Flat Tire

[dickfoster]

No, he probably had a "donut" spare tire and yes, it is supposed to have 60 psi - says so right on the sidewall "Inflate to 60 psi". Those tires are dangerous at 40 psi. They are designed as strictly a crutch to get you off the road at lower speeds.QUOTE=dickfoster;4658528]You have a lot to learn about tires. The number printed on the sidewall is the max allowable pressure not the recommended pressure for your car. Even 40 lbs was likely too much. Get yourself a plug kit and you can fix most flats yourself but take some time to learn something about tires first.

[/QUOTE]

I would not even mount one of those things must less move the vehicle with one on it. As Nader called the Corvair, "unsafe at any speed" and this is much truer of those ridiculous and dangerous things than it was for the Corvair. I'm surprised they haven't been sued out of existence by now.

 

[SandburRanch]

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I carry a couple of pan head sheet metal screws to plug the hole so I can get home or to a repair shop. Have driven a couple hundred miles when necessary. Works on tubeless tractor and mower tires too.

 

[TheMan419]

Not in the car or truck, but in the horse trailer we carry a socket set with the correct size socket and a cheater bar. Since it is a double axle trailer we have a ramp to drive the good tire up on. Then the flat tire is jacked up.

Also we have US Rider road side. They will come rescue us and find stabling for the horses if needed. They are like AAA on steroids.

Thankfully no flats while hauling. Wife has had flats not hauling. US Rider came right out and changed the tire.

I have roadside as well because I may need it for more than a flat. I'll just change the flat myself usually.

 

[RNeumann]

Back in the day ,I worked with a guy who drove from Ohio to New Jersey and back on donut spare for Grateful Dead concert. I think the car was ford escort.

Anyone else find zero coincidence between Grateful Dead concert, Ford Escort and continuous driving on a temporary spare?

I'm in the AAA camp. But I also try to inspect the vehicle and brakes and rotate my tires yearly. I always use anti seize and torque my lugs when I do this. I don't do most of my mechanic work but this yearly step is something I don't have a shop do. During that annual inspection I check the spare. Last year I changed the spare on my truck because of sidewall cracking.

As for tire pressure- the manual or door jam sticker- especially on the Subaru- is the the place to look. With the exception of the special spares the sidewall typically isn't the place to look on a passenger car.

 

[SandburRanch]

You have a lot to learn about tires. The number printed on the sidewall is the max allowable pressure not the recommended pressure for your car. Even 40 lbs was likely too much. Get yourself a plug kit and you can fix most flats yourself but take some time to learn something about tires first.

That recommended pressure on the door is for the best ride so it can possibly meet its competition and not best for the tire. Remember the Ford and Firestone story ? You've got something to learn about tires and the business world in general.

 

[KYErik]

I have plugged at least 10 flat tires over the years (without removing the wheel). I have found it to be faster than removing the wheel and replacing with a spare and the plugs have always held up great for the rest of the life of the tire. Sometimes (if it is raining or muddy) and is a slow leak, I will just top the tire off with my 12v compressor and then plug it when I get to a more convenient place- a few times I have used fix a flat. Fix a flat works pretty good as a temporary solution for nail/screw punctures but I worry about affecting the balance of the tire. In the case of blowouts, I obviously do have to swap to the spare...

There are some areas around here where there is no cell signal to call AAA.

 

[NY_Yankees_Fan]

I would not even mount one of those things must less move the vehicle with one on it. As Nader called the Corvair, "unsafe at any speed" and this is much truer of those ridiculous and dangerous things than it was for the Corvair. I'm surprised they haven't been sued out of existence by now.[/QUOTE]

What do use, a full size tire? I do not think I can get a full size tire in the spare tire well on my Honda Accord.

 

[Bigfoot62]

. . . What do you carry in your car to ease the burden of a tire change? . . .

You already have a portable compressor. That's good.
As some have pointed out, get a plug kit. I carry one in my pickup as well as the semi.
And, the one thing that I don't leave home without: a small block of wood. (2x6, about a foot long) Lay the block in front of the flat tire. Drive up on the block. Now the jack will fit under the frame.

 

[Bigfoot62]

When my daughter was in high school I get a call from her Dad I have a flat tire, do you remember how we went over how to change a flat tire, yea but......she was about 5 miles away, OK I will come help you. I find her and she is with one of her friends, a boy, I ask him do you know how to change a flat tire.....Nope! So we had class on how to change a flat with me as the teacher and the 2 kids doing the hands on stuff. I could not believe the guy had no clue on how to change a tire, heck I knew how to do it when I was like 10 years old.....KIDS!!!

Both of my kids are grown. They both (girl and boy) were taught how to change a tire, change oil and filter, replace the battery or jump-start the car, etc. I don't care if they never use that information again, they KNOW how to do it.
I refused to raise a "cripple." I figured if they're gonna drive an automobile, they should have a basic knowledge and skill set to keep it on the road.
JMHO

 

[dickfoster]

That recommended pressure on the door is for the best ride so it can possibly meet its competition and not best for the tire. Remember the Ford and Firestone story ? You've got something to learn about tires and the business world in general.

Personally I use the chalk test to determine what the ideal inflation pressure is for a tire and vehicle combination. The door sticker numbers are dubious and are only good for the tires that were delivered on the car and sometimes not even then. The chalk test will typically give you the most tire patch, the longest tread wear and safest handling.
Draw a chalk line across the tire tread. For best results do all four tires but at least one front and one rear. Drive as straight as you can for a short distance then stop and look at the chalk line. Adjust tire pressure until you get even wear across the chalk line and that will be your best best pressure for that vehicle and tire combo. Do this after the tires are up to normal operating temperature. It sounds more complicated than it is and all it takes is a piece of chalk and a little time.

Oh yeah I've even had greenhorns at dealerships pump my tires up to the max recommended inflation pressure stamped on the side of the tire thinking they were doing me a favor. NOT.

When I hit the dirt all bets are off and the pressure gets dumped sometimes to single digits but usually around 10 PSI for the tires I run off road.