Blaine 997

In September 2016 the Audi dealer I bought my 2005 997.1 C2 put four new Khumo tires on the car when they took it in as a trade in. I see it listed as a line item on the Carfax but do not have a receipt or other paperwork. I bought the car in November and just got it out of winter storage 2 weeks ago. The new tires have covered 500 miles since installed.

I took my car to the dealer this morning to fix an oil seep that showed up on the PPI. As soon as I hit 45 mph I felt a vibration. I limped it to the dealer and they investigated. They saw something that looked strange on the inboard shoulder of one of the rear tires, so they put it on the balance machine and spun it up to see if it was in balance. See the chalk mark on the first picture.

As soon as they spun it up the tire failed. The steel bands cut through the shoulder half way around the circumference on the tire. See the rest of the pics). They called the Khumo tire rep and were told these tires were out of production for year or more.

I agree with the service manager that all four of my "new" Khumo tires need to be replaced for safety's sake. Available Porsche approved tires that don't need to be ordered are Bridgestone Potenza and Pirelli PZero. What would you guys recommend. I'm using the car for long distance touring and spirited back road drives. No track work or auto cross. I have 19" Lobster Claws. Is there another tire $1200 for four price range that would be better?

I'm going to call the Audi dealer in the morning to see if they can give me the Khumo purchase information so I can go to Khumo and try to get some kind of reimbursement. ( As a side note, I bought my wife a new 2015 Mazda 6 GT and it had four defective Dunlop tires. I had to prove they were defective and fight to get a replacement set of tires at no charge.). I had a 3 month 1000 mile warentee from the dealer on the 911 but that ran out during winter storage.

ADias

Michelin Pilot Sport 4S.

Iceter

That's a bizarre failure. Truly.

What is the date code on those tires? (Look for four numbers inside a raised oval on most Kumho tires).

I don't like Pirelli PZeros. Had bad luck with them on my wife's E550 cabriolet. They gripped and rode fine but they didnt last any time at all and they were the noisiest tires ive ever owned. They roared when new and got louder over time. And the alignment was spot on.

I love the Bridgestone RE970s I have on my '09 C2 cabriolet.

Petza914

Hankook Ventus Evo2 or Nitto Invo. Running those on both my 997s with the stickier Invos on my supercharged car. Hankooks are on my wife's DD and are directional - fantastic in the rain with excellent treadwear but not as sticky for spirited drives. This is my second set if Invos on my car and I run them on my 928 Spyder too. I'll buy them again when these wear out.

LexVan

This.

Or Pilot Super Sports.

Quadcammer

I'm quite pleased with the Bridgestone s04s I put on my 7tt. I would not buy them through a porsche dealer though as in most cases they are massively overpriced.

mike cap

MPSS

Blaine 997

Thanks for the advice. I was already leaning against the PZero's due to poor reviews of its performance in the wet (when you need a summer tire to perform its best). I have Michelin Pilot Sports on my Mazda 6 that have really woken up the handling on that car versus the OE tires. I will look into them.

Blaine 997

I will have them look at the tires today to find the date code.

BIG smoke

Out of production for a year or more?
It's only a picture, but the reflective sidewall? they look old.
Maybe, new, I would bet your date code is 4-5 years old.
Check and report back. I would loop in your Selling audi dealer.
At 5oo miles, I think they should at least step up to the plate and help you out.

Iceter

I was pretty tired last night when I first responded, but yes, I like the Hankook Ventus Evo2 as well. I run these in the summer on my 19" wheels. I'm on my second set.

And regarding that tire damage, the bottom pics look like a cut, not an internal failure. But, the top pic looks like it's happening from the inside out. It's all very confusing. In 30 years of driving (many of those years on very bad tires ), I've never seen a failure that looked like that.

German888

New Hankook Evo2 here as well. Had the original Evo's previously. Newer version seems to have better ride quality and grip. Best bank for buck tire IMO.

Blaine 997

My friend's family has owned a Good Year tire business serving passenger cars up to giant quarry dump trucks for two generations. They have never seen a failure like this either. I have not seen them in person yet. I'm not sure about the first picture, if there is impact damage or not. The rest of the pics look like the steel belts cut the tire from the inside.

The dealer is going to email me a picture of the date code on the sidewall. I will report back.

I called the Audi dealer and they claim only to be able to find the paperwork for the two front tires. I'm 1200 miles away and bought a used car from them, so I don't think they are interested in helping me after the 1,000 mile or 3 month warrentee expired....

jhbrennan

Having the date might change your comments to the Audi dealer especially if the tire date on the sidewall indicates the tires were already "old" when mounted. I doubt the used car guys at the Audi dealership spent a lot of time or money getting the car ready for sale. Good luck.

golfnutintib

as others have said, michelin pilot super sport or new 4s wd be ideal

if you want cheaper alternatives, b-stone s04 or hankook evo v12 would be just fine