Has anyone ever used their (old) inflatable spare?
09-07-2012, 05:00 PM
#1
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Has anyone ever used their (old) inflatable spare?
I experienced my first on-road "inconvenience" with my 964 - a flat tire while cruising down the interstate. At first I noted that the rear of the car just felt a little "squirmy". Then more squirmy, and then a bit of noise. Never noticed a pull to the right. And then, a sudden realization that I needed to get the car off of the road NOW. Right rear quite flat. Don't think I hurt the wheel.
Considered trying to change to the inflatable spare, but had never tried it, nor was even sure if the compressor worked. Considering the spare is 22 years old, I just was not in the mood to try any new adventures. I called up my buddy (who happened to be driving my van because he had his 996 up on jacks for caliper rebuild) and asked him to bring me a wheel/tire and jack from home. So after a (HOT) 1.5 hrs sitting on the side of the highway, concerned about being hit by a texting driver, we changed it and got home.
I did not have time yet to check out the tire to see why it failed. I put on my other set of wheels/tires (pointing out to my wife yet another reason to have multiple stacks of wheels/tires in the garage) for the commute today.
This weekend I plan to do a practice-run with the inflatable spare to see if it indeed works and make sure I have everything in the car just in case.
Have any of you had Positivie or Negative experiences with the spare?
Wishing everyone a SAFE weekend.
Considered trying to change to the inflatable spare, but had never tried it, nor was even sure if the compressor worked. Considering the spare is 22 years old, I just was not in the mood to try any new adventures. I called up my buddy (who happened to be driving my van because he had his 996 up on jacks for caliper rebuild) and asked him to bring me a wheel/tire and jack from home. So after a (HOT) 1.5 hrs sitting on the side of the highway, concerned about being hit by a texting driver, we changed it and got home.
I did not have time yet to check out the tire to see why it failed. I put on my other set of wheels/tires (pointing out to my wife yet another reason to have multiple stacks of wheels/tires in the garage) for the commute today.
This weekend I plan to do a practice-run with the inflatable spare to see if it indeed works and make sure I have everything in the car just in case.
Have any of you had Positivie or Negative experiences with the spare?
Wishing everyone a SAFE weekend.
09-07-2012, 05:05 PM
#2
Drifting
I can see it being difficult to deflate enough to put it back in the frunk, which must be done since it's a part of frontal crash protection. I have never tried.
09-07-2012, 05:07 PM
#3
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I have never had to fit the spare but one of the first things I did when I bought the car was take the spare out and pump it up with the compressor so that I knew everything was OK. I didn't want to find out that the compressor didn't work or the spare had a puncture on a cold dark winters night. Luckily I have not had a puncture and fingers I wont ever have to use the spare.
09-07-2012, 05:17 PM
#4
Drifting
I have never had to fit the spare but one of the first things I did when I bought the car was take the spare out and pump it up with the compressor so that I knew everything was OK. I didn't want to find out that the compressor didn't work or the spare had a puncture on a cold dark winters night. Luckily I have not had a puncture and fingers I wont ever have to use the spare.
09-07-2012, 05:26 PM
#5
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It was a tight squeeze getting it back in. I would think it would be a problem if you had it inflated on the car for a while and then tried to deflate it, it could be difficult to get it to fold back down. Hopefully I will never have to find out. I would imagine that one of the biggest problems when you do have a puncture is where do you put the wheel you have taken off, especially if you have passengers. Passengers knee perhaps.
09-07-2012, 05:29 PM
#6
IHI KING!
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I have used mine twice, one about a year ago. It worked as needed. It takes a while to fully deflate but it will shrink down to its original size.
Last edited by Rocket Rob; 09-07-2012 at 07:03 PM.
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09-07-2012, 06:10 PM
#8
Burning Brakes
I don't have the original Porsche pump but I have one in the car from my old Jeep. It used to pump those tires up pretty fast so it should work on the Porsche. Only problem is that I don't have the jack or tools either. What kind of jackass removes that **** before they sell a car. GRRRrrrrr
09-07-2012, 06:17 PM
#10
Nordschleife Master
On a related topic , has anyone tried the Sibsport Nitrogen Tyre Inflator ?
http://www.sibsport.com/engineering/product.php
http://www.sibsport.com/engineering/product.php
09-07-2012, 06:18 PM
#11
Burgled
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use a rope around the center of the tire with a piece of pipe inserted and twist. That squeezes the air out fairly quick.
09-07-2012, 06:54 PM
#12
Burning Brakes
Remember, too, that the inflatable spare isn't designed to be used on the rear. So, to use it properly, you need to put the spare on the front and use the removed front on the rear, if the flat is on the rear. I've only ever had flat rear tires, for some reason. Extra fun!
The car came with a plastic bag to put the removed wheel / tire in (and a pair of gloves, which I thought was a nice touch), which then fits in the front passenger seat. If there is someone in the front passenger seat, they get to sit in the back while the wheel rides up front.
On balance, the original poster's solution of an extra set of wheels and tires, and a friend to deliver one, has some appeal.
The car came with a plastic bag to put the removed wheel / tire in (and a pair of gloves, which I thought was a nice touch), which then fits in the front passenger seat. If there is someone in the front passenger seat, they get to sit in the back while the wheel rides up front.
On balance, the original poster's solution of an extra set of wheels and tires, and a friend to deliver one, has some appeal.
09-07-2012, 06:57 PM
#13
Burning Brakes
On a related topic , has anyone tried the Sibsport Nitrogen Tyre Inflator ?
http://www.sibsport.com/engineering/product.php
http://www.sibsport.com/engineering/product.php
09-07-2012, 08:26 PM
#14
Rennlist Member
Remember, too, that the inflatable spare isn't designed to be used on the rear. So, to use it properly, you need to put the spare on the front and use the removed front on the rear, if the flat is on the rear. I've only ever had flat rear tires, for some reason. Extra fun!
The car came with a plastic bag to put the removed wheel / tire in (and a pair of gloves, which I thought was a nice touch), which then fits in the front passenger seat. If there is someone in the front passenger seat, they get to sit in the back while the wheel rides up front.
On balance, the original poster's solution of an extra set of wheels and tires, and a friend to deliver one, has some appeal.
The car came with a plastic bag to put the removed wheel / tire in (and a pair of gloves, which I thought was a nice touch), which then fits in the front passenger seat. If there is someone in the front passenger seat, they get to sit in the back while the wheel rides up front.
On balance, the original poster's solution of an extra set of wheels and tires, and a friend to deliver one, has some appeal.
09-07-2012, 08:37 PM
#15
Racer
Remember, too, that the inflatable spare isn't designed to be used on the rear. So, to use it properly, you need to put the spare on the front and use the removed front on the rear, if the flat is on the rear. I've only ever had flat rear tires, for some reason. Extra fun!
The car came with a plastic bag to put the removed wheel / tire in (and a pair of gloves, which I thought was a nice touch), which then fits in the front passenger seat. If there is someone in the front passenger seat, they get to sit in the back while the wheel rides up front.
On balance, the original poster's solution of an extra set of wheels and tires, and a friend to deliver one, has some appeal.
The car came with a plastic bag to put the removed wheel / tire in (and a pair of gloves, which I thought was a nice touch), which then fits in the front passenger seat. If there is someone in the front passenger seat, they get to sit in the back while the wheel rides up front.
On balance, the original poster's solution of an extra set of wheels and tires, and a friend to deliver one, has some appeal.
My only problem was the Porsche alloy scissor jack - completely bent out of shape and was unusable. I have now replaced it with a very small hydraulic jack.