DW took her car into the body shop this morning...again...rear ended in the rain while stopped at a light...drivers in this town are terrible, but I digress....So she gets a min-van rental from one of the biggest car rental companies. Lunchtime, she says "the TPMS indicator is on, one of the tires is probably low, can you put some air in? I figure sure, easy enough. Pull it in the garage, and check the door jamb...36 psi called for at each corner. (Impressive 6100 lb GVWR too...)So I grab the gauge and hit the LF...57psi :E 21 pounds over!! Must be a fluke, so I check the LR...55psi :E Then on to the RR...53psi :E Finally on to the RF which is at 19psi and has a nail in it...easy enough to get to, so I was able to plug it right on the car. All tires at 36 psi and the flat fixed. Seriously, for the life of me I can't figure out why they overinflated the tires by 20 psi...no telling how long they have been like that either...is there a point where a tire could blow from being OVER inflated??

Did you adjust them all to 36? Probably a previous renter overinflated them thinking the fuel mileage would improve.

Yes, set them all to 36 and plugged the flat.

Probably someone with no gauge, or did not take the time to find it. Yep, that looks about right.

I've seen some of the new tires show 44 all the way up to 60 PSI as Maximum. Maybe the rental comapany went by the sidewall. I just had two Michelins put on my Toyota Avalon and they have a max of 44PSI on the sidewall

Can a tire explode from Over-inflation? | Good Sam Community

25 Replies

Francesca_Knowl
Explorer
Oct 26, 2014
BurbMan wrote:
I am certainly not going to tell them I plugged the tire...so not sure how they could attach liability to me. Not to mention the fact that I am confident in my work, so I don't think there would be an issue to start with. If anything I mitigated liability by setting the tires pressures to what they should have been.

May I suggest that you ought to tell them? I think they have a right to know, especially if the repair consisted only of a plug. Since you say you patched the tire right on the car, is it fair to assume that a plug-from-the-exterior is what the repair consits of? I think that's considered sufficient for a temporary repair, but it's my understanding that the correct permanent solution is plug AND patch from the tire interior.
chevor
Explorer
Oct 26, 2014
I like my TST tire monitor system. I can see not only tire psi but temperature while traveling. Tires at 75 psi cold in the morning before moving will be 90 psi and at temps 90 to 110 degrees while traveling. They will vary with deferences depending on outside weather, day and night.
Typically a higher starting cold pressure with cause the tire to vary less while traveling.
Jarlaxle
Explorer II
Oct 26, 2014
transamz9 wrote:
You guys that are plugging your tires from the outside do know that when you do this to a speed rated tire that you no longer have a speed rated tire right? This is why you have spares. Take the tire to a shop that properly repairs the tires from the inside. ;)

BenK, I did the split rims when I worked for Goodyear. Loaded fire trucks are the worse there is. LOL

Don't imagine an 11.00-24 on an elderly Mack concrete mixer is much fun, either!
JIMNLIN
Explorer III
Oct 23, 2014
This from Tireman9 tire blog (Roger Marble...rvtiresafety.com)

"Tire Maximum Pressure
Many times people incorrectly think the pressure molded on the tire sidewall to be the maximum tire pressure a tire can tolerate, when in reality you should consider it the minimum pressure needed to carry the load indicated
Tire companies design and test their tires to tolerate pressures much higher than the number molded on the sidewall. For regular passenger tires it is probably close to or above 150psi. Light truck tires will probably be a bit higher and truck tires higher yet. In almost all cases I am aware of, there is a good possibility that the wheel might fail from high pressure before the tire simply explodes from high pressure."

Interesting......
p220sigman
Explorer
Oct 22, 2014
YOu likely couldn't get enough pressure in to physically blow up the tire with a consumer air compressor and as has been said, the bead will likely go before the tire itself.

I saw a split rim let go at a tire store when I was getting work done on a company car. Fortunately, they were inflating in a steel cage so no damage to people, but the tire jockey had somehow run the air hose between one of the steel bars and the tire and when it let go, it severed the hose just like it had been cut with a knife.
BurbMan
Explorer II
Oct 22, 2014
majorgator wrote:
I'm still trying to figure why you're plugging a rental vehicle tire...?? Sure, its simple enough, but this little word called "liability" comes to mind.

Time is money...she is a realtor and had places to be other than waiting at the rental co for them to plug a tire. Van has 26k miles on it, I am certainly not going to tell them I plugged the tire...so not sure how they could attach liability to me. Not to mention the fact that I am confident in my work, so I don't think there would be an issue to start with. If anything I mitigated liability by setting the tires pressures to what they should have been.

DW drove the van about 3 miles back to the house and it was parked before I got to it at noon, so tires were cool. Sidewall says 44 psi MAX, so clearly somebody wasn't paying attention.

T&P thanks for the info, I wasn't sure what the "limit" was for inflating a tire before it went BOOM.
Turtle_n_Peeps
Explorer
Oct 22, 2014
No, not under normal conditions and pressures.
transamz9
Explorer
Oct 22, 2014
You guys that are plugging your tires from the outside do know that when you do this to a speed rated tire that you no longer have a speed rated tire right? This is why you have spares. Take the tire to a shop that properly repairs the tires from the inside. ;)

BenK, I did the split rims when I worked for Goodyear. Loaded fire trucks are the worse there is. LOL
BenK
Explorer
Oct 21, 2014
Rare, but it can happen....depends on lots of conditions

Worked as a tire monkey through college

Owner wouldn't let me work on split rim...too dangerous and his shop did have guy go to the hospital from a split rim letting go

I was in the show room showing a customer another set of tires after finding out his truck required LT's and the sales Guy sold him P's

One of the other guys was working on another customers about five bays away...setting a bead had that P class tire blow up...the front bay window almost blew out...the guy on the tire stand was knocked out...
RoyJ
Explorer
Oct 21, 2014
To actually burst a tire from pressure alone, would take tremendous pressure. Stunt drivers that balance a car on 2 wheels routinely pump 100+ psi into P-rated tires.

I've read about tests on commercial (110psi) tires, and it took well over 500 psi before busting. However, you're likely to experience rim damage before that.

I'd be more worried about uneven treadwear, and lack of traction than tire burst. Most tire failures occur due to heat - either by an overloaded Explorer running 15 psi, or a Corvette doing sustained 180 mph on old tires.