The kind of damage caused by a failed tire probably depends on how the tire failed. Many failures are due to tread separation - the tread just peels off and shoots straight backward, where it takes out the plumbing if the failure is on the driver's side. It can also beat up the aluminum panel that makes up the underside of the TM floor. If you have the old-type square wheelwell, as PopBeavers mentioned, the tread can also wad up above the tire, and punch up through the wheel well liner and into the kitchen cabinets. The new round wheel wells seem to keep this from happening.
The other mode of tire failure seems to be a sidewall failure. In that case, the side of the tire blows out, and as the tire rotates, the ragged edges are carried upward and beat up the fender skirt. As you and I have both discovered, some of the pieces can also be carried upward outside the fender skirt, and they push into the space between the walls of the shells.
For tread failure, I have installed heavy mud flaps behind the tires, in hopes of deflecting some of the debris before it does much damage. I have't had a failure since I installed them (See?? They work!!) so I don't know if they will do the job.
I can't think of anything you could do to prevent damage from a sidewall failure. Fortunately, the damage is minor compared to the damage from a thrown thread. A new fender skirt can be had from the factory for a not-exorbitant sum. And some elbow grease and WD-40 removes the black streaks that accumulated.
A long-term solution to the whole question may be a switch to 15-inch tires, which have a lot more load margin. I love mine (thanks, Bobby!)
Bill
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