Bulging Tires

[kestrel]

hey, anyone out there ever had a problem with repeated bubbled/bulging tires? some months ago i bought a set of 4x4 steel rims and had them shipped from eastern washington. they were a bit rusted, so i had them sandblasted and powder-coated. they were checked for trueness. i had new the tires that i had recently purchased removed from my old rims and put on the new ones. a couple of months later, they developed some baseball sized bulges on the inside tires (see pics). i took them back and the tire store replaced them as defective with a brand new set of tires, though a different brand entirely. fast forward a couple hundred miles down the road and they are starting to bubble again. seems it's either the rims or how the shop is installing them, as those are the only two common factors in each of the new sets. anyone else ever have this problem? btw, this time, the bubbles are on the outside and, no, i haven't hit any curbs, i have not been towing or loading, and the rims aren't even scratched. all thoughts welcome.


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[ratatouille]

man that looks sketch. I had this once on a trailer tire after I had new tires put on. Took it back in and they told me it could have happened from over inflation and/or defect. I'd check the tire pressure at least and head back to the tire store.

What tires are you running on? I was just calling around locally to get new ones. I may stay away from these if they have history of defect.

[kestrel]

well, as i mentioned, this occurred on two sets of totally different tire brands...hankook and i'm forgetting the others at the moment. they hadn't been inflated AT ALL after installation. the tire store inflated them to (presumably correct) on both occasions.

[Burntboot]

I'd start with going back to the shop and see what they have to say.
It's been awhile but IIRC, a defect shows as a football shape (the plies separate) impacts usually shows are a roundish bubble, a result of the air leaking into the casing from damage to the inner skin, though a ripped bead can manifest in several ways.

The only surefire way to mount tires on the factory 14's (without damaging the tire) is to flip the rim upside-down before mounting the tire.
The shallow dish on the outboard side of the rim makes it hard to get sufficient flex when installing the 2nd bead, flipping it over gives you the full range of the deep inner dish to articulate the tire without over-stretching the top bead.

I would want to be present during the dismount, a ripped bead is installer error and not a manufacturers issue (not warrantable) and will be an out of pocket expense for the shop (not something they are fond of).

If they claim it to be impact damage, they should be able to show you the starburst bruise where the impact to the inner skin occurred.

One further issue with the 14's is a lack of decent selection, most have substandard sidewall ratings and are little more than "economy" passenger car tires.
Try to find something with either a truck rating (27x8.5) or a speed rating (H or better). Speed ratings are attained by beefing up the sidewall which reduces the likelihood of the tire deforming at speed (the higher the speed rating, the stiffer the sidewall)

Good luck
BB

[kestrel]

thanks, bb. are your instructions specific/special to these rims/van/tires? you'd think a specialty tire shop would know a standard tire install, no?

[timsrv]

I've had this problem before. It's a defect in the tire. Don't be so sure they are different brands. It's a common practice for a single tire manufacturer to market tires under several brand names.........sometimes even the with no changes (other than the name). Most of the tire shops know more about this than I do........I'd ask them. Regardless, all the reputable shops have road hazard warranties for the life of the tire. Typically these warranties are pro-rated based on tread wear. If you have a choice, don't settle for the cheapest tires. This is a good place to splurge a little and go for some overkill. I always choose the highest weight rating available. Hankook RA8's are a good choice for the van. What model/size are you having these issues with? Tim

[Burntboot]

It's fairly specific to these rims.
It's also really easy to forget about, even when you know about it, just ask my LR snow tire.
Not saying it's your issue, just another possibility.

Back when I went to tire school, defects were pretty rare, but I suspect that with current manufacturing trends they are likely more common than ever.
I am sure your local retailer can sort things out for you.

You americans get all the perks, we haven't had RH coverage in years.
BB

[timsrv]

Sounds like Canada doesn't have any "reputable" tire shops then :doh:.

[Burntboot]

Or maybe I just shop at the wrong places?
After a quick search, turns out it is still offered at some places, mostly the larger chains (Costco, wallytown, CTC and a couple of others)
Usually it is an extra cost option but in a few cases, included with the cost of purchase.

Being the AR type that I am, I like to do my own installs and usually don't deal with big chain stores, so I am out of luck on both counts.
BB

[ratatouille]

1550

Heres a picture of the tire I just took off my van. Bulgin'... I had a slight steering wheel shake develop over the past month. I knew my tires were over due. About three days ago I was out of town, and as I was on my way back it got really bad. The more I drove the worse it got. Can't see it too well but, it's pretty dang cracked too. Border line blooow out.

Just ordered a set of General Grabber at2's 27 x 8.5 14" through Americas Tire for 110 a pop. I was told these were the only AT in 14" they could get. They also told me they wouldn't mount them if the rim was not wide enough. The rim has to be at least 6" wide. They said for safety reasons they won't stretch the bead. Maybe that's what happened to kestrel?...

Anyone know if the stock rims ( I thiiiiink thats what I'm running on?) are wider than 6 inches?

[timsrv]

Stock rims are 5 1/2" wide. If you check out the specs on the General Grabbers they say rim size can be 6" - 7 1/2". Technically our rims are too small, but I can't see 1/2" being such a big deal. Lots of vans are running these tires on stock rims. If they won't mount them, then I'd go someplace else. Tim

[TheMAN]

the bulges happen due to broken tire chords inside.... definitely replace them ASAP! highway blowouts happen due to this!

an under inflated or overloaded tire will do this, same with hitting a curb/big pot hole

[ratatouille]

Anyone else have issues with the General Grabber AT2's? I'm about to head back to the store right now with a gold ball sized bulging side wall on drivers side front tire. I just purchased 2 new ones about 1 1/2 months ago because I had to pull over one night with a bad flat on the same location (wonder if coincidence..hmm). Upon inspection of that tire it had a split from the shoulder into the side wall. I had that one on the van for about a year with still plenty of tread/life left. Would like to know if anyone else out there has had issues too???!!

[originalkwyjibo]

Make sure you're not getting old tires. This is effectively an obsolete size so it's possible there are older tires laying around the warehouses. If you're not familiar with tire date codes have a look here: http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tiretech/techpage.jsp?gclid=CMXzxJ_r8c4CFYF-fgod98cAuA&techid=11&s_kwcid=AL!3756!3!72454642093!e!!g!!tire%20date%20 code&ef_id=VnDJmAAABFMWJ2-X:20160902232933:s

[ratatouille]

Thanks OG. I'll be sure to check the dates, that's good to know. I've been going through Americas Tire Store. Luckily the guy at the shop yesterday ordered a new one w/o hassle to replace the defective one. It is weird though this has happened on the same drivers side front tire...:cnfsd:

[ratatouille]

As I was driving out of state I had a rear tire blow to bits. By the time I could get to the shoulder I was on rim and tire was so shredded I couldn't tell why it happened. This is a different tire then the one they just replaced or the other ones I had issues with. Still had plenty of tread and almost a year old....I'm really starting to question if these at2's are to blame and the way they are stretched a little to fit the stock rim size. Or have I just had a really bad run of luck.....

If I'm reading the dates right they look like new tires made in 2016...