Blow out on tire on Silver Shadow

[Verna]

As I was driving back home last month after 30 days of camping, just 80 miles from home, someone in a Cadillac Escalade was backing up on the right shoulder of I-70 because he had missed his exit. It was just before 9 pm at night, dark, maybe a bit of a slope before the exit and then I see these unique rear lights with the white backup lights backing up into my right hand lane. I swerved to the left because we were on a collision course, especially my right fender and tire of the Silver Shadow.

As I'm swerving, I can see in the left door mirror that my Silver Shadow was riding only on the left tire, tilting at a dangerous angle, on a course to be falling on its side. I swerved back to the right and felt the right tire of the SS slam down on the pavement, a couple of more less drastic swerves and I had it under control.

I said a quick prayer, including thanking my parents for teaching we kids defensive driving. About then, it felt like the road was getting rough, then a noise and I realized I had a flat tire on the SS, so I quickly pulled over to the right shoulder of the cross, luckily at the next exit so I had plenty of room between us and the road.

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So, I called AAA, and stood there with Indycamper (Sharon), who was following me back to Indianapolis. She is an RN and as the near miss unfolded in front of her, she thought she would be pulling myself and Sunny Day out of the wreckage.

So AAA comes, changes the tire, and as he gets ready to leave. I realize the spare tire that he put on the SS was touching the fiberglass fender at the top and that won't work. Either the fender would get torn up or the fender would tear up the tire. I thought the reason was that I had opted for the less expensive spare tire, not the alloy rimmed spare tire from Little Guy, and that the rim was keeping the tire too far out from the body of the SS.

So the AAA guy changes the tire to Sharon's 13" spare tire which fits but is an old tire. I compensate the guy for his extra tire change.

So. I get home and called my insurance agent the next day and filed a claim. Except for my deductible, they paid for a new tire, new rim, new rubberized trim on the edge of the fender and the labor to do all of this. Great--I had already ordered everything because it had to be done whether insurance paid or not.

The new alloy rim is taking longer to get here than I hoped, so I decided that I would put the spare tire with the scratched up, dinged up rim on it, back on the SS so I could go camping this weekend. (My mechanic neighbor had made sure the rim was round and true before he put my good spare tire on that rim.)


Oops, this tire is also hitting the fender. My
neighbor is watching me (I hate to change a tire without someone there to tell me if I'm doing something stupid or wrong), and we're trying to figure this out. I call my other neighbor who is a mechanic and he told me to put a square on the driveway to see if the axle was bent. Sure enough, the top of the tire is 1" further out than the bottom of the tire.

So, I took it to a well-known, well respected local utility trailer/cargo trailer company yesterday. They told me that the spindle was bent in the near miss, and it was not repairable. They ordered a new axle for me and will install it for me.

I took their estimate to the insurance company, and hopefully they will pay for it.

But, once again, if they pay, good, if not it's on order and will be installed. And luckily no one was injured.

So, the moral to the story is...NEVER, NEVER back up on an interstate, even on the shoulder, and especially at night. At night you have little depth perception to tell your distance between objects, you can't see behind you because you're being blinded by the headlights, and the next exit was less than 5 miles away that they could have driven to. Unfortunately, we didn't get the license plate number of the SUV, but both Sharon and I agree that it was a late model Escalade. I'll remember those distinctive rear lights for a long time.

[123jay]

Good to hear no one was hurt .Also your tow car was not damaged. I have found out that a 3500 axle runs about $10.00 more Than a 2000 bl axle.that has only a 1" bearing . So now you have a grand story to tell.

[tony.latham]

Verna:

I've heard your voice on the teardrop podcast. Kinda know you.

'Glad that everything came out okay. Any idea what the ply ratings are on those tires? Are they radials or trailer tires?

Tony

[Verna]

Thank you. They are a load D radial tire, specifically for trailers only, Tony. ST205/75D14, and I guess the name brand is H188ST, or maybe that's the model number. I don't know where to look for the number of ply information .

I have 2 new trailer tires, load D, waiting for me at the shop my neighbor works at. Insurance is paying for one and I 'll pay for the other. I forget the name brand, but I know I've seen the brand name here.

My brother explained the blown tire to me this way: when the right tire slammed into the pavement, the "bead" broke, causing the sidewall to blow and then since I traveled a bit further, the rest of the tire split and the heat produced by all of this melted part of the trim on the fender. Amazingly enough, the fender isn't damaged.

And these are the standard 14" radial tires that Little Guy uses. They only had about 7,000 miles on them and the tread looked good. Little Guy replaced my axle under warranty last fall because it was bent and they even gave me new tires. They truly are a great company to deal with.

[pjo129]

So glad both you and Sharon are alright. Could have ended very badly. Hope you're fixed in time for Ouabache.

[Verna]

Thanks, Pete. It should be fixed before the end of the month.

[bonnie]

Oh my, that would indeed be a scary thing. Whew!

[Redneck Teepee]

Glad to hear no one got hurt, that's a blessing for sure. It's entirely possible that you did pop a bead when it came back down.
There are lot's of things that will make a tire fail, and I'm sure slamming into the pavement as yours did is on that list. Good luck with the repairs.

[Mary C]

Now Verna will you have a spare? I may have missed that. but I am so thankful that no one was hurt and no more damage was done. Just happy you have had a good outcome.

Mary C.

[Verna]

Yes, Mary, I had a spare tire. It didn't fit when the AAA guy put it on, and I know now that was because the spindle was bent. The spare tire will fit just fine with the new axle. Luckily Indycamper (Sharon) was following me and she had a 13" spare tire, and while it isn't in really good shape, it got me home.

Thanks, Redneck. You know how you feel when you find a really good company to deal with? I feel really good with the local trailer company. They have a great reputation and I trust them to take care of me. And they think my Silver Shadow is cute, so that helps, too

Bonnie, you have no idea......My first thought was Sunny Day. I would be devastated if she were hurt. Then my next thought was I didn't know what would happen if the Silver Shadow did roll over--would it cause the Escape to roll over, too? And, I was worried about the SS jack-kniving. And, there was a van that was going to pass me on the left that I was concerned about, but he/she was definitely a defensive driver and he/she slowed down, as Sharon did, and Sharon also was able to get into the inside lane to miss the SUV on the shoulder. It was amazing how many thoughts and sights can go through your mind in just a few seconds.

123jay, I asked about a heavier duty axle, but I was asking about a 3,000 lb one. This 2,000 lb one is the one recommended by Little Guy, so I'll be staying with it. I'll have the trailer company make sure the tongue wasn't damaged. It seemed to tow fine on the way home and down to the trailer company yesterday, but I still have a 13" tire on the right and the usual 14" on the left, until the new axle is installed.

[S. Heisley]

Scary story! I am glad you weren't hurt, Verna, and that your trailer repairs came out for the better.

[Verna]

State Farm called me today, and they will pay for the axle. Whew--that sure helps the budget!

[deleted]

Wow that's frightening! Very glad to hear there was no damage/injury to you or your passenger. But what a shame that your trailer was damaged. I'm guessing the person who caused this fiasco probably didn't even realize that you'd suffered any damage at all. People do crazy things to not miss exits. Back in California I saw cars spin out on four lane interstates when they tried to make an exit. Both times they ended up facing the wrong way. One in the middle of the highway and one came to a stop after doing a 360º followed by a 180º rotation finishing by slamming into the big yellow barrels along the side of the divider to the exit. The expression on the guy's face as he stared into my windshield (I was right behind him and slammed on my brakes) made me realize it's far better to take the wrong exit and find the next entry ramp than to pull a number like that. Again, glad you weren't injured or your trailer damaged any worse.

[Verna]

Thanks, Stacie. Sunny Day is my 12 lb Shih Tzu, 4 1/2 yrs old. Camping wouldn't be as much fun without her.

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[bonnie]

So glad everything is working out! Sunny Day is such a sweetie.