A broken tire belt is a really serious problem and can be fixed with difficulty.
Which causes many problems even with low pressure in the tire.
But can we drive on a broken tire belt? If so then how long can you drive on a broken tire belt? Let’s take a close and detailed look at it.
How Long Can You Drive On A Broken Tire Belt
A broken tire belt is really a common belt and can be damaged at any moment. Some causes which affect the belt to be broken soon.
Is It Safe To Drive On A Broken Tire Belt
The simple answer is not to drive on a broken tire belt until you know the exact problem with the tire and how you can fix it. Broken tire belts have unusual curvatures, cracks, bumps, and signs of wear.
The broken tire belt will ruin the shape of the tire including the rim and in very less time you see a final option of changing the whole tire for your vehicle.
Components Of A Tire Belt
A tire belt has the following components which protect the tire from any damage:
- The first layer contains rubber which can be seen on the outside.
- The second layer is of steel, rayon, fiberglass, and other materials located between the tread and plies.
- The third layer is also a rubber that holds all things tightly.
The above three layers of the belt will help the tire to remain flexible and give strength to the whole tire for a comfortable ride enhancing the age of the tire.
How Tire Belt Is Made?
A tire belt is made of steel. The whole belt is strengthened with steel. Belts provide tire strength and dent resistance while allowing it to remain flexible and improve performance and handling issues.
Related: Tire Sidewall Damage
The tire belt is located under the tread of the tire, that’s why it is a really important part of the tire that gives amazing strength and flexibility to the tire it is mainly coated with rubber with steel wire included.
Importance Of A Tire Belt
As said earlier, a tire belt is a really important part of the tire. It provides strength to the tread of the tire.
Belts provide resistance to punctures and help treads stay flat and in contact with the road. Also, it provides dent resistance while providing tires the capability to remain flexible.
With the help of a good tire belt, you can easily drive on rough or smooth roads or surfaces. If you have an expensive tire and a bad tire belt, this will ruin you whole money which you expanded on buying a tire. So, a good and strong tire belt is necessary for a tire to stay longer.
A Number Of Tire Belts Used In Different Vehicles:
Different vehicles have contains different numbers of tire belts. However, most contain 2 belts in tires but heavy vehicles contain more than 2 belts.
| Vehicle Type | Number Of Belts |
| Regular Car | 02 |
| Medium Truck | 04 |
| Bus | 04 |
| Heavy Vehicle | 08 |
More weight on the vehicle increases the number of belts in the tires. A heavy vehicle is 4x more than a regular or passenger car.
How Do You Know If A Tire Belt Is Broken?
It is simple, no rocket science you need to understand when you are finding out about broken tire belts.
You can simply find out that the shape of the tire is changed and you feel much vibration and some noise is produced from the tire.
The simple three points will help you to find out broken tire belts:
- Vibrations Felt While Driving
- A thumping Noise Is Heard
- A hump Is Seen When Tire Rotates
What Does A Broken Tire Belt Sound Like
Squealing and thumping noises are the two noises produced when a tire belt is broken and one can find out easily that the tire belt is broken. Additionally, you can observe some vibrations while driving and the shape of the tire is changed while observing the tire.
What Causes Broken Belts In A Tire
There is a number of causes that affect broken tire belts, you need to understand these causes and try to avoid those problems to stay away from broken tire belt.
- Tire Defects
- Incorrect Psi Levels Or Overinflation
- Rough Roads And High Speeds
- Incorrect Tire Repair
- Tread Separation
- Tire Wear
- Defective Belts
- Aged Rubber
Tire Defects
The first cause occurs due to the manufacturers of the tire. Some manufacturer’s defects can occur and tire is not working properly and change the shape of the tire when the belt is broken.
However, this occurs due to improper mounting, extreme heat, degraded and aged rubber, oversteering, and debris.
Incorrect PSI Levels Or Overinflation
Incorrect PSI levels can severely affect the tire sidewall, and belt. Underinflation and overinflation affect highly on broken tire belts.
You need to add proper pressure to your tire, you can get an ideal PSI level of your tire by viewing the recommended pressure instruction on the sidewall or checking the owner’s manual.
In addition to that, being overweight can also affects highly on caused broken tire belts.
Rough Roads And High Speeds
Sometimes roads are not good to go for high speeds, even rough roads can be written the recommended speed at which you can drive on that speed. But driving at high speeds on rough roads due to potholes, some sharp objects like pieces of glass can cause broken tire belts, sidewall damage, and finally results in whole tire failure.
Incorrect Tire Repair
In some conditions, you repair your tire, may be a problem of puncture or a problem with the TPMS sensor, after repairing your tire, it may occur that there was a problem with the tire belt now. Your tire face incorrect tire repair and at some point, your tire faced a broken belt. Keep in mind that always double-check your tire while repairing.
Tread Separation
One more condition is tread separation where the tread is separated from the tire and cause a broken tire belt, thus it is really dangerous because it damages the tire belt and causes a driver to face handling issue in his vehicle resulting in catastrophic injury or death.
Tread separation sometimes affects sidewall damage also, tread separation also occurs due to defects from manufacturing.
Tire Wear
Improper mounting and tire wear can also lead to broken tire belts. Because some part of the tire is not properly wearing on the tire and causing a broken tire belt. It is recommended to repair the tire from the tire shop.
Defective Belts
It rarely happens that there will be an issue with the belts from the manufacturer. The belt is defective by default. But in that case, when manufacturers notice broken belts in their tires, they often issue a recall.
Aged Rubber
A number of ages also affect tire damage or tire belt damage. A crack inside the two steel belts occurs and the belt is damaged there will be a problem with old-age rubber. You need to change the tire if they have more years than recommended.
Broken Belt In Tire Symptoms
Following is the number of symptoms for a broken belt in the tire, and you can immediately find that there will be a problem with the belt. Let’s look at it.
The Noise
Squealing noise and pounding thumping noise can be produced while driving when the tire belt is broken. You need to immediate action to check the tire from the tire shop as soon as possible.
The Shape
The belt is broken and breaks into small pieces and then finally changes the shape of the tire. Due to the change in the shape of the tire, you feel some bumpy ride, and finally, you can observe the broken belt immediately.
The Vibration
The most obvious one is the vibration when you have a broken belt in the tire that is translating from the tires to your steering wheel.
Shaky Steering
Due to the more changes in the shape of the tire and some vibration in the tire, you can face shaky steering which is the symbol of a broken belt of the tire.
Effect On The Other Parts Of A Vehicle When You Driving On A Broken Tire Belt
It is a general rule when you face a problem with the tire, you see problems with the other parts of the vehicle. If your tire is a failure for some reason during driving, it damages various parts of your vehicle, some parts are listed below:
- The steering system on the wheel
- The brake
- The ball joints of the vehicle
- The suspension mounts
- The shock absorber
- The Rim
- The struts
- The fender wheels
How To Fix A Broken Tire Belt
Fixing a broken tire belt is impossible. Yes, you heard right. It is impossible to fix a broken belt or a tire. Go ahead and change the tire with a fresh new tire or a used existing tire if you have any.
Using Fix-a-Flat, there are temporary solutions to fix the broken belt of the tire. It last about a few miles and then you can face again the broken belt problem.
So, it is always recommended to never go for fixing a broken tire belt, changing the tire is a good option if you have a broken belt.
Conclusion – How Long Can You Drive On A Broken Tire Belt
Driving on a broken belt tire is not a good idea. But somehow about 50 miles can be driven on the broken belt. But it will be risky for your life and may damage some parts of your vehicle.
It is up to you how long can you drive on these broken tire belts. You need to immediately check your tire from the tire shop.
Fixing can be impossible if you face a broken belt of the tire, you need to change the tire if you want to get rid of any future danger.
If you have any questions, feel free to comment in the comment section.
FAQs
Will A Broken Belt In A Tire Cause A Blowout?
Yes, a broken connection between the belt ply and the tread causes an accident because of damage to the sidewall, and eventually, it causes a blowout.
What Happens If A Tire Belt Breaks?
When the belt is broken, it converts into pieces, and the shape of the tire is changed. The bumpy and bad ride you can face when you have a broken belt.
Can You Drive With A Tire That Has A Broken Belt?
If the damage is not big, you can drive up to 50 miles, if you can face a lot of damage to the belt, it is recommended not to drive on the belt because it is dangerous for lives and other components of the vehicle.
How Much Does It Cost To Replace Tire Belt?
$90-$200 is the total cost including fees and taxes for replacing the tire belt. The cost of a belt goes from $15 to $80 and the cost of labor is around $75-$120.
How Long Does It Take To Replace A Belt On A Car?
Generally, it takes about one hour to replace the belt of the tire from a car.
What Happens If You Don’t Replace Tire Belt?
Losing power steering, your battery will eventually die, the A/C will quit, and the engine might overheat are some major problems you can face whenever you don’t replace the tire belt.
