Home | Contact Us | FAQ | Search & Site Map | Link to Us
Sign In | Join | Other 45 Sites in Network
HomeAnnouncements
Discussion Groups
By Brand
BMWChevroletDodgeFordGMHondaLexusMercedes-BenzNissanPeugeotToyotaVolkswagenOther Brands
By Topic
4x4 CarsRVsDrivingMaintenance & RepairCar AudioCollectible Cars
Country Specific
Australian ForumsUK Forums
ArticlesAuto InsuranceBuyingCars & TechnologyMaintenanceMiscellaneousSafety
DMV Resources
Related Topics
MotorcyclesBoatsMore Topics ...

Car Forum / Driving, Maintenance, Tuning / Maintenance and Repair / February 2006

Tip: Looking for answers? Try searching our database.

Driving on a flat?

Thread view: 
Enable EMail Alerts  Start New Thread
Thread rating: 
nickolas80@gmail.com - 08 Feb 2006 05:08 GMT
My situation is this...
I have 2 flats (same side) and 1 spare (which is also flat).  The
discount tire I need to get to is 3.9 miles.  Towing (since I'll need a
flatbed) is seeming to be in the $75-100 range.  What are the chances I
sour my rim if I drive on my flat that long?  And really the cost of a
new rim is about $50 (because the other wheel has the spare on it,
which I will have to replace anyay), which is sitll less than towing,
would that make the most logical sense?
Are there any tips or things I should keep in mind when driving on a
flat?

Thanks,
Nickolas
=AB Paul =BB - 08 Feb 2006 05:45 GMT
> My situation is this...
> I have 2 flats (same side) and 1 spare (which is also flat).  The
[quoted text clipped - 9 lines]
> Thanks,
> Nickolas

Can you just take the tires & wheels and not the car?
Or air up the spare?  I carry two cans of non-explosive tire inflator
stuff for emergencies.
Besides destroying the wheels, pieces of tire will fly off and hurt people.
nickolas80@gmail.com - 08 Feb 2006 05:49 GMT
the car is my only way to get to the tire shop.  Will damage be
isolated to the rim?

"pieces of tire will fly off and hurt people."

at 5mph?
Mike Romain - 08 Feb 2006 14:47 GMT
> the car is my only way to get to the tire shop.  Will damage be
> isolated to the rim?
>
> "pieces of tire will fly off and hurt people."
>
> at 5mph?

Yes.

The flaps of rubber that start peeling off can also easily take out your
brake lines or wrap around a shock and stop the tire from rotating or
beat the crap out of your fenders.

Mike
86/00 CJ7 Laredo, 33x9.5 BFG Muds, 'glass nose to tail in '00
88 Cherokee 235 BFG AT's
Canadian Off Road Trips Photos:  Non members can still view!
Jan/06 http://www.imagestation.com/album/pictures.html?id=2115147590
(More Off Road album links at bottom of the view page)
Alex Rodriguez - 08 Feb 2006 20:44 GMT
>the car is my only way to get to the tire shop.  Will damage be
>isolated to the rim?

Maybe, maybe not.  If the tire shreds, you could end up damaging the body
too.  If the damage is caused by a screw/nail or similar, get a tire plug
kit at your local discount store and fix it yourself.  
--------------
Alex
Steve B. - 09 Feb 2006 02:33 GMT
>the car is my only way to get to the tire shop.  Will damage be
>isolated to the rim?

you don't have feet?

              Steve B.
Steve W. - 08 Feb 2006 06:09 GMT
Not a good idea for many reasons. Rim damage, Brake line damage, tie rod
or strut damage from a tire that pulls off the rim.
Two flats from what damage? The rims may already be bad unless it was
because someone cut the tires when it was parked. Even at low speed it
will probably damage the rims because the tire will tend to slip to one
side or the other instead of staying under the bead areas.

I would get a buddy to run me down to the shop with one set of rims.
Then bring them home and install them and then drive down and get the
other two replaced. Take one of the tires that is still up to use as a
spare unless they are mismatched (like you have 4 aluminum rims and the
spare is steel.
Signature

Steve Williams

> My situation is this...
> I have 2 flats (same side) and 1 spare (which is also flat).  The
[quoted text clipped - 9 lines]
> Thanks,
> Nickolas
nickolas80@gmail.com - 08 Feb 2006 07:51 GMT
How can I tell if my rims are bad?
Al Bundy - 08 Feb 2006 13:44 GMT
> How can I tell if my rims are bad?

This is not an emergency in the way you present the situation. You are
sitting at home posting. Why not think a bit before acting?

Have a friend drive you to the store with the tires.
You could take a cab to the store and back with the tires-still much
cheaper than towing.
You might borrow a pump from somebody.
Order a pizza and give the kid a tip to drop you off.
You might walk/bike/bus/jog to the store and buy some fix-a-flat to
temporarily inflate the tires.

If you don't have any friends and you are isolated, you should be more
prepared for survival in the future. Have a pump and tire repair
supplies.
PanHandler - 08 Feb 2006 15:58 GMT
> Not a good idea for many reasons. Rim damage, Brake line damage, tie rod
> or strut damage from a tire that pulls off the rim.
[quoted text clipped - 8 lines]
> spare unless they are mismatched (like you have 4 aluminum rims and the
> spare is steel.

Why not tell him to take the entire wheel. The rim is only the outer part of
the wheel welded (sometimes bolted) assembly. A tire mounts on the RIM, and
the wheel assembly bolts to the axle/spindle. I kinda doubt he can take only
the rims with him.   :-)
N8N - 08 Feb 2006 16:10 GMT
> My situation is this...
> I have 2 flats (same side) and 1 spare (which is also flat).  The
[quoted text clipped - 9 lines]
> Thanks,
> Nickolas

I wouldn't drive more than a block or two on a flat.  It's just asking
for trouble, as others have already pointed out.

At this point I'd invest in some jackstands, put the car up in the air,
and run the wheels and tires to the shop in another vehicle.  It's
really the only way to do it.  If you can't borrow a car renting a
pickup or van is probably cheaper than the tow bill.  Don't forget to
take the car back in for an alignment check after you're done.

Since your spare is flat, I'd recommend if it is a full sized spare
whose wheel matches your other ones, to take that in and have a new
tire mounted on it, and keep the better of your non-flat tires as a
spare, as it's likely newer than your current spare and also is known
to hold air.

Even if you have a "donut" spare, if you live in an area where flats
are common (I used to live in Dearborn, MI - never had so many flats in
my life anywhere else, the roads there are awful) it may be worth it to
get a matching full sized wheel from a junkyard and have one of your
new tires mounted on that, and then you can keep an old wheel/tire in
your garage/closet/whatever for situations just like this.  I did this
for my GF's Sentra when we lived in Dearborn and IIRC it cost me about
$25 or so, although the junkyard was a good 20 miles away.  Fortunately
all of our other cars were Volkswagens which used the same bolt pattern
so one tire covered all of them.  In fact, ISTR using the spare from my
VW on her Sentra for a couple blocks when she hit a pothole while she'd
already had a flat, although that's not a particularly good practice
(lug seat style mismatch)

good luck,

nate
Scott Dorsey - 08 Feb 2006 17:28 GMT
>My situation is this...
>I have 2 flats (same side) and 1 spare (which is also flat).  The
[quoted text clipped - 6 lines]
>Are there any tips or things I should keep in mind when driving on a
>flat?

Don't do it.  Take the flats off, put the car up on blocks, and get
a friend to drive you with the three rims to the tire store.
--scott
Signature

"C'est un Nagra.  C'est suisse, et tres, tres precis."

Alex Rodriguez - 08 Feb 2006 20:41 GMT
>My situation is this...
>I have 2 flats (same side) and 1 spare (which is also flat).  The
[quoted text clipped - 6 lines]
>Are there any tips or things I should keep in mind when driving on a
>flat?

Take off the flat tires and cab it, or ask a friend, back and forth from the
tire place.  Cheaper than a tow.  
---------------
Alex
Timothy J. Lee - 10 Feb 2006 18:29 GMT
>I have 2 flats (same side) and 1 spare (which is also flat).  The
>discount tire I need to get to is 3.9 miles.  Towing (since I'll need a
>flatbed) is seeming to be in the $75-100 range.  What are the chances I
>sour my rim if I drive on my flat that long?

Why not put the car up on jack stands and put the wheels with flat
tires in another car to take to the tire shop?

Signature

------------------------------------------------------------------------
Timothy J. Lee
Unsolicited bulk or commercial email is not welcome.
No warranty of any kind is provided with this message.

dnoyeB - 13 Feb 2006 16:40 GMT
> My situation is this...
> I have 2 flats (same side) and 1 spare (which is also flat).  The
[quoted text clipped - 9 lines]
> Thanks,
> Nickolas

Flat tires are very easy to fix.  Go to automotive store or gas station
and get flat fixing kit, and not that can stuff.  You just find the
hole, rought it up a bit with this ribbed pole, then jab in a piece of
rubber covered with rubber cement.  Then snip off the excess.  I keep
one of these kits in my car at all times.

I wouldnt drive on flat tires.  Can you make it to gas station and fill
them?

Signature

Thank you,

"Then said I, Wisdom [is] better than strength: nevertheless the poor
man's wisdom [is] despised, and his words are not heard." Ecclesiastes 9:16

 
Sign In
Join
My Latest Posts
My Monitored Threads
My Blog
My Photo Gallery
My Profile
My Homepage

Start New Thread
Enable EMail Alerts
Rate this Thread



©2008 Advenet LLC   Privacy Policy - Terms of Use
This website includes both content owned or controlled by Advenet as well as content owned or controlled by third parties.