My Focus SE's right front tire got cancer!

"SonorousSpeedJoe" (SonorousSpeedJoe) 11/03/2014 at 14:00 • Filed to: None

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It developed a sidewall bubble last Wednesday. We'd installed 4 of this particular model of tire when we decided to replace the OEM tires in August 2013, so we just swapped one of the OEM tires back on - I'm kind of nervous about that, as we didn't give any thought to storing the OEM tires properly.

I'm thinking that this resulted from me hitting a particularly bad pothole or something at 35-45 MPH on a crappy stretch of road that I commute on; it happened a few days prior to my noticing this. What's strange is that, as crappy as that road is, I've been commuting on it for well over a year and never encountered that pothole before or even after that incident.

On the plus side, I saw a Magnetic gray 2015 Mustang today! No SR20, though, as it was zipping past me in the opposite direction.

MontegoMan562 is a Capri RS Owner > SonorousSpeedJoe 11/03/2014 at 14:03

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I'm going to guess it was a direct result of whatever caused this nasty gauge on your rim.

deekster_caddy > SonorousSpeedJoe 11/03/2014 at 14:04

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That sure looks like typical pothole damage. Do you have roadhazard?

How old are the original tires? In general, it's pretty hard to screw up after a year of storage. 5 years outside in the sun could become a problem with dryrot, but you should be okay.

SonorousSpeedJoe > MontegoMan562 is a Capri RS Owner 11/03/2014 at 14:07

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I'm fairly sure that's just dirt, as I pass by a recycling/quarry-type place twice a day on the road that I mentioned - cars usually kick up dust by going through the dirt/water runoff from there.

SonorousSpeedJoe > SonorousSpeedJoe 11/03/2014 at 14:10

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[ignore this comment - meant to reply to deekster_caddy]

SonorousSpeedJoe > deekster_caddy 11/03/2014 at 14:13

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My dad purchased the car for himself in mid-2012, so those tires are at least two years old. Our garage gets super-cold when it's cold out and super-hot when it's hot out, so I'm worried about how that would affect the rubber; I've never stored a car/car parts before.

crowmolly > SonorousSpeedJoe 11/03/2014 at 14:14

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Certain types of tires can get sidewall cracks when the weather gets cold/if you drive them on cold pavement.

Which tires are you worried about (which brand/model)?

deekster_caddy > SonorousSpeedJoe 11/03/2014 at 14:14

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Rubber can definitely withstand the temperature extremes for many years. It's the direct sunlight that is more harmful over time.

SonorousSpeedJoe > crowmolly 11/03/2014 at 14:17

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The OEM tires are Continental ContiProContacts.

SonorousSpeedJoe > deekster_caddy 11/03/2014 at 14:17

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That's good to hear.

MontegoMan562 is a Capri RS Owner > SonorousSpeedJoe 11/03/2014 at 14:19

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oooo ok.

lined up pretty well so....

crowmolly > SonorousSpeedJoe 11/03/2014 at 14:23

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You will probably be just fine. How cold is "super cold"?

SonorousSpeedJoe > MontegoMan562 is a Capri RS Owner 11/03/2014 at 14:25

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Yeah, I think it's just dried-up mud or something. I do have a scuff on the right rear wheel, but that happened much earlier.

SonorousSpeedJoe > crowmolly 11/03/2014 at 14:28

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If it's a cold winter night in MD, the garage will be colder than that - I don't think that it's below 0ºF at all, but it would probably get to 10-25ºF. It's not a summer performance tire, so I guess it's not a big deal.

crowmolly > SonorousSpeedJoe 11/03/2014 at 14:32

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Maryland? Forget about it. If there were issues there would be thousands of people in trouble.

If you were in ND, WI, MN, or somewhere like that you might have issues- but then again you would probably already know that.

TotallyThatStupid > SonorousSpeedJoe 11/03/2014 at 14:34

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Bubbles like that generally occur from impact damage - pothole, curb, etc. The inner layer of the sidewall is damaged, and only the outer layer - which isn't as strong all by itself - is holding the air in. That's a simplified description, but gets across the general idea.

Driving on it is not so good. The sidewall has been compromised.

SonorousSpeedJoe > crowmolly 11/03/2014 at 14:36

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Yeah, I figured I may be worrying too much. Thanks.

SonorousSpeedJoe > TotallyThatStupid 11/03/2014 at 14:38

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That's why I'm sure it developed when I hit that pothole (or whatever it was) at a decent clip. I'm glad that I noticed it before I had to deal with a tire blowout.

jariten1781 > SonorousSpeedJoe 11/03/2014 at 14:53

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In some places you can make a claim with the city or state for pothole damage. Probably wouldn't do you any good since you're not sure when it happened, but something to remember.

SonorousSpeedJoe > jariten1781 11/03/2014 at 14:56

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I've wanted to complain about the state of that road for some time, so I'll keep that in mind. Thanks.

Rico > SonorousSpeedJoe 11/03/2014 at 16:31

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This is usually the only reaction you'll get from such a complaint