I have Michelin Defenders on my 2004 C240 wagon. Tires are 4 years old, with about 25 k miles on them. Plenty of tread left, but the sidewalls have a lot of cracks. Some of the cracks exceed one inch, so, theoretically should not pass state inspection. Reading the reviews on Tire Rack, it is obvious that this is a widespread issue. Tire dealer says that Michelin fixed this problem a couple years ago, so current tires should be OK.

Can anyone confirm or deny that the issue has been resolved?

Was this an issue for other Michelin tires or just the Defender series?


-Dmitry

Never heard that the Defender has cracking issue. I know this tire is top rated on consumerreports.

I wouldn't care I would get rid of these tires immediately! Your life depends on these tires with large cracks!

And I wouldn't put Defenders on any of my cars, I want something better.