Community Forums

PJStough · 08-24-2017, 12:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lloyd in S.C.

I did not. I have read about that..... not sure it works in a motorhome. We needed to stop, we were headed to the ditch and barricade,,, hard to floor it as you see doom is straight ahead of you,,,, go 70 instead of 64? Eventualy you have to stop,,,, on that same screwed up tire.

L.

First of all I am glad to hear you are all ok. Sometimes regardless of even "dong the right thing" things can go wrong. Several years ago when we had a right front blowout on our 29 foot Class A, I did exactly as the Michelin video instructs, and we only moved about four feet to the right until I regained control and was able to stop safely. When you accelerate, you dont actually gain speed, you only accelerate enough to stabilize the motorhome, and "accelerate" is not even accurate as all you do is push the accelerator to the floor for a second or two, which helps stabilize the motorhome, but as I said earlier, even had you done exactly as the video instructs, you may have still ended up in the median.

Lloyd in S.C. · 08-24-2017, 12:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PJStough

First of all I am glad to hear you are all ok. Sometimes regardless of even "dong the right thing" things can go wrong. Several years ago when we had a right front blowout on our 29 foot Class A, I did exactly as the Michelin video instructs, and we only moved about four feet to the right until I regained control and was able to stop safely. When you accelerate, you dont actually gain speed, you only accelerate enough to stabilize the motorhome, and "accelerate" is not even accurate as all you do is push the accelerator to the floor for a second or two, which helps stabilize the motorhome, but as I said earlier, even had you done exactly as the video instructs, you may have still ended up in the median.

Perhaps I should have floored it, I don't know where that would have left us. I did not brake at first, our steering wheel was much more unstable than in that video, and the pull left was very violent. If you look at the picture of that tire, is is almost gone, we rode it out. I do not know what happened to this tire, but it came apart quickly and created massive drag on our left front.

L.

Kurt Averill · 08-24-2017, 01:02 PM

Lloyd,
It looks to me like you did a heck of a job - most probably would have ended up rolling, crossing into oncoming traffic or both... No one can know exactly what you could have done differently, with your level of experience, instinct and physical ability I have to believe few if any could have done better.
Looking at the photos of that tire it looks as if it could have suffered a tread separation, perhaps wrapping around something and locking the wheel up. If so, it could account for the amount of pull you felt - and likely would have made stepping on the throttle useless. Great job, and thanks for sharing!

Franka548 · 08-24-2017, 01:13 PM

Quite a ride my friend, so sorry that you have to go through this. Happy that you all are safe and no injuries to the ladies and only slight injuries to yourself.
Frank

FatChance · 08-24-2017, 01:22 PM

Anytime you can walk away from a crash like that is a great outcome.

Steve Ownby · 08-24-2017, 01:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lloyd in S.C.

Perhaps I should have floored it, I don't know where that would have left us. I did not brake at first, our steering wheel was much more unstable than in that video, and the pull left was very violent. If you look at the picture of that tire, is is almost gone, we rode it out. I do not know what happened to this tire, but it came apart quickly and created massive drag on our left front.

L.

I applaud your driving ability & walking away. Like the old pilot said, "any landing you walk away from is a good landing".

I have given the issue of a steer axle blowout a lot of thought. Regardless of all the things we know we should do in a blowout situation, it's heavily impacted by where we are and what is around us when the blowout occurs.

If you are traveling in a low traffic situation on a straight, level or up grade interstate with a wide, paved shoulder, then following the actions set out in the Michelin video is possible. If you are in heavy traffic and decelerating or approaching traffic ahead of you, how can you accelerate or even not brake. If you are traveling down grade or on a down hill curve it's much different and much more difficult.

I figure, all I can do pro actively is be ultra defensive in my driving technique. Moderate speed when in heavy traffic or in situations when the correct reaction is just not possible. Drive with both hands on the wheel. In many situations one hand/arm will be dominant but at least the other is quickly available. Keep both feet flat on the floor and the wheel and seat adjusted so you can brace against what you describe as an almost overwhelming pull from the wheel.

I'm really trying to train myself to adopt these behaviors as my normal driving position and mindset. It's not easy to change bad habit to good but it's worth a try.

Thanks for sharing your experience. I hope it all turns out in your favor. I once lost a house to a fire on Christmas Day, so I'm familiar with loss.

RVThere · 08-24-2017, 01:25 PM

Great job Lloyd. Regardless of what the experts say regarding accelerating or braking, in that split second, you just go into survival mode and trust your gut.

biggcrisp · 08-24-2017, 01:46 PM

Good job!

All things considered: Excellent outcome. Nobody got seriously hurt.

Sunny1 · 08-24-2017, 02:01 PM

Holy Cow!!! Thank you for sharing your experience Lloyd. In my opinion you did a helluva good job reacting to, and trying to keep your RV under control. I'm sure you feel very blessed no one was seriously injured or killed. That tire looks a mess. I wonder if the earlier comment might be on to something that the tread may have separated and caused the wheel to somehow lock up. The fact that you walked away from this is a good outcome ... my hat is off to you!

G.G. · 08-24-2017, 02:07 PM

This really is a fear of mine. I've never experienced a flat tire in any vehicle. So glad everyone walked away, and I'm super impressed with how well you handled it.

jimmy braden · 08-24-2017, 02:16 PM

Glad you are ok OP. CAn you tell us the age of the tires?

NVM - I see it - 5yrs.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Steve Ownby

I

If you are traveling in a low traffic situation on a straight, level or up grade interstate with a wide, paved shoulder, then following the actions set out in the Michelin video is possible. If you are in heavy traffic and decelerating or approaching traffic ahead of you, how can you accelerate or even not brake. If you are traveling down grade or on a down hill curve it's much different and much more difficult.
..

I'm really trying to train myself to adopt these behaviors as my normal driving position and mindset. It's not easy to change bad habit to good but it's worth a try.

Or if you are just a human trying to get out of a potential life threatening situation, it's counter intuitive. And I question the amount of thrust capable of being generated that can actually 'lift the front end' to account for what is, in a worst case scenario ( which the video did not necessarily detail) effectively a 30 to 40 percent reduction in rolling CIRCUMFERENCE. - which translates to something going in a circle... quickly.

Airstreamer6 · 08-24-2017, 02:29 PM

I believe your tire failure was more severe than the ones in the video. If the damaged tire is greatly malformed into more of a D-shape instead of a more circular O-shape, the hammer effect would be greatly exaggerated. That's probably why you could not control it like the video suggests.

The only thing I can think of that might have helped would be to downshift to allow the rear to create a drag and slow the rig down faster and maybe even straighter. But you'd need an extra arm for that little idea.

Congratulations on your bringing the coach to a halt without significant injury, and thanks for sharing!

idoxlr8 · 08-24-2017, 02:45 PM

Glad to hear you or your family were not injured. Sounds like it was pretty violent!

I wonder if something could be done with air bags to counter that hard pull? Probably nothing that would happen fast enough. Almost need a steering wheel lock of some sort to hold in place straight till you get slowed down.

Mudfrog · 08-24-2017, 02:51 PM

Sorry that this happened,, but at the same time, i'm so glad that y'all came out of it ok. I hate the thought of ever having a blowout, especially at the front of a motorhome.

My opinion is that many of us get on here to offer suggestions but may not have really thought about how fast this all goes down. In other words, it's easier said than done. No doubt we would do a better job with proper and more intensive training. For the most part though, we never get that training. No matter what we've read, over and over in these forums, something like this is going to be a total shock if it happens. Our reaction time is going to be slower since it's going to take a second or two for us to realize what just happened. For some of us, it'll probably be too late by then

I do hope that i do all the right things if this ever happens. I feel i'll do ok since i do have it in my mind already that i need to be proactive in driving safely. Maintaining the rig and its tires, driving with both hands on the wheel at all times, and not getting too comfortable, are things i think help. If a blowout occurs, then holding the wheel tight and staying off the brake until i'm sure i have the rig under my control are things i've had in my mind to do for many years now. Stepping on the gas is something new for me, something that seems counter intuitive, so i doubt it would be something i'd do during the emergency.