The Rover-Landers of BC

Glad I found it before it got worse. I had the "death wobble" and so replaced two of my worn out tie-rod ends. There was still a bit of a "feel" to the steering wheel. I went to check the lug nuts, tire and bearings and found a broken wheel. I've never heard of this before. Anyone run across it before?

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4137/4903617862_5481e08472_z.jpg
Wheel broken 01 by VanIsle Land Rover Network, on Flickr

I've seen wheels broken out around wheel nuts before caused by loose nuts but that pattern I have not seen. Very uniform isn't it and easy to see against the light coloured paint. Too tight maybe?

:shock: :shock: :shock: :shock: :shock: :shock:

Glad you found it now and not....after.

Strange.

wow,

is that break following a ridge or line on the hub on the backside?

what shape are the wheel stud holes and taper on the wheel for the nuts?
is the nut taper right for that wheel?
does the hub have a ridge on it that could cause stress like that if overtightening the nuts or vise versa, poor fit of holes and hardware causing slop in the wheel?
that should be covered under warranty :lol:
:rolly:

Very very good job! haha You haven't by any chance rolled it multiple times? :P. I know you must have stockpiles of spare parts but ill happily give you a wheel, However you should probably replace the rubber on it :lol:

I'm all up for going for the warranty thing.

Nuts fit the taper nicely, no ridge or anything, just the stock LR hub. David tells me the logging trucks, one ton size, have this happen a lot and it's simply metal fatigue from constant use on rough roads. With 41 years on these wheels, I suppose they are due.

Oh! And I do happen to have an extra wheel to fit; thanks for the offer.

Rolled? is that what the dents in the roof are from? But yes, they've been rolled; a few hundred thousand miles worth.

Hi Greg,

I've seen damage similar to this before when someone used the spare wheel as a high-lift jacking base when stuck in deep sand.

I wonder if its seen some heavy loads in the past 40 years, not necessary while on the vehicle!

Is it possible the cracks have been there a while but are only showing up now that some oil has found it's way through the cracks?

Andy

I would be interested to see if there is any corrosion on the flip side of that rim. I have seen them rust out at that spot.

Nope! Not rusting out from the inside. Well oiled! :lol:

Strange indeed. :shock:

I had this exact failure on 2 out of 5 rims that were on my IIA when I bought it. They were older 109 rims with a 1" offset, I believe. Otherwise, like yours, the rims looked to be in good shape.

Is it possible that damaged or protruding brake drum screws did this? I didn't notice the cracks on mine until I had completely torn down the car and sandblasted them. By that time, my typically mangled drum screws were long gone. I don't remember them being damaged to the point they stuck out, but other than stress, that's all I could think of.

Sincerely,

Devin