Tire Separation

Tire manufacturers have long known that a major cause of tire tread or belt separation is the design and placements of the belts and overlying tread. Common manufacturing errors are: poor adhesion of the components, improper curing temperatures, unclean manufacturing facilities, and the introduction of foreign objects into the tire’s constructions such as rust, moisture, oxidation, grease, sawdust, and other particles.

Poor adhesion is the leading cause of belt separation. Bonding metal to rubber is a difficult process; the method most often used involves plating the metal with brass and applying a rubber compound containing sulfur. If the sulfur and other compounds are not combined in the correct mixture or at the right temperature, incomplete adhesion occurs.

Another well known design defect is failure to include an extra nylon cap belt or nylon overlay to encapsulate the underlying belts and bond them to the outer core. This nylon cap belt is positioned between the top belt and the outside tire tread, thus capping the inner belts to the outer core to prevent the spread or movement to the belt edge. This extra tire safety strip or belt is a missing component in the Firestone ATX, Firestone ATX II and most of the Wilderness AT tires subject to the Firestone recall. Many other tire manufactures are also guilty of not including this safety strip in their tires.

If you believe you may have a tire separation case, contact us today for more information.