motor home safety
 

In regard to Mr. Teuton's recent accident I believe we need to look very hard at the structural integrity of the toters and rv everyone is using. This accident is a warning to us all. These vehicles have no structure to withstand impact at all, save for fibreglass sheets that blow apart rather easily. My class C mh has three 2" chrome moly roll bars built in but it's the only brand I know of that has this feature and it was double the money of all the other brands. (only bought it because late wife insisted, due to grandkids traveling with us) It is time that we insist on more safety features before any more accidents occur.

Re: motor home safety
 

Craiger: I hope if you are a racer you only tow an open all aluminum trailer behind you with a class C as the E-450 Chassis is GVWR at 14,500 lbs as I recall. I think the C's are limited to about 4000-5000 lbs pay load. That is why a majority of the people tow with a Diesel pusher or a Toter. Even the Class A Gas Coaches are over the GCVW if towing an enclosed trailer with a door car not to mention a golf cart or other type of pit transportation other than a scooter etc. We have serious choices to make when deciding on the rig we use. Just so glad Mr. Jeff is getting better - Bob

Re: motor home safety
 

Rig has nothing to do with it. Tire failure is going to happen, just a question of when. We run a TPMS system on our motor home tires and our trailer tires. It constantly monitors air pressure and temperature. If one of the two varies a little bit an alarm will sound and gives me time to slow down to minimize the problem or more likely to get tires aired up so the heat won't build up and cause tire failure. Only cost about $350 and gives us peace of mind. As my son told me the best money I have spent.

Re: motor home safety
 

I think the rig does have something to do with it not in Mr.Jeff's case as he probably had 22.5 rubber - however some of the smaller RV's start with 19.5 rubber - I do agree three is alway's a certain amount of tire failure that happens - Hope everyone has a Great Easter

Re: motor home safety
 

Don't everyone get all concerned. You have to remember what you have seen on my rig was after one hour of fireman cutting me out which I think they came in from both sides, and then some 8 hours of big wreckers pulling, dragging, and otherwise finishing it off. It was a total anyway as is the trailer. What I had was a Class 8 truck built in a Day Cab configuration. It had a 16K front axle and 40K rear axle capacity which means a 56,000 Lb GVW. Double frame (C channel inside another C channel) and a big bore motor which means it had hd crossmembers and the motor itself becoming strongest. The front was fiberglass and the cab was aluminum. All NRC conversions are steel frame built on the chassis and reinforced in critical places such as slide outs, windows, etc. The front axle is what the industry calls a Set Forward Axle which is what all big trucks used to be, but turning considerations, axle placement etc have evolved into most trucks are now Set Back Axle. The Columbia Freightliner is a SBA, while the Coronado is a SFA. It is very hard to run in the woods at 70 MPH and not expect this. I now have pictures of the scene and I took down some large trees, but in the end, the trees took me down. Tires are always a concern. It was a cool beautiful day about 55 degrees. Tires are seldom an issue at 55 degrees. Road was smooth, and traffic was light. Did I just blow a tire, or did I hit something or did I pick up a nail or something and then low tire pressure and then blow, only my Guardian Angel can say. They had 40K miles on them since new, and at my last fuel/food stop some 120 miles back in Tallahassee I checked all tires (truck and trailer), hitch, chains, as I planned on getting into Louisiana from there. This vehicle has never slept outside except for at the races and was as near new as any 13 model could have been. I have seen rigs at the races, and I would not run the tires I saw on some. But I'm the one who thought he was Daniel Boone and made a trail. I think a person should make reasonable decisions on his or her equipment. We all know the weak spots and the troublesome items on a particular rig. My 2 cents which always runs 50 cents.

Re: motor home safety
 

Regardless of the cause,the main thing is your healthy. :)

Re: motor home safety
 

For sure I'll second that

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Cannot count the amount of stuff I have run over on the highway while towing. (not going to make quick lane changes)
You just cannot avoid some stuff. Next Motorhome will put tire Pressure sensors on.

I say I will check pressure on every stop, Try to but never happens.

Glad your are okay.

Re: motor home safety
 

What do you guy's think of this product. I was offered this when I bought my motorhome and declined. After your accident it has me thinking. Do any of you guy's have any experience with this product?

www.tyron-usa.com

Re: motor home safety
 

Very interesting product, I think in light of what happened to Mr Jeff I will be looking into the Tyron system.

Re: motor home safety
 

Seems very interesting. Wonder how many failures of the general product has occurred?

Re: motor home safety
 

It seems to me that blowing a front tire at 70mph in anything is pretty bad news. I think Jeff got out in good shape considering that he is alive.

I drive my racer to the track so I don't have skin in the rig game, but I will do a little more checking on the tires before leaving home this season.

Dale

Re: motor home safety
 

my system for tires is simple. good tires,not 5 year old new tires, I put in the proper PSI then I check tire temp cold with temp gauge(laser) log the data,
then after being on the road for a while fuel stop etc I check tire temp again
hot all should be fairly equal. if one tire is at a higher temp that means low
psi and should be checked. Better than hitting the tire with a stick.
10+ years driving a big truck. works with all tires. take care of your tires and
they'll take care of you my 4 cents

Re: motor home safety
 

After seeing the pictures of the motor home, I think it's a miracle that Jeff came out of that with as few injuries as he had. Those motor homes don't do well in crashes. What damages did the race cars sustain? I didn't see any pictures of the trailer or the cars. I blew a front right tire on my Ford F-350 crew cab at 75 mph towing my race car in the trailer on my way to the track a few years ago. I managed to keep it straight and off to the side, no damage. I changed tires about every three years here in Las Vegas. The dry climate takes its toll on them,

Re: motor home safety
 

I was reminded today that the tires on the big motorhomes are originally designed to run 1000's of miles on a semi in a year. None of us uses them that much in the time they can dry rot so they may look fine on the tread and be overlooked. On inspection today found my right front dry rot showing up around the lettering by the rim. For safety I will replace it tomorrow. Plan on getting TYRON installed next month.

Re: motor home safety
 

Out of interest, how old are the tires you are replacing? My truck tire place says 5 years, regardless of miles on motorhomes. Also can you post how much the tyron costs and the before and after ride quality.....

Thanks

Eric

Re: motor home safety
 

most say 5 years on big truck tires no matter how many miles or tread. I don't think the Tyron system would be a real advantage on a semi type tire. When I blew a steer tire a few weeks ago on my toter there was not enough left of the tire to help with the handling. I was only running 60 - 65 mph when the tire blew so I had no problem keeping control plus I did not have the trailer with me. The tire completely disintegrated when it blew. Sounded like a shotgun when it exploded. I think a TPMS would be the way to go.

Re: motor home safety
 

Biggest hazard to tires is heat, and sun if it's parked outside. We're picking up our new MH on Thursday and while the coach is new off the line it will be interesting to see what the date code on the tires reveals. My understanding that Michelins are good for longer than five years provided they're cared for of course. Got TPMS on all my stuff except for the trailer and going to investigate the best way to add it to the trailer, expect I may need some kind of 'booster' at the back of the MH to get the signal forward.

Sure was nice seeing Jeff respond to the thread, obvious his wit survived quite well. When the thread started I was concerned that somebody implied Jeff had somehow done something wrong or neglectful to cause his accident and it was good to see him put it in perspective.

Re: motor home safety
 

Interested in the blow out that totally disintegrated the tire. Could it be it was chewed up running on it after it blew? The Tyron keeps the rubber under the rim edge(in theory) while you slow down so the rim does not cut it up going across it. and your rim doesn't get chewed on the pavement. I believe slowing down without braking may be the pearl of the whole discussion. Videos show blow out not even resulting in turning of the vehicle after blow out with tyron but how quickly they applied brakes is not obvious.
I lost a rod at 3/4 track at Indy time trial. Took out left front Moroso tire. Slowed without braking hard and it went straight. Tried to brake it wanted to go to guard rail. Crossed the finish line 114 on blown tire. Tire was not off the rim. Lucky.....
I will post later about dealer for the Tyron close by....

Re: motor home safety
 

There was nothing much left of the tire once I got it stopped. The entire tread was off and hot much left of the sidewalks. I got it stopped quickly and the wheel was not damaged. I was driving through a construction zone so I could have run over something that damaged the tire. It gave no advance notice that anything was going wrong just a loud boom and the front end dropped.

Re: motor home safety
 

no,no,no,no implication of any fault. Just trying to make the point that a
$20,000 work beater has multiple air bags and designed crumple zones,
but toter homes and rvs costing many times more :cool:don't. I work for a domestic car manufacturer and our car was delayed coming to market by over a year because the crush zones and panels had to be reconfigured.
Should we not expect the same attention to safety in our tow rigs.

P.S. I use Michelins on our mh and change out the 2 oldest tires every year costs me a couple of bucks but is cheap compared to the cost of a blowout.

Re: motor home safety
 

Answer: my MH is a 2008 Showhauler on 2008 Freightliner chassis. I have only replaced Left front as there as a crack developing last year. Now replacing Rt front for early weather checking.
It is always garage kept. Only 37,000 miles. All rear tires look fresh. Pressure stable.

Showhauler Motor Homes in Middlebury Indiana is now a dealer for TYRON. Call and ask for Lonnie. He just informed me they are the dealer.. I-574-825-6764. Tell him I mentioned them. They are an outstanding business and build an excellent motorhome.
Thanks
Dick Butler

Re: motor home safety
 

Every tow rig should have a Tire Pressure Monitor System. We sell an easy to use and install system. If interested send me an email at haysappliance@yahoo.com or text/phone 785-623-7021

Re: motor home safety
 

What brand of system do you have? The Doran system that we sell doesn't require a booster but longer rigs need an external antenna under the motorhome towards the back. We sell the additional sensors for $45 each.

Re: motor home safety
 

If you have a leak, I understand the system advantage. What does it tell about impending Blow Out?

Re: motor home safety
 

I've got them on my gooseneck trailer and it sends an audible alarm if the pressure goes up or down. If you don't have an alarm you won't know when one of your tires goes on a triple axle.

Re: motor home safety
 

Yeah, let's ask the motorhome and toterhome manufacturers to incorporate the same safety equipment that cars have. Let's have full cage construction, crumple zones, etc. That will address the 15 crashes a year, where virtually nobody gets killed. It will have a secondary safety benefit, too. Half the people who own motor and toterhomes now wont 'be be able to afford one, because the added safety equipment with push the already insane prices up another 20-30 percent. And don't forget, it's always good to get the Government involved in the lives of it's citizens.

Re: motor home safety
 

I don't know of anything that will tell you that. The system I sell tells you if you have a fast leak, lost sensor, low pressure and high pressure. They say incorrect pressures many times causes blowouts but not always. I've heard that a tire going bad (getting ready to blow) can cause heat build up which equals high pressure. Several years ago after having a tire go flat at night on a triple axle trailer that eventually came apart and done about $1500 damage to my trailer. I did not go on another trip again until I had a tire pressure monitoring system. I've been using one for about 10 years now and have not had another blow out. It takes me about 12 seconds to check the tire pressure on 12 tires.

Re: motor home safety
 

Good for on the road monitoring of pressure. My friends drove home to Indiana in the dark from Topeka. Never knew it till they got home but only had 3 wheels on their trailer.....

In regard to all the safety issues which would ADD major bucks if required on all.... What if things just are becoming "available" to use for the 15 crashes a year. How about just having them available to people who care? I wonder how many semi crashes or tours of the Median on the interstate are blow outs of the front tires too.

Re: motor home safety
 

Check out "Steer Safe" Worked great for my Frieghtliner....I wasn't aware they were available for motorhomes.

http://www.steersafe.com/shop/steer-safe-unit

Re: motor home safety
 

My system monitors pressure and heat. I will never leave home without it. Our tires are 5 years old, ordered new set of 6 today. Had my butt on side of the road in South Mississippi for 14hrs one Saturday night. Going to take as many precautions as I can.

Re: motor home safety
 

One thing to look at is weight on the tires. I went across the scales with my toter and the front weight was 12000 lbs. That's a bunch. Weight X speed = heat= sudden failure. I always keep my tires at the max allowable listed on the sidewall. You would be amazed how many DON'T do this cause they want a better "ride". Just doesn't seem the best plan to me?

Get well soon Jeff...I'll bet he shows up in Belle Rose! :-)

RIP

Re: motor home safety
 

I use to do the same but tire manufactures recommend inflating based on weight on tires so I weighed my axles and inflate according to tire manufacture recommendation. I just read a few minutes ago to inflate based on tire pressure increase from cold to max pressure after driving. Never heard of that before but will be checking more into that idea. Makes sense.....larger increase in pressure from cold to warm indicates tire working more due to not enough pressure. My motorhome tires increase about 5-8 lbs. from cold to warm. Trailer tires increase about 8-10 but I have them at max pressure because of trailer weight.

Re: motor home safety
 

I own a Bluebird Wanderlodge, many years ago I attended a seminar put out by Goodyear tire company for Bluebird owners. They showed us that the main reason for tire failure in motorhome was excessive speed. One of the reason we were told to stay at 55mph limit, now motorhome can easily reach 70mph for long periods of time. The other important thing they told us is once you feel the blowout apply full throttle(foot to the floor) and drive out of the problem. Consider all those episodes of Cops and watch all the bozos who continue to drive on flats after having their tires shot out from them, they can still steer the vehicle. Check the youtube video. Thank God Jeff made it through and I hope that he gets away from those crooks in Florida.Claude

Re: motor home safety
 

I believe we should adjust air pressure when tires are cold. It was my understanding that what they increase to is not the issue when hot. Probably should all be about the same when warm but....I do not believe we are expected to adjust then.

Re: motor home safety
 

why not run nitrogen? I do in my slicks, pressure never changes from day to nite

Re: motor home safety
 

thats true and the don't leak nitrogen molecue's are larger than air:cool:

Re: motor home safety
 

they run cooler also

Re: motor home safety
 

I have been racing since 1962. I retired after 36 years with the State Of Florida as a School Bus Fleet manger. My last seven years I managed the four largest School Bus Fleet in the national. I have been using a Class A motor home towing my 1994 Pace American since 1994. I have had both diesel (2) and gas (2). I sold my 1998 38' diesel Holiday Rambler class A in 2003 when diesel fuel went thru the roof. I bought my current RV, a 2004 National RV Dolphin 36' with the 8.1 chevy fuel injected engine and Allison trans., and 22.5 Michelins. I have towed over 300,000 miles and never blew a front tire, however I have destroyed many, many rears. Here is what I have done in "preventive maintenance and added systems":

I always buy USA tires. Prefer Michelins.
I always run my tires at max rated cold air pressure (dual or single) So screw the ride with lower air pressure. Heat is the death of a tire plus UV rays.
Since my RV and trailer are parked outside I always cover my tires when parked.
I have a Tire Monitoring System, both temp. and air press.
At 3 yrs I buy new fronts, then I rotate my used front tires to the rear, and I usually get another 4 + years of service life. At this time I have my toe checked and set at zero toe with front end on the ground.
I have installed a "Steer Safe System". They do work. I have never lost a steer tire, but I know several racers/RV'ers who have and their coach was badly damaged because they lost control. Also hard braking is a no-no, it just makes it worse.
I have taken a Class A CD driving course and have had a Class A license since 1985 and in 2000 I took a CDL Safety Course.
Most 22.5 tires have a speed rating of only 70 mph. I drive 65 mph, except going down hill getting ready to go up a hill I speed up to 70 mph.

Can it happen to me like it happened to Jeff! Well yes, however I think I have the odds in my favor of it not happening.

Jeff, I know of you and I am very glad you survived. It was not your time to go! Please Jeff install a Steer Safe System. They are not cheap, but next time it may keep you from another catastrophic accident, injury, or your life. Get well soon!

Re: motor home safety
 

Outside of my lack of familiarity with the steer safe system, I'd agree with what dave is saying above.

Almost exclusively when a customer tells us he is having an issue with blow outs, we can track it right back to lack of appropriate tire pressure. We see it all the time, people not understanding how important pressure is to keeping heat down.

Most tire manufacturers will only rate tires at the max pressure and if you are under pressure, technically your rating is zero. Those that do rate tires at lower pressures, you can see that the rating reduces almost linearly to the pressure to about 40% reduction in pressure from max. In other words- if you are running 125psi tires at 100psi, your rating is 20% or so lower. At 60,000lbs of tire rating, you've just taken 12,000lbs of capacity off of your axles. We see people running them at car like pressures (60-80psi) thinking that it's something other than maintenance that is causing their issues.

Between tire pressure monitoring and age/condition monitoring a lot of problems could be avoided. That being said, sometimes bad things just happen even if you are careful.... It's another risk in the racing that we love...