TheYoungster

My Z51 tires have hundreds of these little cracks around the entire outside diameter of all 4 tires. The tires look like they have been sitting in the junk yard for 50 years and are dry and brittle.

The car has been in a heated garage all winter. I've never had it out on any of the cold days. I'm not sure how long the cracks were there. I noticed them while washing the wheels. You have to look close. You guys might want to checks your tires.

Are these safe to drive on? The cracks appear to go thru the entire tread.

speedlink

I don't see anything that would worry me.

ATX-C7

Maybe it's me--but I don't see any cracks. Can you point them out with arrows on the pic?

C8Jake

TECHLINK

KenHorse

You seeing mold marks as I am?

BTW, just went out to the garage and looked at mine. They have the identical marks

GreginNH

It's definitely not normal for a new Michelin tire to do this. I would have the dealer take a look.

TheYoungster

Pointed to them on this picture. Granted they are small and hard to see in a picture. In real life they are very obvious and they cover the entire tire. In total, the two rubber compounds have entirely separated on the tire.

gthal

The cracks on your tires wouldn't concern me. The ones in post #4 would.

TheYoungster

Would you mind posting a closeup pic of yours so I can see how they compare?

BigJoe

I think the cracks are just above the mold marks right where the curve from sidewall to tread happens. They don't look too bad, certanly not like post #4.
But just to be safe, before carving some canyons, have the tire dealer have a look.

gthal

Where you are showing the cracks, that is the same compound so the compounds aren't splitting. The second compound is on the inside of the tire.

Highway 61

george vee

Send this pic to Michelin Tire Co and see what they say. I would not like it if this happened to my C7.

ATX-C7

Uh, well they look very even (not an odd pattern) in their shape. Not saying it isn't something, and certainly is worth looking into--run it to your dealer and see what they say. The other pic from Canada is clearly a problem.

Two questions:

1. Very cold climate?
2. VIN of car (early or late production)?

Torch Red C7

I would just do a few burnouts and see if you can re-melt the rubber back together

CRABBYJ

You made me look! My Non-Z51 Tires do not have similar cracks? anywhere and likewise has been stored over winter but in an unheated attached garage that was often as low as 32deg F. But comparison could be apples to oranges.

What is interesting is those marks (cracks?) look to be exactly where the rubber meets the road transition point. About the area location as C7Jake's picture.

C8Jake

At colder temperatures, rubber loses flexibility & may develop surface cracks in the tire tread/shoulder area.
This is damaging to the tire.
Tires exhibiting tread cracks should be discarded.

gthal

Just checked my Z51 tires and no cracks. The car has been in my unheated garage for the last several weeks and was shipped and delivered in the middle of winter.

gthal

Yes, agreed but the question is whether these could be considered surface cracks in the context of the Techlink article. They are nothing like the actual cracks in the picture you posted or the pictures on the Techlink article. The bottom line is the OP should have someone look at it and assess it rather than a bunch of hooligans on the internet!!

Furthermore, notice that in the techlink article the two tires with cracks are NOT from Michelin.

Text size and color added for dramatic impact

TheYoungster

It hasn't been in cold temps. It's only been out in temps above 40. Like today