So much for Run Flats

[l5foye]

I recently had my first tyre trouble in over 20 years -that was with, guess what, a run flat tyre. I hit a pothole which holed the sidewall. When I examined the tyre, I found there was less than 1/2" between tyre and rim (due to the low profile). Being worried about damaging the rim, I called the AA who advised me not to drive the car any further. They fitted an emergency wheel, phoned round tyre suppliers and eventually found Kwik Fit had a matching tyre of the correct size ( incident happened on a Saturday afternoon). I made my way to Kwik Fit followed by the AA. Later a new tyre was fitted at a cost of £259 ! I was rather peeved to find their online price for the same tyre was £209 all in.
What I have learned is that Run Flats are not all they are cracked up to be. Next time round I will be fitting ordinary tyres and sourcing a spare wheel.

 

[A250 Bennyboy]

I did the exact same thing, run flats I found to be rubbish on my A250.
Got normal tyres, and changed brand to Goodyear Eagle F1s A3s and I'm well chuffed, and at £108 per corner bargain
I never sourced a spare at the boot space is only 15" diameter if that and my wheels are 18.
I've just got a can of tyre weld in case of puncture.
Cheers
Ben

 

[Deleted member 37751]

I hate run flats with a passion; they weigh a ton, they're too loud and if you shred your tyre all the gunk in the world isn't going to save you.

In fact, in the past I've changed the full set of tyres on two cars that came with them.

 

[Scott_F]

What I have learned is that Run Flats are not all they are cracked up to be. Next time round I will be fitting ordinary tyres and sourcing a spare wheel.

Space saver spare wheels and carp aerosols of foam are not all they're cracked up to be either.

A while ago, I bought a friend a space saver wheel to use as a spare for her BMW 3-Series as an improvement on the can of foam. I would have bought a proper wheel but it seemed that no steel wheels are available for later model cars and the rears were a different size to the front so a space saver was the best option.

 

[GeeJayW]

Have Pirelli 19" run flats on our C250d. They are not as harsh as I though they'd be, but for sure the scenario described by the OP is one I'm fearful of. My other half damaged the near side pair running over a kerb a week after we got the car. Both were replaced, cost covered by tyre insurance. Front rim also needed replacement, only partially covered by wheel insurance.

There's no space for a spare and filling the tyre with "goop" then using an inflation kit in the event of a flat doesn't appeal much either.

Just have to hope for the best, we can only make two more claims this year.

 

[MancMike]

What's the problem with space savers? Mine's served me perfectly well on two occasions in the last 3 years. Once on the front, once on the back.

 

[GeeJayW]

What's the problem with space savers? Mine's served me perfectly well on two occasions in the last 3 years. Once on the front, once on the back.

We had a collapsible one in our SLK, a little compressor, a jack and wheelbrace.

No room for this under the floor in our current car.

 

[markjay]

Run flats are meant to help in case of a simple puncture, as you do not have to stop at the roadside in order to have the wheel changed etc. Under some conditions stopping at the roadside can be extremely dangerous - B-roads with no hard shoulder at night, Motorway hard shoulder on a rainy or foggy day, etc.

The obvious downside is that if the issue is not a simple puncture... then you are without a paddle.

So yes it's a good idea, in general. Possibly the best combination is run-flats AND full-size spare.... this way you are prepared for every eventuality.

On another note it is worth noting that while run-flats were invented by tyre manufactures with safety in mind, they were adopted by car manufacturers with weight/emissions/mpg in mind... so their proliferation is not so much due any clear superiority etc, but more due to the reduction in weight from the elimination of the spare wheel. For his reason, the space saver should really be called weight-saver - it was not developed simply to increase storage space.

 

[MancMike]

We had a collapsible one in our SLK

I never knew these were a thing until just now, watched this video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IZeMN59hvEQ

My spare is fully inflated, it's just a narrow one.