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Emergency Tire Replacement Issues and Questions

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Main Forum' started by energyandair, Dec 19, 2009.

  1. energyandair

    energyandair Active Member

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    Location:
    Victoria BC Canada
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Background and Issues

    The other day my LH rear tire clipped a curb and the outside tire bead separated from the rim so it was necessary to resort to the Compact Spare.

    There was no obvious tire damage but pumping and waiting a few hours revealed a slow leak so off to the Toyota dealer who found some near invisible sidewall damage and said that the tire had to be replaced (Inside damage about 1/16" long only visible in good light).

    No one in Victoria stocks the Bridgestone Ecopia 195/65R15 and it took 2 days to get a new tire installed.

    The damage seems to meet the Bridgestone website repair criteria but I could not find a local tire outlet that will repair any sidewall no matter how small the damage.

    As it was a rear tire and the car only has 3900 km on it, I was not too worried about replacing just one tire.

    I just noticed that the dealer rotated the new tire and the other rear tire to the front so I checked the tread depths at the deepest part of the outside centre grooves. They were:
    8mm for the new tire
    7mm for the old rear tire now rotated to the front
    6mm for the old front tires now rotated to the rear.

    Based on the apparent wear it does not appear that the Ecopias will last very long.

    Given the restrictions on driving on the compact spare, this meant 2 days of minimal car availability. This wasn't a major issue in town but could be a big problem on a trip.

    I also note from the manual that if there is ice or snow on the road you should only use the compact spare on the back so if you have a flat on the front, you first have to mount the spare on the back then move the rear wheel to the front. That would be a lot of fun beside road in ice snow or slush!

    Given the various potential problems it seems to me that changing to a full size spare would be a very good idea but even with 15" wheels and the tire uninflated, the center auxiliary box (black plastic tray) would no longer fit so this will need a bit of creativity if you want to retain some storage under the deck board (trunk floor).

    Questions

    1. Should I get the tires rotated back so that the front tires have identical wear or is 1 mm difference small enough that damage or wear to the differential is not an issue?
    2. If I rotate the tires back should I leave them on the rear until the fronts wear out and then change all 4 tires?
    3. What lifespan should I expect from the Ecopia?
    4. Is there any prospect of repairing the tire for use as a spare?
    5. What about the canisters that inflate the tire and blow in a sealant at the same time?
    6. How common is the emergency replacement availability problem?
    7. Is anyone carrying a full size spare and if so what have you done to use the storage space while keeping items clear of the battery wiring?
     
    #1 energyandair, Dec 19, 2009
  2. adamace1

    adamace1 Senior Member

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    1. I think your fine, i wouldn't worry about it one bit.
    3. I'm thinking i will get over 50,000
    4. I would not bother.
    7. i carried a fullsize spare in my last car for years, of course i never needed it.
     
    #2 adamace1, Dec 19, 2009
  3. JimN

    JimN Let the games begin!

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    5. The "fix a flat" most likely will damage the tps.

    What is your tp and what is the max pressure stamped on the sidewall? Did the bead break due to underinflation?
     
    #3 JimN, Dec 19, 2009
  4. dogfriend

    dogfriend Human - Animal Hybrid

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    1. Theoretically, you should place the tires with greater tread depth on the rear, but 1 or 2 mm difference isn't that big of a deal.

    2. If they were different brands, or if they had very different wear then I would do this, but in your case I think it makes sense to continue to rotate as required. The tires on the front will wear much faster than those on the rear unless you have some type of alignment issue at the rear.

    4. As you found out already, no one will repair a tire with sidewall damage. It could fail catastrophically in the future, and no reputable shop will repair it for that reason.
     
    #4 dogfriend, Dec 20, 2009
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