360' spin, I was very lucky.

[peter78]

I decided to post this in the general section as I think this could happen to any 4Runner. A good friend of mine lost his 3rd generation 4Runner years ago with the same thing that happened to me.

I was drivng down I-20 going on vacation with my 2004 4Runner. It was raining off and on and I had the cruise control on and it started to rain, I was going around 70 or so. I was in a little traffic and I decided to turn off the crusie control and just right new, I went into a little skid, I turned into it, but it just went out of control. I spinned totally out of control and went into the middle of the median. My wife was in the back and my son was up front. Right then, I felt very sorry to get my whole family in peril. And there wasn't anything I could do. I was flying sideways in the 3 foot tall grass, spinning backwards and then turning 360 degrees to the front. I was then going around 20 or 30 and I somehow had the presence to control the car and step on the gas and powered up the muddy hill and then parked the car on the side of the interstate and I put the car in park. The engine then died. I thought, wow did that just happen and why didn't we flip over.

I got out of the car to look at the damage and basically, I saw grass stuck in the tires and grass stuck in all parts of the car. I got back in the car and it started, so I drove away. When I drove away, I then notice the steering wheel was about 25' off center. This week I put on a new set of tires and got the car aligned and the steering wheel is now straight. It turned out nothing was bent in the steering column.

Here are some of my thoughts.

1.) When it starts to rain, I will slow down right away and I will turn off the crusie control.

2.) I kind of lost a little bit of faith in my 4Runner(s), I will treat them with more respect. I have have hydro-planning on cars before and I never lost it totally like that. I will drive my 4Runners a bit slower.

3.) I know the tires were a little worn, still Discount Tires said they were OK during my last rotation, I should step up have them changed quicker, especailly on my 4Runners.

4.) I was very, very lucky. I didn't hit any trees or ditch or pole. I didn't flip over. The car was checked out, nothing bent or torn up. I also feel something or some one was with us. I talked to my family and why were we so lucky, I don't have an answer.

I just wanted to post this, to show, things like this can happen in an instance. My friend who had a 3rd generation spun his car in the rain and hit the cement pilings for a bridge and totalled his car. He was OK, but his car was gone.

Here are some of my pictures. It doesn't look that bad, but those pieces of grass stuck in the tires show something bad happened.

 

[SMEE]

You should have driven straight to the casino b/c you are one lucky dog. All joking aside, we could have been reading about that in the newspaper the next day, so count your blessings.

 

[KidVermicious]

Glad to hear you and yours are ok.

If your back end kept sliding out after you turned into the skid, it sounds like your rear wheels were still powered, maybe? Is it possible your cruise control didn't disengage when you thought it did? I just bring this up as food for thought...

 

[Thai]

Wow, glad nothing bad happened, except for minor stuff on your 4runner. Did VSC come on?? You must be hydroplanning on all your wheels for you to spin that much. Those are good tires, right? Michelin Cross Terrain??

 

[kmiller8821]

Glad you and your family are ok. I lost my 2005 4runner in a spin/flip. Luckily, I wasn't hurt either. In my case, it was my fault. I was coming around a curve in unfamiliar territory and didn't realize how sharp it was. I managed to get control but as the vehicle spun a 180 both my right tires made contact with the curb and caused my vehicle to effectively "fall over". (It was laying flat on it's right side) I climbed up thru my drivers door and exited the vehicle. It was extremely scary not having any control of my truck. Toyota has amazing safety systems and I'm thankful I was not injured at all. 2 days later, I picked up my 2006 4runner and this 33 yr old began driving like a grandmother. ha. I've since traded in for a 5th gen. While I'm grateful the new truck is full of airbags and the like, I pray I never have to see how they work.

I'm very happy your family wasn't injured. Our property can be replaced.

 

[Kmvreter]

Glad you and the family came out safe.

... Michelin Cross Terrain??

How much tread was left on the old set and what did you replace them with?

 

[Ripsnort]

I'm happy nothing more happened!

Just out of curiousity, how much weight is in those containers hanging over the back end? More than 200 lbs could certainly upset the center of gravity and make your front tires 'lighter' in a slick situation like that....I'm not implying that it may be the sole reason, but could add to a situation that is already in process of occuring.

 

[TOY2G]

Very glad that you were able to save the spin and protect your family. This could as you know have been much worse, praise God you and your family were safe.

I few things I want to mention if it is okay.

The tires on your truck are Michelin, this tire uses a natural rubber that is rather hard. Many tire manufactures are going to tires that are a softer compound, but the trade off is mileage. Michelin and BFG have stuck with the natural rubber tires because they have a very long wear life. The reason I am telling you this is that natural rubber is hard, and when combined with moderate wear, wet roads, and even the slightest over inflation hard rubber tires can be like driving on ice. When picking tires it is important to remember that tread life is NOT the most important thing (a point made by firestone several years ago) The villain here may have been your tires. For the record, Hankook, Cooper, BFG, Toyo, and Nitto all make a "High Silicate" tire that still has 50k plus wear but also is a softer rubber compound.

I have been a BF fan for years and now that they are using softer compounds in there off road tires I may use them again in the future. For now I run Hankook, or Cooper but if you keep up with tire technology (I have to) you will see that more and more LT and P tires are compounds with higher silicate.

Sorry, if this was an over post, I just felt it was worth sharing with you and everyone else.

 

[philsey]

You're really really fortunate. But you shouldn't "lose faith" in your truck. After that, I'd have more faith in my truck.

- 70 mph is too fast in the rain, and cruise is not a good idea either.
- You admit to tires that were "a little worn".
- Your truck was likely loaded to the gills, thus necessitating the hitch carrier, both of which probably unloaded your front tires.

Yup, it was tires, but you were asking too much of them.

But we all owe you a debt of thanks for posting this near-miss. Without doubt you've helped one of us be more careful.

What tires will you buy?

 

[Ripsnort]

you're really really fortunate. But you shouldn't "lose faith" in your truck. After that, i'd have more faith in my truck.

- 70 mph is too fast in the rain, and cruise is not a good idea either.
- you admit to tires that were "a little worn".
- your truck was likely loaded to the gills, thus necessitating the hitch carrier, both of which probably unloaded your front tires.

Yup, it was tires, but you were asking too much of them.

but we all owe you a debt of thanks for posting this near-miss. Without doubt you've helped one of us be more careful.
what tires will you buy?

this!

 

[Uneek]

Glad you're ok Peter and thank you for the reminder.

 

[stanleybb50]

Very glad that you were able to save the spin and protect your family. This could as you know have been much worse, praise God you and your family were safe.

I few things I want to mention if it is okay.

The tires on your truck are Michelin, this tire uses a natural rubber that is rather hard. Many tire manufactures are going to tires that are a softer compound, but the trade off is mileage. Michelin and BFG have stuck with the natural rubber tires because they have a very long wear life. The reason I am telling you this is that natural rubber is hard, and when combined with moderate wear, wet roads, and even the slightest over inflation hard rubber tires can be like driving on ice. When picking tires it is important to remember that tread life is NOT the most important thing (a point made by firestone several years ago) The villain here may have been your tires. For the record, Hankook, Cooper, BFG, Toyo, and Nitto all make a "High Silicate" tire that still has 50k plus wear but also is a softer rubber compound.

I have been a BF fan for years and now that they are using softer compounds in there off road tires I may use them again in the future. For now I run Hankook, or Cooper but if you keep up with tire technology (I have to) you will see that more and more LT and P tires are compounds with higher silicate.

Sorry, if this was an over post, I just felt it was worth sharing with you and everyone else.

Do you know what compound Yokohama's are derived from? I was eyeing some of their ''shoes'' for my Runner or my wifes G6.

To the op: out of curiosity, you were just in 2wd at the time I presume? Would it be beneficial to throw it in 4wd (center unlocked) when driving in the rain?


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[JB.]

I spinned totally out of control and went into the middle of the median. My wife was in the back and my son was up front.

Wow. Glad this had a happy ending. Give everyone an extra kiss or two.....or three.

I know the tires were a little worn, still Discount Tires said they were OK during my last rotation

Yeah, that kind of answer makes it seem binary but, of course, it's not. Hydroplane resistance steadily erodes as tread wears away. Finally, the word "unsafe" is used where the curve has steepend and the tread is nearly gone.

 

[peter78]

Did VSC come on?? You must be hydroplanning on all your wheels for you to spin that much. Those are good tires, right? Michelin Cross Terrain??

Yes, the VSC came on, the whole dash lite up like a Christmas Tree. I had Cross Terrians. I bought the car used and they had one new tire because it had a accident and it was repaired. I used the spare, so I had two tires older and two a little bit newer. The last time I rotated the tires the tires with more wear were on the rear. I have read having the most worn tires on the front is better and on the rear, it is more prone to loose control if they are on the rear. Of course they were still considered OK and I rotate the tires every 6,000 miles.

When I bought new tires this week, I saved the newest tire as a spare and replaced all 4 tires with LTX's. My thinking is that they will not wear out as fast.

I'm happy nothing more happened!

Just out of curiousity, how much weight is in those containers hanging over the back end? More than 200 lbs could certainly upset the center of gravity and make your front tires 'lighter' in a slick situation like that....I'm not implying that it may be the sole reason, but could add to a situation that is already in process of occuring.

That is a good point. I estimate the wieght of the hitch hiker to be around 30 pounds. I had about 60 pounds or so in the boxes. It was mainly food and some fairly light material. I thought about that thing flying around on the back. I tend to tie things on tight. I would think that thing help the car spin faster.

 

[Thai]

Not just wear depth, but the actual age of the tire is important.

 

[peter78]

You're really really fortunate. But you shouldn't "lose faith" in your truck. After that, I'd have more faith in my truck.

- 70 mph is too fast in the rain, and cruise is not a good idea either.
- You admit to tires that were "a little worn".
- Your truck was likely loaded to the gills, thus necessitating the hitch carrier, both of which probably unloaded your front tires.

Yup, it was tires, but you were asking too much of them.

But we all owe you a debt of thanks for posting this near-miss. Without doubt you've helped one of us be more careful.

What tires will you buy?

I know, hind site is 20/20. After it happened, I thought about it for days, but if I had known I would of even had a small concern over loosing control, I wouldn't of changed them. Gone are the days of running on bald tires from my college days.

I went ahead and bought 4 new tires, Michelin LTX M2. I thought of getting the new Latitude, but the tire store said they have had a lot of people not happy with the Latitude and have cahnged to something else. Also, they are no longer making the Cross Terrians. I could get them on back order, but I decided to go with the LTX, I have them on my 2001.

 

[Mark86]

Very glad to see that you and your family were not harmed. That is a very scary story! Kind of surprised because the cross terrains are a solid tire.

I had something similar where a tire flew off of a truck in front of us going down the Penn Turnpike at 70mph. Talk about playing a game of dodge the flying object: it is a good thing I wasn't in the 4Runner and had a more nimble vehicle. I was afraid of the same thing happening at the time.

 

[shawnstcyr]

That happened to me a fews years ago in a 4th Gen, except my event happened on frost, not rain or ice. That is scary stuff.

 

[czastrow]

pulled a similar stunt in my limited 99. I hydroplaned on the freeway going about 45 and it spun across 3 lanes, and I ended up on the shoulder facing backwards on an overpass... very close to flipping over it. No one stopped or anything, and I didn't hit anyone. I went down into the median and turned around. All the change in my car flew all over. People flashed their lights when I was backwards. Less than 2 months later I traded it because I didn't feel safe, and bought a bmw. Now I'm back in an 05... I'm taking it easier now. Glad you're safe.

 

[stanleybb50]

pulled a similar stunt in my limited 99. I hydroplaned on the freeway going about 45 and it spun across 3 lanes, and I ended up on the shoulder facing backwards on an overpass... very close to flipping over it. No one stopped or anything, and I didn't hit anyone. I went down into the median and turned around. All the change in my car flew all over. People flashed their lights when I was backwards. Less than 2 months later I traded it because I didn't feel safe, and bought a bmw. Now I'm back in an 05... I'm taking it easier now. Glad you're safe.

How were your tires out of curiosity?


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