First Blowout

[GABob]

I have to admit upfront that I wasn't as diligent as I should have been. Oh, I check tire pressure, have a TPM system running, and all of the tread looked good for 30K miles. I planned on changing them soon as the RV is going on 6 years...no dry rot as I cover them when I store it. But...I never gave a thought to looking at the INNER tire tread as all around I was solid.

Driving home today I noticed that the right rear inner tire was running about 10 PSI higher than the others. Temp looked ok, maybe slightly higher. Going along around 65 and suddenly BAM, a bit of an explosion coming from the rear. I knew in my heart what it was, and surprisingly there was no impact to control of the vehicle. After calling for service, I went to take a better look. It was embarrassing, as the tire looked to be pretty bald when it blew. The outside tire was fine.

So, the schedule for new tires has now moved up quite a bit. Luckily, I carry a mounted spare, so within twenty to thirty minutes after the service gent arrived we were on our way.

Two reasons for posting this: First, as a reminder to check your inner dually tires as well, even though the others look good. Second, does anyone have any thoughts as to why only the inner tire wore like this? There is a slide in the rear on that side, and that's also the side for the fridge, but I'm perplexed as to why it impacted only the inner tire? Comments truly appreciated (aside, of course, from telling me how dumb i was ...).

[Grumpy]

Wonder if you have a faulty sensor and that tire had a higher pressure, thus carrying more of the load on that side? That would cause the tread wear.

[CAG]

Originally Posted by GABob

I have to admit upfront that I wasn't as diligent as I should have been. Oh, I check tire pressure, have a TPM system running, and all of the tread looked good for 30K miles. I planned on changing them soon as the RV is going on 6 years...no dry rot as I cover them when I store it. But...I never gave a thought to looking at the INNER tire tread as all around I was solid.

Driving home today I noticed that the right rear inner tire was running about 10 PSI higher than the others. Temp looked ok, maybe slightly higher. Going along around 65 and suddenly BAM, a bit of an explosion coming from the rear. I knew in my heart what it was, and surprisingly there was no impact to control of the vehicle. After calling for service, I went to take a better look. It was embarrassing, as the tire looked to be pretty bald when it blew. The outside tire was fine.

So, the schedule for new tires has now moved up quite a bit. Luckily, I carry a mounted spare, so within twenty to thirty minutes after the service gent arrived we were on our way.

Two reasons for posting this: First, as a reminder to check your inner dually tires as well, even though the others look good. Second, does anyone have any thoughts as to why only the inner tire wore like this? There is a slide in the rear on that side, and that's also the side for the fridge, but I'm perplexed as to why it impacted only the inner tire? Comments truly appreciated (aside, of course, from telling me how dumb i was ...).

6 years is too long by most standards for RV tires. 4 is pushing it past the life span of tires that sit idle most of the year, and become sun rotted. While you might think you are safe with those tires sitting in the storage lot they are setting you up for failure.

[GABob]

Originally Posted by Grumpy

Wonder if you have a faulty sensor and that tire had a higher pressure, thus carrying more of the load on that side? That would cause the tread wear.

It's just strange that it was the inner tire only. I have to order a new sensor in any case as that one was long gone.

[SmokeyBear]

Originally Posted by Grumpy

Wonder if you have a faulty sensor and that tire had a higher pressure, thus carrying more of the load on that side? That would cause the tread wear.

That's a scary thought. People pay lots of bucks for TPMS and depend on them completely - as per the OP suggests - and you suggest they are not dependable. Good Grief! Maybe we should depend on our own judgement instead of technology.

[Russc25]

Originally Posted by SmokeyBear

That's a scary thought. People pay lots of bucks for TPMS and depend on them completely - as per the OP suggests - and you suggest they are not dependable. Good Grief! Maybe we should depend on our own judgement instead of technology.

Most people don't understand what the readings mean or the limitations of it. Yes, they get what it's showing but they don't know necessarily know how to translate that into what's happening under the camper. It'll alert you to temp/pressure changes which can indicate something is happening leading up to a blowout, it can't warn you (directly) of a blowouts. The OP says the TPMS did display changes in both temp and pressure and he kept going.

[pconroy]

Originally Posted by Russc25

it can't warn you (directly) of a blowouts.

My blowout came an hour or so after hitting the Pothole To H*ll. Temps / pressure were fine.

The first indication I had of the blowout was the "Bam!" sound.

[craigav]

FYI

A tire's pressure once filled to the proper air pressure and put in use can only rise with heat (only as in more than a single PSI or close). If you find a tire that takes ~80 psi and runs around 90 psi when driven then that is not uncommon but that 10 psi rise should be seen on the other tires as well. If\when one tire goes up 5~10 psi or more than the other tires then it is running hotter than the other tires (assuming they all started out and the same cold PSI). The weight (load) on the tire does not affect the tire's air pressure appreciably but the higher heat does.

The temperature reading of an external valve stem TPMS can be of some value but it isn't measuring the tire temperature and instead it is just measuring the air temp that is flowing past the tpms sensor. I suggest to monitor the air temp from the tpms for an extended period of time and then note if you see a higher temp than what is most commonly seen. ~CA

[GABob]

Originally Posted by craigav

FYI

A tire's pressure once filled to the proper air pressure and put in use can only rise with heat (only as in more than a single PSI or close). If you find a tire that takes ~80 psi and runs around 90 psi when driven then that is not uncommon but that 10 psi rise should be seen on the other tires as well. If\when one tire goes up 5~10 psi or more than the other tires then it is running hotter than the other tires (assuming they all started out and the same cold PSI). The weight (load) on the tire does not affect the tire's air pressure appreciably but the higher heat does.

The temperature reading of an external valve stem TPMS can be of some value but it isn't measuring the tire temperature and instead it is just measuring the air temp that is flowing past the tpms sensor. I suggest to monitor the air temp from the tpms for an extended period of time and then note if you see a higher temp than what is most commonly seen. ~CA

I did notice the temp and pressure difference and was watching to see if it increased further, but it was steady. I looked at the tire after it blew and saw little tread left, if any, which is confusing as hell to me as the other 5 tires are solid and have plenty of tread on them (original Hankooks).

I called Entegra today as there was a bracket loose that the service guy pulled free when he changed the tire. At the time I wasn't sure if it was something I ran over that caused the blowout, but it seems to have held the tailpipe shield in place as it rattles like crazy now. Entegra had no drawings as to where exactly it goes, so I'll have to climb around and look. I also inquired as to whether or not he had heard of that happening before (only the inner tire wearing so badly). He said he hadn't.

Ordered new tires today - going with the Michelin Cross Climate DT, the 121 higher capacity rating. Probably don't need, may be overkill, but I'm ok with that. Little more peace of mind, like carrying my mounted spare, which likely saved me lots of wifey grief. All told, I was offline less than 2 hours.

[Jagiven]

I pushed my TT tires to far this summer. We are looking at new campers and did not want to spend the cash (I'm cheap). I thought the tires were 7 years old, but they were 9.

Luckily no major damage, bent up the propane quick connect bracket and a little light damage to the metal skirting, nothing major. I straightened all that out.

New tires all around except for the spare. Tire shop could not get one more before we continued on our trip. Need to get that spare soon!

[norty1]

All it can do is keep you posted on the tire temps and Pressure. The interpretation is up to you.

Generally the tire pressure should be within the range/ alarm figure you have set. If not its time to pull over.

The temps usually have a manufacturer max temp listed. Mine is 157*f. I have never had one that high. They should track pretty close to the same temps with some consideration of ambient temp., direct sunshine, road conditions etc. They should track pretty close on temps.

Once I had 1 tire on my trailer running 135*f. The other 3 were displaying about 105*f. I pulled it over and had a brake caliper that was broken and dragging. I disconnected the brake wire, luckily it was the end of the chain, and limped into my destination until I could get a new brake assembly.

[GABob]

No alarm went off; I know the thing works as I had a low pressure alert many moons ago…had it fixed…and come to think of it that may have been the same tire. The pressure was about 7 to 10 psi higher, the temp only slightly. Going forward I’ll be doing a visual on all tires, not just the outer ones.

[RPR]

I would get the brakes inspected. Inside tire rim on a Class C is over the brakes. Something may be causing the brake to get super hot and you have a heat transfer to the rim and tire.

[CAG]

Originally Posted by GABob

I have to admit upfront that I wasn't as diligent as I should have been. Oh, I check tire pressure, have a TPM system running, and all of the tread looked good for 30K miles. I planned on changing them soon as the RV is going on 6 years...no dry rot as I cover them when I store it. But...I never gave a thought to looking at the INNER tire tread as all around I was solid.

Driving home today I noticed that the right rear inner tire was running about 10 PSI higher than the others. Temp looked ok, maybe slightly higher. Going along around 65 and suddenly BAM, a bit of an explosion coming from the rear. I knew in my heart what it was, and surprisingly there was no impact to control of the vehicle. After calling for service, I went to take a better look. It was embarrassing, as the tire looked to be pretty bald when it blew. The outside tire was fine.

So, the schedule for new tires has now moved up quite a bit. Luckily, I carry a mounted spare, so within twenty to thirty minutes after the service gent arrived we were on our way.

Two reasons for posting this: First, as a reminder to check your inner dually tires as well, even though the others look good. Second, does anyone have any thoughts as to why only the inner tire wore like this? There is a slide in the rear on that side, and that's also the side for the fridge, but I'm perplexed as to why it impacted only the inner tire? Comments truly appreciated (aside, of course, from telling me how dumb i was ...).

Six years is way too long for RV tires. Considering all of the flexing and sitting that they go through most tire companies will tell you that 4 is max.
You can do all of the pressure checking while on the road that you want, but if they are over time, and six years is over time, that you want, the time will come on you in an instant.

[GABob]

Originally Posted by RPR

I would get the brakes inspected. Inside tire rim on a Class C is over the brakes. Something may be causing the brake to get super hot and you have a heat transfer to the rim and tire.

Thanks for the recommendation!

[Camper_bob]

It could have been a slipped or popped belt. Did you notice any vibration leading up to the blowout?

That's the only way I've lost tires on my trailer and my MH. On the trailer, I could see a change in the way the tire looked in my mirror while driving down the road. I was close to home, so I decided to hold out. When I got home, I inspected the tire while mounted and it looked okay, but when I dismounted it (trusting my gut there was something wrong), it was obvious by the tread profile being severely lop-sided that a belt had popped. We were on borrowed time.

Same situation with motor home tires, 3 times. Got an extra vibration and when I inspected the tires, each one of them had a crown on them that wasn't right at all. It wasn't glaringly obvious to someone who doesn't know what they're looking at, but I knew exactly what it looked (and felt) like from too much experience. Again, in each of those situations we were on borrowed time. Plus my wife doesn't notice these things, so it's up to me to notice, diagnose, and fix.

In every one of those cases, a TPMS would not have alerted me to the problem. The only "alert" was a change in how the rig felt (or looked in the case of the trailer), and then laying eyes closely on the tire. In all cases, if I hadn't noticed there was an issue, we would have had a blowout.

FWIW, I just put the Michelin RIBS on the rear of my rig, and so far I love them. I put the Cross-Climates on the steer axle last winter while on the road. Yes, the RIBS were a bit expensive, but worth the peace of mind IMO to run a commercial-grade tire, and I love Michelins in general.

[GABob]

Hoping to get the Michelins on this week. Absolutely no difference in the drive prior to the blowout, only the PSI running higher. Thinking back, the last trip or two the PSI was a couple of points higher, but nothing out of the ordinary as I attributed it to being higher than the other tires when cold. It still bugs me that the tread was so worn down on the one tire while the other three in the rear are fine. Even running a few degrees hotter should not have caused that, so at this point all I can think of is that I had a bad tire to start with.

I now have to climb under after the new tires are on to figure out where a metal brace goes that was somehow attached to, and or keeping the tailpipe shield in place. It was bent and out of place apparently from the blowout and so the service guy yanked it away from the tire. I called Entegra to see if they had a drawing to show placement but no luck. Worst case we can jury rig something.

[Grumpy]

Originally Posted by GABob

I called Entegra to see if they had a drawing to show placement but no luck. Worst case we can jury rig something.

You might check and see if MorRyde did the frame stretch, if so they probably would have that info.

[GABob]

Thanks, hadn't thought of that!

[GABob]

Bit of an update...

Seems like the casing completely blew off, so it wasn't wear it seems. Now sporting the Agilis Cross Climate 121's; figured the extra capacity on the tires can't hurt (I know, it's not just the tire, but). Road the RV back to its resting place and the tires seem to ride well. No highway yet, but at least there's some peace of mind for the next trip.