Almost Didn’t Make It Back….

[car-car]

Oh man, my heart was broken to see this thread. After a long absence from ExPo I just decided this morning I had the courage to look up the Cruiser I sold Adam. Was expecting to have a lump in my throat from seeing adventure pics, not what ended this thread. I am SO thankful a bad accident was not a tragedy.

RIP dear Cruiser - Thanks for sacrificing yourself for Adams family...

Don, my friend, you built the perfect Cruiser. I was so sad that it happened, but it did give us some incredible memories and it saved our lives.

I got your VM today, thank you. I will give you a call in the next few days. Its good to hear from you, I'm glad all is well.

 

[car-car]

Car-Car - how you guys doing these days?

Very good, thank you. An update from us: Well, after we walked away from the accident, I instantly knew I wanted another Cruiser. It took that much abuse, and we walked away from it, well that gave me the upmost confidence in it. So once I settled with insurance (and I kept the wrecked rig), I started looking for another 80 series Cruiser. I found a deal on a 100 series Cruiser, so I put my wife and kids into that (replacing our 4Runner that felt small after the accident), and I ended up finding a '95 80 series that was white as well. I loved the way Don had built the '97 Cruiser we wrecked, so I started making the '95 as a replica of the wrecked rig. I'm close to having it complete and looking and built the same way Don originally built it. I want to still get a cargo barrier for it, and then I believe I can rebuild the RTT (straighten some of the aluminum framing, custom fab and replace the hinges, sew up a few tears, and get a new travel cover or have one made).

Here is a link to the build thread for my replacement Cruiser: http://forum.ih8mud.com/80-series-tech/453699-imperial-land-cruiser-ii-build-thread.html

Thank you again for all the well wishes. Looking forward to many more expeditions and exploration in the future.

Here are a couple pics of the replacement rig:

 

[Schattenjager]

Oh man - that looks GREAT! You have very good taste!
:victory:

That is a great clone of the '97. Amazing! May it serve you and the tribe for a long, long time!
:smiley_drive:

 

[bob91yj]

What an amazing, crazy story!

Next time, give Black Bear Pass a chance. Capable rig and driver can make it down no problem. Guide books over hype it to keep novice drivers in under equipped vehicles off of it IMO.

We spent a week in Silverton a couple of years ago, hope to go back this fall. First time down Black Bear we ended up following an elderly couple in an almost stock Toyota pick-up on streetish tires down the mountain!

 

[dustboy]

I'm pretty conservative when it comes to speed in the truck, but my wife likes to go 75. She calls me a "backseat driver" when I ask her to slow down, but next time I'll think of this story and ask anyway!

Glad nobody was hurt, regardless of the sad ending I will be bookmarking this excellent trip report.

 

[mutt550]

Glad everyone was ok!!! Great photos!!!:victory:

 

[OverlandGE]

I am glad that you and your family are ok and Toyota proved again that it is a reliable yet strong vehicle. Thanks for sharing your story and good luck with the new build.

 

[MoGas]

Glad everyone is OK.

What was the date code on the tire?

 

[Schattenjager]

Please don't bring your agenda into this thread. What you basically just said is that it's their fault for poor tire choice.

... They're fairly highly engineered products...

I've heard lots of stories of other new brands, having high speed failures, however.

There were many things that came into play here: ...

This family did everything right, were blessed with the outcome they had, and are back on the road without much drama. Pure awesomeness.

Let me point out a couple of things here: Adam purchased the rig with these treadwright tires on it. I am the one that ordered them and put them on the Cruiser. There is no accident that is faultless and these tires are to blame for this accident. Period.

'Fairly' highly engineered is not highly engineered. I picked the dumbest (and only one, really) point to save a very few dollars by selecting the Treadwrights. The photos tell the story. Tread separation from poor quality.

There are a lot of stories about the high speed failures because it happens often. While there were many things at play, they were not unusual for the reasons people buy these types of tires. They should have been up to the task!

Dude, with all respect and ExPo love: if this happened to your family I believe you would be on mission spreading the word. Adam is a decent man who, rarely in these times, did everything he said he would do during our deal. I cannot find any finger pointing on his part regarding this, but rather a deep appreciation to the Lord above for sparing his family.

I bought into the Treadwright money saving gig and it makes me sick. While anything can go wrong with anything at anytime, there are not pages of stories of BFG AT's coming apart as there are with threadwrights. After this accident and other stories, I personally feel it is irresponsible to defend a proven problem.

Costco gets my BFG AT money from now on!

 

[BIGdaddy]

Let me point out a couple of things here: Adam purchased the rig with these treadwright tires on it. I am the one that ordered them and put them on the Cruiser. There is no accident that is faultless and these tires are to blame for this accident. Period.

'Fairly' highly engineered is not highly engineered. I picked the dumbest (and only one, really) point to save a very few dollars by selecting the Treadwrights. The photos tell the story. Tread separation from poor quality.

There are a lot of stories about the high speed failures because it happens often. While there were many things at play, they were not unusual for the reasons people buy these types of tires. They should have been up to the task!

Dude, with all respect and ExPo love: if this happened to your family I believe you would be on mission spreading the word. Adam is a decent man who, rarely in these times, did everything he said he would do during our deal. I cannot find any finger pointing on his part regarding this, but rather a deep appreciation to the Lord above for sparing his family.

I bought into the Treadwright money saving gig and it makes me sick. While anything can go wrong with anything at anytime, there are not pages of stories of BFG AT's coming apart as there are with threadwrights. After this accident and other stories, I personally feel it is irresponsible to defend a proven problem.

Costco gets my BFG AT money from now on!

I appreciate your perspective on this, and definitely see your point.

However, I still don't feel like it's irresponsible to NOT lump treadwrights in with "other" big truck retreads.

I still hold them in fairly high regard, and don't fault you at all for your choice or Adam's. Retreads are WIDELY used in places like the UK, and though failures exist there, too, I haven't heard of such a high failure rate as to warrent them being removed from the marketplace.


Anywho, like I said, I definitely can appreciate your perspective on this, and I'll definitely concede that a retread being used on a huge, heavy, fast-moving expo truck on a hot highway might just be the limit of what this tire is designed to do. Big difference from a ford ranger used as a commuter or to occasionally carry a load of lumber or tow a atv trailer, etc. Know what I mean?

Definitely have thought of Adam and his family in the last few months, and I still get a big sense of joy thinking about them continuing on together, unscathed.

Cheers, Bro.

p.s. Nothin' wrong with costco BFG's, either. Get 4 for me, too!