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My wheel fell off!!

B

BrianK5

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Location
Omaha, Nebraska
I just had new tires put on today by a tire chain that will remain un-named. As I was driving home from class tonight, my drivers side front wheel flew off and crossed 4 lanes of traffic. Nobody got hit by the flying tire, luckily, and I'm OK too. I had the Blazer towed back to the place that did the work and left it there sitting on the messed up rotor. I wish I could be there tomorrow morning to see their faces when they see that! From the looks of the studs, it seems that the lug nuts were never even on. I should have looked when I picked it up, but that's something you shouldn't have to inspect. The K5 looks OK, but I'll have to get a better look at it in the daylight.

I'm going to bed and I'll be giving the place a call first thing in the morning.
Has this ever happened to anyone else, and what did you do?

Brian

1985 K5 Blazer
 
chances are your wheel is probably shot too. The holes get worbled (<-----I think that's a word) out when they are run loose.

I hate it when that happens!

John

Like to go sloppin' 'round in da mud in a rapid fashion....=)

<a target="_blank" href=http://coloradok5.com/gallery/albun31?&page=1>BLAZER PICS</a>
 
We took a case to trial in June against a (BIG) company here in Las Vegas that did not properly torque the wheels down on a trailer. 30 miles later, a wheel flew off the trailer, came accross the median and struck the roof of our client's car, crushing his skull and causing him to lose control of his car and run into a tree on the side of the highway. He bled to death and died in his crushed car while a highway patrol man held him. The last thing he said is he wanted to see his mommy. He was 20 years old. They paid a lot of money by way of a confidential settlement during the trial. The techinician said he "did not have time" to use the torque sticks. I went through the process of slipping a torque stick on the end of an impact gun several times with him in front of the jury and then even had him do it. It took him about one second to slip that thing onto his gun and then I "asked" him "you didn't have time to do that to save my client's life?" He claimed to have a good feel for air impact guns and that he torqued them down "by feel", he knew the torque by the way the gun kicked back in his hand. He estimated that he was right 90% of the time. Turns out he has done, according to him 24,000 to 30,000 wheel installations in the three years he has been there. I asked him if that meant he has made 2,400 to 3,000 mistakes then in the last three years. Think about that and you will ALWAYS check your wheels in the parking lot after any shop works on them. Just my thought on the matter but I have seen first hand what kind of damage it can cause. You are lucky your tire did not hit anyone because YOU would be just as responsible, legally, as the shop that screwed up your wheel.
 
I just got new tires and wheels on my truck...your post made me go out and inspect/torque my lugs!

Glad you're OK...could have been a lot worse. Looks like the tire place isn't going to make much of a profit after wheel/tire replacement and repairs to your truck. Serves them right!

Haze gray and underway...<font color=blue>or blue, in my case.</font color=blue>
<a target="_blank" href=http://community.webshots.com/album/26246038MbQsYWKcbo>U.S.S. Nimitz II</a>
 
been there done that...but it was my own fault... i dont remember for what reason i pulled my tire off but i was pullin on the freeway and my right front drops to the ground and my tire hits the curb and gets launched about 30 ft in the air...i though it was the funniest thing that had ever happened to me...just glad i wasent doin 70 on the freeway when it happened.

<font color=green>Chaz</font color=green>

cool.gif
<a target="_blank" href=http://community.webshots.com/user/chaz88k5>http://community.webshots.com/user/chaz88k5</a>
cool.gif
 
yeap, many service stations when they are about to close shut the compressor off. the empoyees keep on using those air tools but without the correct air pressure. I almost lost a tire or two it happen to me about 3-4 times in a 3yr period. main reason was that mentioned above. I got so pissed when it happen to my moms car, since then I check them myself before i leave the place.

you are right, i'd do the same thing they broke it the better fix it. go rent yourself a nice big car and put it on their tab.

ARQ.

offroad baja!!!
72 4x4 CST Blazer
71 4x4 CST Blazer
<a target="_blank" href=http://coloradok5.com/gallery/ArqDennis>My Pics</a>
 
Glad you are ok. Hopefully the store does the right thing and pays for all damage caused. From the sound of what Las Vegas said it could have turned out to be worse and even deadly.....

&lt;&gt;&lt;<a target="_blank" href=http://www.chevycagal.homestead.com/steph.html>Steph's Webpage</a>&gt;&lt;&gt;
Suck Fumes Ford Boy
I'm in shape.... round is a shape......
 
Glad your ok! I had the SAME thing happen when I first bought my Blazer.... had my wheels and tires transfered across from my old truck. Well, they had to transfer the lug nuts too. Well, to make a long story short, as I was headed up the side of a VERY curvy and steep hill, my drivers side tire slipped off, sped ahead of me, jumped hte guardrail, and rolled down the 60% grade for about a hundred yards until it lodged 8 feet up in a tree! Needless to say, I was pretty pi$$ed off by hte time I'd lugged that wheel back UP the hill! Turns out that somebody (previous owner) had replaced hte lug studs on the drivers side front wheel, and used METRIC lugs! Some peoples children.....

Where did all these damned dirty apes come from!?!
 
I was a tire-man for too many years...got the bad knees and elbows to prove it. There is NO EXCUSE! for shoddy work!! Even if the poor under-paid kid who did the work says so....the management system has a responsibility to ensure that the work gets done correctly. I always HATED half-assed shops! If you are not into vehicles enough to do the work right, go flip some burgers!

9/11/01..Never forget...Never forgive
 
when i bought mine every thing was cool for about 3 months then out of the blue the rear drivers side tire became loose well i ended up striping the studs and as lazy as i am it took me over a month to fix it so i had to bum rides i would love to get my hands on the old boy that sold me the truck
 
Ya..go thru yourself and check out everything. All front end parts and your wheel. If any of that is screwed up, they need to buy you new parts.

When I take my truck to a tire shop, I always walk around with a lug wrench and tighten everything and check it. Sometimes they have at it with an impact and I can't get the lug loose. I got to be able to change a flat!

<font color=blue>Answers: $1, Short: $5, Correct: $25, dumb looks are still free.</font color=blue>

<a target="_blank" href=http://www.bluefox.tv/~lara>My Wonderful Site</a>
 
Muddin, your post reminded me of when I was watching an old guy put new tires and wheels on one of my K5's many years ago. One of the studs was cross threaded, so he was cranking away with the air gun, slowly forcing the lug nut down the stud. I asked why he was putting it on like that and he responded "Oh, I can get it on there with this thing!". You should have seen the look on his face when I asked him how he expected me to be able to remove it with simple hand tools if I had a flat! It was like something right out of a cartoon as that reality sunk into his thick skull....
wink.gif


<font color=black>HarryH3 - '75 K5</font color=black>
<a target="_blank" href=http://www.angelfire.com/super/ThunderTruck>www.angelfire.com/super/ThunderTruck</a>
It's a great day to be alive...
 
Nowadays his response would be, "You mean you don't call AAA?"
shocked.gif


LOL!

What got me started on that is I had some new tires put one once and someone really had fun with the impact. One day I needed to replace the bearings on one side. I could not get that ever loving thing off! I got one of the poles that you put the little net on to get crap out of the pool and used it for a cheater bar! It was about 8 ft long. I'm glad I didn't have a flat or I'd have been stuck!

<font color=blue>Answers: $1, Short: $5, Correct: $25, dumb looks are still free.</font color=blue>

<a target="_blank" href=http://www.bluefox.tv/~lara>My Wonderful Site</a>
 
I just had new Perelli Norsmans put on my Dually. I got them at Discount tire. They put them on, torqued them and had me make a couple of laps around the mall parking lot and then retorqued them. I was impressed.

John

Like to go sloppin' 'round in da mud in a rapid fashion....=)

<a target="_blank" href=http://coloradok5.com/gallery/albun31?&page=1>BLAZER PICS</a>
 
Had that happen to me to the first car I ever owned. Took it to the tire shop to have new tires put on, and they talked me into new lug nuts as well. The wheels were mags, and when they put new lug nuts on, they were 1/8" shorter than my old ones. Low and behold, about a week later the front wheel came flyin' off at about 65 mph! Even if the nuts are tight, if they aren't long enough, it won't hold.

American by birth, Marine by the grace of God
 
Glad to hear your ok, and that the truck is to badly damaged! Here is some good advise. No matter who dose the work, whether its you, the local garage or god forbid a big chain, Always carry and use a torque wrench on the lugs as soon as the vehicle is lowered or back in your possession.
 
A buddy of mine that works at a chain store recomended that I keep everything snug at 110 ft.lbs. I got lucky one night while walking back to my rig and noticed two lugs had fallen off my rear rt. tire like two days after getting my new rims put on. I tightened the survivors down and went straight to the parts store. Pissed me off a bit.

<font color=green> ABO </font color=green>
<font color=red> 88 K5<font color=blue>----</font color=blue>on 35's </font color=red>
 
I went back to the tire store this morning at 7 am to let them know what was going on. They had no explanation for what happened other than "Somebody didn't do their job and we will make sure that everything is fixed right." I couldn't count the number of apologies I got out of the guy. To me, that's not good enough, but i think it's all I can get. I hope the jerkass who didn't torque the lugs down gets fired! That would make me a little happier.

They put a new rotor on, payed for the towing and are going to buy me a new center cap and trim ring. I checked out the work and everything looks OK.

I'm never going back there.

Brian

1985 K5 Blazer
 
They should comp. your tires. Thats the least they could do. From what Vegas says (and maybe you should use this example), you could be in the right if you asked for more than an apology. By the way. ANyone know what to torque the lugs (I have a 14bolt and d60 if that makes a difference)?

chrome sucks
 
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