Flat tire change surprises

banner · Feb 24, 2004

I had a flat tire on the way home from work last night.

Of course, never having used the Ody jack before or ever having a flat tire in 24 years of driving ( in order, I ):

- broke the damn twist knob off taking the cover off the jack area in the trunk
- didn't block the rear tires well enough so when the van rolled back a bit the flimsy jack pretty much buckled. Luckily I noticed this before taking the tire off. About 3 minutes later the jack fell off, and is officially "toast"
- realized that the small wrench probably wouldn't work too well on the tire lugs anyway
- called a tow truck to do the swap ( $40 + tax )

Remembering it's -13 C here, I think it was worth the money. Luckily the rim or tire wasn't damaged so $28 later for a repair I'm back in business.

I already bought a more substantial 14" + lug nut wrench that will sit on the pan on top of the spare. I'll also throw in some 2x6s to use as blocks in an emergency.

I think I'll just velcro the compartment cover edge instead of buying a new one ( and knowing Honda's prices). I'll glue the knob on for appearance sake.

However, I have some questions:

- is there a better jack than the stock Ody one ( that will fit in the compartment opening ) ?

- I noticed three slots in the compartment for tools -- I just had two -- the hook and the wrench -- was I missing one?

Anyway, I guess my advice is to check your equipment before having a trial by fire...

-banner

CptFeathersword · Feb 24, 2004

I think as flats became more and more rare, the auto mfg skimped on the jack/tools/spare to save cost and weight. I had a flat in my Saturn a couble of years ago and the jack was barely adaquate for the job. Good advice to check out the equipment before it's needed! I think I'll do just that.

Area51 · Feb 24, 2004

Hello folks,
Being an Ody flat victim twice,I found the jack to cooperate properly, ONLY if the car is set on a fairly level and solid surface..( dirt,gravel and the like are a no-no !)
I too, keep a couple of home made wooden emergency chocks( patent pending

) in the car to stabilize the vehicle.The jack is cheesy, but will suffice if very careful..

hlweyl · Feb 24, 2004

I guess it was because there has been so much construction in our neighborhood that we have had many flats. About 5 years ago I bought a plug kit so I've been plugging my tires ever since then.

A combination plug/patch is the preferred repair nowadays but i've never had a plug go bad.

The latest tires we put on the ody are the uniroyal nail guard so they're supposed to repair themselves on nail holes.

mark180 · Feb 24, 2004

I feel your pain, BUT I disagree.

We use the jack and the tools twice a year to change the wheels from winter to summer. The jack is not perfect, but with regular use and your new 14" wrench you will find no problems should you be in that position again.

We take it one step further and require whom is driving the given vehicle, either the ody or the accord to do at least one wheel (that is all I can convience my wife to do) just so there is less swearing and cursing should we have to do this on the side of the road. The kids watch and help there by reducing their need to watch while we are sitting on the side of the road.

Try lubricating the jack regularily, getting some winter work gloves and even a set of coveralls.

It goes down to -15 in our area as well. At least the government is responsible for your snow clearing and road maintenance not like out here on the "Left" coast.

mg

banner · Feb 25, 2004

The coveralls and work gloves are a good idea. They would go nicely wrapped around the lug wrench in the pan above the spare.

I think I'll take a two pronged approach -- replace the broken jack with another Honda one ( so it fits in the compartment ) _and_ buy a more substantial jack that can sit in my garage. Since most of my driving is within 5km of my house, I could always get someone to bring the jack to me to do the swap.

If I'm far away I could use the onboard jack, or wimp out and call a tow truck like yesterday.

While I'm thinking of it I should outfit my wife's Accord with blocks and a better lug wrench as well. Money well spent, I'd say.

Mel · Feb 25, 2004

mark180 said:
... We use the jack and the tools twice a year to change the wheels from winter to summer.

I strongly suggest that you get a more appropriate jack, e.g., a hydraulic floor jack, for regular maintenance. The jack provided by with the car is really only designed for very occasional use, i.e., changing flats. You'll be much safer, and happier, using a jack designed for regular use.

I used to use the vehicle's jack to rotate tires, etc., on another car of mine. I wore it out and it became unsafe.

I've got a Sears hydraulic floor jack that I've had for over 20 years. It still works fine. I've seen similar jacks at Sam’s for about $60 (in fact, I've considered buying one because they lift to about 22", 2" more than my Sears) and Sears has several models in the $50-$100 range. I'd avoid any of the really small, lightweight jacks. They're too narrow and short to be very stable and their lift height is likely to be very limited. Likewise, bottle jacks probably have a small base and, while strong, are slow to operate and have a limited lifting range.

Just my 2¢ worth,
Mel

rlpenny · Feb 25, 2004

mark180 said:
...not like out here on the "Left" coast.
mg

Funny. My dad always talked about the "left" coast and the "Commy" coast

zenfamily · Feb 26, 2004

I have a bottle jack and chocks for emergencies. I don't really trust the regular oem jack. At least with a hydraulic, if something goes wrong, it'll slowly drop the load, not catastrophically like the regular type. Just make sure it will be enough to lift it, while at the same time, being short enough to fit under the car with a flat. I also carry a bottle of fix-a-flat. That has been more than reliable in a pinch. It all depends on the hole size.

Mel · Feb 26, 2004

zenfamily said:
I have a bottle jack and chocks for emergencies.

The thing that makes me leery of bottle jacks is that they usually have a pretty small base. It works fine if you're using them on a flat, smooth, hard surface, but they're likely to fall over if anything shifts. This is also a problem with some vehicle jacks.

Mel

banner · Feb 26, 2004

Funny, I thought that the OEM jack has pretty small base too -- and I've discovered that most aftermarket scissors jacks have a bigger base so they don't fit in the jack "spot" in the Ody.

I was about to buy a bottle jack 'cos it would fit in the compartment, but I also wondered about its stability.

I guess I'll have to scout a junk yard or ebay, or get reamed by paying Honda prices for a new jack. I'm afraid to ask what they want for an OEM jack, or for the clasp for the compartment cover I broke off.

Anybody got a spare Honda jack they want to get rid of, cheap ? ;-)

Atomic Robot · Feb 26, 2004

I've only had to use my jack once. I noticed the sound of leaking air coming from one of my tires when I got home one day- must have happened close to home 'cause the tire was deflating pretty quickly. The jack worked fine, but of course this was on a flat cement driveway.

Just wondering- is there room anywhere to store something to use as a base for the jack if it has to be used on an uneven surface? I'm thinking that a 12 x 12 square of steel might be good. Wouldn't have to be all that thick...

Imran · Feb 26, 2004

If you have the Extracare warranty with roadside cover, will they come and change a flat? Or will they only come out for mechanical issues?

Grand Total · Feb 26, 2004

banner said:
... or for the clasp for the compartment cover I broke off.

I told my dealer that I broke the clasp when i undid it the first time. They ordered me a new one free of charge.

vincent_va · Feb 27, 2004

The Best solution for a flat change is add "Emergency Service " in the auto insurance . It will only cost few bucks extra but saves lot of head ache .

I used to have AAA membership ( $50 /year) and used once for the past 4 years to do flat change . Now I have it covered in my insurance as well as in Honda Extended warrenty. So I am not planing to renew AAA membership .

Vincent

bccarter · Feb 28, 2004

Since most flats are caused by a nail, screw, etc through the tread of the tire, I carry a tire plug kit and a 12V compact pump and either add air to get home, or plug and pump it up on the side of the road. (normally faster than changing to the spare) This is a system that has worked well for me for a lot of years. I also have road side service (auto insurance) but so far have not used it.

CargoAa · Feb 28, 2004

Jack Failed

I had a blowout about a month ago. While changing the tire with the scissor jack on a relatively flat area the jack folded over. I was lucky that the tire had not been completely remved. The van rested on the tire until a neighbot could bring my 5 ton shop jack to remve the severly bent scissor jack from under the van. I was lucky that the tire was partially in place when the failure occured. I was pretty scared as I could have been injured if the tire no cought the van on the inside of the rim. Just my experience, I do not trust the honda scissor jack at all. I replaced the folded one with a nice bottle jack that fits in the rear jack space perfectly. BE VERY CAREFUL USING THE SCISSOR JACK.

Flat tire change surprises

banner

CptFeathersword

Area51

hlweyl

mark180

banner

Mel

rlpenny

zenfamily

Mel

banner

Atomic Robot

Imran

Grand Total

vincent_va

bccarter

CargoAa

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