# Is this tire bad?



## Don2222 (Jan 8, 2013)

Hello

Here are the facts. The tire tread is good.
My kid bumped the car while it was parked and the passenger's side tire went flat. I drove it approx 150 feet before I noticed it, then back another 150 feet into the driveway and put on the spare. It looks like it popped the bead.

The tire people took it off the rim and showed me this.
Pic 1 shows bits of frayed rubber on the wall of the inside of the tire.
Pic 2 shows the collection of rubber bits that have chipped off and fell to the bottom of the inside of the tire.

They said there was oxidation on the rim that caused it to pop the bead so easily and cleaned it off.
They would not put it back on the car because it this condition it could very easily blow out on the highway an cause an accident!

There were no holes in the sidewall just the frayed bits approx half way around the wheel on the inside.

*Can this tire be saved and used until the treads wear out? Click pic to enlarge.*


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## seige101 (Jan 8, 2013)

Sure why not save a few bucks and use it until it blows off at highway speed, what is the worst that could possibly happen.

You don't like the professional's advice so you go on the internet asking a bunch of people who may or may not be qualified to give you an answer based on a blurry picture... Sounds legit.


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## JustWood (Jan 8, 2013)

It should still be good but run it on the back axle just in case.If it has broken belts you'll notice it right away or within a few hundred miles.
That crumb rubber didnt accumulate in 150 ft. Thats usually a sign it was run soft.
Oxidation on the rim will cause a slow leak ie. run soft.
I've removed tractor trailer tires that had between a pint and quart of crumb rubber in them when worn out (never any damage).


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## fossil (Jan 8, 2013)

Only thing I've ever heard from the people I trust is that sidewall damage is the kiss of death for the tire, and cannot be repaired.  It's unsafe at any speed, so far as I'm concerned.  That tire just needs to be recycled so that it doesn't end up on anybody's vehicle.  Rick


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## jharkin (Jan 8, 2013)

I'm very suspicious that a "bump" popped the bead. Some damage caused a flat and driving on the flat popped the bead. 

The tire is toast, and from your description I'd be suspicious of the wheels as well.


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## Don2222 (Jan 8, 2013)

LEES WOOD-CO said:


> It should still be good but run it on the back axle just in case.If it has broken belts you'll notice it right away or within a few hundred miles.
> That crumb rubber didnt accumulate in 150 ft. Thats usually a sign it was run soft.
> Oxidation on the rim will cause a slow leak ie. run soft.
> I've removed tractor trailer tires that had between a pint and quart of crumb rubber in them when worn out (never any damage).


 
Thanks for the good info. When I 1st purchased this car used, this tire had a slow leak that I kept filling with air for a few weeks until I found a nail in the tire and had it plugged. So those bits of rubber probably were there for months! Very Interesting!

After the hole was plugged the tire ran very well on the Highway and all!

Thanks Less Wood for helping to find the answer!


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## JustWood (Jan 8, 2013)

jharkin said:


> I'm very suspicious that a "bump" popped the bead. Some damage caused a flat and driving on the flat popped the bead.
> 
> The tire is toast, and from your description I'd be suspicious of the wheels as well.


 
I agree. If something "bumped" it hard enough to take it off the bead then the rim is also probably bent.Your scenario is more likely.
Corrosion on a rim is common and if a tire shop doesnt power brush it off at mounting it will likely have a slow leak for the life of the tire.
Don, I'm not saying that it is 100% ok. If you decide to use it, have the side that was bumped mounted outward and mark the area with crayon or spray paint so you can watch for a bulge or ripple in the side wall.Sometimes this bulge will appear at remounting when the bead is seated at higher than running pressure.  This will indicate that it was damaged and then get rid of the tire.


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## fossil (Jan 8, 2013)

My daughter once hit a curb in her VW Jetta hard enough to damage the RF tire sidewall and bend the factory rim...but it _did not_ pop the bead.  Sometimes, without a thorough inspection by a knowledgeable inspector, you can drive away from an incident that has done significant damage thinking everything is just fine & dandy.  Rick


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## heat seeker (Jan 8, 2013)

The price of a tire or two cannot be compared to the havoc a blowout can cause. Any question at all about the tire, it needs to be replaced. Even at around-town speeds, a tire that lets go can still cause a head-on collision, or take out a pedestrian or bicyclist. 

Your money, your conscience.


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## billb3 (Jan 9, 2013)

Might have popped the bead if it was low pressure. Might have been low pressure because of bead corrosion. Bead corrosion usually leaks.
Probably didn't do anywhere as much damage driving the 150 feet and back as the damage that may have occurred while putting off getting the nail fixed. Bead corrosion usually gets seen and fixed when fixing a nail puncture, unless the tire wasn't taken off the rim.
I'd be concerned the inside bits were indicative of potential sidewall damage . Although, riding on low pressure is usually pretty obvious as the outside sidewalls get scuffed up pretty bad from flexing and contact  friction. Tough to see what the "tears" are on the inside sidewall.
I've seen dust and tire chards inside a tire before, but if that tire was just off the rim a little while ago and that has accumulated since just then I wouldn't go far with that tire on the car. Something's not right.


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## gmule (Jan 9, 2013)

I would be scared to put air in that tire. 

fyi


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## nate379 (Jan 10, 2013)

I'd have to look at it in person or at least better pics but it looks like junk just based on what I can see.
Bumped the car like rode his bike into it? 

That much rubber didn't happen in just 300 ft of driving, it's been driving low/flat before.


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## MasterMech (Jan 10, 2013)

nate379 said:


> That much rubber didn't happen in just 300 ft of driving, it's been driving low/flat before.​


 
Is this the same car (Toyota Matrix) that he wanted to tow 2000 lbs of pellets on a 2K GVWR trailer? 

I agree that inflation pressure/load might have something to do with it.


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## Freeheat (Jan 10, 2013)

fossil said:


> Only thing I've ever heard from the people I trust is that sidewall damage is the kiss of death for the tire, and cannot be repaired. It's unsafe at any speed, so far as I'm concerned. That tire just needs to be recycled so that it doesn't end up on anybody's vehicle. Rick


 
Rick I work at a dealership and we try to recycle the used tires , people steal the junker tires and resell on craigs list


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## MasterMech (Jan 10, 2013)

es332 said:


> people steal the junker tires and resell on craigs list​


  That's just sad.


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## fossil (Jan 10, 2013)

es332 said:


> Rick I work at a dealership and we try to recycle the used tires , people steal the junker tires and resell on craigs list


 

My oh my.


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## Flatbedford (Jan 10, 2013)

gmule said:


> I would be scared to put air in that tire.
> 
> fyi




That is a split rim wheel exploding there. Very different from what this tire would do.


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## Flatbedford (Jan 10, 2013)

I'd replace the tire. Even four tires is probably less than your collision deductible.


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## Jags (Jan 10, 2013)

Unless you simply don't have the funds to replace the tire, I see no other reason to question the replacement.  It was hit hard enough in the side wall to unseat the bead.  Unseating the bead on an inflated tire is no easy task. That alone brings it to "questionable" at best.


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## greg13 (Jan 10, 2013)

es332 said:


> Rick I work at a dealership and we try to recycle the used tires , people steal the junker tires and resell on craigs list


 
A cordless drill with a 1/2" bit through the sidewall will stop that!


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## gmule (Jan 10, 2013)

Flatbedford said:


> That is a split rim wheel exploding there. Very different from what this tire would do.


 
Osha report from a company that had a tire explode by seating a bead.
You have to ask yourself If your life is worth a 100 bucks

http://www.osha.gov/pls/imis/establishment.inspection_detail?id=108409798


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## fossil (Jan 10, 2013)

greg13 said:


> A cordless drill with a 1/2" bit through the sidewall will stop that!


 

I like that idea.  PITA, and a dealer shouldn't have to put that time & effort into recycling old tires...but if it keeps those tires from ending up on someone's car, then I'm incrementally safer out there on the road, as is everyone else.  Rick


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