Tire side wall cracks?

socallly · Feb 18, 2011

My L3400 is six years old, front tires are cracking real bad, rear (Loaded) tires are like brand new. the fluid in the rears keeps the rubber supple.

For tire protection, I would recommend silicone lubricating spray it works great and is fairly inexpensive.

Green Acres Homestead · Feb 18, 2011

I think it is time that everybody sends an email to titian and to the tractor manufactors not to use these tires until they fix the problem.

Silicone and all that stuff. Just an excuse .... 20 years ago under normal use tires wore before they cracked. My tractor was always stored under a portable storage garage but all tires cracked within a year.

Thought it could of been just I had a faulty set but seeing all the complaints I guess titian has a problem and does not seem to quick to fix it. Think I will copy all the complaints and send it to both them and the tractor manufactured.

pat32rf · Feb 19, 2011

Some years ago I replaced the four Goodyears on a 25yr old float that I inherited from Dad, just because the cracks were starting to worry me. He had always parked it out in the field. I park it in the bush in the shade but after three years the replacement tires looked as bad as the Goodyears (I had kept one for a spare).
I had always been told that the cracks don't effect the strength but the local police tend to think otherwise when doing vehicle inspections...

RobertBrown · Feb 19, 2011

Markcuda said:
Where are the Titan tires made?

In a Tire Factory.......

Titan International | America's Best Since 1898

Markcuda · Feb 19, 2011

Well, if all you peeps don't bi tch about your Titan tires to your dealer, then you deserve crap tires.

rd_macgregor · Feb 22, 2011

Markcuda said:
Where are the Titan tires made?

They claim US manufacture: Titan International | America's Best Since 1898

The cracks in the ones I showed above are a lot more pronounced now than they were three years ago when the picture was taken.

BOB

civesnedfield · Feb 22, 2011

PILOON said:
At 13 months I think you should be talking to your dealer, sounds like warranty issue to me.
Just think what they will look like in 5 years? 10 years?

I needed to change mine after 25 yrs and said bye bye to close to $1000.! on a tractor that I paid $3500. OUCH!

Sorry Titan warranty is for 12 months. Most dealers/manufacturers won't do anything. Read your warranty, usually tires, battery, fuel injection pump is warrantied thru manufacturer of part not tractor.

rd_macgregor · Feb 23, 2011

civesnedfield said:
Sorry Titan warranty is for 12 months. Most dealers/manufacturers won't do anything. Read your warranty, usually tires, battery, fuel injection pump is warrantied thru manufacturer of part not tractor.

Plus, within those first 12 months, they just claim the cracks are cosmetic and don't affect the integrity, safety or longevity of the tire. Still, they'd better catch on quickly and fix the problems or their sales volume will fall off pretty fast...there are still competitors out there!

BOB

civesnedfield · Feb 23, 2011

rd_macgregor said:
Plus, within those first 12 months, they just claim the cracks are cosmetic and don't affect the integrity, safety or longevity of the tire. Still, they'd better catch on quickly and fix the problems or their sales volume will fall off pretty fast...there are still competitors out there!

BOB

Titan is already feeling the effects. The also own Goodyear AG tires. In the AG world they are known as "Good for a year tires". Very few if any large AG users will go near Titan/Goodyear tires.

TripleR · Feb 23, 2011

civesnedfield said:
Titan is already feeling the effects. The also own Goodyear AG tires. In the AG world they are known as "Good for a year tires". Very few if any large AG users will go near Titan/Goodyear tires.

No one in my area stocks them, it is Michelin or Firestone.

slan · Feb 26, 2011

rd_macgregor said:
My Kioti DK45 has Titan R4s front and rear. The first winter I had it, I noticed cracks in the front treads...the rears are fine. The dealer seemed to think it was just cosmetic, but I've documented it just in case it is a more serious issue. I've attached a close-up of the front tread to show what I'm talking about.
BOB

That looks a lot like a tire that was underinflated and/or a lot of heavy loader work. Had a replacement rear tire on my tlb do the same thing within a year. Normal sunlight or uv cracks usually start around the sidewalls.

Or just a bad batch of what they had on hand the day they made them

civesnedfield · Feb 27, 2011

slan said:
That looks a lot like a tire that was underinflated and/or a lot of heavy loader work. Had a replacement rear tire on my tlb do the same thing within a year. Normal sunlight or uv cracks usually start around the sidewalls.

Or just a bad batch of what they had on hand the day they made them

Do you work for Titan, cause that sounds like the company line. These tires absolutly s#ck. It is a problem that Titan knows about and does nothing to fix. They had an extremely bad batch of tires and do nothing for the customers that have them. The cracks are not from inflation issues or overloading. Believe me I have been thru THREE sets of these pieces of trash.

Ford tractor · Feb 27, 2011

I have a set of 11 year old R4 Titans on the front and Goodyear R4s on the back. No cracking and 3/4ish tread remaining.

I don't like goodyear tires on my trucks because they are all done for after a year (21k miles and bald.) Sorry to hear that Titans quality has slipped in the last decade.

rider9403 · Mar 1, 2011

While I'm waiting for the dealer to get back to me, what is the brand of tire to get if I have too replace these? The tires on our old JD don't even have these king if cracks in the side walls. One tire is 7 years old and the other is more like 20years old.
Mark

texasjohn · Mar 1, 2011

Rider, a photo would help us understand the size, location and extent of the cracks you are discussing. Let us know what the dealer says.

ding2520 · Mar 1, 2011

I have Carlisle on the front of my JD 2520 and am not very happy with the condition of their sidewall.

rider9403 · Mar 3, 2011

Here is a photo of the sidewall. This is typical on both rear tires.

TripleR · Mar 3, 2011

Both of those tires look pretty bad.

texasjohn · Mar 3, 2011

Rider, I agree, those cracks are familiar to me, but on tires that are maybe 10 years or older.

My tractor tires are going on 8 years, Firestone rears, R4 Titan fronts, no such cracks at all although with near 1000 hours on tractor, mostly in 4WD, the front treads are seriously worn. Many cuts and gouges, no cracks as such. Mostly not kept in a shed. I keep 40 lbs PSI in the fronts.

So I would say that your cracks are premature. Hard to determine if they reduce functionality or total lifetime of the tire. I'm not an expert on what actually causes tire tread wear.