December is the most common month in Japan”…! The ″moment of impact″ of “tire derailment” accidents from the U.S.
Nearly 70% of these accidents occur during the winter season, and in Sapporo, a 4-year-old girl who was hit by a direct hit is unconscious and in critical condition. ......
As the white small truck changed lanes to the left, the left front wheel suddenly came off and rolled into the adjacent lane. The tire struck the front of a moving passenger car. The passenger car was blown away by the force of the impact, spinning in mid-air and striking the road surface violently in an upside-down position. The incident lasted only a few seconds.
This is the moment of a shocking accident that occurred on a highway in California, U.S.A., in March this year. Miraculously, all of the people involved in the accident escaped with only minor injuries.
On November 14, the left front wheel of a minicar on a city street in Sapporo came off and hit a 4-year-old girl who was walking on the sidewalk. She was hit hard on the face and other parts of her body, and is now unconscious.
The car in which the accident occurred was equipped with a “wide tread spacer” that widens the width of the left and right tires to stabilize the car. Because of this component, the tires were protruding outside of the car body. Traffic accident appraiser Hiroshi Nakajima said, “The tire was mounted with a ‘wide tread spacer’ to stabilize the car.
When wide tread spacers are installed, the bolts and nuts that fasten the tires are easily overloaded. The wheel nuts loosened to a degree that could not be visually detected before driving, and the tire probably fell off due to the vibration caused during driving.
What is worrisome is the sharp increase in the number of accidents involving tires coming off the wheels of large vehicles. According to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport, and Tourism, 140 wheel-loss accidents occurred in FY2010, the worst in 10 years, with nearly 70% of them occurring during the winter months, with the highest number in December.
The wheels of large vehicles weigh up to 100 kg and are directly linked to major accidents.’ In 2008, a driver was killed when a tire that came off a truck crashed through the windshield of a sightseeing bus in the opposite lane on the Tomei Expressway in Shizuoka Prefecture. Seven passengers were injured in the accident.
In the case of large vehicles, 90% of the tires that come off the truck are on the left rear wheel, which is heavily burdened when turning left. Since there are multiple tires on the rear of the vehicle, it is difficult to notice if a wheel nut loosens.
Passenger cars driven by the general public also require attention. Mr. Nakajima points out, “The installation of winter tires is expected to increase in the near future.
The number of vehicles equipped with winter tires is expected to increase from now on. Change them before the maintenance shops get too crowded. If you do the work yourself, it is necessary to use a torque wrench that allows you to tighten the tires with the proper force.
If tires are installed and managed correctly, most tragic accidents can be prevented.
From the December 8-15 , 2023 issue of FRIDAY
PHOTO： Courtesy of
