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Brand New Tire Blow Out - Hot Rim

2K views 30 replies 22 participants last post by  Pigeon Roost 
#1 ·
I blew out an almost brand new tire yesterday on average ride I've done plenty of times before. Tire had less than 1000 miles on it. The rim and tire were extremely hot. My first guess is that the brake caliper did not open fully and the brakes were slightly engaged which caused the rim to heat up and eventually blow the tire. When I first got the bike I know for a fact the rear caliper locked up once but it loosened after I pulled over. That time I could definitely feel the brakes were engaged but this time I did not really notice the same amount of breaking pressure. I got the bike a few months ago with 607 miles on the odometer after it was sitting in a garage for 17 years. Upon getting the bike I had the brake and clutch fluids flushed, new tires put on, new battery, air filter, etc.

Any ideas on what could cause this? Anyone had this happen to them? If not the brake caliper what else could cause the rim/tire to get so hot?
 
#2 ·
After 17 years of inactivity, just flushing the brake fluid won't do anything for the deteriorated brake pistons and their rubber O rings.
You likely need a complete front and rear brake rebuild.
BTW, there are recalls regarding the brakes from Honda, as well as a frame recall for cracking.
Do yourself a favour and get those done first.
 
#4 ·
Was the brake rotor hot too? I'd be leaning more toward the tire being low on air pressure and the flex causing the heat of the tire and rim.

Listen to bigbird1 and definitely get the recalls done. If it's been sitting for 17 years then none of them have been done.
 
#6 ·
Flat or very low pressure in the tire. That's why all the blown out chunks of tires you see all over the road. Mostly from semis, but happens on all vehicals. That's the reason most new vehicals come with tire pressure monitor systems. It's amazing how hot a flat tire gets before it blows out. Good reason and the very reason I use a runflat car rear tire.
 
#7 · (Edited)
Question.

Was your almost brand new tire the one fitted 17 years ago when it was new?

Generally tires "blow out" when they are operated with low pressure. This causes the tyre to heat up and eventually blow out. You may have seen a truck with smoke coming from a wheel set. One tire most probably has failed and got so hot it has began to burn.

If you continued to ride far enough on that blown tyre you may have been able to remove from the rim in 3 pieces.
 
#8 ·
I'm in the low/lost air pressure train of thought also. I had a (rear) brake rotor get very, very hot on my ST1300 and it didn't affect the tire or wheel temp at all.
 
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#11 ·
Agree with l the focus on low tire pressure being the probable root cause. Here's a related question. What size and spec was the tire; e.g load rating, capacity, age (can look at the coding stamped on the sidewall to read the date manufactured), widthe and profile. GL1800's are very large and heavy and require the proper tire at the proper PSI. Also, what was the rider and passenger load and speed?
 
#12 ·
There have been some recalls involving the secondary master cylinder. You may want to make sure they have been performed on your bike. I'd also check the rear brake rotor for discoloration. I've seen a few reports of rear brakes not releasing properly, so I'd want to do a thorough and complete inspection of the rear brake system, and I'd also do a complete brake fluid flush/replace.

I've seen hot brakes blow aircraft tires, it isn't that uncommon. I can't say if that is what happened on your bike, but given the past history you cite of rear brake issues, I wouldn't want to ride it again until I was fully confident that the rear brake isn't sticking.
 
#15 ·
Thanks for all the replies. A few points of clarification:

1. The tire is still in one piece but has a hole in one of the tread grooves. Not easily seen but big enough that I can hear and feel the air coming out of it as I try to fill it up so the tire does not inflate. When riding I felt a major wobble, pulled over, and saw that the tire was flat. This all happened within about 20-30 seconds.
2. The tire was a new Michelin Commander II installed a few months ago.
3. I did smell something like burnt rubber after pulling over.
4. Tire/Rim/Rotor were all very hot but the rotor was not glowing or blue.

I need to run the VIN by Honda and see if the brake recall was done. The VIN number is outside of the frame recall numbers so I think I'm good on that but do need to check if all of the other recalls were done. Since the bike was parked right after it was purchased I doubt any recalls were done.

I'm going to pull the rear caliper and check all of the rubber components in it. Lube it up (if not fully rebuild it).
 
#22 ·
I didn't know that Michelin made a Commander II in 180/60R16. That is the tire size recommended needed for the 2001 - 17 Wing.
 
#16 ·
Did you replace the valve stem as Murf asked? Valve stems Honda uses should be another recall item. Get some solid steel stems, don't use the Honda part.
Also entirely possible you just got a defective tire. Brake problems seem like a longshot at best. As to the recall, do you trust a dealer to dismantle your entire brake system, properly bleed and reassemble correctly? I don't.
 
#17 ·
Unless I missed it somewhere, what year Wing excatly is this?
Get the brake recall checked out, it may save you some work/expense as well as getting the entire system with the secondary master cylinder (front left caliper) inspected. If the secondary sticks it applies rear braking.
Seems you had a tire puncture or defective new tire.
 
#18 ·
Any ideas on what could cause this? Anyone had this happen to them? If not the brake caliper what else could cause the rim/tire to get so hot?
The most basic function of a tire is to support the weight of the vehicle. They do that by being a pneumatic air-bag. If there is not enough air in the tire to support the weight, the various layers and tread segments of a tires will start rubbing against each other, and that friction causes heat build up. It sounds like your wheel and tire got hot because of a low air pressure condition. The heat can get bad enough for the tire to catch fire. If watching Cops, I see it all the time.

Almost all flat tires I've had on my 5th gens have happened on tires that are almost new.
 
#19 ·
Also in the low air pressure camp. It's amazing how hot a low tire will get and relay that heat to the rim. I would think a stuck caliper would show as a discolored or warped rotor. If brakes were the issue..there was a recall in place for MY 10 and earlier and a fluid change would be in order.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G930A using Tapatalk
 
#20 ·
Seems most likely a simple flat tire is what caused your hot tire and rim.

But since you have also been experiencing brake problems and your bike has been sitting around unused for 17 years I highly recommend flushing the entire brake system not just once but more like 3-4 different times to hopefully get any old built up crap out of there.
 
#21 · (Edited)
I agree with Richard as to the cause being underinflation or flat.

I advise that you pay close attention to Red's advice to check the Schrader valve stems. Without the plastic retainer they fail quickly when bike is moving. Even with retainer in place the rubber deteriorates over a few years. Bolt in type are more reliable.

Brakes dragging hard enough and long enough to heat up the tire and rim; I am not buying into that because by that time the rotor and pads would be totally burned-up.

prs
 
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#23 ·
Ok. Its a small hole.
Possibly from riding over something?
I would use my puncture repair stop and go to repair the tyre.

I would also remove the brake calipers and pull them apart and give them a good clean up and service and re_assemble and remount.
Why spend the time on the caliper?
Good opportunity to flush out the brake lines as well.
I would want to know its A_OK and it will work as required.
 
#25 ·
I had a puncture on my rear tire once and it deflated fairly quickly. I also smelled hot rubber when I got to a stop but didn't check to see if the rim was hot. I was able to fix it with a plug and was on my way. I rode that tire until it wore out several thousand miles later.
 
#30 ·
The tire in question actually has a higher load index than the the stock GW size. The stock 180/60R-16 has a load index of 74 (827 lbs) and the 180/65 B-16 Commander II has a load index 81 for 1019 lbs. Still points to perhaps a slow leak that allowed you to run 65 long enough to overheat and blow the tire.

I have had a number of flats while running at speed and it's a scary thing to get the bike slowed down and off the road before total loss of control. I'm glad nothing worse happened to you. After the last flat like that I installed an aftermarket TPMS that forces me to monitor tire pressures over time and more importantly gives warnings when a tire is slowly going down on a long ride. Nothing will warn of a FOD cut or hole that happens instantly but TPMS is something I would not want to be without ever again.
 
#31 ·
Warning! If you have a flat from a small hole and find the tire/wheel really hot when you stop and inspect, you can risk an emergency repair and limp slowly back to civilization, but do not use it long term or at rated speeds. When you demount the tire you will discover the inner rubber lining has suffered and little BB sized rubber balls of slouthed off rubber are inside the tire. You will not fix a tire that has actually blown out, the tire will be split wide open.

prs
 
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