Should I be concerned about this tire?

First glance it looks like steel belt separation in the sidewalls causing bulges. Not good even in a Michelin. The tread looks worn down to the tread wear indicators (arrow) and the outer edge of the tread seems to be unevenly worn, perhaps from excessive under inflation or bad alignment. Time to have a tire shop check the tires.

 

If you have the money, you can replace the tire. Have you checked to see if there's a nail in this tire?

 

How many miles do you have in it? It will be preferable to buy a new series of tires once it is worn out. You can find a wide range of affordable tires in stores such as 4wheelonline.

You can check this thread for tire reference:

Tires Choices for Prius Gen 3 | PriusChat

 

Looks like tires that got old before their mileage wore off... Make a good backup plan and keep driving them with no worries until the fail.
My backup plan is when a tire on my car gets twice as bad as this I order a replacement for lowest price online and keep it at the ready and if I go on a road trip I take it with me. As in get all the life you can out of the old ones before you put on the new ones.

 

The first photo, I've seen a lot of this with new tires, probably the manufacturing process.
2nd photo, not exactly sure what you are showing. A small bubble in the lower right corner????
If so, that is not normal.
3rd photo, WAY too much toe in. Is the left side worn the same? Or is it worn on the inside?
Does the car pull or drift to one side? If it's only the right front tire, I would say you have something
bent on the right front suspension. And check ALL the tires, obviously that one tire is in bad shape.
It is extrememly rare that just ONE tire would wear and not the others, especially on the front.
Toe in/out effects both front tires. Castor effects pulling left or right. Camber will throw off the other two.

It's a good idea to check the tired while the pump is filling up your gas tank. You can finish before
the pump does usually.
And certainly have the suspension checked and get an alignment after replaceing the tires.

But, you will need to replace that tire, and maybe the left front one also.
And: "Make a good backup plan and keep driving them with no worries until the fail."
This is NOT a good idea! That tire MAY last another 20,000 miles, or 2 miles. Putting it on the rear
is a "safer" place, because you don't have the same stresses as the front. But it doesn't solve the problem.
When do you want it to fail? Going 70mph on the highway in busy traffic? The middle of an intersection???

If it's only YOU that is involved in an wreck, it's not as bad, except for possible damage to your car.
But if others are involved that are hurt or worse, it could cost you a lot more.

 

those tires are done

 

I can appreciate the frugality but one accident, stranding or injury will give you a life lesson.

But I will say it is rare to see a blowout these days. You will see big truck tread recaps on the side of the road. But normal tires with shiny steel belts exposed can be seen rolling down the road in many parts of Texas. It was not always this way.

Back in the day, Michelin was the only steel belted radial. So Firestone and others tried to duplicate the handling and reliability advantages of a radial. Some used fiberglass belts.

I had the famous Firestone 500 steel belted radials on my 70s muscle car. Twenty thousand miles later and they started exploding. Literally. Shrapnel dinging fenders from the inside. One went while driving on an elevated interchange 50 feet in the air. Wheels bent as the tire instantly took the path less traveled.

Of course many were injured or died. Eventually Firestone recalled all of them but simply replaced them with identical designs. I had some of those as well and they blew. It was so bad the company was acquired by a Japanese outfit and rebranded for decades.

 

I'm not going to comment on safety. You know what you should do in terms of safety.

Me? I'd continue to drive on it and monitor it. However, if the tire is older than 6 years old, I'd replace it now. There are numbers on the side of the tire that indicate manufacturing date. I say this because the tires looks well used. While there is still some tread left, if the tire was manufactured in 2015 or earlier, I would replace it now. https://www.tirerack.com/tires/tiretech/techpage.jsp?techid=11#:~:text=Since%202000%2C%20the%20week%20and,used%20to%20identify%20the%20year.

 

Yes, pay no attention to the bulges in the tire... they're good for another 50,000 miles!!!!
"I" certainly won't worry about it, BECAUSE IT'S NOT MY TIRE! And you're not driving by me!!!!

BE SMART! Take the car to someone you trust and installes tires and have them check ALL of the tires!
Be responsible!

 

what if you don’t have the money to replace it?

 

CHARGE IT!!!!

 

Keep on driving

 

You shouldn’t have a bulge in the sidewall of the tire. That is either a defect or previous owner or you hit a pothole or curb really hard.

It could “pop” while driving, especially during a turn.

You need a new tire(s).


iPhone ?

 

I'd say anytime there is a bulge, it is due for replacement.

 

trickle or slow?

 

I'd check the date of tires. I had tires last about 3-4 years and 18k miles and they were done. I think they still had tread left above the wear bar. I got holes in them from work's parking lot and was trying the repair it and somehow got a hole in the sidewall. The Texas sun was a good factor. They were dryrotting on the side quite a bit. They were also the cheapest tires in the size that the dealer could find to sell the car. I think they also had those strange bulges.

If you get new tires, get an alignment or you're throwing your new tires away. Rotate every 5k oil change. (tires2u free checks)

It could very likely still be driveable for a long time to come. If you rotate now, it will probably pull if it isn't already. My questions are how much air? 1psi a week isn't that bad in my book. Does it make any noise while driving? any woop woop woop or something? Vibrate?

 

now the obligatory follow up, clean the egr circuit or else the head gasket will explode. First time prius owners love this task.