Flat tire experiences?

[mglobe]

OK, so I'm worrying about stuff I probably shouldn't, but...

The one thing that freaks me out a bit about my 997 is the lack of a spare tire for two reasons. First of all, does the goo/compressor thing actually work? Can it really give me a tire I can drive on? And for how long? And if I do flat, will I be able to get the tires I want on the car in a reasonable time at a halfway decent price, or am I stuck either without a car waiting for tires, or paying way too much. This car is my daily driver, so that is I'm sure at least part of why my concerns are probably more than most 997 owners. Also, we've had buzzards luck with flats in the past 5 years or so. I'm actually considering ordering a set of PS2's from TireRack, and keeping them on hand for the inevitable, be it a flat or just time to replace them.

Comments? Anyone have experience with the goo?

[vfxbox]

OK, so I'm worrying about stuff I probably shouldn't, but...

The one thing that freaks me out a bit about my 997 is the lack of a spare tire for two reasons. First of all, does the goo/compressor thing actually work? Can it really give me a tire I can drive on? And for how long? And if I do flat, will I be able to get the tires I want on the car in a reasonable time at a halfway decent price, or am I stuck either without a car waiting for tires, or paying way too much. This car is my daily driver, so that is I'm sure at least part of why my concerns are probably more than most 997 owners. Also, we've had buzzards luck with flats in the past 5 years or so. I'm actually considering ordering a set of PS2's from TireRack, and keeping them on hand for the inevitable, be it a flat or just time to replace them.

Comments? Anyone have experience with the goo?

I had all 4 tires changed in January 2005 from America Tire Co,. and I purchased with extended warranty.

All 4 tires are porsche recommanded michelin Sports PS2 and with in 1 year period, I had flat, bubble and blown out all 3 tires.. talk about bad luck... but each time I had to change, I didn't pay more than $25 because I purchased extended warranty. Recently I changed last 1 tire, which is the one never had problem with and still all four looks like brand new.. Not having a spare tire is scarly, but having extended warranty gives me peace of mind.

[jean]

OK, so I'm worrying about stuff I probably shouldn't, but...

The one thing that freaks me out a bit about my 997 is the lack of a spare tire for two reasons. First of all, does the goo/compressor thing actually work? Can it really give me a tire I can drive on? And for how long? And if I do flat, will I be able to get the tires I want on the car in a reasonable time at a halfway decent price, or am I stuck either without a car waiting for tires, or paying way too much. This car is my daily driver, so that is I'm sure at least part of why my concerns are probably more than most 997 owners. Also, we've had buzzards luck with flats in the past 5 years or so. I'm actually considering ordering a set of PS2's from TireRack, and keeping them on hand for the inevitable, be it a flat or just time to replace them.

Comments? Anyone have experience with the goo?

Well, Porsche spent a lot of time , effort and money to make the car as light as possible.

So they decided to omit the spare wheel and save about 80 lbs. up front .

If not having a spare really " freaks you out " why don't you just get one installed ???

[TurboLove]

having had a '97 993 in the past, I am wondering about the inflateable spare. Dont you have one of those at least? (It's a spare tire that needs to be inflated). When I had flats with this car (2 unlucky times both rear), I would have the car towed to a tire facility, pump up the spare, order a new tire, and come back when it was in. I left the flat with the shop. I had 18" PS2 Michelin. I aslo bought the extended warranty and only paid $25 for both replacement tires (they were $300 at the time). The goo stuff you are talking about is an absolutely no-no. Never use that stuff especially on low profile tires. Plus if you get a flat, you will likely need a brand new tire since the sidewalls will be compromised by the weight of the car.

recommendation: buy the collapsable spare tire if you dont have one.

hope this helps.

[jean]

having had a '97 993 in the past, I am wondering about the inflateable spare. Dont you have one of those at least? (It's a spare tire that needs to be inflated). When I had flats with this car (2 unlucky times both rear), I would have the car towed to a tire facility, pump up the spare, order a new tire, and come back when it was in. I left the flat with the shop. I had 18" PS2 Michelin. I aslo bought the extended warranty and only paid $25 for both replacement tires (they were $300 at the time). The goo stuff you are talking about is an absolutely no-no. Never use that stuff especially on low profile tires. Plus if you get a flat, you will likely need a brand new tire since the sidewalls will be compromised by the weight of the car.

recommendation: buy the collapsable spare tire if you dont have one.

hope this helps.

The 997's do not come with a spare of any kind, although it can be ordered as an option.

The car is equipped with a tire sealant kit and a small compressor .

Porsche claims it will temporarily seal a gash up to 3" long ,but I sure hope I never have to test it . Lol

[mglobe]

having had a '97 993 in the past, I am wondering about the inflateable spare. Dont you have one of those at least? (It's a spare tire that needs to be inflated). When I had flats with this car (2 unlucky times both rear), I would have the car towed to a tire facility, pump up the spare, order a new tire, and come back when it was in. I left the flat with the shop. I had 18" PS2 Michelin. I aslo bought the extended warranty and only paid $25 for both replacement tires (they were $300 at the time). The goo stuff you are talking about is an absolutely no-no. Never use that stuff especially on low profile tires. Plus if you get a flat, you will likely need a brand new tire since the sidewalls will be compromised by the weight of the car.

recommendation: buy the collapsable spare tire if you dont have one.

hope this helps.

The 997's do not come with a spare of any kind, although it can be ordered as an option.

The car is equipped with a tire sealant kit and a small compressor .

Porsche claims it will temporarily seal a gash up to 3" long ,but I sure hope I never have to test it . Lol

Exactly my concern. I really don't want to test the tire sealant kit (the goo) out. I didn't realize a spare was available as an option. Where the heck do you hide a spare tire in a 997? I guess you lose all of your storage in the front?

[Loren]

I guess you lose all of your storage in the front?

Correct.

[vabeach]

Recently picked up a screw in the tread of one wheel on my 987. I was able to limp into a local Sears store to get it patched without having to use the goo stuff. It is rather scary driving without a spare, especially on longer trips in suburban areas. If a spare is available for my '05 Boxster S I would be willing to give up the front trunk space for a little more peace of mind. Never knew it was an option. How much work to retrofit?

[paulg1]

OK, so I'm worrying about stuff I probably shouldn't, but...

The one thing that freaks me out a bit about my 997 is the lack of a spare tire for two reasons. First of all, does the goo/compressor thing actually work? Can it really give me a tire I can drive on? And for how long? And if I do flat, will I be able to get the tires I want on the car in a reasonable time at a halfway decent price, or am I stuck either without a car waiting for tires, or paying way too much. This car is my daily driver, so that is I'm sure at least part of why my concerns are probably more than most 997 owners. Also, we've had buzzards luck with flats in the past 5 years or so. I'm actually considering ordering a set of PS2's from TireRack, and keeping them on hand for the inevitable, be it a flat or just time to replace them.

Comments? Anyone have experience with the goo?

I live in the country 100 miles from Porsche dealer, tire stores, etc. My '05 997 is garaged in an old stone barn. My driveway is 1/2 mile of crushed rock. the only local tire store services tractors and pickup trucks. The twisty country road I drive are even more remote. I worry about flats! Through Ebay and shopping around on net, I found a 996 'spare tire' & aluminum scissor jack, a lug wrench & 9mm (?) socket for lug nuts, and canvas tire cover. I tested all this out on the car, front and back tires, in the safety and comfort of my garage and it all works - good wheel fit, jack operates as designed (be sure to use front & rear 'jack points'), etc. This 'kit' all fits into my front luggage space, nice and neat in the canvas cover. Because if can roll side to side, I shove a soft bag next to it. A couple of notes: The spare tire must be partially deflated to fit in trunk, so using the compressor supplied by Porsche will be required once spare is put on car. Also, the flat tire and wheel will not fit into truck (the wheel might if tire shredded), so it will have to be put in the back seat; add a heavy-duty large plastic trash bag to your 'kit' to put tire/wheel in after it comes off car.

This took me about a month to pull together and I kept wondering if it was worth it. Any way you slice it, it would be a big mess, a lot of trouble, and probably ruin the day, since a return home on the spare would be required. But, considering the alternatives, I'd much rather have this option than to be stranded on the side of the road for what I am sure would be the better part of the day.

Hope this helps.

[djantlive]

Just get a donut on ebay for 996. It'll take 1/3 of trunk and cheaper than buying new from dealer. The tire slime will ruin the tire if it's got a nail puncture. Tire shops will not patch / plug a slimed tire full of goo and it'll be heavier than other tires which will wear out your differential and brakes.

Spare only weight 20 lb tops with the jack. It's good to have it on the front to balance weight too.

[bob/ft.worth]

well... having just ruined a tire this weekend, i can tell you it wasn't a good feeling not having a spare and not wanting to use the goo.

Add to that the fact that I will now have to shell out $430 + labor for a new one. I should have got the insurance.

[chance2001]

OK, so I'm worrying about stuff I probably shouldn't, but...

The one thing that freaks me out a bit about my 997 is the lack of a spare tire for two reasons. First of all, does the goo/compressor thing actually work? Can it really give me a tire I can drive on? And for how long? And if I do flat, will I be able to get the tires I want on the car in a reasonable time at a halfway decent price, or am I stuck either without a car waiting for tires, or paying way too much. This car is my daily driver, so that is I'm sure at least part of why my concerns are probably more than most 997 owners. Also, we've had buzzards luck with flats in the past 5 years or so. I'm actually considering ordering a set of PS2's from TireRack, and keeping them on hand for the inevitable, be it a flat or just time to replace them.

Comments? Anyone have experience with the goo?

I live in the country 100 miles from Porsche dealer, tire stores, etc. My '05 997 is garaged in an old stone barn. My driveway is 1/2 mile of crushed rock. the only local tire store services tractors and pickup trucks. The twisty country road I drive are even more remote. I worry about flats! Through Ebay and shopping around on net, I found a 996 'spare tire' & aluminum scissor jack, a lug wrench & 9mm (?) socket for lug nuts, and canvas tire cover. I tested all this out on the car, front and back tires, in the safety and comfort of my garage and it all works - good wheel fit, jack operates as designed (be sure to use front & rear 'jack points'), etc. This 'kit' all fits into my front luggage space, nice and neat in the canvas cover. Because if can roll side to side, I shove a soft bag next to it. A couple of notes: The spare tire must be partially deflated to fit in trunk, so using the compressor supplied by Porsche will be required once spare is put on car. Also, the flat tire and wheel will not fit into truck (the wheel might if tire shredded), so it will have to be put in the back seat; add a heavy-duty large plastic trash bag to your 'kit' to put tire/wheel in after it comes off car.

This took me about a month to pull together and I kept wondering if it was worth it. Any way you slice it, it would be a big mess, a lot of trouble, and probably ruin the day, since a return home on the spare would be required. But, considering the alternatives, I'd much rather have this option than to be stranded on the side of the road for what I am sure would be the better part of the day.

Hope this helps.

Man do I agree with you. I have a 997 and am scared to death of a flat. Getting one would spell disaster I'm sure. Goo! Goo is good for gluing my sneaker sole back on. I'm getting the wheel and jack. Thanks mcuh for testing and providing the results.

[deschodt]

As a 987 owner (also no spare) looking at a 997 next year, I have to say the lack of a spare sucks... I blew out a tire last week and it took Porsche 2.5 hours to send a flat bed. Then they "doinked" the wheel while driving the car on the flat bed... Then I had to get the dealership to order one and charge me dealership prices ($404).

I've bought a spare from a dismantler from an earlier model (986 for 987, I am sure 996 for 997 works too). That fits in the front trunk fine fully inflated if you tilt it a bit, straight up if you deflate it..

Porsche wanted $371 for a new spare wheel and $190 for a jack !!! I got it used and bought a 944 jack ! I would definitely buy the factory solution with a new car, you cannot rely on the 1-800-Porsche tow to be quick....

Edited April 24, 2006 by deschodt

[bob/ft.worth]

Loren, et al,

I wouldn't mind picking up a spare but my 997 is an S with 19" wheels. So can I use the 996 spare wheel for a short emergency trip to get it to the dealer. Or is that a bad idea. is the spare 17", 18" doesn't matter? I never really thought about the size of the spare figuring it was put in my previous 996 to match the 18" wheels.

One size fits all in this case?

[deschodt]

I'd think so... Keep in mind it's the overall wheel+tire diameter that matters...

a 19" wheel will tend to have a lower profile tire, say a 35 (like in 265x35x19 of rinstance), vs say a 15" wheel like on my 73 911 which yould have 70 side, high profile. But overall the diameter of the wheel+tire combo should be close and keep the car level. Even if it's not perfect it beats waiting 2+ hours for the tow truck like I had to do! But I'll let experts confirm this !

[mglobe]

Well, I'm all set. I bought a brand new flat tire kit for a 996 on eBay. It has all the stuff with it. Tools, jack, even a plastic bag to put your flat tire in. It fits in the front upright if you let the air out, which is what I chose to do, since the 997 has a compressor.

[bob/ft.worth]

Ha!

I saw that post and was going to buy that 996 spare too :D You beat me to it.

Final cost for 1 tire/mounting/labor = $590 :angry:

[mglobe]

Ha!

I saw that post and was going to buy that 996 spare too :D You beat me to it.

Final cost for 1 tire/mounting/labor = $590 :angry:

Sorry bout that! I saw it, and thought to myself that if I didn't grab it, someone else on the board would! B)

[pab997]

You also must consider the diameter of the brake rotor with the caliper attached. Standard 997 uses same size brakes as 996. The 997s uses slightly larger caliper and rotor up front but still looks like it would fit in a 17 inch diameter rim. The ceramic brakes on the other hand look quite large and I doubt they would work with anything less than 19". just something else to consider.

[Jays987]

OK, so I'm worrying about stuff I probably shouldn't, but...

The one thing that freaks me out a bit about my 997 is the lack of a spare tire for two reasons. First of all, does the goo/compressor thing actually work? Can it really give me a tire I can drive on? And for how long? And if I do flat, will I be able to get the tires I want on the car in a reasonable time at a halfway decent price, or am I stuck either without a car waiting for tires, or paying way too much. This car is my daily driver, so that is I'm sure at least part of why my concerns are probably more than most 997 owners. Also, we've had buzzards luck with flats in the past 5 years or so. I'm actually considering ordering a set of PS2's from TireRack, and keeping them on hand for the inevitable, be it a flat or just time to replace them.

Comments? Anyone have experience with the goo?

I had a flat tire visiting family 150 miles from home. The factory air compressor worked fine to air up, and as it was a slow leak, I rode it home. Use the center cig-lighter for power - the kickspace DC adapter has a lower amp fuse.

Didn't need the goo for this one.

The 19" Michelin PS2 picked up a screw (within 1" of the outside edge , unpatchable). Took a week to get in a ($ 600.00) tire from Jersey. I didn't like baby in the garage for a week, so I bought one of each, front & rear (tires only) & bought a single rear Carrarra S 19" x 10" rim for ~ $1000 total. Discount OnLine is cheaper than the brick & mortor store. Got the single rim on eBay for 300 - brand new in box (had a little curb rash on one of my rears anyway)

The 10" wide rear rim will temporarily fit the front without clearance issue (though I'd say it would effect the PSM ) I fit it up just to see. I just couldn't stand leaving it in the garage. ;-)

All told - I'm fixed & cheaper than the factory (foreign) spare option.

[kocsis]

Do you know if foreign spare for 997 fits C4S?

[paulg1]

You also must consider the diameter of the brake rotor with the caliper attached. Standard 997 uses same size brakes as 996. The 997s uses slightly larger caliper and rotor up front but still looks like it would fit in a 17 inch diameter rim. The ceramic brakes on the other hand look quite large and I doubt they would work with anything less than 19". just something else to consider.

The 996 'spare' that I bought fits over front and rear calipers (non-ceramic) although wheel is 17". I wouldn't want to have to drive far on it or more than 50 MPH, but that's O.K., considering the alternative.

[mglobe]

One question I've heard is whether or not it is possible to fit a rear tire that has flatted into the back seat of a coupe. Some folks say yes, and I can now confirm this. No, I didn't flat. My rears were worn out (after only 8800 miles), so I purchased a pair of sportcontact2's for the rear, and when this set wears out, I plan to go to PS2's.

My 997 is my daily driver. I need it functional each day. Since these high performance tires seem to often be special order, I had NTB save one of the rears so that if I ever flat, I will have a tire I can mount on the rim and use for a couple of days till the replacement comes in. The old tire fit in the back seat with no problem.

[bob/ft.worth]

Great idea!

save a tire and maybe I'll pick up a cheap rim on e-bay

[mglobe]

Great idea!

save a tire and maybe I'll pick up a cheap rim on e-bay

Next time I replace tires, I'm going to save a front also, so I have one of each size. I hadn't thought of mounting it on an old cheap wheel, but not a bad idea.