car dummy need help: blow car's front tire today, hitting a curb ...

[jimmyhaha]

car dummy need help:

early tonite, I drive into a parking lot,

stupid me didn't see a curb ~ 5" height in dark when I turn, and hit it @ ~ 10-15 mph

it's cold and dark and I pull out the jack and spare tire and call my friend for help, he bring over a flash light & we replace the blown tire with spare one..

problem is that the spare tire is NOT the same spec as the other tires on my car, it's seems smaller.. like 15" ? the normal one looks like 17"

Question: where do I check the spec of the tire and where should I go to buy the right spec tire to avoid rip-off ? i.e. Sears, or automative shop

should I pay extra to the mechanics to change the tire & do tire alignment or just do it myself ? Is tire alignment important when changing tire (I don't have precise equipment to do it and I think the automotive shop has those machine? )

I am a car dummy, Pls advice, thanks in advance.

 

[ohtwell]

The tire should have the specs listed on it. More than likely that is just a reg. sized donut. They aren't meant to be driven on for very long so you need to get it replaced soon.


: ) Amanda

 

[Linflas]

Sounds like it is just an emergency spare. You need to replace the blown tire, the spare is just to get you home.

 

[minendo]

You look at the tire and read the specs from it. Check TireRack for pricing.

 

[iamwiz82]

the spare is a donut, usually smaller to conserve space. Take the blown tire to a shop and have them replace it. They wont let you walk away with a tire that is horribly mismatched. Just ask for a replacement.

 

[MrBond]

The alignment is definatly important in this case. Even a 5" curb at 15mph can throw things out of wack. You'll notice the car will want to pull to one side or another when you're driving it. I'd have that done professionally, I don't believe that's a job for the weekend mechanic.

 

[RU482]

what the hellis with all the people hitting curbs lately>?

 

[HiTek21]

Look at the old tire spec usually like 195 60 R14. If I were you i'd just get some cheap Kirkland signature series tires from costco, they're like 30 dollars + installation. They wont rip you off there.

 

[TNTrulez]

Originally posted by: redly1
what the hellis with all the people hitting curbs lately>?

I did that once too. I really shouldn't have driven that day, but there was like really weird oil like gunk (a big blob!) on my windshield. It wouldn't come off and I made it worst when I tried the windshield wipers. I am pretty sure someone put it there on purpose. I think it was the old lady that live in the house next to where I park, she would always complain that my car engine is too loud. It is not, since I only drive an unmodified Subaru Legacy 1990. Anyways, I hit the curb and my front right tire blew after it hit a sprinkler pipe. Got it fixed in a week.

 

[KokomoGST]

Originally posted by: redly1
what the hellis with all the people hitting curbs lately>?

Well, a lot of people have trouble parking (non-parallel) in this great nation... not to mention a lot of people don't know car control or how to properly drive. I don't like curbs either... people are always driving over mine... my grass keeps dying despite efforts at reseeding.

EDIT: might as well add some useful info... Tirerack isn't as good as they used to be... they seem to just "follow the book" now. Look at your other tires for numbers. Should be something like ###/##-##. That's tread width, ratio, and then the wheel size in sequence. For example... I have 235/45-17s on my car. Typical sedans are like 195/55-16 or something like that...

 

[jimmyhaha]

thanks for all the advice, guys.. have a nice weekend

me = going to be at least $50 poorer due to stupidity of blown tire hitting a curb..

 

[ElFenix]

Originally posted by: jimmyhaha
thanks for all the advice, guys.. have a nice weekend

me = $50+ poorer due to stupidity of blown tire hitting a curb..

only $50? thats pretty cheap

 

[Ultima]

Something very similar happened to me recently.

I didn't have to get an alignment done, but I did have to change the tire because I couldn't get the spare on (bad lugnut) so I drove on the rim and destroyed the tire's sidewall. I also have to replace the left inner tie rod. Other than that it's all good. Read my thread for more info 😉

BTW: Look on the side of one of your good tires to see what info it is. The guys at the garage should be able to figure it out anyway and tell you what size you need. You should see a number that looks something like 185/70R14. That's the specs of your tire.

 

[vtqanh]

Originally posted by: ElFenix

Originally posted by: jimmyhaha
thanks for all the advice, guys.. have a nice weekend

me = $50+ poorer due to stupidity of blown tire hitting a curb..

only $50? thats pretty cheap

probably he replaced one tire only without alignment?

 

[N8Magic]

Originally posted by: ElFenix

Originally posted by: jimmyhaha
thanks for all the advice, guys.. have a nice weekend

me = $50+ poorer due to stupidity of blown tire hitting a curb..

only $50? thats pretty cheap

He better hope he didn't completely fux0r the alignment or it's going to be a lot more than 50 bucks. :Q

 

[zCypher]

How much is alignment anyways? I always thought it was a pretty cheap job.

 

[Scootin159]

Originally posted by: zCypher
How much is alignment anyways? I always thought it was a pretty cheap job.

I think it's in the $40 - $60 range. It's cheep in comparison to what it would cost to not have it done (a bad alignment will kill your tires & handling).