Quote:
Originally Posted by pwd72s
Hard to predict a wheel bearing failure. So, anybody here familiar with big rigs? Are wheel bearings a scheduled replacement item?
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Not really a scheduled replacement item. Do you remember the Rita bus fire from a couple of years ago where the bus caught fire, burned to the ground with a load of senior citizens on board (many died)? That was also a bearing failure fire.
On significant issue is that when a race car trailer catches on fire, there's all sorts of flammable items and oxidizers on board to accelerate the fire. Once it catches, the driver has only a 5 lb or so extinguisher to put it out. Not going to happen...
Bearing fires are not uncommon. In response to the Rita incident (and numerous others that are less dramatic) many bus companies have installed or spec'd their vehicles with extinguishing systems for the engine bays and rear tire fender wells. It seems to me that as TPMS have become more prevelant (even in commercial vehicles) that adding a temperature sensor could prove a logical subsequent step. It would also be capable of monitoring brake fires - which are actually much more common than bearing failures for catching trucks on fire.
angela