Can you total a truck with a flat tire?

[DriveHard]

First day of vacation…95 degree heat, 80 mph across Colorado. Tires were at 40 psi…started at 36, and was up to 40 due to heat and speed. They are 4 years old, no cracks. No warning, no vibration, just BOOM!!!!

Bed, bumper, cab, rear door, exhaust, all damaged.

 

[ripcord]

Oh, that stinks! Are those the OEM tires?

 

[JimPghPA]

Major tread separation. Was it a re-tread?

Please tell more about the tire that failed?

How much weight was in the bed of that truck when it blew?

 

[AZjeff]

Man that stinks. Gotta ask, with the Drivehard name and previous avatar of a jumping truck has this truck seen any spirited offroading that could have damaged the tire carcass? You kept it upright in one piece and can keep going, props to that.

Major tread separation. Was it a re-tread?

4 year old tires and 4 year old truck, unlikely.

 

[Tman220]

Oh man! Same tires as my trail boss. How many miles?

My door jam calls out 41 psi in these tires, I typically keep them about 43-44 cold. On 90 degree days like today I saw them run up to 48 psi with a good amount of weight in the bed and towing a light trailer

 

[daves87rs]

Wow.

 

[ripcord]

This is why drafting a semi is a terrible idea.

 

[2015Corolla]

 

[StarCaller]

This is why drafting a semi is a terrible idea.

Hmm, never thought about that when I'm trying to hypermile with the Prius behind a truck /
I guess that came to an end now /

 

[Gyro Gearloose]

This is why drafting a semi is a terrible idea.

If you are anywhere within ear range of a truck and hear a pop start creating space and prepare to dodge.

 

[SC Maintenance]

Hmm, never thought about that when I'm trying to hypermile with the Prius behind a truck /
I guess that came to an end now /

I was on another board that had a couple pro truck drivers on it. There suggestion was when passing a semi - do it as fast as you can. You don't want to be anywhere near them if a tire blows - and they blow all the time.

 

[Sumboodie]

Time for a flatbed.

 

[clinebarger]

Running 80mph in some heat on older A/T's is a risk as they naturally run hotter & have more weight in the tread/cap.

 

[Tomioka]

I was on another board that had a couple pro truck drivers on it. There suggestion was when passing a semi - do it as fast as you can. You don't want to be anywhere near them if a tire blows - and they blow all the time.

Yes whether new or retread. OP's tires are new, and luckily in the rear. When a front steer tire (have to be new by DOT requirements) on a semi blows, all hell breaks loose.

 

[Propflux01]

Running 80mph in some heat on older A/T's is a risk as they naturally run hotter & have more weight in the tread/cap.

This....^^^^^

 

[Kira]

"Can you total a truck with a flat tire?", was the question.
Yes, and a lot more.
Glad you kept your cool and got it to stop safely.

 

[mrsilv04]

In this case, no. There isn't any heavy damage... meaning no frame damage, no mechanical damage, no deployed airbags.
The vast majority of this is sheet metal damage only. Bed skin, door skin... or parts that bolt on (bumper).

 

[joekingcorvette]

That's nowhere near totalled out. I have never seen one create so much damage as yours. My brother has a 1996 ZR2 and he had all four tires blow on a long trip. They were too old and blew out at different times on a 550 mile trip going home. It's good you were not hurt and good luck with the repair. BTW those ZR'2s are awesome trucks.

 

[ecotourist]

Hmm, never thought about that when I'm trying to hypermile with the Prius behind a truck /
I guess that came to an end now /

I saw a semi tire blow (once in 50 years of driving). It was one or two cars ahead in fast and heavy traffic. Flying chunks of rubber everywhere. I wouldn't be surprised if some vehicle was damaged - windshield, sheet metal or even radiator.

I try to never drive behind a semi at highway speed - I fall back or get ahead. Flying rubber is possible. But a flying stone is more likely.

 

[wwillson]

I was on another board that had a couple pro truck drivers on it. There suggestion was when passing a semi - do it as fast as you can. You don't want to be anywhere near them if a tire blows - and they blow all the time.

I have seen multiple tires blow on trucks, one as recently as a few days ago and I was dodging pieces of tire. I do not follow trucks close for this reason. They don't even have to blow a tire, just run over something on the road and they can throw it up in your windshield. One time about 20 years ago I was passing a truck and a tire blew beside me. It was so loud that I thought it must have broken all the windows on that side of the car. The moral to the story is do not follow close to a truck and pass them quickly.