Luxury Coach Lifestyles - View Single Post - How to handle a front tire blowout
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Old 09-09-2012, 06:57 PM   #1
NewellCrazy
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Join Date: Sep 2006
Location: Sugarland, TX or Salida,CO
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Lightbulb How to handle a front tire blowout

Just keep the coach straight and in your lane. No accelerator pedal and no
brakes at first. And forget the emergency brake, as it has no
sensitivity/feedback like the air treadle. The added drag of the failed
front tire will provide significant drag and (therefore, braking) to slow
the rv without any driver "help" with the brake pedal. Assuming it is a
right front tire, expect that you will need to use some left-turn wheel
steering to counteract the drag of the failed right front tire.

Below 30mph, very slight brake pedal action can be applied, but forget about
the screaming passengers and noise and just stay focussed on keeping
straight and in the lane. The passengers are not going to help you and
become a distraction that you need to "tune out" until stopped. Expect some
front wheel-well damage and also "tune out" the noise of the tire shredding
itself to pieces and flapping around in the wheel well. Sheet metal to
replace the wheel well panels is cheap, human lives are priceless.

Remember, you are now trying to stop a 40-45 ft motor home with only 3 corners having
correctly functioning brakes. The use of any brake pedal will exert braking
to only the one good front tire, which can easily overcome the front
steering (even with power steering, the forces are tremendous). Assuming
it is a right front tire that has failed, the use of any braking pedal
action will now try to turn the bus left. If you are already pulling the
steering wheel left to resist the drag on the right front corner, the sudden
use of brakes will abruptly make the coach try to turn left, setting you up to
either spin out or roll the rv, depending on load, pavement conditions, and
wind. (and it's usually roll the rv, due to the CG and aerodynamics of a
motor home).
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