Pushing Run-Flat tires to the limit

[tpenfield]

The Admiral and I were on our way to VT for the Easter weekend . . . after leaving a rest area a warning came on the dashboard for the left rear tire. We watched it as it went to 1.1 psi over the course of a few minutes.

At that point we were pretty much in the center of nowhere. 40 + miles to the nearest tire place . . . We made it going about 40-45 mph, but I think if it were a few miles further, we would not. The tire felt like it was square for the last 10 miles . . .

The tire is toast, so I'll be getting a new set. Currently at the tire dealer in Lebanon NH.

 

[alldodge]

Never had that type tire, good you made it
I don't like changing a tire but in most cases the tire can be repaired so long as it's not on the side wall

 

[tpenfield]

My theory is that the tire in question was ‘repaired’ back in 2021. 5 years later the temporary ’plug’ proved itself

 

[tpenfield]

The run flat tires are rated for 50 miles at 50 mph. Based on my experience today, I’d say 30-40 miles.

 

[matt167]

Few years ago I had a guy come in who was running on a blowout run flat for a couple days. Then couldn’t afford tires. Somehow that tire was HOT but you wouldn’t have known unless you looked on the inside

 

[Lou C]

Don’t you miss a full size spare? I carry a charged 1/2” drive impact gun on long trips in case I have to change a tire esp when we’d be heading up to Montreal for the F1 or Watkins Glen for NASCAR. We did rent a Chrysler Pacifica that didn’t have a spare for the F1 trip last year and it was on my mind! If I owned one for sure I’d add a spare!

 

[airshot]

Would never travel without a spare, not worth the risk ! I have roadside repair on my insurance, 20 bucks a year and on the one time I needed it, the service company offered a rush for an extra 55 bucks, which I used and the insurance paid the extra for the rush job. Even at almost 76, I can still change my own if needed.....but why....takes to long for the hurt to go away when I do, 20 bucks a year is much easier ! My own car insurance is much cheaper and better than AAA....

 

[tpenfield]

I have AAA, and used them to fix this tire 5 years ago. Interestingly, we were looking at a new boat in Ticonderoga, NY when we go a nail in the tire, right dead center in the tread. So, it was fixed with one of those quicky plugs.

That tire has mysteriously been loosing air (5-10 psi) now & then in the past year. . . So, it must have decided that the plug was not permanent

Anyway, the tires have 45K miles on them, so it is time for a new set.

 

[alldodge]

Have tire patched with plug and inner patch combo and never have an issue
https://www.homedepot.com/p/Steelma...437787?source=shoppingads&locale=en-US&fp=ggl

 

[tpenfield]

Have tire patched with plug and inner patch combo and never have an issue
https://www.homedepot.com/p/Steelma...437787?source=shoppingads&locale=en-US&fp=ggl

The tire in question is disposed of . . . once you drive on them in a deflated state for any reasonable time, they are done.

If I get a nail in one again, I'll have to keep that in mind . . .

 

[jlh3rd]

I do all my own tires. ( mounting, balancing, repair)
All my vehicles have spares, a portable pump and tire plugs. Any trip taken I bring my 20v dewalt impact wrench.
In my 50+ years of plugging tires, I've never had a complete plug failure.
The 2012 volvo I purchased for my girlfriend did not come factory equipped with a spare....ridiculous. We don't make trips in it.

 

[tpenfield]

I may think about having a spare, but no place to put it, unless I sacrifice some trunk space. Underneath the trunk 'floor' is the car battery.

 

[Bob_VT]

Happy Easter Ted! The "other" thing you should carry along is an extra gallow of WW fluid. We are going through the end of Mud Season!

 

[Lou C]

I replaced the temp spare tires on both of our Subarus with a real tire, there was just enough room to squeeze it in there.
If I had a car built with out a spare tire, I might just carry one on long trips like that if I didn't need the full luggage space.
On the Chrysler Pacifica I rented, there is a panel in the rear storage area and a temp spare can definitely fit in there. On the model with the stow n go seats (BTW they work great, one thing Chrysler got right) the rear seat stores where the full size spare would have fit.
I would own one of these if I took a lot of trips, it is supremely comfortable, huge inside and gets excellent fuel economy at the same time. We averaged about 30 mph on our last trip from Long Island NY to Montreal QC for last year's F1 race.

 

[aspeck]

I would much rather have a "temp" spare than a "Run Flat" tire. Those "donut tires" looked stupid crazy on the vehicles, but they would surely get you where you needed to go. I had customers run them at highway speed for 3-4K miles ... yes, you read that correctly. One customer went to a junk yard and bought 4 of them really cheaply. He put all 4 on and drove around for 3 months just to see if they worked. They did.

 

[airshot]

When buying a car, one thing I look for is a full size spare, if it does not have provisions for one, I pass on it. I also carry a plug kit and a can of fix a flat, which I hate to use, but it gets me buy until the tire can be replaced. If I have time, I let road service take care of things, especially if the weather is bad !

 

[Lou C]

Agreed, for buying another vehicle no spare tire is a no sale for me.
You can use a temp spare but be careful on AWD vehicles, I recall on our latest Subaru you must put the temp spare on the rear, so if you flat is on the front, you have to move a good tire from the rear to the front, so both front tires are the same size and put the temp on the rear. On our older Subaru you could disable the AWD by removing a fuse (this was in the owners manual and I actually preferred that to all this moving of tires!)
After seeing that requirement I ditched the temp, bought a steel Subaru rim and saved the best of the first set of tires for a real spare.
On my 2007 Grand Cherokee I can't go bigger than a 30.5" tire because that is the biggest tire that will fit under the rear storage area if you have a hitch and even then, the hitch has to be modified for it to fit. On my 1998 it's in the rear cargo area like an old Cherokee, so you can easily fit a 31" tire if you wanted to. That's another pet peeve of mine, I don't like those tire hoists, they seem to freeze up and break when you need them most.
What I do now is lower the spare once a year and lube the cable and also spray the rim with fluid film, or else it will rust if steel and corrode if alu. Always check your spare!