Trucks aren’t the quickest or most manoeuvrable vehicles on the road.

If your truck is missing a wheel, that just adds to the problem.

And, if you’re in a truck with a missing wheel, it’s probably not a great idea to try to take on the cops in a high-speed car chase.

If all of this sounds like logic to you, then congrats – you’re a lot smarter than the driver who stole a flatbed truck in California on March 14.

Over to NBC Los Angeles for a few details.

At approximately midnight, the truck lost a tire when it began traveling at speeds of 25 mph with sparks coming from the vehicle, according to the California Highway Patrol.

The chase entered the 210 Freeway heading east toward Upland as sparks continued to fly.

You can watch the chase all the way through, or skip to the 22-minute mark for the explosion. Stick around for what happens when firefighters try to extinguish the blaze.

From the 23:30 mark, you can see the driver hop out of the vehicle, but he’s quickly reined in by police.

Authorities believe that that bright white light was a chemical reaction, but that hasn’t been confirmed.

It took the truck going up in flames for the driver to stop and exit the vehicle.

He gets points for determination but is severely lacking in the self-preservation department.

[source:nbcla]