Honestly, I don’t even want new tires. I know they only thing they’d replace them with is another set of stock POS BFGs, and I don’t want them. I don’t mind buying new tires (in fact, I ordered them Monday), but I want the problem fixed.
I just got a reply from the NHTSA. Looks like I’ve got some homework to do.
Dear Mr. Sears,
My name is Derek Rinehardt and I am a federal investigator with the Department of Transportation in Washington, D.C. We are conducting a formal investigation of 2004 through 2006 model year Pontiac GTO vehicles for a potential front tire to front strut interference condition.
Thank you for filing a complaint with us. It is helpful to our investigation. As we gather more details it is sometimes necessary to contact the complainants for additional information.
Your complaint suggests that your vehicle may have experienced the condition we are investigating. If you wouldn’t mind, please answer the questions below to supplement the information you have already provided us. The questions may seem trivial and some may be redundant to your complaint but are very important to us.
Please indicate all tires affected by the tire / strut exhibited the interference condition (i.e. driver’s front, passenger’s front, driver’s rear, passenger’s rear)?
Were the tires the original equipment tires on the vehicle when you became aware of the condition?
a) What were the size and brand of the tires?Was there any visible damage to the tire(s)? If so please describe the general area where the damage was located?
If there was damage to the tire(s), did the damage result in any air loss?
- If there was air loss, please answer the following questions:
a) How would you describe the air loss?
- Rapid/Immediate,
- Within a couple seconds,
- More than a few seconds,
- Unknown
b) What warning signs if any alerted you to the problem?
c) How many miles were on your vehicle?
d) If you were driving when you experienced air loss, what type of road were you
traveling on? Approximately how fast were you driving?e) Was the vehicle left inoperable (needed towing or couldn’t be driven)?
f) Did you loose control of the vehicle or were you involved in an accident related to
the tire to strut interference? If so please describe further.g) How would you describe the traffic conditions light, moderate or heavy traffic? Were you able to safely maneuver out of traffic?
If you have the ability to take and send pictures via email, please forward any pictures that may show the interference condition between the strut and tire or a picture of a failed/damage tire if it has been removed from the vehicle. Additionally, if one side of the vehicle is not showing an interference condition, a picture of that side of the vehicle showing clearance between the strut and the tire would be beneficial also).
Has the issue been corrected on your vehicle? If so how was it corrected?
Also, please feel free to add any additional relevant information (including other pictures). Thank you again for filing your complaint and contributing to our investigation.
Best Regards,
Derek L. Rinehardt
Safety Defects Engineer / Federal Investigator
U.S Department of Transportation
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
Office of Defects Investigation, Vehicle Controls Division
400 7th Street SW Rm 5326B, NVS-213
Washington, DC 20590
Office: (202) 366-3642, (800) 986-9678 x63642
Fax: (202) 366-1767