# Dry rotted tire blow out on the highway



## bulldog (May 30, 2011)

I bought a new to me tandem axle trailer for my boat last week and took it out for the first time this weekend. After a long day of fishing I was driving home and one of the tires blew out at 70 MPH on the highway. It is pretty crazy how fast a tire can shred at speed. I noticed two of the tires on the trailer were dry rotted when I bought the trailer but decided to chance it anyway. I managed to make it to the next exit, took the blown tire off and limped it to my mother's house about 3 miles away. I got lucky that I did not injure anyone and also where it happened. The trip to my fishing area that day was 75 miles one way and I managed to blow a tire 1 mile from my mother's exit.

I guess my point in all this is that is just not worth the risk. If you see your tires are dry rotted, get them changed. They really are not that expensive and the fact that a trailer and boat can really pull you around if a blowout happens, is reason enough. I was fortunate not to have an accident but I wanted to share and maybe save someone the trouble.


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## basstender10.6 (May 31, 2011)

bulldog said:


> I bought a new to me tandem axle trailer for my boat last week and took it out for the first time this weekend. After a long day of fishing I was driving home and one of the tires blew out at 70 MPH on the highway. It is pretty crazy how fast a tire can shred at speed. I noticed two of the tires on the trailer were dry rotted when I bought the trailer but decided to chance it anyway. I managed to make it to the next exit, took the blown tire off and limped it to my mother's house about 3 miles away. I got lucky that I did not injure anyone and also where it happened. The trip to my fishing area that day was 75 miles one way and I managed to blow a tire 1 mile from my mother's exit.
> 
> I guess my point in all this is that is just not worth the risk. If you see your tires are dry rotted, get them changed. They really are not that expensive and the fact that a trailer and boat can really pull you around if a blowout happens, is reason enough. I was fortunate not to have an accident but I wanted to share and maybe save someone the trouble.


i agree. Nothing is worse than sitting on the side of the highway fixing a tire. But I think that you should not be going 70mph pulling a trailer. That is excess wear on your tires and truck


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## KMixson (May 31, 2011)

I always carry a spare when towing the boat. It would be smart carry a spare hub and bearings but I do not right now. I only travel about twenty miles when I go to my farthest favorite fishing spot. I have seen some tires blow out while launching boats from some ramps when they get caught on the ramp itself. Jagged concrete edges of the ramp will tear up a tire.


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## basstender10.6 (May 31, 2011)

KMixson said:


> I always carry a spare when towing the boat. It would be smart carry a spare hub and bearings but I do not right now. I only travel about twenty miles when I go to my farthest favorite fishing spot. I have seen some tires blow out while launching boats from some ramps when they get caught on the ramp itself. Jagged concrete edges of the ramp will tear up a tire.


I agree. Carrying a spare hub would be expensive, I would rather carry spare bearings, seals, and races.


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## LonLB (May 31, 2011)

When I sold my SCCA race car I was delivering it to a guy in Pittsburg. I blew a tire in the middle of the night on the car trailer. I thought FOR SURE that they tire ripped half the car apart before I ever got my $$$$$...


Got lucky. 


I agree. Blow outs and flats suck, and it's best to be completely prepared, AND keep the equipment up to snuff


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## bulldog (May 31, 2011)

basstender10.6 said:


> bulldog said:
> 
> 
> > I bought a new to me tandem axle trailer for my boat last week and took it out for the first time this weekend. After a long day of fishing I was driving home and one of the tires blew out at 70 MPH on the highway. It is pretty crazy how fast a tire can shred at speed. I noticed two of the tires on the trailer were dry rotted when I bought the trailer but decided to chance it anyway. I managed to make it to the next exit, took the blown tire off and limped it to my mother's house about 3 miles away. I got lucky that I did not injure anyone and also where it happened. The trip to my fishing area that day was 75 miles one way and I managed to blow a tire 1 mile from my mother's exit.
> ...



I agree that 70 mph is a little fast for most people. I have been driving with trailers since before i had my license and i could back a trailer up when I was 10. I am very confident with trailers. Everyone has their own idea of safety and I personally think that 70-75 is my limit. Anyway I appreciate your concern and just wanted to justify myself.


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## fender66 (May 31, 2011)

I had that happen to me on my maiden voyage with my last boat. I was passing a semi truck in the fast lane going over a bridge doing about 75 when I noticed the trailer swerve a bit and smoke everywhere instantly. My passenger looked back and saw nothing but sparks. Here's the end result. This was a fairly new wheel/tire too that was only about 6 months old.

Took the rim and ground it down real good. It was glowing red by the time I stopped on the side of the road. All in about 1/4 of a mile. All I can figure is that it hit something on the bridge.


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## bulldog (May 31, 2011)

fender66 said:


> I had that happen to me on my maiden voyage with my last boat. I was passing a semi truck in the fast lane going over a bridge doing about 75 when I noticed the trailer swerve a bit and smoke everywhere instantly. My passenger looked back and saw nothing but sparks. Here's the end result. This was a fairly new wheel/tire too that was only about 6 months old.
> 
> Took the rim and ground it down real good. It was glowing red by the time I stopped on the side of the road. All in about 1/4 of a mile. All I can figure is that it hit something on the bridge.



6 month old tire blowing out like that is crazy. I agree you probably hit something. I believe the one that blew on my trailer was an original and the trailer was built in 2006. I got 4 new tires put on today. 6 ply load range C. A little overkill but I do not have to worry about my tires any more. They are supposed to hold 1700 or so pounds a piece. Better safe than sorry. I'm going to get a spare when I can find a cheap one.


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## KMixson (Jun 1, 2011)

fender66 said:


> I had that happen to me on my maiden voyage with my last boat. I was passing a semi truck in the fast lane going over a bridge doing about 75 when I noticed the trailer swerve a bit and smoke everywhere instantly. My passenger looked back and saw nothing but sparks. Here's the end result. This was a fairly new wheel/tire too that was only about 6 months old.
> 
> Took the rim and ground it down real good. It was glowing red by the time I stopped on the side of the road. All in about 1/4 of a mile. All I can figure is that it hit something on the bridge.



A coworker bought four new tires for his pickup truck a couple of months back. On his way to work one day one of the tires shredded like that for no apparent reason. He thought he might have hit something also. He had the tire replaced and a couple of weeks later another tire on the front shredded and caused him to lose control and total his pickup. You may not have hit anything.


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## fender66 (Jun 1, 2011)

> A coworker bought four new tires for his pickup truck a couple of months back. On his way to work one day one of the tires shredded like that for no apparent reason. He thought he might have hit something also. He had the tire replaced and a couple of weeks later another tire on the front shredded and caused him to lose control and total his pickup. You may not have hit anything.



That, really makes tire manufacturers look bad....but it could be true nonetheless.


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## Hanr3 (Jun 13, 2011)

Sounds like the Ford/Firestone incident a few years back. Ended up being a laysuit between teh two.

On a Boy Scout trip to Canada we blew at least one tire on all 5 trialers. We pulled the caravan over, put on teh spare, headed on down the road, at the next exit we stopped and replaced the blow out. 4 of em blew on the way up, one on the way back. 

FYI- Trailer tires will rot out in 5 years. Even if they have great tread, replace them every 5 years.


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## ober51 (Jun 30, 2011)

That should not have happened, but I was under the assumption 75 was too fast for trailering a boat I try to stay at about 60.


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## reedjj (Jul 8, 2011)

One thing to consider is to make sure you are using the correct tire for your trailer. Different loads require different tire ratings. Most trailer tires are "D" rated which I think is an 8 ply tire, good for most boats and smaller car trailers. But if you are towing much over 4,000 lbs I think you are supposed to go with a "E" rated tire.

Probably most of us on Tinboats never have to worry much about "E" rated tires but then again, a 17-20 foot alum boat with decks, fuel, gear, coolers can get pretty heavy. Especially some of the big SeaArks in the 2072 range. They could easily get pretty heavy with 20 gallon live wells and 30 gallons of fuel.

I don't know alot about it because all the boats I have ever had have always been pretty light.

If you have a some of the tire and rim combo's off the shelf from TSC, WallyWorld, or Harbor freight you might want to make sure they are rated for the load you are carrying.


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## bulldog (Jul 8, 2011)

reedjj said:


> If you have a some of the tire and rim combo's off the shelf from TSC, WallyWorld, or Harbor freight you might want to make sure they are rated for the load you are carrying.



Couldn't agree more.


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## bcbouy (Jul 9, 2011)

my 5.30x12 tires are rated for 55 mph max.


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