Blonde alert

Wonkagirl

OK i'm not a complete blonde when it comes to cars, BUT, would it be safe to drive 300yrds on a flat tyre? Safe for the wheel i mean..

I noticed my tyre needed air last friday- but didnt get a chance to it- came out this morning and it's totally flat.. so obviously a slow puncture. There's a garage where i can get it fixed literally 300 yrds down the road- if i drive down there slowly, is it safe enough? Beats changing it at home and then driving down

O.A.P

Dont do it there is a good chance you will ruin the tyre and wheel especially an alloy.

Mr.David

Do you not have a spare?

pajero12

Best not to chance it.Just take it off and walk down to the garage!:D

Rovi

It'll almost certainly destroy the tyre, and the wheel likely wouldn't be unscathed either.

If you can beg, steal, or borrow a compressor, even one of those little ones that plug into the cigarette lighter socket, it'll hold enough air to get you that 300 yards without doing damage, provided it's a slow puncture as you say.

Wonkagirl

alright guys, thanks a mil.. glad i asked now. i figured 300 yrds was no distance, but in reality for a flat tyre it might as well be 100 miles...

i have a spare tyre in the boot- was just being lazy- will have to get a bloke over to change it for me

pathetic, i know. I woudlnt even know where to start with regards to changing a tyre. I'll just get it changed, and drive down to the garage then and leave them with it.

Wouldnt mind, but the tyre is brand new, the garage bullied me into changing it at the last service (3 weeks ago) as they said the traction had been off and the inside of the (otherwise perfect) tyre had eroded and was about to blow out.. so they change it, realign the car, same thing happens- worse in fact- the other one seemed perfect to me

a blonde driving a beemer- recipe for a disaster going into a car garage, they take you for a fool i'm SURE of it!

Change it yourself

alexmcred

What year is your beemer? you may have run flats on it in which case you have no spare to put on and are looking at a hefty wedge to replace the tyre f they won't repair the run-flat.

If it's a slow puncture might be as handy to just jack the car up and someone to remove the wheel and roll it up to the air hose and then throw it back on and drive the car to a puncture repair place. You in Cork or Dublin at the mo ? Deasys in Blackpool are open late every night.

Wonkagirl

alexmcred wrote: »

What year is your beemer? you may have run flats on it in which case you have no spare to put on and are looking at a hefty wedge to replace the tyre f they won't repair the run-flat.

nah it's 04, didnt run flats only come in 06? have a spare alright, it's been used a few times. there's clearly something very wrong with the alignment, i thought they fixed it once and for all, but it doesnt appear so..

as for changing it myself- not a hope- woudlnt know where to start. SHould learn i guess, but i do pay AA for a reason- i know that's sad, but true! Am going to call them later, i have the homestart option, so ****it, that's what i pay 140 eur a yr for.

snowman707

do you have breakdown cover on your insurance?

some cover punctures.

Wonkagirl

snowman707 wrote: »

do you have breakdown cover on your insurance?

some cover punctures.

i doubt it- but i do have AA homestart so that'll do nicely

Glad i asked you guys, as I was genuinely going to drive the 300yrds to the garage. Could have been a complete and utter false economy when i ruined the (brand new) tyre

thanks all

johndaman66

Wonkagirl wrote: »

as for changing it myself- not a hope- woudlnt know where to start. SHould learn i guess,

I am of the opinion that if you drive you should be able to do certain basic tasks such as checking levels under the bonnet, checking tyre pressures and changing wheels. Would make exceptions for elderly or infirm people but otherwise if you are an able bodied person, male or female I don't see any reason why you can't do these jobs yourself and if you don't know why not learn? Its not rocket science either. Remember its very politically incorrect to be sexist these times so it should work both ways! If God forebid you got stranded with a flat in a mountainy area with no phone coverage you'd be at a loss. It might not be very safe to flag down passing motorists. Might be worth it for your own sake to learn and as I say its not that difficult or physically demanding. I'd barely pull the skin of a banana and I'm well able to change a wheel!

Sorry if I sound patronising or condascending but thats not my intention either

Wonkagirl

yeah i know you're right. i'll observe when the AA man does it tonite and take notes. TBH any time i've observed before, it seemed like bloody hard work- hence my AA membership

i can check the car for oil and tyres for pressure, i'm not a total dope, but ive just always figured any time i got a flat that i'd get use out of my AA annual fee, you know? you're right tho, there are the odd few places with no mobile fone coverage. i could probably do it if forced, but hey, life is too hard enough, and having worked a 10 hour day the last thing i want to do is change a tyre:)

alexmcred

Willy is hard to work for then

opinion guy

Wonkagirl wrote: »

i have a spare tyre in the boot- was just being lazy- will have to get a bloke over to change it for me

pathetic, i know. I woudlnt even know where to start with regards to changing a tyre. I'll just get it changed, and drive down to the garage then and leave them with it.

You know, its actually not that complicated. I'm sure you are not so blond you can't figure it out for yourself:D

crosstownk

Wonkagirl wrote: »

nah it's 04, didnt run flats only come in 06? have a spare alright

Run flats came on some 05 3 series and earlier on a 5 series. Although if you've a spare then it's unlikely that you've run flats. With run flats the tyre doesn't look 'completely flat'.

Get the AA out if you have to. 30 yards could wreck a tyre, let alone 300!

loobylou

Wonkagirl wrote: »

as for changing it myself- not a hope- woudlnt know where to start. SHould learn i guess, but i do pay AA for a reason- i know that's sad, but true! Am going to call them later, i have the homestart option, so ****it, that's what i pay 140 eur a yr for.

Thats the reason I cancelled my membership, a neighbour kept calling them out to change wheels and I realised that I was actually paying for it.

Muckie

The OP isn't alone when it comes to not bein able to change a tire.
I've serviced cars, changing brake pads and i'm amazed how tight some garages absolutelly weld the wheel nuts on to them!

Checking tire pressure on tires aswell as checking the fluid levels under the bonnet at least once a month
is also lacking by alot of motorists.

Prevention is better than the cure folks.

johndaman66

Wonkagirl wrote: »

yeah i know you're right. i'll observe when the AA man does it tonite and take notes.

I'm sure if you ask nicely the AA guy would be more than happy to give you a tutorial unless he's a bit of a jerk. (Christ, my next door neighbour at work being a yankie is clearly influencing my vocabulary)!

Wonkagirl wrote: »

TBH any time i've observed before, it seemed like bloody hard work- hence my AA membership

Admittedly sometimes the tyre fitters can tighten the nuts way too much and you could run into problems but generally speaking it shouldn't be too difficult. Maybe no harm investing in a proper wheel brace as a lot of the time the manufacturers original equipment doesn't be up to too much. 10 to 15 quid max I'd think. Even if there are other drivers in the family chances are there may be a spare one knocking about in one of their boots or in the shed maybe. Probably the hardest part might be hauling the wheel spare out of the boot, which ain't too taxing either. Older French cars had the spare attached under the boot which could be a b!tch but am pretty sure and certain a recent BMW would have spare in boot.

Wonkagirl wrote: »

i can check the car for oil and tyres for pressure, i'm not a total dope, but ive just always figured any time i got a flat that i'd get use out of my AA annual fee, you know? you're right tho, there are the odd few places with no mobile fone coverage. i could probably do it if forced, but hey, life is too hard enough, and having worked a 10 hour day the last thing i want to do is change a tyre:)

Ah now Wonkagirl never said your a dope to be fair about it! Just suggested you become a wee bit more proactive when it comes to car maintenance but think you realise that yourself from your reply. I hear you though, it would be a pain in the as$ to finish a long day at work and drive out a dark road only to get a puncture.

Muckie wrote: »

The OP isn't alone when it comes to not bein able to change a tire.
I've serviced cars, changing brake pads and i'm amazed how tight some garages absolutelly weld the wheel nuts on to them!

That is certainly true Muckie. You can be unlucky a friend or two got caught out and work colleagues also. One guy was a rugby player and he needed to call out a mobile tyre unit.

manta356

[QUOTE

Wouldnt mind, but the tyre is brand new, the garage bullied me into changing it at the last service (3 weeks ago) as they said the traction had been off and the inside of the (otherwise perfect) tyre had eroded and was about to blow out.. so they change it, realign the car, same thing happens- worse in fact- the other one seemed perfect to me

a blonde driving a beemer- recipe for a disaster going into a car garage, they take you for a fool i'm SURE of it![/QUOTE]

Sounds like they didn't seal the tyre properly when it was fitted,leaving you with a slow puncture.I'd go back to where you got the tyre fitted and if there is nothing stuck in the tyre causing a puncture,I'd expect it to be repaired free of charge

VinnyTGM

You can't change a wheel :eek:, you should be checking you fluid levels and tyre pressures at least once a week, I check mine twice or maybe 3 times.

VinnyTGM

VinnyTGM wrote: »

You can't change a wheel :eek:, you should be checking you fluid levels and tyre pressures at least once a week, I check mine twice or maybe 3 times.

Wonkagirl wrote: »

i can check the car for oil and tyres for pressure, i'm not a total dope,

You didn't read the entire thread :eek:

galwaytt

Wonkagirl wrote: »

yeah i know you're right. i'll observe when the AA man does it tonite and take notes. TBH any time i've observed before, it seemed like bloody hard work- hence my AA membership

i can check the car for oil and tyres for pressure, i'm not a total dope, but ive just always figured any time i got a flat that i'd get use out of my AA annual fee, you know? you're right tho, there are the odd few places with no mobile fone coverage. i could probably do it if forced, but hey, life is too hard enough, and having worked a 10 hour day the last thing i want to do is change a tyre:)

..I don't get this: you'd rather sit in a car for, possibly, hours, waiting for AA to arrive ? So rather than spend 15 minutes helping yourself, you're happy to waste........1, 2 hours ? Assuming your AA cover covers it, btw.............

And you're assuming it'll always happen where there IS AA. Or phone coverage...........

Don't waste the AA man's time 'watching' him do it. Go out and read the manual that came with the car. Then some eve, or Saturday morning, go and and take off a (perfectly un-punctured ) wheel.........and put it back on again.

If, when you're in a spot of bother, and help/samaritan/knight-in-shining-order helps you out, great, but you do need a Plan B: Help Thyself.

bmw535d

nope my 04 5 series has run-flats and a spare and it was manufactured in nov 03.but you said it was flat so its not a run-flat as they don't go flat they just go down a bit. since you cant change a wheel id advise you to look into getting run-flats the next time your getting tires. you must be steady resetting the tire pressure monitor thing without run-flats.

oldyouth

I have to agree with some of the comments here that all drivers should know how to change the tyres and other basic functions of the car. From a pure safety point of view, I think it is essential. You don't want to to be flagging down some nutter on a dark winter's night.

Samba

http://www.videojug.com/film/how-to-change-a-tyre

Mr.David

VinnyTGM wrote: »

You can't change a wheel :eek:, you should be checking you fluid levels and tyre pressures at least once a week, I check mine twice or maybe 3 times.

I recently decided to take my missus through the process of changing a wheel and soon discovered that the biggest problem was the weight of the wheel & tyre assembly - it can be quite heavy and difficult to manouvere into position.

Oh, and unless you drive a classic car or something highly performance oriented you've got OCD. Checking fluid levels 2-3 times a week is a bit over the top to be honest!

Run_to_da_hills

Mr.David wrote: »

I recently decided to take my missus through the process of changing a wheel and soon discovered that the biggest problem was the weight of the wheel & tyre assembly - it can be quite heavy and difficult to manouvere into position.

Oh, and unless you drive a classic car or something highly performance oriented you've got OCD. Checking fluid levels 2-3 times a week is a bit over the top to be honest!

I know someone that let the block in his 07 Transit sieze because of lack of oil. When he contacted Ford he hadn't a leg to stand on because he never bothered to check the dip stick regularly according to the service manual. The same thing happened to a mate who siezed a 6 months old Kawasali 250 motorbike

Mr.David

Run_to_da_hills wrote: »

I know someone that let the block in his 07 Transit sieze because of lack of oil. When he contacted Ford he hadn't a leg to stand on because he never bothered to check the dip stick regularly according to the service manual. The same thing happened to a mate who siezed a 6 months old Kawasali 250 motorbike

I'm all for checking fluid levels especially oil, I would probably do it about once a fortnight along with tyre pressures.

But 2-3 times a week?!

Wonkagirl

[QUOTE=manta356;67366901Sounds like they didn't seal the tyre properly when it was fitted,leaving you with a slow puncture.I'd go back to where you got the tyre fitted and if there is nothing stuck in the tyre causing a puncture,I'd expect it to be repaired free of charge[/QUOTE]

thanks manta- that's good info to be armed with when i go over to them later!

AA came and pumped up the tyre for me for last nite- i'm driving to the garage on it at lunch time, it's holding the air ok but needs to be fixed obviously... and yes, it's covered by AA (tyre changes) for whoever asked. He told me that roughly 50% of his callouts (all which need to be < 1 hr turnaround) are for flat tyres, so i'm not alone. It's an excellent service to be fair.

Tyres are definitely not run flat. and it's a nov 03 build also.

I made an attempt at unlocking the wheel last nite- the AA guy reckons i've the wrong lock nut in the car (from old alloys) and that they'll have to be blasted off in the garage. Hulk hogan couldntve loosened them.

How did the lunch time trip go ? Were the garage able to get the locking wheel nut off ? If you have the wrong key you'll need to get the ones for the other wheels off too some time

Wonkagirl

RoverJames wrote: »

How did the lunch time trip go ? Were the garage able to get the locking wheel nut off ? If you have the wrong key you'll need to get the ones for the other wheels off too some time

yeah they said it was the wrong key but they'd drill them off no worries.. suggesting i go back to the garage in cork that fitted the alloys to get correct lock nut.. is anything ever simple?

armed with ''u mustntve sealed the tyre fit properly'' they seemed happy to fix/refit for free.. so thanks for that gem. picking up the motor after work.

If they drill the lock nuts off you won't need the key, just new lock nuts (and a new key)