Tire Blowout at 70 MPH

[ksurfier]

I've had trailer tire issues over the years which is similar to the rivian. When a tire maximum pressure and load rating is close to the weight of the vehicle, the margins for error are small. Just something to keep in mind.

The blow outs I have had were because of under inflation. A 50 psi tire inflated to 45 loses 10% weight rating. When the cumulative rating falls below the weight of the vehicle, they will get hot at speed and blow out. The speed rating also figures in.

The higher the pressure in the tire, the more dramatic when they let loose being 50-100% higher than most tires.

You can run tire tire at any pressure you want so long as the rim does not connect other objects and you do not overheat the tire. The key is the rated contact patch size based on deflection. As you lower the pressure, the contact patch has to get bigger to support the same weight. Ie contact patch area times psi. A big contact patch is good off-road for traction and floatation and the slow speeds won't over heat the tire from all the constant deflection.

Long and short, I got a nail in a tire the day after I picked up my R1S. Pulled it out without losing air. Recently got a screw and had to plug it. These things happen.

So you checked the tire load inflation table to validate this theory? I think I would check a faulty tpms before saying 50 psi could result in a tire failure…seems like a bit of a stretch to me…

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[HaveBlue]

So you checked the tire load inflation table to validate this theory? I think I would check a faulty tpms before saying 50 psi could result in a tire failure…seems like a bit of a stretch to me…

I made no claim that a tire failed at 50psi. I'm not sure what you are asking. As far as load rating, it is a very simple calculation. Just look up the max psi rating of a tire and then hunt a bit for the contact patch area. It's usually somewhere in the specs. Simply multiply the two and you will magically get the load capacity in lb. Sq in times psi. Multiply by the number of tires and you get gcvw rating.

 

[Phatman113]

I don't believe tires are part of the warranty especially at 7500 miles. Road hazards destroy tires. I would gladly pay for tire protection with Rivian so anything like this they replace it for free but it doesn't exist yet from them directly.

I hit something on my tire and it quickly deflated, using the patch kit and compressor to get home and have home service replace the tire.

Discount Tire sells the OEM tires (at least the Scorpion 20"s) and you can purchase a "certificate" from them. It's essentially a warranty against anything except treadwear...

 

[TollKeeper]

Unfortunately any tire damage/issues are not warranty. Even the original set of tires doesn’t usually carry a tire mileage warranty. Crazy but true.

Partially true.. You can buy the warranty at Discount Tire.. Wish I had...

 

[Zoidz]

The most likely answer for the failure is that you hit something that caused tire RUD (Rapid Unplanned Disassembly). Don't get sucked into WAG conjecture that yourt tire pressure was 2 psi low. Recommended tire pressure factors with GVWR. From your description, you were nowhere near GVWR so being low one or two pounds is simply not a factor.

 

[RivianRunner]

The most likely answer for the failure is that you hit something that caused tire RUD (Rapid Unplanned Disassembly). Don't get sucked into WAG conjecture that yourt tire pressure was 2 psi low. Recommended tire pressure factors with GVWR. From your description, you were nowhere near GVWR so being low one or two pounds is simply not a factor.

The OP was pretty clear that no objects were hit. That said, roads are not always perfect, even expansion joints can cause tire heat to rise above what it would be on a smoother surface.

I'm confident that if people knew the actual pavement temperature, the actual travel speed in the minutes leading up to the blowout, the weight of all the people and cargo (including any accessories), the actual cold inflation pressure and the ambient temperature, it would be abundantly clear this was a heat related blowout that could have been prevented by slower speeds, cooler road surface, lighter loads, or higher air pressure in the tires.

And the tire was probably sub-optimal in terms of actual manufacture. That doesn't mean it was destined to blow out, it means it was more susceptible to blowout compared to the tires that didn't blow out.

 

[ksurfier]

I made no claim that a tire failed at 50psi. I'm not sure what you are asking. As far as load rating, it is a very simple calculation. Just look up the max psi rating of a tire and then hunt a bit for the contact patch area. It's usually somewhere in the specs. Simply multiply the two and you will magically get the load capacity in lb. Sq in times psi. Multiply by the number of tires and you get gcvw rating.

Max load rating and max psi are not related. Usually max load is achieved at ~88% of max psi…

 

[RoverZac]

I had one blow out like that at about 8-9k miles. Discount tire bought it from me under a warranty that Pirelli puts on ALL it's tires, pro-rata for the mileage.

 

[Oldsmobile_Mike]

Glad everyone is safe! I don't think the factory warranty covers tire blowouts, but I could be wrong. I'd second buying the "Road Hazard" warranty from Discount Tire, or where ever you buy your next set.

 

[downranger12]

I check my tire pressure via the dash weekly, usually about a mile or so from my house. With the record heat we've been having, those pressures will creep up...especially on black asphalt roads in the direct sun.

Most of the time you see flats in the rear tires as the the fronts will run (over a nail or screw for example) and cause it to spin up on hit head, where it's aimed almost prefect for the rear tire to run over it and puncture it. Given the load and the heat in the tire, and if said nail hit in the sidewall, it may have been too much.

This is just arm-chair quarterbacking, but could be one possibility. The key is no one was hurt and you had a spare so it only took an hour of your time to get fixed.

I don't know who you are or how you came to that hypothisis, but I had that happen to me, two days ago, while drivng my spare truck on a 500 mile haul.
The Frontier was wearing new Scorpion ATS+ tires whch I love. My Red Canyon stayed home because the trip was mostly at night and into sparse Minnesota charger territory.
Now there are at least two of us believing your explanation.

 

[wicked2112]

Glad you are all ok. I have blown out two of the P-Zero 22's, and there was no warranty assistance. Spent on 1K in new tires and have since switched to Michelin's and LOVE THEM!! Cost, ride, etc!!!

 

[jb0063]

Being the pressure that our tires are on, hitting anything bigger than a nail can produce this.. I hit a scrap piece of metal doing 60 and the decompression was insanely fast. Good thing you have a spare!

Same. After circling back, I saw I ran over a sharp piece of metal sewer pipe sticking out of the roadway about an inch. It didn't immediately puncture the tire but made a 1.5 inch slit in the tread. When I hit the accelerator at the next traffic light, the tire immediately blew out with a BANG! and went from 52 psi to 0 psi in about 2 seconds.

 

[ksurfier]

Wow - I’d almost say there is an epidemic of pirelli blowouts…I guess I can add one more reason to avoid pirelli tires going forward…list is very very looooooooong

 

[NY_Rob]

The OEM tires that were supplied by Rivian only have a manufacturers warranty for "manufacturing defects". No warranty for road hazard or tread wear on the OEM tires period. You can call Pirelli USA and confirm this statement.. make sure you specify that you are referring to the OEM tires that came with the vehicle from the factory, not aftermarket tires purchased through Tire Rack or America's Tire, etc..

 

[Der]

Left Atlanta in late June for Maine, everything went great on the ride up north. Charging was super easy all the way and my truck performed beautifully. Ten days later on the way home I had a sudden right rear tire blowout on I-81, which was startling and a bit scary. My wife had insisted on buying a spare tire prior to the trip so naturally I thanked her profusely and the n changed the tire. Relatively easy.
The tires only had 7800 miles on them and I didn’t hit anything damaging. The incident recorder caught the whole thing. I’ve got a SC appt in a coupe days to have the tire assessed and the others rotated. I’m expecting to realize some sort of warranty action. I’ll post an update

UPDATE: After waiting at the ATL SC for 3.5 hrs, I got my truck back with a new free 21” Pirelli. They said they considered it a defective tire. I paid $60 for the tire rotation and that’s all. Pretty pleased with Rivian.

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