Audi Workshop Service and Repair Manuals > A4 Mk3 > Wheels and tyres | Wheels, tyres. axle align | Tyre damage

Impact damage

A swelling in the sidewall of the tyre indicates that the substructure of the carcass has been damaged.

Typical causes for such damage include, for example, driving over kerbs at a sharp angle.

Pinching the tyre in this way can damage the carcass.

The substructure of the tyre is stretched so far that individual fibres in the carcass may be broken.

The extent of the damage depends on the speed of impact, the angle of impact, the inflation pressure, the axle load and the type of obstacle.

Kerb impact damage marks on tyre sidewall.

Note

t	Driving over kerbs should be avoided wherever possible.

t	If you cannot avoid driving over a kerb, you should do so very slowly and as square-on as possible.

Interior view of a tyre with a ruptured carcass.

Due to a severe impact, the carcass was pinched on the wheel flange and is ruptured in the contact area.

Double rupture caused by pinching when driving over a kerb. Often not detectable from outside.

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