What do you make of this?

 

 

Some kind of strange hairy growth on my tire...

 

 

 

first thought is that tire has broken steel belts and they are sticking out of the tire.

 

if not that it looks like you ran over some wire somewhere

I would recommend new tires as soon as you can possibly afford it, those look aged, cracked, and broken. Im fairly certain that its the the steel belts broken and coming out. Likely soon to be followed by the tread itself.

 

But im wrong all the time, maybe just take it to your nearest tire shop and have them pop it off and take a look.

Edited May 8, 201510 yr by Razorthirty

Definitely pieces of the steel belt material coming out.  The tires show a weather wear pattern right at the base of the tread.  You are lucky you haven't had one blow already. 

Yo have more steel wires getting ready to break loose. This is a dangerous tire.

No steel in the tread. Unless you can find a big section of rubber that's literally peeling away from the rest of the tire, those bits of wire probably came from something else. Pull on them and see how easily they pull free.

They're stuck in there pretty tight...(just like a vinyl record jammed in a telephone pole after a tornado!)

 

Reminds me of the time the lug nuts mysteriously untightened themselves, once...

 

 

Now I'm thinking about cancerous growths on the drive belt!

 

 

 

Cheers!

 

--Damien

 

--

When the Faeries come out to play...will you know how to pray?

 

 

 

If a steel belt breaks internally on an older tire the steel can work its way into the tread and poke out.

Have a tire shop look at it.

 

To explain the safety issue better:

 

My grandfather's truck had 10+ year old tires on it and one of t hem started doing exactly as above.  To start with it was just a piece of belt sticking through.  Then it lost a "small" piece of tread.  

 

He finally asked me to take it and get tires from a place we had before, about 13 miles away.  

 

I made it the 13 miles and the tire lost a chunk of tread on the way, only to discover the place was again.

 

So turn around and go back another 15 miles to Discount Tire.........

 

I could hear and feel what was happening the whole way, but kept going hoping it would hold air and make it there..................

 

I was lucky:

 

 

Edited May 8, 201510 yr by lstevens76

Did you pull on them with pliers? Pull harder and see if they just pull out or if they get longer.

It could be that the belt has separated and the wire is working its way out a little at a time.

Those tires don't look particularly old, but belt failures can be totally random.

Tire looks like a studded snow tire. Snow tires are not made to take any kind of heat. So, maybe that has something to do with what appears to be steel belt wires poking out of the tread. Looks like plenty of tread on the tire, maybe take it back where you bought it, to see if any warranty remains on the tire.

 

I sure would not drive on that tire, but perhaps, since it appears to be a snow tire, you no longer have the tire on your car.

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tiretech/techpage.jsp?techid=11

 

My grandfather's were over 10 years old.  The tread wasn't in bad shape (still a lot on it), but the age of the tire and weathering is what did it under.

 

See if your tire has a date code.  If it doesn't it was manufactured prior to 2001.  If it does and the tire is passed 10 years old it really should be replaced.

Well yeah...I probably shouldn't be driving it in such heat.

 

I think it's on its 7th winter season...I won't know until I see the inside...but that is a pretty strange sight to me!

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tiretech/techpage.jsp?techid=11

 

My grandfather's were over 10 years old.  The tread wasn't in bad shape (still a lot on it), but the age of the tire and weathering is what did it under.

 

See if your tire has a date code.  If it doesn't it was manufactured prior to 2001.  If it does and the tire is passed 10 years old it really should be replaced.

 

By the date code then it would be a 7 year old tire....

Whatever the age, it could just in plain talk be a defective tire.  Dangerous any way you look at it.

It isn't always about age.  You have harsher winters up there than we do here I believe.  That cold weather does a number on tires, plus you've probably put twice as many miles on that car in 7 years than my grandfather put on his ranger in 13/14.  The pickup isn't his primary vehicle and he bought that truck when he was in his  70's (90 now).

Yeah...that's true...it's wetter here than out West.  So the cold cuts right to the bone.

 

 

I'm sure it has such a physiological effect on our dear cars as well.

 

 

The integrity of the tire seems fine so I'm just going to clip them hairs (so the technician won't poke his poor paws as he slam-dunks the basketball into my poor head) and put it in the the pile of 'mysteriously appearing metallic things' I keep in the ashtray.

 

 

 

Cheers!

 

--Damien

 

--

 

Gold or bismuth...who can tell?

That's a terrible idea. How did you judge the integrity of the tire, by poking it with a finger? Would you drive across a suspension bridge over a deep river if some of the cables were snapped and hanging free? Because that's exactly the situation inside the structure of your tire at this point. Sure, the bridge may hold, but what if it doesn't? Is that a risk you're willing to take, and are you also willing to take that risk when sharing the road with other innocent people you may crash into if the tire fails the rest of the way?

 

Snipping the wires off and continuing to drive is burying your head in the sand in the worst way. Be glad you spotted a warning sign, and take advantage of the chance you have to fix it now, instead of after something worse happening.

Wires coming out of your tires screams get different tires immediately. when you see wires coming out of your tread like that your not far from having the tread seperate and then your basically riding around on a balloon. usually they seperate at the worst times, and bad accidents can happen even at low speeds.

 

If you insist on running this tire at least rotate it to the passenger side rear. That way if you have a blowout it won't take out your steering or drag you into oncoming traffic

I wouldn't risk it. Good used tire sets can be found on cragslist and used tire shops for as little as $15-$20 a tire. Used shops will often mount and balance them for little to nothing.

 

Tires and brakes control the majority of the safety of the vehicle. I've seen guys who give their car nothing but Mobil 1 oil but are riding on near bald tires. It's just not worth it to risk an accident to save a little money. I get frustrated when I see people cutting corners and asking for trouble. (Not that this is aimed at you, but the principle applies) Anytime you're compromising your own safety behind the wheel, you're also compromising the safety of those around you. A blow out at the wrong time is lethal. About 10 years ago I had this happen without warning on a GMC suburban. If I didn't have both hands on the wheel at the time, the jerk would have put me and my buddy directly in the path of a semi on the highway. At it was, we doused the interior of the truck with the chocolate milk my buddy was drinking at the time and had to do a highway rim swap. But it's as much luck as anything that we weren't killed and no one was hurt.

Sorry, but I'll say it if nobody else will.  

Driving on tires which are that badly weathered and with steel sticking out of the tread is just plain stupid if not reckless.  If you can't afford tires (which I can understand), take a bus and don't put your own safety and the safety of others around you at risk.

 

Emily

Sorry, but I'll say it if nobody else will.  

Driving on tires which are that badly weathered and with steel sticking out of the tread is just plain stupid if not reckless.  If you can't afford tires (which I can understand), take a bus and don't put your own safety and the safety of others around you at risk.

 

Emily

 

It's been said a few times. Now will he listen?

Nipper,

Yeah, I just wasn't trying to be nice about it.

I'm a tire guy.. That's dangerous. See it all the time. Ends up a blow out and often de capped

Obviously, his tire is turning into a wookie  

 

All kidding aside, im no tire shop owner but I think you just may want to get that replaced. If it was just some strange road crap that had gotten embedded in your tires, it should have come out easily. And snipping it is just asking for trouble... no problem in history ever got fixed by ignoring it. I know tires are expensive but it is going to potentially cost you more in insurance, mechanical, medical and/or funeral bills if the tire fails going 65mph. No disrespect or aggression intended, im just trying to think of your safety and the safety of others 

Edited May 15, 201510 yr by Sapper 157

I hate to do the me too thing but damn man. What,if your driving next to my wife and kids when that thing blows out on the freeway?