Rear wheel fell off while towing motorcycle trailer

[grizzstang]

Monthly checking of the wheel nuts seems like overkill to me, I can't say that a properly torqued wheel nut has ever loosened off on me. I would definitely check something I just bought or anytime someone other than me takes the wheels off but not everyone has the knowhow or the tools to do the job right. For those that don't find a good mechanic. It could have been worse, lesson learned, fix it up and move on.

 

[erictomlin]

Lmao you his dad? Nice scolding. I aspire to be perfect like you one day

HAHAHA! I was thinking the same thing ("Thanks, dad") as I was reading my scolding. I'm about to be 50 and have 3 boys all in their 20s, and that sounded exactly like a rant I would give to one of them.

 

[22hemi13]

HAHAHA! I was thinking the same thing ("Thanks, dad") as I was reading my scolding. I'm about to be 50 and have 3 boys all in their 20s, and that sounded exactly like a rant I would give to one of them.

View attachment 174552

Lol. Some people are just better than others and they must let you know

 

[crackerjack1957]

Racing blood makes ya inspect more often.....LoL

 

[McBroom]

Here's a better picture of the inside of the wheel...

View attachment 174494

Looks like what happened was when the wheel came off it stayed in the wheel well and the brake hub was holding it up. The final sway of the trailer kicked the wheel off n into traffic. Some of the studs appear to be stripped off. Meaning that they were loosened up and they came off at various times when the wheel departed it broke the last remaining studs and lugnuts.
My best guess is that someone mistook your truck for someone else’s that they had a grievance with and loosened the lugnuts as retaliation.
Sorry it happened to you and I hope the person who did this enjoys HELL when they get there.



- The Blue Mule

 

[michael harpe]

I’m guilty of not checking **** periodically and relying on sensors. And I was a mechanic in the army. However since I’ll be getting my lift installed next month, I’ll be on a 3,000 mile torque schedule from now on. Unfortunately they don’t teach **** like this to people anymore. But I’m in need of said scolding from time to time. I did torque my lugs this month when I attempted to put my lift on and realized I was in over my head. And guess what, when I took the wheels off, the locknuts the dealer put on were looser than all the other lug nuts.


Sent from an undisclosed location in Iraq

 

[Wild one]

HAHAHA! I was thinking the same thing ("Thanks, dad") as I was reading my scolding. I'm about to be 50 and have 3 boys all in their 20s, and that sounded exactly like a rant I would give to one of them.

View attachment 174552

LOL some good answers here,hope a few of you guys learned you should be regularly checking the wheel nut torque,as aluminium rims are notorious for loosening off,because of their expansion/contraction factor.You always want to check an aluminium wheel when it's cold ,ie: in the morning before you drive it. I've personally seen the killer damage a flying wheel can do,and at 58 ,I have no patience anymore for anyone who doesn't do the obvious vehicle checks on a used vehicle when they buy one,and at 50 with 3 boys,you should of known to check the wheelnuts,lol.BTW that wheel didn't just get loose and fall off in the last 10 ft of your drive,to cause the damage it did,it was wobbling and chewing out the holes for several miles/maybe even days,and odds are it would of been noticeable in the rearview mirrors if you'd glanced in them and looked down at the tire.Some of the wheel nuts call for 130 lb-ft,some of them call for 120 lb-ft,either way if you've got them torqued to a mininium of 120 lb-ft you'll be good to go.I'm guessing if you have a Harley on a trailer,you probably own a decent torque wrench,lol.BTW teach your boys to check the wheelnuts on their vehicles on a regular basis,so they don't learn the hard way,like Dad,lol

 

[buddy guy]

My son just learned how to change a tire at 22..Easy there, grandpa!

 

[Wild one]

My son just learned how to change a tire at 22..Easy there, grandpa!

You're slipping Terry,my kid could change tires and do oil changes by the time he was 14,i made a point of teaching him young,and while he'd still listen to the old man,if you start when they're older,they don't listen to the old man,they know everything by then,lol

 

[buddy guy]

my son at 14 barely knew what a car was. zero interest. my dad had none either. i did, son doesn't. Now, he can run circles around the old man on video games!

 

[Wild one]

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my son at 14 barely knew what a car was. zero interest. my dad had none either. i did, son doesn't. Now, he can run circles around the old man on video games!

I had zero interest in most school subjects but still had to learn them,pretty lame excuse for not teaching him the basics in life and how to get along once he moves out,that's the teachers fault "Dad",lol.

 

[buddy guy]

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I had zero interest in most school subjects but still had to learn them,pretty lame excuse for not teaching him the basics in life and how to get along once he moves out,that's the teachers fault "Dad",lol.

I couldn't/wouldn't force him to do anything he didn't want to. Went through that **** with my dad and we had a poor relationship for too many years. Life is too short. My Dad is 85 and 10 hours away. I can count on one hand how many more times I will see him before he's gone and wish our relationship had been better when it wasn't.

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[Wild one]

I couldn't/wouldn't force him to do anything he didn't want to. Went through that **** with my dad and we had a poor relationship for too many years. Life is too short. My Dad is 85 and 10 hours away. I can count on one hand how many more times I will see him before he's gone and wish our relationship had been better when it wasn't.

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But throwing a kid out in the real world with-out the basic skills to get along in life is okay???. Sorry we're going to have to agree to disagree on that ideology Terry,that one I totally disagree on.No matter the relationship,they still need basic life skills to survive on their own.

 

[buddy guy]

But throwing a kid out in the real world with-out the basic skills to get along in life is okay???. Sorry we're going to have to agree to disagree on that ideology Terry,that one I totally disagree on.No matter the relationship,they still need basic life skills to survive on their own.

Nope. I'm teaching him as fast as he is willing to take them in. Lol. He still lives with his mom if that helps understand him at all. Lol

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[buddy guy]

But throwing a kid out in the real world with-out the basic skills to get along in life is okay???. Sorry we're going to have to agree to disagree on that ideology Terry,that one I totally disagree on.No matter the relationship,they still need basic life skills to survive on their own.

And i'm ok to disagree!

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[Whitd5]

I feel like we aren’t talking about lug-nuts anymore.

 

[buddy guy]

lol, yeah it went off the rails! back to topic!

 

[McBroom]

Let’s get back on topic PLEASE
We all know everyone has their own way of raising curtain climbers. Given our own experiences and doing the best we each can with the circumstances we were dealt.
Added: 3 grandkids in the oven. The done button is close on the 1st one
Boy
Boy
???


- The Blue Mule

 

[tap4154]

I’m not as knowledgeable as some have said in regards to the axle recall, however I do know that aluminum wheels tend to occasionally loosen the lug nuts, this is amplified by any towing. I found this out the hard way as well....since that problem many years ago I make it a point to check daily if hauling heavy, weekly if hauling light, monthly regardless and anytime that I feel like something is off....I’ve pulled up to Home Depot with that feeling and pulled out my lug wrench to check! Lol glad everyone is ok, hope you find a definitive answer good luck.


2018 Ram 2500 Tradesman
6.7L, G56

Aluminum expands more under high temps than steel and cast iron, so you'll have a much more stable situation using steel wheels with steel lugs and nuts. Perhaps the nuts were loosening a bit over time, then the extra hot day with the stress of the trailer set the failure in motion? Glad no one was hurt!

 

[turkeybird56]

my son at 14 barely knew what a car was. zero interest. my dad had none either. i did, son doesn't. Now, he can run circles around the old man on video games!

I quit on video games.... No way, heck, my grandson leave me "standing" still, so I just know better. Stick to things I can do like Hossies, MC, stuff like that. Kids now want nothing to do with board games and such, EVERYTHING Gotta be on dat Device, grrrrrrrr. I always enjoyed a good game of checkers, chess, monopoly, or decent game of cards.


TOPIC: Since I got stock wheels, I always check torque after dealer changes/rotates tires. Another thing to check besides lugs is valve stems: I recently had my front MC tire changed and they put on new valve, old one rotted . My cousin other day had a tire go down on her Harley, Cause = dry rotted valve (good thing she rides a Frankenstein trike ). Something else to check once in a while..