Strange tire issue...What the...

[richfaa]

Towing on I-95 Georgia 62/65 MPH air temp in mid 80's .Suddenly a vibration began to build up in the left front truck tire.It was not violent but it should not have been there.We monitor all tires with the TST system.It alarmed showing a rapid increase in tire temp in the left front truck tire.PSI set at 65psi on both front tires had been running at 73/75 psi tire temp 93/95 F.The temp on the left fr ont shot up to..135 degrees then 145 degrees.This was all happening very fast maybe one min the psi the left tire with the rapid temp increase....did not increase at all it remained at 73PSI.

Then the vibration began to dissipate I slowed to 50MPh and dove int o a flying J truck stop. The temp began to decrease and by the time we parked it was at 113 degrees.The time involved start to park was maybe 4 or 5 mins. We were all over that tire could not find anything wrong.Had lunch and it had cooled to a normal temp.Drove another 100 miles to our campground in Savannah, Ga PSI and tire temp normal..no vibration.

Ok..Vibration, rapid tire temp increase..no increase in PSI.Then everything goes away......?????? Ideas??????

[pkbridges77]

Wow very strange Rich. Is there a possibility you picked something up in the tread that immediately threw the balance off, increasing the temperature but not changing pressure, and then the change of speed or pavement might have dislodged it?

[Cohersh]

Sounds more like a brake drag issue. Do not know why it would have come on suddenly and then dissipate to nothing, but with no tire pressure increase or decrease, only thing that makes sense. Did you happen to do any braking prior to that happening? Ford caliper slides do occasionally stick causing the same issue.

[rohrmann]

It sounds like a balance and/or suspension issue. I have several times witnessed Fords traveling down the freeway with a front wheel just bouncing with no apparent reason. Could be wheel balance, shocks, or worn bushings, and you just got the bounce going with a harmonic match with the roadway. I would have it all checked at a good front end shop.

[Phil P]

Hi richfaa

X2 on Gohersh

I have had to free a large number of the For F350 calipers over the years. It doesn’t take much to free one that is dragging the brake and on a truck as new as yours it could have freed from going over some rough pavement getting off the Interstate.

Phil P

[richfaa]

Thanks for the info on the brake drag issue. Like I said everything returned to normal in short order and the ride is as smooth as it always was. We did no hard braking but one is normally on the brakes from time to time on the interstate. We had the entire front end, suspension, tires, balance checked before we left Ohio in October and the truck did not get much use while in Florida. We will have it inspected when we get home. It makes sense as the TST sensor could have picked up the heat transferred to the wheel as it is very close to the wheel.Thanks for the information.....

[bethandkevin]

quote:Originally posted by Phil P

Hi richfaa

X2 on Gohersh

I have had to free a large number of the For F350 calipers over the years. It doesn’t take much to free one that is dragging the brake and on a truck as new as yours it could have freed from going over some rough pavement getting off the Interstate.

Phil P
X3 here. Brake drag would definitely explain the rapid temperature increase and the vibration. Look for blue spots on the brake rotor. One cause of brake drag that is often overlooked is the brake flex hose. Often, the hose can become pinched in the bracket attached to it due to rust build up between the hose and bracket. You have enough pressure to overcome the pinch when applying the brake, but the fluid cannot return to the reservoir when the brake is released.
Rich, you may have noticed a slight pull to that side while the event was occurring.

[JandC]

I had a similar situation two years ago. We were about 800 miles in on a 1300 mile run and started getting slight vibration on front left. Checked tire over really good at Pilot. I even rolled truck forward inch by inch to inspect each and every part of tread. DW noticed a slight flat area. Back on the road it was better for a distance but then started again. Got off at Clarksville and into a truck tire repair facility. Tire had began separation.

I didn't have TPMS on my truck's front tires so I had no idea what the temps were doing.

[sola123]

Rick...my son had the same problems with his 08 F250....took to dealer..spent 3K plus and they never fixed it....bought new tires and all is well..no problems for at least 2 years now....consider that first...they replaced a bunch of things with no results...his problem would be random at different speeds...sometimes days apart...

[DQDick]

I'd also check the tire. Many times the signs of trouble are on the inside edges where you have to crawl under to see them.

[PeteandJoan]

Had a very similar episode this week coming back from DC. Pulling into rest area and applied brakes and felt an unfamiliar vibration on truck left front (I think). Released brake pedal and reapplied and felt it again. Could not find any visible problem. Roads were pretty rough at that exit. Started back on route and never had the issue again. Whatever it was has disappeared, for good I hope! Drove another 600 miles and all was good.

[Bama Camper]

I'll put my money on a tire belt separation. When you stopped, it cooled and contracted back into shape. If that's the case it will happen again when the tire gets hot again. Just a guess.

[DarMar]

quote:Originally posted by Bama Camper


I'll put my money on a tire belt separation. When you stopped, it cooled and contracted back into shape. If that's the case it will happen again when the tire gets hot again. Just a guess.

I agree but this is an interesting occurrence for sure, keep us posted.

[richfaa]

I am buying into the brake drag problem. We will have everything checked out when we get home. We towed 300 miles today with similar outside temps with not a problem. This has never happened before .The truck did sit a lot while in Florida only put 650 miles on it in 6 months but did drive it every week if only to wall mart or Camping world.

I did think of belt separation but never saw one that separated then returned to normal. The vibration stopped while we were still driving and the temp began to decrease while we were still driving. I also though of a ABS failure as I had a similar issue on one of the buses I was driving when the right front got very wet of course on the bus I had a ABS failure alarm.

Thanks for the expertise and will follow up when we have it looked at.

Oh..did note a slight pull to that side when it occurred.There were a lot of things going on at the same time.

[TLightning]

What about the sensor? If the tire/suspension/etc are good...is the sensor okay?

[richfaa]

[quote]Originally posted by TLightning

What about the sensor? If the tire/suspension/etc are good...is the sensor okay?

If you mean the TST sensor it operated normal after the incident and operated normal today but we will put that on the check everything list.

[phillyg]

You might want to pick up a cheap infrared thermometer to verify your TPMS sensor reading(s). You can also check the wheel at the hub, at the spokes, etc., and also the rotor, looking for variances checked against the other three wheels.

[richfaa]

I have a quality IR thermometer. The incident was over before the IR could have been used and all is normal now. The TST sensor readings on that tire are have been normal since after the incident.

Lot of good information and suggestions here.

[richfaa]

Another 300 miles today and not a problem...

[JandC]

Now I am thinking pkbridges77 was correct when he said maybe you picked up something in the tread that ended up getting thrown out. If it was any of the other suspected issues you would think it would have "reared it's ugly head" again with so many additional miles.