Tire Blew, fast speed was the cause?

TMORACZE

MEMBER
1999 HONDA ACCORD

I drove a 1999 Honda Accord that wasn't mine going as much as 120 mph at some points. The majority of the time I was going 90. 2 days later, while the car was going 80-85 (I was not driving), there were thumping sounds as the front left tire blew out.

After going to the mechanic, the owner of the car called me demanding that I pay for some portion of the repair costs. Apparently, she needs to replace the 2 front tires ($200) and the body work to be done totals approx. $600.

Am I liable? Was I the cause of the tire blow out? Did I simply exacerbate a problem that would have occurred anyway?

If I was the cause of the problem, wouldn't the tires have blown while I was going at the high speeds?

The other tire that didn't blow needs to be replaced as well. Is that my fault?

From what I know, the tires are as old as the vehicle.

Thank you very much.
Fast Driver

2 Replies

CUP1981

MEMBER
133 POSTS

The Accord should have at least an S-rated tire. This means that the tire can handle speeds of 112 mph for a long period of time without failure. If speed was the issue, the tire should have blown while speeding. The tires likely had defects already or the tread was extremely low to cause this sort of blow out. Plus, a tire can blow out at any time for any reason, the owner could have hit a razor blade or a large screw on the road and that could have caused the blowout. Also, the fact that the other tire needs replaced makes me think that the tread was low, or the tires had defects that were preexisting. Unless you want to be nice and help the owner out, you should not be considered responsible for this.