Street side tire failure

**Kidkraz** · 09-01-2017, 10:19 PM

I've had my TM for just about 5 years now and have been wondering if I need to replace my tires. I just returned from an awesome trip to Yellowstone and the Grand Tetons with those original tires. I wrestled with replacing them but didn't. I did inspect them and aired them up properly for the long trip.
I was about 26 miles north of Wells NV when it failed. I have to say as badly damaged as this tire was, I had very little; almost no damage to my rig.
I replaced my toilet with a cassette toilet and have no toilet drain line that could get damaged. I do have the Enduro Caravan mover motors installed, but only an end cap is missing. The tire as you can see in the pictures is pretty bad. There are some tire gratings I have to clean off the bathroom area wall, but that's it. I just did a good inspection and will ask a friend to do a double check just to make sure I didn't miss something.
When it failed I was a couple hundred feet from an empty lot off the side of Highway 93. The sun was still up, my friend and I had some minor struggle getting the trailer up high enough to pull of the damaged tire and get the new one on. We had to open the trailer, cause the socket to remove the lug nuts was in the tool kit sitting in the cabinet under the oven. We started just before 6PM and was done getting back on the road at 7:10. We stopped at the first gas station in Wells, checked and service the replacement tire since it has been sitting underneath to TM since it was built. Retorqued the lug nuts and drive the remaining miles home.
I do have some questions that are of concern to me. When we went to break the lug nuts free the wheel was in the air and was spinning. I thought to apply the truck brakes which I would think would stop that wheel from spinning, but it didn't. I tried to apply the brake using the test switches on my truck brake controller and the wheel still spun. This makes me question weather my left side trailer brake is operating properly or my brake controller is operating incorrectly.

**Bill** · 09-02-2017, 05:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kidkraz

I had some minor struggle getting the trailer up high enough to pull of the damaged tire and get the new one on. We had to open the trailer, cause the socket to remove the lug nuts was in the tool kit sitting in the cabinet under the oven.

Oh, my, that was a nasty experience. I'm sure you learned the same lesson that I did years ago. I got a plastic milk crate, loaded it with my "towing stuff", and I carry it in the back of my tow vehicle where it can be easily reached. "Towing stuff" includes a small 4-ton hydraulic jack and handles, a square-drive screwdriver to remove the wheel well covers, a lug wrench, chocks, a cordless drill and 1/4" Allen wrench to crank the stabilizers down, a 12-volt compressor, a few boards - you get the idea. Once burned, twice shy, as they say. BTW, I'm very impressed that your Caravan Mover survived.

Quote:

I do have some questions that are of concern to me. When we went to break the lug nuts free the wheel was in the air and was spinning. I thought to apply the truck brakes which I would think would stop that wheel from spinning, but it didn't.

No, I wouldn't expect it to. Your brake controller is a good inertial one. It works by sensing when the tow vehicle is slowing down, and since your tow vehicle was already stopped, there was nothing to sense. In other words, it does not directly sense the application of the brake pedal - brake controllers haven't done that in many years.

Quote:

I tried to apply the brake using the test switches on my truck brake controller and the wheel still spun. This makes me question weather my left side trailer brake is operating properly or my brake controller is operating incorrectly.

I think this should have worked. Assuming I am right, the problem is far more like to be in the TM under-chassis wiring than anywhere else. This is a good thing, and an easy (though annoying) fix.

Bill

**Kwantau** · 09-02-2017, 06:36 AM

When I do my yearly brake inspection and the tires are of the ground, I pull the emergency brake to put full battery power to the brakes. This is enough for you to crack the lug nuts free.

Padgett · 09-02-2017, 07:16 AM

That looks like the tread tore completely off the tire and re-enforces the need for a TPMS system. Agree that a 4 year old tire should have been OK unless something happened. My experience is that the street side tire carries the heaviest load particularly if tanks are not empty.

Shane826 · 09-02-2017, 09:04 AM

Regarding brakes holding the tire- Remember the voltage/amperage to the brakes does not directly apply the shoes against the drum. It energizes an electromagnet which grabs the front face of the drum. The rotation of the drum tries to spin the magnet, which in turn rotates an S-cam, which in turn applies the shoes to stop the drum. So if the drum isn't rotating, there is no stopping power. In your car when you yank the park brake that cable directly spreads the shoes and wedges them against the drum, holding the car in place.

**Bill** · 09-02-2017, 09:29 AM

Good point, Shane. My last paragraph was likely misleading. Thanks.

Bill

Tireman9 · 02-17-2018, 09:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kidkraz

I've had my TM for just about 5 years now and have been wondering if I need to replace my tires. I just returned from an awesome trip to Yellowstone and the Grand Tetons with those original tires. I wrestled with replacing them but didn't. I did inspect them and aired them up properly for the long trip.
I was about 26 miles north of Wells NV when it failed. I have to say as badly damaged as this tire was, I had very little; almost no damage to my rig.
I replaced my toilet with a cassette toilet and have no toilet drain line that could get damaged. I do have the Enduro Caravan mover motors installed, but only an end cap is missing. The tire as you can see in the pictures is pretty bad. There are some tire gratings I have to clean off the bathroom area wall, but that's it. I just did a good inspection and will ask a friend to do a double check just to make sure I didn't miss something.
When it failed I was a couple hundred feet from an empty lot off the side of Highway 93. The sun was still up, my friend and I had some minor struggle getting the trailer up high enough to pull of the damaged tire and get the new one on. We had to open the trailer, cause the socket to remove the lug nuts was in the tool kit sitting in the cabinet under the oven. We started just before 6PM and was done getting back on the road at 7:10. We stopped at the first gas station in Wells, checked and service the replacement tire since it has been sitting underneath to TM since it was built. Retorqued the lug nuts and drive the remaining miles home.
I do have some questions that are of concern to me. When we went to break the lug nuts free the wheel was in the air and was spinning. I thought to apply the truck brakes which I would think would stop that wheel from spinning, but it didn't. I tried to apply the brake using the test switches on my truck brake controller and the wheel still spun. This makes me question weather my left side trailer brake is operating properly or my brake controller is operating incorrectly.

Hi Kidkraz
Tireman9 here. Just learned about this forum. I am a retired tire design and quality engineer and write a blog on RV Tire Application.
I know this is not a current situation but thought I could offer some information.

The tire almost certainly failed from a belt separation and not a sidewall "blowout" from a slow leak. As such a TPMS would not have provided an advanced warning as there was probably no loss of air pressure over time just before the failure. I do cover as a post in my blog, how I would suggest trailer tires be inspected at least once a year for first two years followed by at least every 3 months of use starting at year 3.

RottieMom · 02-19-2018, 07:06 PM

What exactly do you look for when inspecting tires?

**Larryjb** · 02-19-2018, 08:18 PM

He seems to have a fairly comprehensive procedure here:

http://www.rvtiresafety.net/search/label/Inspection

Padgett · 02-20-2018, 09:26 AM

Just one more thought I cannot over emphasize: buy only ST trailer tires with a nylon cap or overlay.

Part of the problem is that when a tire starts to separate the first thing it does is vibrate (why it is important to have trailer tires balanced). On a car you would feel it but not on a trailer. It is too bad that TPMS devices do not also have vibration sensors.