Firestone Transforce Blowout on Tow Vehicle

[billcf7]

My 18 2500 Ram will warn you when the pressures are low but it takes a while, not instant. Havent tested to see how long

[norty1]

I used Firestone Transforce tires on my old 06. Went thru 3 sets and never had a problem with them. Much better longetivity than Michelin. I did just check out the Manuel on my 17 Ford F350 and it does bring in low pressure alarm but no temps or high pressure.

I may just re-install the TST sensors to clear my dash as the receiver for the TST will already be on.

[rkymntsno]

Originally Posted by norty1

I used Firestone Transforce tires on my old 06. Went thru 3 sets and never had a problem with them. Much better longetivity than Michelin. I did just check out the Manuel on my 17 Ford F350 and it does bring in low pressure alarm but no temps or high pressure.

I may just re-install the TST sensors to clear my dash as the receiver for the TST will already be on.

I think I'm gonna put sensors on the rear at a minimum. Unless I figure out the AlphaOBD for the Ram to switch to the TPMS instead of the current TPIS system.

[rkymntsno]

Originally Posted by JFlightRisk

snip...

If you talk nicely to the right person, you may be surprised. My (then new) 2004 Tundra came with BF Goodrich as OEM. I drove over something at 11,000 miles that put a 3/4" cut in the tread, and had a flat. I put in a couple of plugs, which held, but took it to two different tire shops to get it patched correctly. Neither place could get it to hold air, so I bought a new one. I called Michelin (who owns BF Goodrich), and explained what happened, and that I knew there was no road hazard on OEM tires, but was disappointed in the tire not holding air with a properly applied galvanized patch inside. They were very nice to send a courtesy check that covered a little more than half the cost of a new tire. I was happy with that.

Well, I called Firestone Corporate, they gave me a case number and told me to go get the tire inspected at Firestone. Did that, best they could do is charge me $160 for a new Transforce AT. I was gonna put it on the spare to get a new tire for spare but for $160, said no thanks. Got Michelin Defender LTX on all four this morning.

[Scottenj]

Originally Posted by rkymntsno

Payload per door jamb is 4200#. Cat scales showed under when we were fully loaded, full fuel including auxiliary tank.

I am surprised the payload capacity is that high for a single rear wheel truck particularly with a crew cab and long box.

Glad you are OK, I had a tire blow out on a utility trailer on the highway once and it was very dangerous and scary.

[rkymntsno]

Originally Posted by Scottenj

I am surprised the payload capacity is that high for a single rear wheel truck particularly with a crew cab and long box.

Glad you are OK, I had a tire blow out on a utility trailer on the highway once and it was very dangerous and scary.

Thanks. Yep, Ram's website even says it's 4200#s for my truck but I don't go by that. I go by the sticker on the door jamb as we all should.

[spoon059]

OP, I knew there was a difference between the 2500 and 3500, but I didn't know what it was. Definitely a scary situation, glad you came out ok. Hopefully your rim isn't damaged.

Originally Posted by norty1

I used Firestone Transforce tires on my old 06. Went thru 3 sets and never had a problem with them. Much better longetivity than Michelin.

Norty, I think the Transforce tires that Ram puts on as OEM are a different compound. I don't know anyone that has gotten more than about 30K miles out of them. Mine were garbage, completely worn down just prior to 30K miles. I replaced mine with Nitto tires and have put another 30K miles with much better tire wear.

[rkymntsno]

Originally Posted by spoon059

OP, I knew there was a difference between the 2500 and 3500, but I didn't know what it was. Definitely a scary situation, glad you came out ok. Hopefully your rim isn't damaged.



Norty, I think the Transforce tires that Ram puts on as OEM are a different compound. I don't know anyone that has gotten more than about 30K miles out of them. Mine were garbage, completely worn down just prior to 30K miles. I replaced mine with Nitto tires and have put another 30K miles with much better tire wear.

Rim came out unscathed to my surprise. The rubber protected it from the pavement well. I just replaced the Transforce tires with Michelin LTXs and feel so much better about what's hitting the pavement. I can feel a considerable difference in the "smoothness" of the tires or maybe it's all in my head, lol. But it seems smoother. Maybe that's what it feels like on four tires not just about to blow!

[Camper_bob]

Originally Posted by spoon059

OP, I knew there was a difference between the 2500 and 3500, but I didn't know what it was. Definitely a scary situation, glad you came out ok. Hopefully your rim isn't damaged.



Norty, I think the Transforce tires that Ram puts on as OEM are a different compound. I don't know anyone that has gotten more than about 30K miles out of them. Mine were garbage, completely worn down just prior to 30K miles. I replaced mine with Nitto tires and have put another 30K miles with much better tire wear.

Agreed. I'll never purchase a Firestone Transforce tire based on my experience with the OEM tires on my Ram. They were absolute garbage. I replaced with Michelins and was VERY happy with those (as I have been with all my Michelins, and I've had several sets on various vehicles). Sold that truck before I could get any long-term results out of them, but they handled a heck of a beating while I had them.

[norty1]

Must be the same with the OE Michelins on my 06. They were worn out and cracked before 30k and the 2nd set was the same.

[JFlightRisk]

snip...

Originally Posted by rkymntsno

Got Michelin Defender LTX on all four this morning.

I think you'll be very happy with them. I've had several sets over the years, on our trucks.

[Bayoutalker]

Originally Posted by rkymntsno

Well, an update on the blowout. I research what happened further and have found out RAM 3500s do not have a TPMS warning system on them. At least my 2018 Ram 3500 SRW does not, according to the owner's manual and my testing. Totally ridiculous. Evidently, all they have is a TPIS system, tire pressure information system where they only show the tire pressure on the dash and does not warn for low pressure. So it's possible I could have been losing air pressure in the tire before the blowout but will never know. When the tire blew, no lights on the dash, no beeping, nothing. So this morning I dropped one of my tires down to 30 psi and no warning so I don't have the true tpms system on the Ram. So for three years i've been towing thinking the tpms system would warn me of low tire pressure and I don't even have the system. Just the pressure on the dash that you have to scroll through to see. I wonder how many other Ram 3500 owners do not know this????????

My 2017 2500 sure does have a warning for a low tire. An indicator lights up on the dash and the display shows the pressure. It's a Tradesman model so not one of the higher packages.

[Bandit12]

I have a 2018 Ram 2500HD and I have a TPMS built into the info center in the dash. Last summer while on vacation, we were running solo on the freeway near Ogden UT when I hit a bump in the road. Right away, I got a low pressure warning on the instrument cluster. I got a warning message, a red light on the affect tire (one of the front ones) and a pressure reading. I immediately slowed down, but we were in the middle of a construction zone with no where to pull over. Within a quarter mile, the red light on that tire was off and the pressure was back to its normal reading. The truck was driving and steering normally but as soon as I could, I pulled off the road and checked the tire with my pressure gauge. It was fine. I asked my tire shop guy and he said that the bump might have just jarred the sensor enough to give a false warning. I was just glad to see the system will warn me of a potential issue.

[Bayoutalker]

Originally Posted by spoon059

OP, I knew there was a difference between the 2500 and 3500, but I didn't know what it was. Definitely a scary situation, glad you came out ok. Hopefully your rim isn't damaged.







Norty, I think the Transforce tires that Ram puts on as OEM are a different compound. I don't know anyone that has gotten more than about 30K miles out of them. Mine were garbage, completely worn down just prior to 30K miles. I replaced mine with Nitto tires and have put another 30K miles with much better tire wear.

That's what came on my 2017 2500 and you are right. They were shot at 25,000. I replaced them with Sumitomo Encounter A/Ts and I'm at that same mileage with plenty rubber to spare. They handle well on the highway even when wet.

[rkymntsno]

Originally Posted by Bayoutalker

My 2017 2500 sure does have a warning for a low tire. An indicator lights up on the dash and the display shows the pressure. It's a Tradesman model so not one of the higher packages.

Yep. The 1500s and 2500s have them activated. The 3500s have them but it's not activated and doesn't alert you. Others have told me you can go into the dash port and change the codes to activate the alerts on the 3500s. Not messing with that.

[Bill Johnson]

Originally Posted by rkymntsno

Well, an update on the blowout. I research what happened further and have found out RAM 3500s do not have a TPMS warning system on them. At least my 2018 Ram 3500 SRW does not, according to the owner's manual and my testing. Totally ridiculous. Evidently, all they have is a TPIS system, tire pressure information system where they only show the tire pressure on the dash and does not warn for low pressure. So it's possible I could have been losing air pressure in the tire before the blowout but will never know. When the tire blew, no lights on the dash, no beeping, nothing. So this morning I dropped one of my tires down to 30 psi and no warning so I don't have the true tpms system on the Ram. So for three years i've been towing thinking the tpms system would warn me of low tire pressure and I don't even have the system. Just the pressure on the dash that you have to scroll through to see. I wonder how many other Ram 3500 owners do not know this????????

I found this, Vehicle Safety Standard that requires the installation of tire pressure monitoring systems
(TPMSs) that warn the driver when a tire is significantly under-inflated. The standard
applies to passenger cars, trucks, multipurpose passenger vehicles, and buses with a gross
vehicle weight rating of 10,000 pounds or less, except those vehicles with dual wheels on
an axle. So If it's 10,000 or more they don't have it. Many people that own HD pickup's wanted to run lower pressures when empty. You're not the only one. This person I picked up my new 2018 GMC truck on Monday and realized on the way home it didn't show the tire pressures on the DIC. I called the dealer and was told the TPMS shows as deleted on the build sheet. "JK1 - TIRE PRESSURE MONITOR SYSTEM - DELETE". No 3500 diesel get TPMS, as all are over 10,000 GVWR

[Mikec557]

Originally Posted by rkymntsno

... The original Firestone tires on our 2019 Ram 3500 with 29,000 miles on them. Harrowing day.

Drive tires wear out way faster than steer tires. And I think they get no where near their life expectancy when towing heavy loads.

I wore out the Michelin drive tires on my GMC 3500hd SRW more than 10,000 miles before the steer tires. (full timing pulling 5er) Had I done a better job rotating tires and making sure they were set to max inflation I might have gotten better mileage out of them. I'm not saying you did anything wrong, just talking about my experience.

No OEM TPMS on our truck either. Just an idiot light. We had 4 TST TPMS tire sensors for the trailer.
Now we have 8 sensors, 1 on every wheel.

[gymracer]

Many things could of caused your flat. I've dealt with them for 25 years. OEM tires are sometimes not the best for heavy loads. You have a 3500, why did you not get dual rear wheels for that size trailer?

[rkymntsno]

Originally Posted by Bill Johnson

I found this, Vehicle Safety Standard that requires the installation of tire pressure monitoring systems
(TPMSs) that warn the driver when a tire is significantly under-inflated. The standard
applies to passenger cars, trucks, multipurpose passenger vehicles, and buses with a gross
vehicle weight rating of 10,000 pounds or less, except those vehicles with dual wheels on
an axle. So If it's 10,000 or more they don't have it. Many people that own HD pickup's wanted to run lower pressures when empty. You're not the only one. This person I picked up my new 2018 GMC truck on Monday and realized on the way home it didn't show the tire pressures on the DIC. I called the dealer and was told the TPMS shows as deleted on the build sheet. "JK1 - TIRE PRESSURE MONITOR SYSTEM - DELETE". No 3500 diesel get TPMS, as all are over 10,000 GVWR

Correct. I was aware of this as a result of previous postings. Was not aware of it prior to the blowout. Will never know the cause of the blowout, low air pressure or bad tire.

[rkymntsno]

Originally Posted by Mikec557

Drive tires wear out way faster than steer tires. And I think they get no where near their life expectancy when towing heavy loads.

I wore out the Michelin drive tires on my GMC 3500hd SRW more than 10,000 miles before the steer tires. (full timing pulling 5er) Had I done a better job rotating tires and making sure they were set to max inflation I might have gotten better mileage out of them. I'm not saying you did anything wrong, just talking about my experience.

No OEM TPMS on our truck either. Just an idiot light. We had 4 TST TPMS tire sensors for the trailer.
Now we have 8 sensors, 1 on every wheel.

These had 29k on them. Rotated four times during that mileage. Not full timer but will be getting sensors for them now, just add them to the EEZ RV monitor we have for the 5'er. We don't even have the idiot light. There's NOTHING other than the tire pressure display. Which may be good enough as long as you KNOW there's no warning whatsoever. We were lucky, I know that.