Those Darn Noisy Michelins

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Nick1994

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Well I posted last summer about the noise of the Michelin HydroEdge 205/55-16 tires on my aunt's 2004 TDI VW Beetle. The car is religiously maintained at the dealer but the tires were bought in late May of 2011 at 104,000 miles. It's coming up on 156,000 now. The tires have been rotated pretty well I would say, maybe one interval it was skipped but overall pretty good. The tread life has been amazing, tons of tread left (rated at 90,000 miles per Michelin) and they handle and corner fantastic. They also have absolutely no weather cracks either (garaged). The thing we (I drive the car often as well) can't stand about these tires is how loud they are! Even on surface streets and especially freeway driving it has got to be the most annoying thing. They were very noisy and had a little vibration due to one tire "cupping" a little bit according to Discount Tire. The suspension on this car is great, and had $2,000 worth of front end work last year at the dealer, so I know it's good. The tire that is cupping was a replacement at about 116,000 due to road hazard replacement. Personally I believe this tire is defective because even after rotating several times after it's replacement it's the only tire that is cupping. When it is on the front of the car that is when it is REALLY loud. Last summer we went on a road trip for 2 weeks and did about 4,800 miles. We took the car to Discount Tire before and during the trip and I tried to get them to replace it because I couldn't stand the noise and they wouldn't replace it due to cupping that that was most likely due to the car. I still don't believe this and Discount Tire is still no help at all. That tire has been on the back since October at about 151,000 miles. Now at almost 156,000 I took it in for a rotate and balance and once again with that odd ball tire up front it was extremely noisy on the highway (which this car sees mostly) and had them rotate back. I am done with rotating tires on this set of tires.

I'm leery about going back to Discount Tire for the next set and am leery about going back to Michelin for the next set as well. Discount Tire also tells me that they are known to be loud tires and I have to live with it. Obviously we weren't told this when we bought them, we didn't sign up for loud tires. I'd like a set of Michelin Defenders because of the mileage rating but with have such a high mileage rating does this make these tires susceptible to being loud as well? Is Big O Tires any better than Discount as far as customer service?

I emailed Michelin last summer and last week complaining about the tires and they never call or email me back.

Sorry about the long post, I just HATE this set of tires lol.

The first 2 sets of tires were Continental ContiProContact's from the dealership and they lasted 50k, wasn't very impressed.

Thanks guys
 
Escalate upwards in Discount Tire.

From what you write, only the replacement is noisy so you are being reasonable.

I've gotten a lot from them after their mistake by escalating and being resonable in my argument.

Tirerack did say they are a little noisy so the buyer has to do some due diligence, not just rely on tire monkeys.
 
Longer life tires like the Hydroedge's and Defender's aren't known for being quiet or riding well. Your Hydroedge's have the look of a pattern to GY's Assurance CS/Tripletread. That V shape in most tire design's is going to be loud.

If you wanted quiet, You should have gone/still go for Primacy MXV4's. Why you trusted a retail establishment's judgment w/o doing your own research (cough TireRack), is beyond me. I learned many years ago with my ill fated set of GY Assurance Fuel-Max's, trusting tire places is a disaster waiting to happen

The 2 best rated tires in a P205/55R16 91H's is either
Pirelli Cinturato P7 All Season Plus's
Size: 205/55R16
LRR: EcoImpact
Sidewall Style: Blackwall
Serv. Desc: 91H
UTQG: 700 A A

Or Michelin Primacy MXV4's
Size: P205/55R16
LRR: Green X
Sidewall Style: Blackwall
Serv. Desc: 89H/91H
UTQG: 620 A A

$422-$450 after discounts and rebates get's you a set of 4 of either

Check this Tire Rack Link and look at the reviews and prices. There's a lot better choice for you. If you don't want to order from TireRack, most tire places will order and price match.

I'm also slightly skeptical about this dealer work. I'd give it all a thorough look over yourself. $2k worth of work at a VAG dealer and tire's are cupping.........
Something doesn't sound right there
confused.gif
 
Originally Posted By: michaelluscher
Longer life tires like the Hydroedge's and Defender's aren't known for being quiet or riding well. Your Hydroedge's have the look of a pattern to GY's Assurance CS/Tripletread. That V shape in most tire design's is going to be loud.

If you wanted quiet, You should have gone/still go for Primacy MXV4's. Why you trusted a retail establishment's judgment w/o doing your own research (cough TireRack), is beyond me. I learned many years ago with my ill fated set of GY Assurance Fuel-Max's, trusting tire places is a disaster waiting to happen

The 2 best rated tires in a P205/55R16 91H's is either
Pirelli Cinturato P7 All Season Plus's
Size: 205/55R16
LRR: EcoImpact
Sidewall Style: Blackwall
Serv. Desc: 91H
UTQG: 700 A A

Or Michelin Primacy MXV4's
Size: P205/55R16
LRR: Green X
Sidewall Style: Blackwall
Serv. Desc: 89H/91H
UTQG: 620 A A

$422-$450 after discounts and rebates get's you a set of 4 of either

Check this Tire Rack Link and look at the reviews and prices. There's a lot better choice for you. If you don't want to order from TireRack, most tire places will order and price match.

I'm also slightly skeptical about this dealer work. I'd give it all a thorough look over yourself. $2k worth of work at a VAG dealer and tire's are cupping.........
Something doesn't sound right there
confused.gif



Will probably go with the Primacy's, and yes all the A-arm bushings were replaced as well as a CV boot and some other stuff. I'll have to look for the invoice. It was $1987 if I remember correctly.
 
Probably put them on upside down and in reverse rotation. The convergence of the diameter to the radius can cause uneven warping of the sidewalls, thus an increase of noise along the circular area of two planes at right angles...could be that.
 
Originally Posted By: Nick1994
Well I posted last summer about the noise of the Michelin HydroEdge 205/55-16 tires on my aunt's 2004 TDI VW Beetle....... Sorry about the long post, I just HATE this set of tires lol.......Thanks guys


A couple of thoughts:

First is that this is your aunt's car, so do you now what the tires were like when brand new?

Second is that this vehicle has a spec rear camber of a degree and a half. That's quite a bit, and that makes the car prone to irregular wear - which would generate noise. You had one tire that "cupped" (not the best term to use when describing irregular wear), which would be evidence that there was an alignment issue.

You've said the car had some serious work on the suspension, but you do realize that once a tire gets irregular wear, you're pretty much stuck with the wear pattern, right? In other words, irregular wear doesn't generally get erased by moving the tire to a new position or fixing the alignment.

I know you don't believe it was the car that caused the irregular wear, but it was. I know of no mechanism where the difference from tire to tire can cause irregular wear. I know of mechanisms between different makes of tires, but nothing about individual differences within a make/model.

And your question about wear ratings and if that makes those types of tires loud:

No! Noise is generally a function of the tread pattern. Wear ratings generally are a function of the tread compound.

But there is a correlation between wet traction and noise (due to the tread pattern) and it just might be that the Hydroedge is just plain noisy due to that. Of course, changing to a less noisy pattern will likely result in less wet traction - something that ought to be considered in the next set of tires.
 
Originally Posted By: CapriRacer

And your question about wear ratings and if that makes those types of tires loud:

No! Noise is generally a function of the tread pattern. Wear ratings generally are a function of the tread compound.

But there is a correlation between wet traction and noise (due to the tread pattern) and it just might be that the Hydroedge is just plain noisy due to that. Of course, changing to a less noisy pattern will likely result in less wet traction - something that ought to be considered in the next set of tires.


True this, yes...but...

What kind of noise is OP referring to?

...is it a whining TONAL noise caused by some tread patterns, or the grinding/gipping noise of other tires' designs...I've had both...the tonal noise tires did nothing great for wet-road traction, the gripping/grinding noisy tires I have now stick like glue in the rain...the former also didn't last more than 60% of rated mileage wear here in south Florida because....

Also to be considered is road surface...the Ventus tires grinding noise is most noticeable on shell-embedded concrete (where tires are riding on sandpaper, hence the low treadwear), while they are virtually silent on asphalt/Tarmac.
 
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As usual CR's post seems to address all the complaints in a fair and comprehensive manner.

As for DT, while not everyone is going to have the same experience, I've always found them to be very professional and fair. That includes obtaining a new tire at a prorated price for an OEM (BFG via Michelin) tire with a puncture in a non repairable area. And, a generous proration for a set of YK 520's that didn't last their rated tread life.
 
They probably won't replace a tire that is still usable.

I know people that want to resort to sanding or shaving the tread when they get rough.I don't know how practical that is.

I prefer to buy a lower priced tire and replace them more often, as I don't rack up miles fast enough to warrant a 90K tire. Over the years the rubber get hard, worse on some tires but it probably happens to some degree on all tires.

You will probably either have to live with them or just pony up and buy a new set of tires.
 
There are a couple factors that may have messed your tires up. First, they were on the car prior to the suspension work. This could have introduced an irregular wear pattern. Second, any time you miss a rotation you are giving an open invitation to irregular wear. The most important part of rotations is the consistency, regardless of interval.

That being said, most rain centric tires are going to be louder than general touring. It is not just Michelin.

For what it is worth, my Defenders are louder than my previous MXV4 Primacys but they have a longer treadlife rating. My wear has been consistent despite needing front suspension work that I have been putting off.
 
Whunning HydroEdge on my Bummer and must agree they are a noisy tire particularly at high speed and more so on certain road surfaces than others.
Where I live they aren't so bad but on a recent road trip to Arizona they were so loud on some highway surfaces that I stopped to check the tires for signs of damage.
If I lived in an area where they were the drumming was terrible I'd be complaining to Michelin and would replace the tires.
But as I said they're not that bad on the Canadian highways I've driven on.
 
Originally Posted By: SF0059


That being said, most rain centric tires are going to be louder than general touring. It is not just Michelin.


Originally Posted By: CATERHAM
Whining HydroEdge on my Bimmer and must agree they are a noisy tire particularly at high speed and more so on certain road surfaces than others.
Where I live they aren't so bad but on a recent road trip to Arizona they were so loud...But as I said they're not that bad on the Canadian highways I've driven on.


Yes, as I said above...you gotta take the grind with the grip...tonal whining is totally different and is most apparent on asphalt/Tarmac where the grinding noise of the Ventus all but disappear leaving the Camry's ride dead silent...wish I lived in Canada
wink.gif
 
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Change the way you select tires, sort by consumer rating on tire rack of your size and pick from top 3-4, there are amazing tires for not much money nowadays. i highly recommend Continental DWS to anyone looking for great all season tire(quiet, comfortable, great in winter) or the new michelin pilot sport a/s 3 which is THE BEST all season on the market today for someone who does not want dedicated summer tire.

ContiProContact is one of the worst tires Continental makes. If you want a good tire(quit or comfortable) dont expect more than 50K miles out of it.

I just put Pilot Super Sport (@ DT)on my G37x and OMG these tires are phenomenal.
 
Hmmm. Random call from Discount Tire and they want to offer me $160 off a set of 4 tires.


We didn't choose these tires either, we wanted the Michelin Destinys (at the time) and hey weren't in stock so Discount Tire offered these for the same price, so my aunt said ok.
 
I'm wondering how "random" the call was. I've purchased many sets of tires from DT, and while I get regular emails reminding me of rotations needed for different vehicles, I've never gotten a random call from DT offering a discount on a new set of tires.

Seems they may have documented your displeasure/dissatisfaction, and are trying earn/keep your business. Seems like a good thing to me.
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cupping is a sign of alignment and/or suspension issue.

rotation will not resolve your issue once the tire(s) developed cupping.

I'd look into that first before jumping into conclusions.

Q.
 
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