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2-fer
Well, I’ll bet I’m the first on the board to have this happen:
Tag axle blowout on the way out of town Friday,
AND
Steer axle blowout on the way back home on Monday.
Both occurred in the Mojave in scorching heat, well over 100. Tires are six year old Bridgestones with fewer than 10k miles on them. They were dismounted and checked internally less than a year ago when I had Balancemasters installed, with the plan to replace them next month before a long trip. I am not overweight on any axle but I have not weighed at each wheel. I maintain my pressures per the chart. I have had this bus three years and know the tires were well treated by me, but I can only surmise that the prior owner was not as kind to them.
The tag axle blowout was good practice for the much scarier steer blowout. There was no damage from the first one except to the ABS sensor. The steer axle, which was running 120 lbs, was much more dramatic when it blew, damaging the fender. A big strip of rubber wrapped around the mirror arm right near my head. Luckily again there was no damage to the suspension or brake system inside the wheel well.
God bless you Boateral for repeatedly posting that safety video about how to deal with a blowout. When the first one happened it was hard to override instinct and mash the accelerator rather than the brake, but I did it. By the second one I was a seasoned pro. I don’t think I even left my lane.
All in all, it turned out to be a pretty expensive weekend trip, at least in terms of money. But thankfully no one got hurt and I was able to safely navigate (twice) out of a very dangerous situation, so in that way it wasn’t expensive at all. Again, thank you Al for posting the video and thank you PC for making a place to post it.
Moral of the story: Replace the tires after 5 years no matter how good they look if you drive in a high heat environment. Get a monitor to check pressures and temps, and take it easy with the speed in really hot weather.
p.s.: The bus is not moving an inch until a road service unit comes out to replace all the tires and install a tire monitor system.
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22 Replies
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Wow – we just drove through Mojave a few days ago!
Glad you came out safe and hope I will be able hit the accerlator too when it happens!!
I think I’ll review the video tonight in fact…..
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Wow! Glad no one was hurt and everything is working out.
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Excellent post Bryan, and a second thanks to Big Al for his monthly posts that obviously are helping.
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Thanks for sharing Brian, could have been much worse, good job in controling the Coach.
If you want Pressure Pro’s, contact me.
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What a weekend! Glad no one was hurt.
You think the excessive heat was a factor? If the ambient temps are over 95 during the day then I try to drive at night as a rule. I know that made a terrific reduction in the number of blowouts I had when I was pulling a fifth wheel thousands of miles a year. I have no evidence it helps with the bus and these monster tires, only sneaking suspicion.
Davy
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Yes, I think the heat was a factor this weekend and probably previously as well. The prior owner of the bus kept it near Palm Springs where it was protected from the sun but not the heat. Both the road service guys and the highway patrolman who stopped told me they were extra busy with blowouts all weekend.
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I live in the Mohave desert on the AZ side tires are popping like ballons we are seeing paving temps in the 140 to 180 degree range at 4 pm,and the heat is taking it’s toll on batteries too !!!!!!
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I don’t know if any of the manufacturers of tires have ever posted limits, but it seems to me that like planes have operational limits, so do our buses.
It is one thing being faced with replacing a tire because of the cost, but a blowout is not about the money, but about the potential risk to your safety. I know we have lawyers here who may be able to offer an opinion for or against the use of our coaches when certain limits are exceeded.
As Clifford says, when the pavement is as high as 180 degrees failures are almost a given.
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Jon is correct that there must be actual opertaing limits for our tires and buses in general, regardless of whether anyone has calculated or published them. For my family’s safety I have an interest in knowing what the limits are. However, from a liability standpoint, I’m not sure I want to ask the question of the manufacturer. Insurance covers negligence, but not always gross negligence, and operating equipment beyond its known and published limitation could cross the boundary.
Personally, I let the pro truckers and charter bus operators be my guide. If I see truckers pulling off due to high winds, for example, I join them. The charter and route bus operators, or at least the larger ones, have likely considered the liability implications of the bus/tire operating range question.
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With all due respect to truckers, I for one am not impressed with some of the decisions truckers make so while I respect their skill level, they have completely different motivations that will impact their decisions. Getting the goods delivered on time and making money are the two biggest influencing factors, neither of which are likely to motivate any of us to keep on driving.
I also am not overly impressed with Prevost owners either when I see them exceeding the tire speed ratings of 75 mph. And I do not see insurance companies failing to pay for damage when a blowout occurs as a result of high speed, or low pressure, or even lack of skill such as sideswiping a sign.
I would like to know about safe operating limits for my tires. Perhaps I am more greatly influenced by a crash of a church bus a few years ago near my home in which there were 8 deaths as a result of a blowout.
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I can’t help thinking….running 365’s steer & tag are probably an advantage in high heat….due to the lower pressure you can run. Geo.
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I would like to know what temp starts to cause issues…I have read at 240 the rubber will begin to fail and have belt failure in some major ways…
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if you are in a hurry, take an airplane, if you want to go slow, take a boat, if you take a coach bump up to about 62/64 MPH and enjoy the scenery. Coaches at high speed are unsafe. They are 20 ton missels.
Jon is certainly correct. High speed on big rigs is a killer. I should know. I buried too many drivers when I owned a fleet of 500 18 wheelers. Too many “Cowboys” on the highway
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At the Bridgestone testing track in west Texas I was told a tire begains to off gas at 80C or 176 degrees,I find that true as my tire montior tempature is preset at 80C -
I’m right there with you, Hugh. My “missile” is more like 25 tons and I’m not interested in seeing what might happen if it ever got out of control. Since the speed limit in CA is 55 while towing, which I almost always do, I just set my cruise control at 62 and let the cowboys pass me by. Due to the high heat, I had slowed down from my usual and was travelling at 60 when I had my blowouts.
Surprisingly, most truckers run about 62mph in California. Of course that speed may be influenced more by the state of the roads than desire to comply with the law…
I’m curious. As a large fleet owner, did you have any special rules for your drivers when they experienced extreme temps? Did you ever receive any information from tire manufacturers about high temp operating?
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