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In South Africa, run flats take away a driver’s options in an emergency.
A normal puncture, or pothole damage, will cost anything from R30 for a plug, to the price of a new tyre to repair. A new run flat — if one is available — costs on average R1 000 more than a normal tyre of the same size.
If one is not available, roadside-assistance plans and warranty conditions can dictate that a new vehicle must travel on a tow truck to the next city where run flats are available.
Owners of cars that are out of warranty are, therefore, increasingly opting to save about R4 000 by fitting normal tyres and carrying a spare in the boot.
Arrive Alive advises that while a run flat can be repaired like a normal tyre, the tyre should be replaced at the earliest possible convenience.
The replacement is necessary because a side wall can be weakened if driven for a few kilometres while deflated. The stresses involved will weaken the rubber, much like bending a wire on the same spot will lead to the wire breaking on that spot.
‘Run-flat bands a scam’
To prevent such a tyre from coming off the rim, the tyre industry currently sells a run-flat band, which is nothing but a scam, warns William Walker, owner of Tyrewise in Pietermaritzburg and author of Car Tyres Service and Maintenance.
Walker advised readers that in his decades of fitting and studying tyres, he has yet to see a tyre come off the rim during normal deflated driving.
While tyres will come off the rim if deflated for sand driving and raced around tight turns, or cornered hard during a track race, Walker said the safety humps built into every rim will keep a flat tyre in place during slow driving.
Bargain buys
His advice for drivers looking for a tyre bargain is not to fit
different tyres on the same car.
“Even a new tyre from the same brand will alter the handling of a car noticeably. At least fit the same tyres on the same axle,” he said.
Walker also dismissed claims that nitrogen will prolong tyre life on a passenger car. “It may work for trucks, but I’ve tested nitrogen on car tyres and it makes no difference,” he said.
“Save the few rands and inflate with the normal air — one barometric pressure of which is in any tyre ostensibly pumped full of nitrogen.”
More information on the tests can be found on www.tyredamage.com
“Even a new tyre from the same brand will alter the handling of a car noticeably. At least fit the same tyres on the same axle,” he said.
Walker also dismissed claims that nitrogen will prolong tyre life on a passenger car. “It may work for trucks, but I’ve tested nitrogen on car tyres and it makes no difference,” he said.
“Save the few rands and inflate with the normal air — one barometric pressure of which is in any tyre ostensibly pumped full of nitrogen.”
More information on the tests can be found on www.tyredamage.com
Low-rolling resistance not so low
Can low-rolling resistance tyres save fuel? The answer is yes for trucks running on a dozen tyres or more, but no for the average motorist.
A recent survey by J.D. Power discovered that low-rolling
resistance tyres are “falling short of customer expectations in terms of
satisfaction”.
The survey suggests that customers don’t want low-rolling resistance tyres because several tests have shown that such tyres compromise traction and safety in exchange for only a slight improvement in petrol mileage.
The test showed that most low-rolling resistance tyres have long stopping distances at high speeds and lack grip in the corners, both of which could ultimately lead to an accident that the same vehicle equipped with a more capable tyre might have avoided.
Goodyear said its new AA concept tyres are an exception to the rule, offering top fuel efficiency and wet grip.
The concept tyre was designed at the Goodyear Innovations Centre in Luxembourg using an enhanced compound “which literally bypasses several technological generations” with an improved tread structure and even an adapted manufacturing technique, to achieve the best grading under the new European Tyre label, said, Hugues Despres, brand director Goodyear EMEA.
To date, only a limited number of the tyres have been built for research and development reasons, as well as to showcase the brand’s technological capabilities.
The survey suggests that customers don’t want low-rolling resistance tyres because several tests have shown that such tyres compromise traction and safety in exchange for only a slight improvement in petrol mileage.
The test showed that most low-rolling resistance tyres have long stopping distances at high speeds and lack grip in the corners, both of which could ultimately lead to an accident that the same vehicle equipped with a more capable tyre might have avoided.
Goodyear said its new AA concept tyres are an exception to the rule, offering top fuel efficiency and wet grip.
The concept tyre was designed at the Goodyear Innovations Centre in Luxembourg using an enhanced compound “which literally bypasses several technological generations” with an improved tread structure and even an adapted manufacturing technique, to achieve the best grading under the new European Tyre label, said, Hugues Despres, brand director Goodyear EMEA.
To date, only a limited number of the tyres have been built for research and development reasons, as well as to showcase the brand’s technological capabilities.
