Options for repairing / inflating a punctured car tyre at the time?

Forums › Transport (cars, bikes and boats) › Options for repairing / inflating a punctured car tyre at the time?

jonathan18

7413 posts

Uber Geek

ID Verified

Trusted

#250676 21-May-2019 11:45

We have a Leaf that, of course, doesn't come with a spare tyre; we're also not keen on getting one as it'll take up too much space in the boot.

So I'm looking at the options for getting the tyre repaired and inflated at the time so as to at least get home/to the tyre shop. (We have AA, but I don't know what they'd do in this case - tow the car?)

My plan is to buy a can of Slime Thru-Core and a reasonably-priced 12v compressor, and keep them in the boot.

Would this do the trick, or are there better (but still affordable) options?
Would one of the cheap-as compressors like this $30 one be ok, or would I be better to go with one like this ($66 down from $100)? (I'm guessing the cheapest ones are pretty underpowered for a car tyre; the one linked to here doesn't even mention car tyres!)
Any specific recommendations for acceptable 12v compressors? Would I find ones with adequate specs at a better price on eBay or Ali Express than from an NZ retailer?
There's also the option of a sealer/inflator in a can like this $12 can from The Warehouse - am I right to be cynical about this kind of product to repair and pump up a decent leak?

Thanks for any advice.

1 | 2

332 posts

Ultimate Geek

#2242322 21-May-2019 13:15

Back in the day, we used plugs to repair tubeless tyres (presume we are talking tubeless here) and these ended up generally being a semi-permanent repair. When I went hunting I found this on trademe. Thought the CO2 canisters were quite ingenious. Plenty of youtube clips explain how to install a plug. This is something you can do on the side of the road.

frankv

5680 posts

Uber Geek

Lifetime subscriber

#2242333 21-May-2019 13:39

My car also doesn't have a spare. It comes with 2 cans of that white goo. IIRC, the instructions say to squirt the goo into the tyre and then drive on the I assume still partly flat tyre which will then inflate... I guess the heat causes the goo to set and expand. The kicker however is that after this, the tyre is only good for IIRC 80kph and needs to be replaced ASAP. I guess it would be all out of balance.

The 12V compressors are powerful enough in the sense that they can easily achieve the 34 or so PSI needed to inflate a tyre. Your $30 compressor does 9LPM, whereas the expensive one does 25LPM, so would inflate almost 3 times faster. A tyre's volume is between 5 and 10L (depending on tyre diameter, rim diameter, width, etc), and, depending on pressure, holds somewhere between 10L and 30L of air. So the cheap compressor could take 7 minutes to inflate a large high-pressure tyre.

jonathan18

7413 posts

Uber Geek

ID Verified

Trusted

#2242365 21-May-2019 14:39

Thanks for the replies.

One thing I should have mentioned is that the Leaf is my wife's daily driver, so the selected option ideally needs to be something that she's comfortable using. Calling AA would be more her usual way of managing a flat tyre! Do you think those plugs are something a non-mechanically-minded person could relatively easily use?

I think her car's still got the original goo you mention, frankv - but given the car's a 2013 I imagine it's past its 'use by' date! If that destroys the tyre then that's a costly outcome - at least the Slime I linked to in the OP can be removed by the repairer.

Thanks for the calculations on the two compressors - I think part of the problem could well be that those small ones overheat relatively easily, so to fully inflate a tyre from flat may take longer if you need to factor in a cool-down period. That said, given how infrequently this is likely to be used, taking an additional 10 minutes may not be a big sacrifice.

Are there any other substantive reasons for getting a better-quality compressor over a cheap-as one (additional to speed)? Would longevity of the product be affected, eg the smaller one has to work harder therefore likely to last a shorter time?

Technofreak

6530 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

#2242371 21-May-2019 15:00

One problem I think you're likely to encounter using the compressor option with a completely flat tyre (especially one that has been driven a short distance while it's flat) is the compressor won't provide enough initial flow to get the tyre to seat onto the wheel rim to ensure a proper seal between the wheel rim and the tyre rim. Usually when a tyre goes flat the seal between the wheel rim and the tyre rim is broken and needs a good "puff' of air to get the tyre to seat properly on the wheel rim.

You may well be OK if the tyre went flat while the car is stopped but other wise I feat the air supplied by the compressor will continue to leak out between the wheel rim and the tyre rim.

A compressor is perfect of a tyre that isn't completely flat.

Sony Xperia XA2 running Sailfish OS. https://sailfishos.org The true independent open source mobile OS
Samsung Galaxy Tab S6
Dell Inspiron 14z i5

traderstu

332 posts

Ultimate Geek

#2242373 21-May-2019 15:02

jonathan18:

Do you think those plugs are something a non-mechanically-minded person could relatively easily use?

To be fair, this is probably more of a blokey solution. And it doesn't pay to overthink some of these things. Punctures, generally, are a fairly infrequent occurrence. In the 22 years that I have been driving my present vehicle, I have had 1 puncture, and on that occasion I heard the screw clicking on the road before the tyre went flat, and drove it to the tyre shop without changing the wheel. If most of the driving is around town, the AA is probably the best bet.

jonathan18

7413 posts

Uber Geek

ID Verified

Trusted

#2242421 21-May-2019 15:32

traderstu:

jonathan18:

Do you think those plugs are something a non-mechanically-minded person could relatively easily use?

To be fair, this is probably more of a blokey solution. And it doesn't pay to overthink some of these things. Punctures, generally, are a fairly infrequent occurrence. In the 22 years that I have been driving my present vehicle, I have had 1 puncture, and on that occasion I heard the screw clicking on the road before the tyre went flat, and drove it to the tyre shop without changing the wheel. If most of the driving is around town, the AA is probably the best bet.

Sure, I'd agree with this - especially for my wife.

But I recall reading that AA can't do a lot for a car without a spare tyre - is that not the case, ie are they able to provide a (at least temporary) repair to a punctured tyre? If that's the case, then we're fine; I was worried that they'd end up doing something more substantial (and time-consuming) like calling a tow truck...

Edit: when googling to see if the AA answers this question, I found the source of my understanding - a thread on GZ, which I will now read in full:

https://www.geekzone.co.nz/forums.asp?forumid=162&topicid=242094

jonathan18

7413 posts

Uber Geek

ID Verified

Trusted

#2242431 21-May-2019 15:50

... and I've confirmed with the AA the gist of that thread in relation to their support - they don't fix punctured tyres but, in the case of cars which don't come with a spare (as opposed to taking out a spare of a car that normally would have one), they'll provide a local towing service for free; if the distance is further, they'll charge something.

One of the ideas in that thread may well be a decent option - buy a spare wheel/tyre, but leave it at home (so it doesn't eat up boot space); if my wife gets a puncture, I could pick it up from home and go change it for her.

My sense is that she'd not be up for using Slime and the compressor, anyway. The problem is if we're both in the car so I can't get home to get the spare tyre! I guess there's still the AA at that point.

Sharesies

Trade NZ and US shares and funds with Sharesies (affiliate link).

Aredwood

3885 posts

Uber Geek

#2242624 21-May-2019 19:59

Keeping a spare tyre at home would still help you, if you get a puncture late at night or another time when all of the tyre shops are closed.

Another option would be phoning the company's that offer truck tyre repairs / replacements. And see if they keep the right tyres for the Leaf in stock. As those companies do roadside replacements.

timmmay

20580 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

Lifetime subscriber

#2242630 21-May-2019 20:20

A tyre can cost $200, which isn't so bad to keep at home, but how much does a spare wheel cost to fit it to? You're not going to want to try to put a new tyre on a wheel on the side of a road are you?

clevedon

1059 posts

Uber Geek

#2242892 22-May-2019 08:11

timmmay:

A tyre can cost $200, which isn't so bad to keep at home, but how much does a spare wheel cost to fit it to? You're not going to want to try to put a new tyre on a wheel on the side of a road are you?

I picked up a second hand tyre on a rim from the wreckers for a customer who wanted a spare for his Leaf for under $100. He just leaves it in the boot and if he needs the boot space just puts it the footwell behind the l/f seat.

The temporary plug is handy if you can find the hole where the air is leaking from say an obvious screw or nail, but the hole or split can be small and not have the screw or nail still in it. Which means you have to get air into it to find the leak and sometimes even then it could be hard to find and have to come off and be submerged in a trough of water to find the leak. Then you might as do a proper repair on it as those plugs are not legal in a tyre for a WOF.

Just get a spare or join the AA.

TENKAN

314 posts

Ultimate Geek
Inactive user

#2242895 22-May-2019 08:16

The easiest way is to simply go to your local wreckers and buy the correct space saver wheel which easily fits in any boot, especially the Nissan leaf without any trouble at all, problem solved.

jonathan18

7413 posts

Uber Geek

ID Verified

Trusted

#2242910 22-May-2019 09:21

clevedon:

I picked up a second hand tyre on a rim from the wreckers for a customer who wanted a spare for his Leaf for under $100. He just leaves it in the boot and if he needs the boot space just puts it the footwell behind the l/f seat.

Just get a spare or join the AA.

The idea of a spare tyre - even if left in the garage at home - is fairly appealing.

@clevedon: you don't happen to know what the wheel/tyre was (from what car/size etc)? Our car has the bog standard steel wheels that come with the 2013-era Leafs.

As mentioned, we are already AA members so using them remains an option, but they'll only tow for relatively short distances; also, a puncture in a rear tyre apparently means the car needs to be put on a flat-bed truck as opposed to being towed.

clevedon

1059 posts

Uber Geek

#2242915 22-May-2019 09:35

jonathan18:

clevedon:

I picked up a second hand tyre on a rim from the wreckers for a customer who wanted a spare for his Leaf for under $100. He just leaves it in the boot and if he needs the boot space just puts it the footwell behind the l/f seat.

Just get a spare or join the AA.

The idea of a spare tyre - even if left in the garage at home - is fairly appealing.

@clevedon: you don't happen to know what the wheel/tyre was (from what car/size etc)? Our car has the bog standard steel wheels that come with the 2013-era Leafs.

As mentioned, we are already AA members so using them remains an option, but they'll only tow for relatively short distances; also, a puncture in a rear tyre apparently means the car needs to be put on a flat-bed truck as opposed to being towed.

Nissin King Dismantlers in Otahuhu in Auckland said they have the standard steel wheel and tyre for the Leafs for $100. Ask for Colby 09 2761265, he will need to know rim size 14 or 15 inch I think and whether it's 5 or 4 stud.

I don't know where you are located but that was just one Nissan Wrecker I rung in Auckland, but that price seems to be the going rate.

Suckerpunch

124 posts

Master Geek

#2243010 22-May-2019 11:47

OK so last night I got a puncture on my tyre and I put on my Space-saver, which turned out to be flat too.

So this morning I pulled out the 12V 16A air compressor that came with my wife's 2009 spare-tyre-less Mazda MPV.

To my surprise the air compressor performed OK. It pumped the spacesaver up easily to 227kpa (~33psi), which is what a normal car tyre is recommended to be at for my car.
However then I read on the spacesaver that it needed to be 60psi. Well that's when the air-compressor struggled. It got the tyre to ~45psi and couldn't get it any higher.

So, as far I can see, as long as I have a gas suitable to block any leaks for my MPV's tyres, then the air-compressor will do the trick.

One important thing to note here is, I made sure I jacked my car up before attempting to inflate the tyre with the air-compressor. I note that the MPV where the air-compressor came from also comes with a jack (but no tyre). Jacking up the car means the tyre has less pressure applied to it, and less stress on the compressor to inflate it.

Technofreak

6530 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

#2243073 22-May-2019 12:30

Suckerpunch:

Jacking up the car means the tyre has less pressure applied to it, and less stress on the compressor to inflate it.

And less likely the tyre shape will be deformed by the weight of the vehicle flattening the lower side of the tyre meaning the seal between the rim and the tyre bead should be intact stopping any air from escaping while the compressor inflates the tyre.

In fact the stress on the compressor is probably no different any way. Lets say the required pressure to inflate the tyre is 45 PSI. 45 PSI is 45 PSI no matter whether the weight of the vehicle is in the tyre or not.

I'd also suggest a space saver at 45 PSI would be Ok to drive on until you reached somewhere you could inflate it to 60 PSI so long as you drive it carefully.

Sony Xperia XA2 running Sailfish OS. https://sailfishos.org The true independent open source mobile OS
Samsung Galaxy Tab S6
Dell Inspiron 14z i5

1 | 2