Flat tire

Bummer, Henri! Sidewall deformation like that sounds like a defective tire. Good Luck!

Nabisco lol

 

"Nabisco?" relative of yours? @bisco?

 

Sorry to hear about your troubles:

Tire Rack shows them as: Toyo NanoEnergy A29 | P195/65R15

Size: P195/65R15
Serv. Desc: 89S - load 1279 lbs, 112 mph
UTQG: 300 A B - Tread wear 300, traction A, temperature B maximum temp speeds 100-115 mph​

If I remember correctly, your area had a recent heatwave, +100F, which on the road would be even hotter. That might explain the bubbles.

Because I'm curious:

• tire pressures?
• tread depth rear tires going inside to out?
• was it a rear tire?

I'm seeing a problem with excessive negative camber on the rear wheels and you data can help confirm what I'm seeing.

Thanks,
Bob Wilson

 

my north american cousin.

 

I see what you did there

 

Did you get pictures?

 

Seriously thinking to buy one spare pre-owned 15x6 prius wheel/tire.

 

How long is "2 blocks?" I think driving as far as I think that might be will ruin any flat tire, even at 7 mph.

 

I went to eBay found some Toyota spare donut will cost $100. However a pre-owned Prius 15x6 wheel/tire costs about the same. Since I have AAA 100 miles free towing. I am thinking to get a pre-owned Prius wheel/tire leave it in my garage if I get a flat I will just call AAA and tow it back to my house then replace with a pre-owned spare tire. Which will give me more time to deal with the flat.

 

That's unfortunately very bad timing. Good strategy tho.

 

Toyo's. Ugh! Don't get me started. Oh, you just did.
I have some history with Toyo garbage tires, and in a week I'll know if I'm about to have another round of history with them again. Two unrepairable stupid flats in the first 6K miles. Happiest day of ownership was tossing the Toyo Proxes' and placing a new set of Bridgestone Ecopias on the Gen3. Quieter, more reliable and the handling went way up.

 

I never purchase extra warranties and coverage, but on my car, I did purchase road hazzard for the tires. Good thing, cause a couple of months later, I got my first flat in years. Needed to be towed to the dealer and replaced, which took over 24 hours. Total waste of time and lost wages based on the inability to find a way to include a simple spare.

 

Thank you even though it was an unplanned experimental result:

#1 - Consistent with the excessive negative camber seen on my Prius Prime Plus.
#2 - Mileage is consistent with a failure due to heat stress.
#3 - I have since my earliest Prius studies not trusted the Toyota tire pressure, too d*mn low.
#4 - Understood about the stress of the situation. I suspect the failed case was retained for disposal.
#5 - The "bubbles" are the problem and they can exist before failure. I had one such tire that was giving a distinct 'thump thump' so I stopped and saw the bulge.​

I would be interested in a photo of the treads and/or close inspection by a non-Toyota, tire expert of the OEM tire treads. In particular, measurement of the tread depth (actually the groove depth) across all treads of the remaining OEM tires. A good read on the subject:
Tire Tech Information - Sidewall Separations / Bubbles

One reason why the passenger side makes sense is I still have an excessive, negative camber on the passenger side front. If the Toyota tire rotation occurred, the front and rear would have been swapped on the 5,000 mile inspection. A previously weakened tire would have gone on the rear. BTW, heat stress on a tire is cumulative.

I had heard news reports of a recent heat wave in California that hit Arizona especially hard. So I checked:

Also temperatures at Fullerton:


Warmer than normal, yes, but not excessive. If there were recent history of driving in 100F (38C) at speeds above 70 mph, such events could have have weakened the tires leading to bulges.

A prudent man might inspect the tires early, especially the insides, to look for bulges. Then move the car to rotate the tires 120 degrees and check again. Finally another 120 degrees (looking at 1/3d each time) to again see if there are any inner bulges. In my case, I would probably feel each tire as some defects are not immediately visible but the fingers can find them.

As for myself, I've had both rear tires off and they showed no evidence of bulges but then I'm a little anal about the wheels and tires. We haven't had the typical Alabama summer heat, yet, and no appreciable high-speed driving of the Prius Prime. But I do not like the initial tire tread temperature distribution:
Prius Prime Plus in my hands | Page 22 | PriusChat

RECOMMENDATION

Before buying, get a full-size, 15" Prius wheel or alloy equivalent (I paid $75 for mine.) Shop for the tire you prefer making sure it has "A" temperature rating, the highest. (NOTE: I don't argue brands or sizes because I use science(*)). Go to the tire dealer and tell them:

• These four wheels with tire pressure sensors get the new tires.
• Take the Bridgestone off and put it on my new full-size, spare wheel.

Have them give you a printed wheel alignment chart or if they claim the printer is broken, insist on taking a photo. Share the photo with us.

Finally, borrow their air hose and fully inflate the tires. Take them for a test loop and notice the ride seems harsh and note the handing when you stop. Use your tire pressure gauge to take 5 psi out and repeat the test loop. Continue until you reach the door jam pressure. Look over your notes and re-inflate the tires to 2 psi over the highest you felt comfortable with. Re-inflate every 2-3 months.

Bob Wilson

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