This Is What Happens When Your Miata Loses a Wheel at 85 MPH
Of all the things a driver needs to operate a car, the four most important things—or three, in some rare cases—are wheels. Losing one is a disaster at any speed. When you are actively turning into a corner at 85 MPH on a race track, losing a wheel is a worst-case scenario.
TikTok user Jose Garcia Jr. learned that in real time in his Miata. In a clip shared to the social media site, his car ejects a right-rear wheel while turning into a left-hander at speed. The car not only goes spinning instantly, but spins fast enough that the driver can see his own wheel bounce around behind him on track.
Fortunately, the Miata is alone on track and spins into a generous run-off area. In the video caption, the driver says he was not only able to fix the car but bring it back to the same track stronger and faster. The failure was a result of the wheel spokes breaking. That led to a slightly less dramatic runaway wheel than the one that flew off an RX-8 a couple of years ago after a replacement wheel bearing failed, but seeing your own wheel somewhere that is not on your car is generally a very bad sign.
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