Re: IML: Old Cars, Old Tars

[dardal@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx]

I had a similar experience in my 68 Sedan.  I was cruising about 75-80 at the
time, and the tire "rolled" the inner fended a buch.  About half was gone.  I
have a new pannel, I have yet to install it.

In my case, the tire was a Cooper 235/70R15, and it was fairly new.  I got
Cooper to pay for the new pannel.  The tire damage in my case was separation,
which was most likely due to heat damage due to speeds above the speed ratings
of the tire (I did not tell that to the Cooper guys).  In my case, the lesson
is: do not drive fast in the middle of a summer afternoon.  Also, in my case,
the signs of a separated tire (the vibration described below, as well as some
rythmic "up and down" at speeds as low as 35 mph), and I made the mistake to
ignore it.  Also, the failure was dramatic vibrating violently the whole car
(not many cars can withstand that much impact).  I had to jack the car up and
unbolt the dender well before I can continue driving.  I cut the damaged part
of the pannel and reinstalled it.  

A similar failure had happened on a rear tire of the same car about the same
time period, but the tire did less damage, even though the failure occured at
high speed (a little above the speed rating of the tire!). 

In both cases, the tires held air.

I think that the design of the inner fender well of the 67-68 Imps is
particularly venerable.  Many times I have considered the option of installing
a thick piece of metal right at the edge of the inner fender to prevent the
sheet metal from folding.  I was even considering installing a sharp edge to
cut off the separating tread before it unwinds itself from the tire. 

D^2

Quoting Mark McDonald <tomswift@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>:

> No, this was "Holy &*%#!!! Grab something and hold on, we're about to 
> die!"  That kind of thing.  The tire actually took the liner of the 
> wheel well and unpeeled about 6 inches of it from the wheelwell.
> 
> Anyway, prepared as I was, I limped off the roadway and no one was 
> hurt.  Eventually I made it to Anniston.  The last time something like 
> this happened to me was in my '68 convertible, and I have compiled this 
> list of contributing factors:
> 
> 1.  The tires were at least 10 years old
> 2.  They looked fine (means nothing)
> 3.  The car had sat for at least 3 months
> 4.  The tires were underinflated (one was at 24 psi)
> 5.  I inflated them to 35 psi before the trip
> 6.  I was doing highway speeds for an extended period of time
> 7.  Prior to the blow-out the car started to shake as if going over a 
> washboard surface, even though the highway was smooth
> 
> So my advice to all you Imperial owners out there is, don't let your 
> car sit in one place, and DON'T expect old tires to get up and do the 
> work of new tires after they've been sat around in the garage for a 
> long time!  And also, if you have a major blow-out, just relax and 
> gently guide the car over.  They're harder to steer but not impossible.
> 
> Hey, good luck & enjoy!
> 
> Mark M
> 
> 
> 
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