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Prime Flat Tire

Discussion in 'Prime Main Forum (2017-2022)' started by High Mileage, Sep 18, 2020.

  1. High Mileage

    High Mileage Active Member

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    Had my first flat tire on the Prime the other day. Leaving the Sacramento CA airport and finding the highway closed in the direction I needed to go. Headed North while my wife attempted to find out how we could get home and looking at the miles of backed up traffic on the other side going nowhere. Suddenly heard that faint tire noise that quickly got much louder, followed by the low tire light turning on as I was pulling over.
    My wife looked at me and asked the obvious question that she knew the answer to; do we have a flat tire?
    Followed by the next obvious statement "I knew we should have brought my car."
    Which I followed up with "Did you know the Prius doesn't have a spare tire.";)
    I proceeded to get out and pull the luggage out so I could get to the air pump and tire repair kit I had purchased for just such the occasion. It was a great day to get a flat. Extreme wind day for CA and the air quality numbers off the scale thanks to the multiple fires burning in our fine state.
    Thankfully the rubber tie down hook that punctured the tire did so right in the middle of the tread. The plug kit worked just as needed and the air pump got me back up to normal pressure in the matter of a couple of minutes.
    I urge anyone to be prepared in whatever manner you choose. The pump and bottle of goop Toyota provides would not have plugged the hole in the tire. Next time my wife travels with me we will bring her car.(n)
     

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  2. jzchen

    jzchen Newbie!

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    Thankfully that tie down strap did not whip around taking out ABS wires or worse the brake line!

    moto g(7) power ?
     
  3. Rodney.E

    Rodney.E New Member

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    Glad you got back on the road! That repair kit with the sealant saved my butt about a month ago. It was only a nail for me so I was very happy to have it on hand and still need to replace it.
     
  4. AldoON

    AldoON Member

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    Glad it worked!
     
  5. Salamander_King

    Salamander_King Senior Member

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    Yeah, always be prepared. After having a flat tire on our other SUV recently, I now carry a full-size spare in the back of Prime all the time. I did have a repair kit, but the recent flat I had on our SUV was on the sidewall that would not be fixable. Luckily, the car came with a spare.

    upload_2020-9-18_23-9-42.png
     
  6. High Mileage

    High Mileage Active Member

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    Nice job Salamander_King. I have a rims and tires from my older Gen3. I will look into getting a bag like you have to cover the tire and wheel. If I ever get my wife back into the car I will most likely need to be carrying a spare like this. I was relieved to see the hole in the tread and no damage to the sidewall of the tire, otherwise a call to roadside and a visit to Costco would have been in order.
     
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  7. Salamander_King

    Salamander_King Senior Member

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    Yeah, with my recent flat on our Pathfinder SUV, I swiped the curbstone and the sidewall puncture. Fortunately, the car came with a spare but it was a compact temp tire. We were on a trip visiting our family. The temp would not have made the trip back home, so I had to replace a tire ASAP. If I had time to look around and wait for the tire, I could have had it done much cheaper, but 20" tire replacement in a hurry during a trip cost me $250 for a single tire and better part of a day of my time on the trip. Yeah, if you have space to haul a full-size spare, that will save you time and money for sure.
     
  8. mr88cet

    mr88cet Senior Member

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    Bummer, dude...

    Admittedly, while I’m hardly the proverbial “one-percenter,” I have more money than patience at this point in my life. Were I to get a flat in my Prime, I’d just hit the “Safety Connect” button if the “tire-repair kit” doesn’t work.

    I’m willing to take that risk because the last time I had a flat was ... something like 25-30 years ago. I have had quite a lot of slow leaks though.
     
  9. Mambo Dave

    Mambo Dave Active Member

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    Between riots and Covid, I would not rely on external safeties responding. We are almost out of the Covid fear, sure, but had that flat happened a few months ago, most likely no-one would have responded.

    I thought we all learned a lesson of false guarantees after the country basically shut down in April. That is exactly why I outfitted my car with a spare tire.
     
  10. mr88cet

    mr88cet Senior Member

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    I don’t think Toyota makes “false guarantees.” I don’t have much doubt they’d come out if called.

    Now, as for how soon they’d get there, how competent they’d be, how much they’d charge, or what diseases they might be carrying...
     
  11. Pdxprimeguy

    Pdxprimeguy Member

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    Cans of Fix a flat have saved me countless times also keep some pliers and screw drivers in the car to pull some nails or screws out as well. I also have a spare tire I got off eBay. Never had to use that yet unless the fix a flat fails. I tried tire plugs but too painful of work. Glad you made it safe.
     
  12. mr88cet

    mr88cet Senior Member

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    Have had the ... “opportunity” ... to use the Fix-a-Flat on your ‘Prime in particular?

    I’m probably just lucky, both in terms of where I live and just luck in general, but the last time I can recall having to jack up my car by the side of the road was 1988 (actually longer than I estimated in my earlier reply).
     
  13. Pdxprimeguy

    Pdxprimeguy Member

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    yes used it twice on the prime. Once on a snow tire. And once on the regular tire. I would later take it to les Schwab where they would plug it up for free.

    also used it on my Subaru forester when it ran over a screw. And use it on my tractors too. Awesome stuff.
     
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  14. mr88cet

    mr88cet Senior Member

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    Interesting... Even though I’ve been lucky not getting flats, I have considered getting a can of Fix-a-Flat since it seems to be easier to use that Toyota’s “repair kit.”
     
  15. Salamander_King

    Salamander_King Senior Member

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    Did the Fix a flat destroy TPMS sensor? Or did tire shop do something special to clean it up? I kinda doubt they did since you are saying the flat repair service after using Fix a flat was "free".

    For the fear of costly replacement of TPMS sensor or difficult clean-up, I never thought of using those sealants in my tires, including the Toyota OEM system, but maybe they are better now?
     
    #15 Salamander_King, Sep 24, 2020
    Last edited: Sep 24, 2020
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  16. Pdxprimeguy

    Pdxprimeguy Member

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    No issues with damaging the TPMS on my prime or subarus. Good for emergencies.
     
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  17. Tideland2005

    Tideland2005 Member

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    I wonder.....If I put run-flat tires on my Prius,
    how much gas mileage would I lose?
     
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  18. mr88cet

    mr88cet Senior Member

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    Interesting question! I too have periodically pondered that.

    My guess would be “some,” but not so much because they’re run-flats as much as because they’re not low-rolling-resistance tires.
     
  19. Salamander_King

    Salamander_King Senior Member

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    Loss of mpg is probably about the same as any other heavier non-LRR tires. I have heard the newer generation of RF are better, but my experience with earlier iteration was dismal. Tire is expensive and hard to find. Some tire shops can not install, although this may have changed. They ride harsh and not good in wet or snow. If it gets flat, can run only 50miles at 50mph just like a compact tire and can not be repaired.
     
  20. MikeDee

    MikeDee Senior Member

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    Nice. What parts did you buy, including that nice cover?