Preliminary Evaluation · Closed
XZA 295/60/R22.5 Steer Tire Failures
Manufacturer: MICHELIN TIRE CORP.
This investigation led to a recall
NHTSA links this probe to recall campaign 14V740000.
Read the recall: what is defective and the free fix →What NHTSA is examining
The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened this investigation based on seven (7) Vehicle Owner Questionnaires (VOQ) and a Police Accident Report (PAR) alleging failures of Michelin XZA tires.The PAR reported an auto hauler left the roadway and rolled onto it's side and losingsome of it's load.Fortunately, the driver was unharmed and no other vehicles were involved.ODI received ten (10) additional VOQs during the investigation.The VOQs included both 295/60/R22.5 and 275/70/R22.5 tire sizes.ODI focused on the 295/60 tires as they were specified as original equipment on many auto hauler trucks.Due to their unique loading configuration, auto haulers tend to place a high demand on front tires.The 295/60 has a maximum load and speed rating of 7,390 pounds and 65 mph when maintained at 130 psi (cold) inflation pressure on a 9 rim.Pressure below 130 psi reduces the maximum load and Michelin only approves mounting the 295/60 on a 9 inch rim.While physically possible, mounting on any other size rim compromises the integrity of the 295/60 tire.Alternately, the maximum speed can be raised to 75 mph when the tire is mounted on a 9 rim with 130 psi pressure and the load does not exceed 7,150 pounds.During the investigation, ODI collected and analyzed vehicle, crash, and tire information.In addition to sending an Information Request (IR) letter to Michelin, ODI collected information from several vehicle manufacturers.Electronic data from the subject crash vehicle showed the vehicle…
Vehicles under investigation
Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation records, updated daily. An investigation is not a determination that a defect exists; many probes close without a recall.