Leased VW - FALKEN Tires Worn down to 5/32" in 11K Miles

A

ARCOgraphite

Joined
May 17, 2009
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N.H, U.S.A.
It the car in my signature. I just got off the phone with VW customer care after a 50 min wait. They will provide no remedy; they said, "Did Service say that the tires had a defect?" I replied, " NO". The VW Rep stated that VW only cover defects, and they don't cover tires. I also went to the Sumitomo/ FALKEN tire store and they stated there was no treadwear warranty on that tire, and to see VW about it. So its appears to be the old Scarecrow pointing in two different directions, with the client stuck in the middle. I did have the alignment checked twice last year, with a minor toe touch up to prevent feathering of outside rib of the RF tire. I've seen cheap O.E. tires wear fast before, but not 11K miles. VW minimum tread depth at Lease turn-in is 2/32" above the tread wear bars or 4/32". Car is due by end of this December. VW rep said this is something you will have to discuss with AiM lease inspection. I'm thinking of turning the lease in early to avoid buying tires, but then I loose approx $250/ month of lease service "value" that I prepaid. - Any other remedies that I should consider other than contacting the State Attorney General office? For 500 bucks I shall not stress my heart over this issue too much.
Thanks! - Ken
 
I think the only economical option you may have is to put a used set of cheap tires with >4/32" of tread on it right before returning the leased Jetta. I would be on the lookout in Craigslist or a local used tire outlet for a decent set
You won't have any other recourse since you cannot prove that the car wasn't auto-crossed or drag raced during the lease period.
 
I now see odd name brand tires for 49 bucks or less each online. I don't know if I want to do that t the next owner!

Tire size is 205/60R 15 all season. I forget load rating, but the car is about 3000 lbs and FWD.
 
Isn't it commonly known that the tires that come on new cars have a softer tread compound than ones you'd buy aftermarket? The BFGs that came on my Tacoma rode great and were super plush but only lasted 20k before they were at the wear bars.

Why New Car Tires Wear Out So Fast

The tires that came with your last new car were not designed by Michelin, Goodyear, Bridgestone or any other tire manufacturer. They were ...
oncars.blogspot.com oncars.blogspot.com
 
Whats the issue?
The tires are not that great-tires are generally warranted by the tire maker-and in this case the tires don't have a tread wear warranty.

You leased the vehicle. That is a downside of a lease you may end up putting tires or brakes on a car you don't own.

In the mean time you apparently got to drive a car you couldn't afford otherwise. (This is what I am assuming based on your grave concerns about laying out dollars for new tires).

The Westlake tires mentioned above are a great option for you.
 
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What is the state attorney general going to do? I don't see the problem here. New car tires are not known for their treadlife, and if they aren't warranted, you get to put new tires on to satisfy the lease turn-in requirements. Pretty simple, really.

I think your best option is to find a used set on FB marketplace or Craigslist. If that fails, do what the dealers do and buy the cheapest foreign made tire you can find.
 
92saturnsl2 said:
What is the state attorney general going to do? I don't see the problem here. New car tires are not known for their treadlife, and if they aren't warranted, you get to put new tires on to satisfy the lease turn-in requirements. Pretty simple, really.

I think your best option is to find a used set on FB marketplace or Craigslist. If that fails, do what the dealers do and buy the cheapest foreign made tire you can find.
Click to expand...

Just an FYI-it's been stated on here that some manufacturers expect "like tires" as replacements. Im not sure what that means but there was a post on here a while back for someone that worked for a dealer-and said something to the effect that brand new "cheap" (i.e. Chinese) replacement tires on a lease turn in was not acceptable.
 
Like tires meaning not snow tires, not retreads, etc. You can put whatever brand you so choose as long as they're of like kind and quality. If you put a set of Milestar tires on, or Linglong, who is the quality judge? There's nothing in the contract stating you have to put on a certain brand. The dealer would have a hard time proving that a foreign made tire is somehow of lesser quality than whatever the car came with.

Dealers do the exact same thing when they get a lease return. Go to your nearest certified pre-owned dealer and look at their selection of lease returns. I have, and the vast majority will have foreign made tires (assuming they're not still the originals, which 99% of the time they're not if it's the typical 36k return), not a name brand.
 
ARCOgraphite said:
It the car in my signature. I just got off the phone with VW customer care after a 50 min wait. They will provide no remedy; they said, "Did Service say that the tires had a defect?" I replied, " NO". The VW Rep stated that VW only cover defects, and they don't cover tires. I also went to the Sumitomo/ FALKEN tire store and they stated there was no treadwear warranty on that tire, and to see VW about it. So its appears to be the old Scarecrow pointing in two different directions, with the client stuck in the middle. I did have the alignment checked twice last year, with a minor toe touch up to prevent feathering of outside rib of the RF tire. I've seen cheap O.E. tires wear fast before, but not 11K miles. VW minimum tread depth at Lease turn-in is 2/32" above the tread wear bars or 4/32". Car is due by end of this December. VW rep said this is something you will have to discuss with AiM lease inspection. I'm thinking of turning the lease in early to avoid buying tires, but then I loose approx $250/ month of lease service "value" that I prepaid. - Any other remedies that I should consider other than contacting the State Attorney General office? For 500 bucks I shall not stress my heart over this issue too much.
Thanks! - Ken
Click to expand...
Purchase 4 used tires before turning it in.
 
ARCOgraphite said:
I now see odd name brand tires for 49 bucks or less each online. I don't know if I want to do that t the next owner!

Tire size is 205/60R 15 all season. I forget load rating, but the car is about 3000 lbs and FWD.
Click to expand...

I might try to find 4 used tires with 5/32"+ of tread and put those on to return it. If so, I would do my best to find four DIFFERENT tires, unless the lease specifies then must match.
 
ARCOgraphite said:
I now see odd name brand tires for 49 bucks or less each online. I don't know if I want to do that t the next owner!

Tire size is 205/60R 15 all season. I forget load rating, but the car is about 3000 lbs and FWD.
Click to expand...

About $320 out the door for four Ling Long Crosswinds at Town Fair.
 
ARCOgraphite said:
It the car in my signature. I just got off the phone with VW customer care after a 50 min wait. They will provide no remedy; they said, "Did Service say that the tires had a defect?" I replied, " NO". The VW Rep stated that VW only cover defects, and they don't cover tires. I also went to the Sumitomo/ FALKEN tire store and they stated there was no treadwear warranty on that tire, and to see VW about it. So its appears to be the old Scarecrow pointing in two different directions, with the client stuck in the middle. I did have the alignment checked twice last year, with a minor toe touch up to prevent feathering of outside rib of the RF tire. I've seen cheap O.E. tires wear fast before, but not 11K miles. VW minimum tread depth at Lease turn-in is 2/32" above the tread wear bars or 4/32". Car is due by end of this December. VW rep said this is something you will have to discuss with AiM lease inspection. I'm thinking of turning the lease in early to avoid buying tires, but then I loose approx $250/ month of lease service "value" that I prepaid. - Any other remedies that I should consider other than contacting the State Attorney General office? For 500 bucks I shall not stress my heart over this issue too much.
Thanks! - Ken
Click to expand...
VW uses crappy Falken Sincero SN250A, which has a treadwear rating of 320, which theoretically should last around 22,000 miles. So, it looks like it barely made it past the first tire rotation at 10,000 miles (which imo is too long).

Does VW offer the wheel-tire protection plan for leases? And did you get it?

If the lease is almost up, just get some cheap chinese 205/60r16 tires to satisfy the lease turn in requirements.
 
Many OE tires on less expensive cars have no treadwear warranty. This is a base-model vehicle you leased that can't have had a sale price more than $18K OTD so the lease must be dirt cheap and the tires will be commensurate with that type of car. Just accept the ownership cost/risk of the decision to lease and buy some tires, they can't cost more than $450 installed but certainly compare that cost to the cost of turning it in and getting charged for the wear/tear.
 
Exactly what I would do.

Nukeman7 said:
I think the only economical option you may have is to put a used set of cheap tires with >4/32" of tread on it right before returning the leased Jetta. I would be on the lookout in Craigslist or a local used tire outlet for a decent set
You won't have any other recourse since you cannot prove that the car wasn't auto-crossed or drag raced during the lease period.
Click to expand...
 
What is the cost if you turn it in with dead tires? If it's $500 then you're stuck. If it's $300 then maybe just turn it in as-is. Gotta run the numbers.

December, not a lot of snow between now and then. Not a lot of rain either. Not sure how well cheapo tires will sound and ride, so if you have any long trips coming up, put off tires as long as possible.
 
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