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Triumph TR6 - Flat Spot

I was out for a midnight cruise in my TR running down Hwy 22 - an unlit country highway - on a very dark moonlit nite just smoking it along at about 70 - 80 ish in sort of a religious type experience when around a corner I come and something in my subconcious makes me hammer the brakes hard and the car instantly began to skid with this monstrous wailing sound of rubber scrubbing pavement, the car going in a straight line for what seemed like hundreds of feet, leaving huge plumes of blue smoke which I could detect in the rear view.....

The ass-ends of the two deer on the left were within about two feet of my bumber as they veered out of the way at full run, the two in the middle I tagged in the back of the legs by the time the car was doing only about 40mph by but they still managed to dodge right and not become road meat, while the four deer on the right side were already running into the ditch at this point in time.

Prior to driving into the herd, I was marvelling at how smooth my new Minilites were and how there was no vibration anywhere in the drive-train at almost 80 mph - finally achieving the euphoria that a smooth running TR6 can create....but as I downshifted and accelerated away from the dumb-ass deer I noticed this ever-so-slight bumb-bumb-bump and thinking about the F1 guys and how they flat-spot their tires when they lock up the brakes...

I was back up to speed and laughing out loud at just how close a call that really was.....

JP
John Parfitt

Sounds like classic flat spotting all right. Assuming the flat isn't too big, you may be able to get it corrected by shaving the tire. You lose some tire life that way but.....

The other two options are to just live with it or pony up the brass for a new set of tires.
SteveP

John,
Allen Hendrix can true your tires for you, if you can do without them for the few days turnaround. See details at: http://www.hendrixwirewheel.com/

db
Doug Baker

John, wow!
That's too much excitment for me. I feel worse for the flat spots than I do the two deer you tagged. I guess I need to work on that. I'd say you're ready for a new set of tires, maybe your mini-lites were trying to tell you something?

Chris
c.a.e. emenhiser

Thanks for the tip Doug....that's going to be a long drive!
John Parfitt

Nahh, just UPS 'em. Allen will turn them around and get 'em right back to you.
db
Doug Baker

Ok assuming a cat has 9 lives. How many does that leave you?

I had a similar experience with a moose down near Fernie. Funny after that there was no comment when I said "we" needed new lenses for the Cibie driving lights. They are worth every penny!

Save the tires ... and the deer! Get some really good driving lights ... just in case your "Spidey Sense" misses a beat some night.

SID

Sid Turner

A Vibration free TR is Unnatural and that was Nature correcting it's self.
skikir

Sid,

Lets see:

1. I crashed a beetle into a snowbank in a Whistler Mtn snow storm. Suffered a bump on the head.

2. Had an old chevy catch on fire while I was driving it and burned to the ground after I got out. No injury

3. Dropped a Yamaha 750 at speed. No injury

4. Drove a 73 Nova off the road and down an embankement and landed on some railway tracks - due to mechanical failure - rear end locked up.

5. Rolled a Firebird and slid down the highway on the roof due to excessive speed on a rainy evening. A few bumps and bruises

6. Failed to negotiate corner and slid of road due to excessive speed and wiped out some guy's front porch with a Pontiac Lemans. No injury

6. Was a passenger in a high speed spinout on the whistler highway in a snow storm. No injury

7. Was a passenger in a car that rolled due to excessive speed. No injury

8. Collided and destroyed some guy's camper in an almost "head-on" collision while driving a pickup truck on the Yellow Head highway (clipped mirrors with the oncomming pickup truck who was towing the camper...) No injury.

9. Dumped a dirt bike while riding it on the main roads due to hitting some sand while going around a corner. Knocked unconcious.

10. Almost crashed while driving through deer herd in TR6.

I think I'v got one life remaining.......this could become a new thread entitled.."Post your best car crash stories!"




John Parfitt

John, um, we're gonna need to hold your keys for you, it's for the welfare of your tr6...
c.a.e. emenhiser

With you around I will NOT drive in Alberta.
skikir

Skikir,

But that stuff happened 20 years ago.....the roads here in Alberta are pretty safe...especially at Stampeded time when amlost all the citizens are drunk for a week!

JP
John Parfitt

This thread was discussed between 24/06/2005 and 28/06/2005

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