I had a bad day

[FIND]

Hard to see, but on all the wheel studs that aren't broken, all the threads are stripped off..... I always properly torque my wheels (though I haven't had them off since it got tires a couple months back, I have checked them to make sure they are tight about once a month)

All the lugnuts fell off within about a block. I heard it rattling bad, so I pulled off to check it. Got off the main road, was turning slowly (VERY slowly since it was rocking bad) onto a frontage road by the parts store. Suddenly I heard a pop, truck jumped then tipped a little and jumped again once it got off the tire it had landed on..... I saw my wheel roll off to the side as the truck stopped. Got out, brake drum sitting on the ground, wheel sitting in the parts store parking lot.....

Well, at least I was at the parts store.

Didn't take too long to fix, but the quarter panel is kinda folded inside itself now. Unfortunately, I think I cut up the part of the panel I needed on the spare explorer.

Also, my factory wheel is now good and chewed up, so I guess I will be finding a new one. Thankfully my brand new tires survived, unfortunately, I am on the spare for now. Oh well, ugly truck deserves the ugly wheel.

I just replaced the axle on the other side with a new one... so that one is in beautiful shape. If I had known this would happen to me, I would have replaced both.

 

[Roadrunner777]

You had this happen at basically zero mph, at a parts store. There's some good luck in there somewhere! So, does that mean one should replace studs every now and then? I'll add a question: Replacement as easy as beating them out and pulling in new ones with lugnut, or did you pull the axle and use a press?

 

[2TimingTom]

So you haven't touched the wheels since new tires were installed..... Who installed the wheels back onto the truck with the new tires? Sounds like the lug nuts were cross threaded and then put on with an impact gun during wheel re-install.

I've seen it happen before.

 

[lynchy wa]

*******'s, if that's what they did! X2 on the silver lining of doing SFA speed wise and being outside the part's shop, glad you got her rolling again mate.

 

[FIND]

Well Roadrunner..... Not so much luck since that is what I was aiming for. I wouldn't think it is necessary to add wheel studs to regular maintenance, they should just be replaced when they are in bad condition (cracks, worn out thread, yadda yadda). To replace them, yeah, you knock them out with a hammer and press the new ones in from the back. In a pinch, you can throw the brake drum back on and pull the stud through using the lugnut (which is what I did). Pull it off later to make sure they pulled all the way through. You need to jack up the opposite side too so you can spin the axle, since you only have enough room to knock studs out when they are on the sides, not top and bottom. 3 lb sledgehammer will knock them out in 1-3 solid hits.

So you haven't touched the wheels since new tires were installed..... Who installed the wheels back onto the truck with the new tires? Sounds like the lug nuts were cross threaded and then put on with an impact gun during wheel re-install.

I've seen it happen before.

Yup, pretty sure that is the way it went down. I'm not gonna bother with much about it other than letting the guy know it happened. I'm sure that he will deal with his employee, and I don't want to make a big deal about it anyways. He is a nice enough guy, he'll make it right with me sometime in the future.

Silver lining, I was gonna be doing metal work on that quarter panel anyways.... Now I just have to find more metal.

 

[FIND]

by the way, can I just say. Live topics are freakin cool.


Oh yeah.... I guess I forgot to mention, but the real downside to this all is that I had my 19 month old in the truck with me since we were dropping my 5 year old off at head start. He was pretty late getting his nap since he didn't want to take it at my mom's house after she came and picked him up.

 

[huntman58]

Wow Find you sure were lucky. I had the same thing happen on an old car of mine years back only I was doing 70 when I lost the wheel. It passed my on the freeway. Ya I was a young dumb kid and did not know what the sound was I had heard tell then. I had heard a loud pop every now and then and it had to have been the lug studs letting go then the shacks and the drop and slide to a stop tearing up the front end some what good. My dad and I rebuilt it on the side of the road but talk about needing a short change. Only time I have ever lost a lug nut or stud. I was 18 then and am 53 now. So I hope it stays the only time also. But glad you were going slowly and every one was safe and what better place then a parts store to break down at. Talk about luck.

 

[FIND]

My dad had an axle come spitting out the drivers side on the interstate going through Omaha in an old dodge conversion van he had. Took a while for it to tip, it was surreal. He started losing speed, saw a guy next to him suddenly look scared, start waving and speed off, then he saw his wheel and axle drift off to the side of the road, and finally his van slowly tilted down and scraped to a stop.

 

[Anime]

Always bad when the wheel/tire of the vehicle you're in passes you up.

On the other hand, that 20 year old Firestone Radial ATX presents some safety issues of it's own.

I think they're still worth some $$$ too if there are any places still buying them for tests.

 

[FIND]

Yeah, I just had to use that until I could get a new rim. I already recycled the old wheel, but I should have taken some pictures of the gouges it made in the back of the rim. It was scary looking and the bolt holes were pretty hogged out.

What tests? Honestly, I kept thinking to myself I should replace that spare, but I put on all new tires and was going to find myself a matching rim for a spare, so I figured I could afford to not bother with it for now, then I procrastinated about buying the spare rim, so I never got around to getting a new tire for a spare. Believe me, even after airing that tire up properly, it felt REALLY funny driving home on it. It doesn't have the same load rating as my other tires, and I kinda have an idea of the effects of age on a tire..... let's just say I didn't want to drive anywhere with it.

 

[Anime]

There were certain labs/research firms buying the Radial ATX's a few years ago, for a pretty good amount since they had mostly been turned in to Firestone for the exchange deal after the recall. Probably for continued legal purposes or something. Lately I think the only reason they are buying them is for failure trials, to better understand how a tire fails from cheap construction and low pressures. At the very least, maybe a Firestone place would trade it out still for a Destination AT. Worth a shot.

Otherwise best bet on a spare is just getting a factory one from just about any Explorer with a 15" rim and the same 235/75R15. The newer the better. Might even be able to score one cheap/free from a forum member parting out.

 

[FIND]

Nah, I'll just buy a new tire once I get another spare rim that matches the ones I have, or a good used tire. Tires ain't that expensive, at least not when compared to what can happen in the event of tire failure. I just need to wait till I go to Sioux falls or Sioux city again and swing by the salvage yard while I'm there. After that, it isn't hard finding used 235/75/15s in this area. There are probably more old pickups on the road with that size tire in this state then there are on the whole east coast..... (South Dakota is good for some things)

I had just assumed that no one would have been testing those tires anymore. It was my understanding that they had concluded years ago that they were poorly designed, below the specs necessary for an explorer, and run at too low of a tire pressure. I guess I'll save that ATX then in case I find a lab that still wants them, if nothing else, I'll hang it up and it can be a conversation piece in 20 years or something.

 

[LBarr2002]

Looks familiar:

After it happened again (to the next owner) he found a hairline crack in the wheel between two lug holes. New wheels and it hasn't happened again.

 

[FIND]

Nice, that means I'm almost as cool as you serious off-roaders now

I'll dig the wheel out of the scrap aluminum pile and check it for cracks, didn't even think about that.

 

[LBarr2002]

Nice, that means I'm almost as cool as you serious off-roaders now

I'll dig the wheel out of the scrap aluminum pile and check it for cracks, didn't even think about that.

I wasn't even wheeling... We were hunting on my dad's property. I had just dropped him off at his truck and turned around to leave and POP!