Went to Lowes today and on the way home I felt the rear of the truck lift up, like the whole rear axle was being ripped off, and looked back to see the spare tire rolling across the road. Happily I was just leaving the parking lot but it was a jarring experience. The stationary bolt let go:

You can see where there was apparently a crack as there is only a sliver of silver metal. The rack was dragging behind the truck by the end that normally drops down, held on by a padlock.

I picked up what hardware I could find. The tire sheared off two of the bolts holding the bumper on when it lifted the truck up:


Just a bit of scratched paint where the bumper was wrenched up:


All I can say is I must be living right because this would have been much more serious at freeway speeds. I'll go ahead and take the bumper off, repaint it and, before I reattach it, secure the spare with new bolts AND a cable.

 

At least the wheel on the rear end didn't come off the truck --been there, done that while I was slowing down from 60 MPH to about 45. When the left rear wheel came off, it rolled the left rear quarter panel wheel opening on my '68 Mustang. After that incident, the wheel opening on my Mustang had more of the appearance of a '57 Chevy.

Get some grade-8 bolts, washers and nuts for the bumper --maybe even for the spare tire rack as well and anti-seize the threads before you torque them down.

 

Had the left rear tire come off a 53 Chevy 1 ton I was working on. Took it out of the shop and down the street. Tire fell off half way down the block and rolled up to a neighbors front porch.

All 8 lug nuts had spun off. I picked them up 1 by 1 down the street. Luckily it did no damage to the bed or fender. Just dropped down on the drum.

Still don't know how all those nuts got loose....

 

While I was in Belize for a few months back in '89, the resort I was working at had an old Jeep Cherokee - '75 or so. A couple of us went on an errand in it, hammering up and down an unpaved mountain road in it, for a good hour or so. Coming up the drive to the resort we heard a rubbing sound so we stopped and got out. The rear passenger axle had spun out from the truck a good 18 inches or so. Apparently a retainer had failed.

Again, it could have happened while we were up on that mountain and cast us down the side. Guess I'm lucky.

 

I'm "glad" it was the spare and at low speed.

..Every year quite a few unfortunate folks get killed by errant tires.

So.. check your (lug) nuts!!!

 

It felt like this, so I can tell you that EVERY part of me was rattled loose.

 

I don't recall the member's name but he bought a relative clean bumpside which had been sitting a while. On the way home the left rear wheel and tire departed due to loose lug nuts.... and ruined the bed side.

 

^^I recall that post.

 

Looks to me like the bolt was twisted almost off for a while. Good thing you were going slow. I could have been worse.

 

Yeah. Here's the thing: I think this is my fault. The spare was hanging a little loose from that bolt. It wasn't tightened up to the frame and it was shifting and rattling, so I tightened it. This is the forward bolt, the opposite of the one you twist to drop the spare.

Anyway, I think that, because the bolt was fixed rigidly to the frame, the spare fatigued it by the natural rocking back and forth that happened when I drove the truck. In other words, I think that bolt was loose for a reason: so it could give a little and 'hold on loosely', as 38 Special put it.

What do you all think? How are the bolts done on your trucks, tight or loose?

 

Countless times I have tweaked a bolt just to have it twist off and skin my knuckles. I hate when that happens.

 

Hardware that is supposed to be torqued are torqued. Bumper bracket nuts n bolts are tight... other non-structural hardware is snug, but not gorilla tight.

Every once in a while (usually while killing time) I'll do a bumper to bumper hardware check.. a preflight if you will. Vehicles that ride "hard" tend to loosen up like my former street-legal autocrosser... the suspension was really stiff like these trucks and hardware always loosened up and needed attention.

 

Hey, that's why they pay us the big bucks, right?

True, I'm always finding loose nuts and bolts when I work on various things on the truck. I'll snug up the new hanger and try to stabilize the spare.

 

In 1965 I was towing a 56 F 100 with our wrecker when the everything came out. At least it did not hit anything or anyone.
I had to balance the tire on an angle and wrap a rag around the axle so I could roll it about a block. Then heave it into the back of the truck bed. Then go against traffic with the wrecker to pick up the rear of the truck.
I miss those days. NOT!

 

Glad everyone is OK. Sure could have been worse.