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Old 08-25-2014, 10:02 PM   #1
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Blowout! ....

Well hhad my first blow out on the right front passenger tire last nite.
With just 1700 miles on the coach AND having checked pressures AND added air to that very same time a couple of hours earlier...it was unexpected to say the least! I can't seem to make my photo upload so you can take a look here:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/438005...7645244449688/
and scroll down and click on the last picture.

Fortunately...we were in the slow down lane for a tollbooth when it blew and were only going around 40 mph or so rather than highway speeds. We managed to pull over after going through the toll booth...and no..I didn't get credit for one less wheel!

How it happened was the question and the answer can be seen in the picture and is the reason I'm posting this. If you look carefully...you can see the shredded tire and the rim as seen from the front of the coach looking back. You can also see the tire valve on the INSIDE of the rim...and the valve extension on the outside poking through the hubcap.
What you won't see...is what was missing and resulted in this mishap...the NUT that goes on the tire valve thread where it pokes through the rim was never put on or was lost during assembly. It could not have fallen off because the knurled nut of the tire valve extension was too big to allow that other nut to slip entirely off the assemble. It had to have been that way before the extension valve was put on. From what the wrecker guy told me...this is not that uncommon...and the high air pressure inside the tire holds the rubber base of the valve in place until it begins to go and hits a bump just right when you get an immediate loss of pressure.

We were lucky to have no damage other than to the tire...but this could have wrecked a lot on the coach or even caused us to lose control. I will be speaking with FR and my dealer about this ... and will post some other stuff when I get back home...but just thought that it might be useful to remind everyone that there must be a visible nut on every tire rim...and not just on the extention of the valve. I checked my other 5...maybe you should too next time you check air and particularly when you have new tires mounted.

Lesson learned and the value of a TPM system made evident!

Also..kudos to Coach Net on the Sunday nite road service call ...and the Monday redux. More on that later too.
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Old 08-25-2014, 10:08 PM   #2
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You were blessed. I was going home from work one day in my truck and came on an accident where a fleet wood had a right front blowout in a curve on highway 72 in north Alabama. The speed limit is 65. Fortunately he didn't have a TOAD to push him but he still hit the rock embankment. No one injured that I could see but it ruined his trip. I've always thought about that when I get up to speed in my GT351.


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Old 08-29-2014, 04:55 PM   #3
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Quote:
Originally Posted by camaraderie View Post
Well hhad my first blow out on the right front passenger tire last nite.
With just 1700 miles on the coach AND having checked pressures AND added air to that very same time a couple of hours earlier...it was unexpected to say the least! I can't seem to make my photo upload so you can take a look here:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/438005...7645244449688/
and scroll down and click on the last picture.

Fortunately...we were in the slow down lane for a tollbooth when it blew and were only going around 40 mph or so rather than highway speeds. We managed to pull over after going through the toll booth...and no..I didn't get credit for one less wheel!

How it happened was the question and the answer can be seen in the picture and is the reason I'm posting this. If you look carefully...you can see the shredded tire and the rim as seen from the front of the coach looking back. You can also see the tire valve on the INSIDE of the rim...and the valve extension on the outside poking through the hubcap.
What you won't see...is what was missing and resulted in this mishap...the NUT that goes on the tire valve thread where it pokes through the rim was never put on or was lost during assembly. It could not have fallen off because the knurled nut of the tire valve extension was too big to allow that other nut to slip entirely off the assemble. It had to have been that way before the extension valve was put on. From what the wrecker guy told me...this is not that uncommon...and the high air pressure inside the tire holds the rubber base of the valve in place until it begins to go and hits a bump just right when you get an immediate loss of pressure.

We were lucky to have no damage other than to the tire...but this could have wrecked a lot on the coach or even caused us to lose control. I will be speaking with FR and my dealer about this ... and will post some other stuff when I get back home...but just thought that it might be useful to remind everyone that there must be a visible nut on every tire rim...and not just on the extention of the valve. I checked my other 5...maybe you should too next time you check air and particularly when you have new tires mounted.

Lesson learned and the value of a TPM system made evident!

Also..kudos to Coach Net on the Sunday nite road service call ...and the Monday redux. More on that later too.
I also had my first tire problem. Went to leave campground in NC and
turned on my "Tire Minder" and it indicated low pressure on one tire.
That tire had a large bulge on the tread. Tire was a "Trail Express"! What
is that? Replaced all 4 with GY Marathons. Went to a load "D" instead of "C".
Hope they work out better. Tires were 1yr 4 months old with less than 5k
on them. The camping group I'm in all swear by Michelin XPS but the don't
make them for 15" rims.
happy camping
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Old 08-29-2014, 09:49 PM   #4
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Yup.. We were very lucky. I frankly can't believe we got out of it with no damage except the tire...even the rim was ok!
TPM system is on the radar screen before our next trip. I'm beginning to think owning an RV is just so I have a place to put all the things I buy for it!
Thsnks guys.
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Old 08-29-2014, 11:39 PM   #5
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Now here's a blown tire !

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ID:	61764

Happen on my Airstream a few years back coming down the Grapevine near Magic Mountain, CA.
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Old 08-30-2014, 01:54 AM   #6
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There is no way the nut was ever NOT installed on the valve stem, sorry it's just not possible.
Being around tires and mounting them most of my life it just isn't going to happen. Period.


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Old 08-30-2014, 02:04 AM   #7
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I hope I never get to that point. Although I have gotten close.
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Old 01-09-2015, 10:25 PM   #8
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Turbs...never saw your 8/30 comment so this is a bit late. Here is a pix of the valve and the extension to the valve on the rim right after the blowout...you can see there is no nut...and that the nut for the valve extension would have prevented it from coming off all the way if it had been installed. Now I can't tell where the original install was done. I can't tell if the extension was put on at the factory and the original nut fell off before that. I can't tell if the delivery driver somehow messed with it and never replaced it...or if someone at the dealer did it. I can tell that two weeks after I purchased this, the blowout occurred and NO ONEhad messed with it between the time I got it and the time it blew out. I thought it was strange that I had to hold the "hook" on the extension pulled toward me to get air into the tire without "venting" but I didn't know enough to know something was missing since the black rubber valves were all I had previously had experience with.
*********
The reason I came back tonite was to post that Forest River warranty service has agreed to cover my expense for the tire and repairs...as a goodwill gesture since no definitive source for the problem (dealer, driver, factory, Ford, Goodyear) can be identified.
We hear enough horror stories since they make for good reading...I think it is important to also call out when FR goes beyond the "letter of the law" to accommodate a customer.
Kevin Stratton and ForestRiver get a big thank you from a happy camper!
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Old 01-09-2015, 11:13 PM   #9
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Forest River and your dealer but I bet they will tell you the chassis and wheel are from the Ford factory. Take lots of pictures and try and get some statement from the tire guy if you can on the initial observation why it happened.
I would contact your local Ford dealer and see what they say for the chassis having so low mileage.


Who did you call to get the tire replaced?
Did you get exact replacement or another tire?
Costs?
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Old 01-09-2015, 11:40 PM   #10
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Iggy...yeah...first reaction was that it should be a Goodyear warranty claim...then they said Ford...and we had some "discussion" about that, who installs wheel cover and extensions and who inspects things before it leaves the factory.
It is to their credit that they took care of the amount of my new tire and installation (and reattachment of drive shaft after tow) without definitive proof that they did something wrong.
I did not get the same tire since it was not available anywhere locally where I was...but the replacement was actually a higher rated tire and has presented no steering or wear issues so I am OK with it. I paid for it myself at the time in order to get back on the road...and now FR is reimbursing my expense. Cost for tire, mounting, balancing and drive shaft re-attachment were in the $350 range.
No need to take it any further as I am well satisfied with the reimbursement and there was no other damage from the blowout.Could have been a lot worse.
Thanks for the thoughts!
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