Front end alignment issue messed up tires - Bought certified used from dealer

[tchaps08]

Hello All,

Looking for advice here.

About 4-5 months ago I bought myself a certified used Kia 2019 Stinger GT2 AWD with only 6k miles on it. I LOVE this car. But as I was swapping my winter tires on I noticed the outside tread of the summer tires were completely bare, as shown in the attached pics, on both front wheels. So bare the tire could have popped an moment! The back two tires are in perfect condition. I assume this has to be due to a horribly done wheel alignment with a positive camber that caused my tires to do this in a matter of months. The air pressure in my tires are perfectly fine. Me thinking this is gonna be an easy process calls my nearest Kia dealer and they tell me their standard warranty doesn't cover this vehicle because it's first to 12 months/12k miles and to call the KIA extended warranty number. When I call the extended warranty number they tell me they don't cover alignments or tire issues caused by alignments. The other issue is I bought this certified used Kia out of state in West Virginia, I live in Michigan. So the dealer I'm currently contacting is not the dealer I purchased this car from. I'm trying to find out the best way to get my front two tires replaced and an alignment at no cost covered by Kia like I believe should be done. Do you guys agree and have any input as to how I should go about getting this done? I'd appreciate any thoughts on this as I'm kind of lost where to go about this from here.

Thanks,

Tyler

 

[adam1991]

I'm not sure why you think the wheels should have been aligned in the first place. Is that explicitly stated by the dealer you bought the car from? Is it even something Kia calls out in their "certification" process?

Steve Lehto has a lot to say about this. You bought a used car. Your job was to inspect it, completely. Every court in the land would tell you, if you chose not to inspect the car yourself prior to purchase, you lose any standing for redress.

You believe it should be covered, but do you have anything that backs up your belief? Anything in writing?

At this point, it's no big deal. Get it aligned, get new tires on it, move on.

When I call the extended warranty number they tell me they don't cover alignments or tire issues caused by alignments.

Do you have anything in writing that refutes this?

 

[tchaps08]

I'm not sure why you think the wheels should have been aligned in the first place. Is that explicitly stated by the dealer you bought the car from? Is it even something Kia calls out in their "certification" process?

Steve Lehto has a lot to say about this. You bought a used car. Your job was to inspect it, completely. Every court in the land would tell you, if you chose not to inspect the car yourself prior to purchase, you lose any standing for redress.

You believe it should be covered, but do you have anything that backs up your belief? Anything in writing?

At this point, it's no big deal. Get it aligned, get new tires on it, move on.



Do you have anything in writing that refutes this?

I assumed with the wheel alignment in the state that it is, this would have been covered by some warranty considering it's only been driven 1,000 miles so far and to see the tread on the tires now is quite alarming. Apparently that's my bad for thinking/assuming that. But yes, after looking at the 164 point inspection sheet I suppose it only mentions steering alignment and not wheel alignment. I just believed considering this was a couple month old purchase from a Kia dealer, this would be something obviously covered, but maybe I'm incorrect with thinking that way.

 

[Blue Bucket]

At this point, it's no big deal. Get it aligned, get new tires on it, move on.

^This.

Sorry this happened to you. As you mentioned, wheel alignment isnt covered on the inspection. I've seen people get charged for alignments even when doing warranty work on suspension parts.

Probably a good idea to inspect your tires more frequently too.

 

[adam1991]

I assumed

yep.

That being said, a good dealer would at least align it for you. BUT: you bought it out of state. So, it's just time to move on.

 

[MerlintheMad]

Wow! that is scary as hell looking! Glad you didn't have a blowout, thank the Good Lord. It looks, as you say, that it could have occurred at any moment on either tire.

I'm with the advice so far: get a warrantied alignment done and put on new front tires and GO! (and I reckon it goes without saying, that you will be squatting down with a flashlight often for the next couple of months at least! )

 

[General_Vodka]

I had the same issue. The car came with terrible alinement in the front, I fixed that and then just dove on the tires till the treads started to show. Since even when you fix the uneven wear it will still continue to wear the tires because the shape is now different. Got my winters put on and had the alinement checked again. Also, the rear tires were worn differently with the rear left more worn than the right. Probably because of all the donuts, even with an LSD.

 

[MerlintheMad]

I had the same issue. The car came with terrible alinement in the front ...

To be honest, you had a bit more than just terrible alignment issues, General. Hah.

 

[General_Vodka]

To be honest, you had a bit more than just terrible alignment issues, General. Hah.
View attachment 53028

yeah, I didn't mention my lower control arm being more curved than the other... well its all done right now.

 

[P22Tyler]

Hello All,

Looking for advice here.

About 4-5 months ago I bought myself a certified used Kia 2019 Stinger GT2 AWD with only 6k miles on it. I LOVE this car. But as I was swapping my winter tires on I noticed the outside tread of the summer tires were completely bare, as shown in the attached pics, on both front wheels. So bare the tire could have popped an moment! The back two tires are in perfect condition. I assume this has to be due to a horribly done wheel alignment with a positive camber that caused my tires to do this in a matter of months. The air pressure in my tires are perfectly fine. Me thinking this is gonna be an easy process calls my nearest Kia dealer and they tell me their standard warranty doesn't cover this vehicle because it's first to 12 months/12k miles and to call the KIA extended warranty number. When I call the extended warranty number they tell me they don't cover alignments or tire issues caused by alignments. The other issue is I bought this certified used Kia out of state in West Virginia, I live in Michigan. So the dealer I'm currently contacting is not the dealer I purchased this car from. I'm trying to find out the best way to get my front two tires replaced and an alignment at no cost covered by Kia like I believe should be done. Do you guys agree and have any input as to how I should go about getting this done? I'd appreciate any thoughts on this as I'm kind of lost where to go about this from here.

Thanks,

Tyler

Probably nothing you can do, but your best bet would be to contact the dealer you bought the car from and see if they're willing to do anything about it. Good luck.

 

[tchaps08]

Wow! that is scary as hell looking! Glad you didn't have a blowout, thank the Good Lord. It looks, as you say, that it could have occurred at any moment on either tire.

I'm with the advice so far: get a warrantied alignment done and put on new front tires and GO! (and I reckon it goes without saying, that you will be squatting down with a flashlight often for the next couple of months at least! )

Yes, I'll definetly be checking my tires wayyy more often now that's for damn sure lol.

Thank you all for the replies and advice. I'll try contacting the dealer but am not expecting much to come from it and will probably just have to deal. Again I'm so digging this car and this community seems pretty legit from my first post