires inflated to 65 psi (the OEM Marathons were LR-D), checking them religiously, and only driving 55-60 mph; we still had a blowout, anyway. So, we switched to 16-inch wheels and Michelin XPS Ribs (all steel LT tires). Living in the desert southwest and only having one axle, it's worth the extra expense to put the best on our Airstream and have our tire worries behind us.

[DaveFL]

Originally Posted by r carl

It doesnt appear the 2 pics are the same tire and wheel as they are indexed differently.

Same tire, I took the pictures.
==================================
I've never had a blowout on a Michelin tire. However, it at least held together. The Marathon blowout I had only left the bead on the wheel with a few shreds of tire cord, and big chunks of rubber all over the road.

Which Michelin model was the one with the blowout?
=================
XRV original equipment, the rest of the story is that I had the wheel off when I replaced the calipers and pads, took the picture, reinstalled, drove 100 miles non interstate never over 55 with 70psi. Stopped for a light and it blew, almost in front of tire dealer. So good and bad luck, knew the tire was suspect, planned on replacing soon, but didn't. Would have replaced with Continental USA made but dealer would take a week to get them, KUMHo was at his supplier and I could be on my way in 4 hrs. Good news is we were! I have had blowouts with Firestone at speed and very little tire was left and hard to determine what was the cause, not this time, as far as I am concerned it was the left bubble.

[powerdog]

These are on my Chevy 4WD 1/2 ton pickup. Size is 33x12.50R15 LT M+S. There is a ton of tread left but the sidewalls have many cracks and the "dips" mentioned earlier. With so much tread left, could they be re-treads?
I bought the truck from an insurance company as it was a recovered theft. I'm wondering if the guy maybe got it stuck in water and just left it there.
if you can zoom in on the photos you can see the cracks much better.
They are pumped up to 30psi right now.

[Phoenix]

Tire looks like it has been run flat (or with very low pressure), is old, or both. Personally, I would not take these on the highway or tow with them; but they might last awhile in town at low speeds, if you use your pickup as commuter transportation, or perhaps off road. These would not last on Arizona highways in the summer heat (110+ degrees), where our Interstate speed limit is 75 mph and many drive a little faster. Disaster is only a few minutes and a few miles away.

[ROBERT CROSS]

What Phoenix said....

Would not tow with 'em.

[Gene]

Cracks in the sidewall would be enough to send me to the tire store. You can check the date of manufacture to see how old they are—it will be on the sidewall in weeks/year.

Gene