Warning - More Chinese Junk On Our Cars!

[Steve_S]

Apparently they are using low-quality rubber (big surprise there) which reacts poorly when exposed to ozone.

Quotes from article:

"As many as 30 million replacement rubber valves stems, imported to the U.S. from China beginning in August 2006, can crack prematurely, causing tires to lose air."

"Auto safety consultant Sean Kane advises any motorist who has had a tire replaced after July 2006, to immediately have their valves inspected for signs of cracking."

"The only way to tell if you have a valve stem made by this company is to dismount the tire from the wheel to examine it from the inside. Once they are out of the box, and on a vehicle there is no tracking for these products so you cant notify owners."

"the parts are untraceable once they are fitted to vehicles and worse, these companies havent alerted the public of impending danger."

Source:
https://news.yahoo.com/s/usnw/20080612/pl...ve_stems_safety

 

[angelfj1]

You get what you pay for, dont you.
It may take a couple of generations to turn this mess around.

 

[GregW]

There is something verrrrrrry fishy about that story. One accident and hundreds of millions of tires should be removed from the wheels to be inspected? Why not tell the consumer to monitor their tire pressure? It's reported as a slow leak. I've had slow leaks on pre 2006 tires. If Dill received complaints in April, how have they scientifically discovered what the exact cause of the failure was in such a short period of time. Ozone, not sunlight, brake fluid, a dog's urinary infection, etc. I'd be more prone to believe it's a ploy to get people in the shops for an up sell of new tires.

 

[Tinster]

There is something verrrrrrry fishy about that story. It's reported as a slow leak. I'd be more prone to believe it's a ploy to get people in the shops for an up sell of new tires.

<span style="color: #990000">Here's fishy one for you Greg.

A VERY slow leak on one of my boat trailer tires.
The tires are 18 months age, less than 100 miles on them.
A royal P.I.T.A to remove trailers tires but I did.

The tire shop I've used for 13 years found no problem
like a nail or screw, etc. They suggested it might be the
valve stems.

The maintenance guy at the marina told me it's fairly common,
(of late) that boat trailer tires slowly deflate. He now fills
the "leakers" for us on a routine basis. nice fellow.

d</span>

 

[BoneIdle]

The article is a bit odd. It appears that it was written by the consumer advocate people, but if you go here:

https://www.newsomelaw.com/resources/valve-stem-recall/

There's no author associated with the story.

The ODI resume is available on the page above, as well.

I read the resume. It's a preliminary investigation, and the only incident that's been reported is the fatal accident of Robert Monk in Orlando.

His family has engaged the Newsome Law Firm to bring suit on their behalf against somebody or another for the defective valve stems.

So, while it may be totally legitimate, it's being presented by a less than ethical writer( in the classical, not modern sense): no credibility is established, we don't really know who the writer is, and it's very possible that there's bias involved, since the only direct quotations are from the plaintiff's attorney and the consumer advocates. The article refers to bulletins from Dill, but I didn't see that any attempt was made to contact the manufacturer for their input, rebuttal, or clarification.

One valve out of 30,000,000 has spawned this probe and lawsuit.


Here's a link for Dill's website:

https://www.dillaircontrols.com/quality.htm

Furthermore, I'd like to see the accident report. I'm amazed that the Newsome Law Firm doesn't have that online for review. It's certainly relevant to the lawsuit if not the federal probe.

Like I said, it's odd.

 

[PAUL161]

Tire pressures should be checked regularly. I'm not sticking up for any manufacture or their product, but irregardless of what causes a leaky tire, it's up to the owner to keep track of vehicle maintenance and tires are part of that program. If someone has a poor memory, tire cap pressure indicators are available at a very reasonable price and gives a constant visual indication. I don't like them as they open the valve stem and all pressure is held in by the cap. Another thought, when buying new tires, do you specify to the installer, if you use Chinese stems, I won't buy your tires? In todays market, you might look far and wide. JMHO.

 

[Steve_S]

There is something verrrrrrry fishy about that story....Why not tell the consumer to monitor their tire pressure?

The article states that Dill has acknowledged the problem and advises anyone who has installed tires since 2006 to closely monitor tire pressures.

The article refers to bulletins from Dill, but I didn't see that any attempt was made to contact the manufacturer for their input, rebuttal, or clarification.

Sounds like standard operating procedure for most American journalists these days!

Anyway, whether or not it's a well-written article with proper credits, references, etc... it would still be a good idea to take a look at your valve stems if you think you might be in the group affected by the recall.

 

[GregW]

The article states that Dill has acknowledged the problem and advises anyone who has installed tires since 2006 to closely monitor tire pressures.

I didn't see that in the article. I saw that Dill had talked to the NHTSA and had sent a bulletin to the "major tire retailers". The safety advocates are saying monitor pressure and one is saying immediately take your car to have it inspected. I'm just curious what a tire inspection will cost the comsumer, probaly a spin balance involved. These recommended inspections don't seem to be coming from official channels, just the safety police.

 

[Steve_S]

Dill aren't the ones who advise the public about the problem. They simply notify the appropriate organizations such as NHTSA, which they did, and those organizations alert the public. Or at least that's how I understand it.

 

[DrEntropy]

"Awright, everybody STOP!! Stem inspection!! Bend down, grab yer stem, shake it vogorously!"

"That'll be $40, sir. Your stems are safe now. Thank you for stopping at TyreWankers."

 

[tomshobby]

:lol:

$10 per stem. That sounds like a pretty good deal, but it would depend on the, ahem, qualifications of the inspector.