Blew Freestar tire and cracked the rim

[sreigle]

Freestar tires are the replacements for the Missions sent to me by Tireco. On our way down here we blew one of those tires. We heard the pop and were able to pull over immediately.

Tireco sent a new Freestar tire under warranty but declined responsibility for the cracked rim despite the obvious rubber abrasions on the rib that is cracked. Pictures below.

Until now I've been happy with the Freestars. Two of ours have about 15,000 or so miles and the other three have 9,000. It's one of the newer ones that blew. These tires are physically heavier than the Missions (weight) and, despite both being load range E, the Freestar has a higher weight rating, at 3,520 lbs. I forgot the rating on the Mission tires but it was something like 3,195 lbs.

The tire has arrived and the rim is ordered. I'm not sure why the tire blew. We've been very careful to avoid hitting curbs, etc. And it was at 80 psi before we pulled out that morning.

[Art-n-Marge]

I think I know what your problem was Steve.... Too much mud on your tires and wheels. You need to stop the offroading and stay on the pavement when you drive your Monty around, ... Just teasing. It sure seems like you have a very unfortunate knack for learning things as problems occur, and as long as you keep posting your education, I'll be satisfied with learning things through your posts. I've certainly had my share of self-teaching through failure-experience.

On the tire ratings, my Montys tires E rated tires supported 3420 lbs and my truck 3195, but those Freestars are certainly stronger. I can also see why the tire company declined you on the wheel because the wheel is supposed to support the weight and abuse and should not have cracked that way - while that doesn't seem right, good luck with the wheel manufacturer.

On the tire, do you see some rubbing on the side wall? But that could have been from the blowout. Nevertheless, I hope you can get everything back together real soon.

It's always something...

[sreigle]

Art, the rubbing you see is where the tire was running on the ground. When I pulled over it was still holding a little air. Not for long, though. The tire people agreed the tire was defective and provided a free replacement. I still think the rim was cracked by the blowout and there's a big rubber mark near the crack. But they don't agree. The rim is not nearly as expensive as I figured. With tax it's about $185 and tax. I figured double that.

I'll give the Freestars another chance. But not many more.

[bncinwv]

I certainly hope that I am not going down the same path with tires as you Steve, but it sounds as if I may be. After the Mission tire fiasco that we had (bubbled tires and a chunk flying off), ours were also replaced with the Freestars. I don't log as many miles as you do, but it is still worrisome. Hopefully I can get another year out of them, then it sounds like it is time for some Michelin's or Bridgestones!! Guess I will be checking the tires regularly now, but as you experienced this time and we experienced previously, they don't really give you a warning. Thanks for the heads-up.
Bingo

[ols1932]

Steve,
The cracks in your rim look just like mine did and I didn't have a blowout. Pressure Pro alerted me to the fact that the tire was loosing air. When I pulled into a tire place, we found that the rim was leaking in several places in the rim. I would suspect the rim because I've lost three rims due to the same thing.

Orv

[pbahlin]

You know what's weird? I read tons of stories about trailer tire blowouts and don't ever recall such a story about truck tires.

Truck tires would normally have way more miles and carry just as much weight. What gives? Is there something about trailers/trailering/camping that selectively ruins trailer tires?

It just doesn't make sense unless the deal is that trailer mfgs are short changing safety when they buy tires. Don't they have to meet some kind of safety standard just like GM/Dodge/Ford?

[sreigle]

Pbahlin, I have no clue. Maybe someone else can shed some light.

Orv, you may be right on. I think the rubber marks on the rib that's cracked is a clue to the rim having been slapped hard with rubber but have no idea whether that caused the crack or if it was already cracked. The tire was still at 80 psi before we pulled out that morning but it could have cracked while on the road and then leaked air.

Art, I forgot to mention the mud is sand/mud and probably a little road salt from our getting out of the Kansas City area. The entire rig was coated with that grime. Truck, too. Probably all that extra weight stressed out the tire...

[bob n pam]

Oh, man! Doesn't it just tick you off when stuff like this happens. I'm so glad there were no injuries or broken things other than your rim. Thanks for the pics.

[sreigle]

Well, it did nearly knock the fender skirt off but I was able to get it more or less back in place. It wasn't broken. There is some bending in the aluminum lower panel but I think I can fix that. There is frame directly behind it at that part but I see screws that will allow me to get between fender and frame and hopefully straighten it out. We were very fortunate the damage is relatively minor. We've had several blowouts over the years and several flats that shredded tires before we knew what happened and this is the very first time we've had damage to anything other than the tire. I'd say we've been very fortunate.

[Jules Neidner]

I am looking for a pair of rims identical to those in your photograph. Can anyone tell me the style name or where I can locate them? Does anyone have some for sale?

PS: Has anyone had problems or reasons not to use these rims? Thanks

[rohrmann]

Originally Posted by Jules Neidner

I am looking for a pair of rims identical to those in your photograph. Can anyone tell me the style name or where I can locate them? Does anyone have some for sale?

PS: Has anyone had problems or reasons not to use these rims? Thanks

You realize this is a 14 year old thread? It’s not likely you will find many rims like those. You would be better off just getting four new rims.