A tale of two flat tires on my 2015 CTD

10008 Views 19 Replies 14 Participants Last post by joshuab, May 14, 2018

beaurrr

Discussion Starter · May 11, 2018

Almost a year ago, I had a flat on Interstate 10 in Arizona. The factory flat failed to inflate the tire; all of the sealant just ran out the hole. But, I did have AAA, so they gave me a lift into town where I had the tire replaced, and bought another cannister of sealant from gm for about $30.

Last week, 60 miles from my house on Interstate 5, I had another freeway flat. This time it was Saturday night. All the tire shops were closed and AAA was very busy. That tow cost me $134, after AAA's portion. That was an all day affair. I had a trunkload of groceries and a $150 worth of meat. Most of the meat went bad.

Look, I like the car. I think some things could be better, but I'm mostly happy with it. I also think the Fuel Max tires are decent as long as you don't run over sharp rocks or glass or whatever. But for GM to equip a car with tires that are not that robust is unforgivable.

I'll be buying some kind of spacesaver spare, jack and wrench is carrying that around in my trunk because GM was too lazy to engineer a better location for the DEF tank on the early models.

I don't blame the car, and I don't blame the tires (which should have a little tougher if no spare is supplied), but I do blame GM for thinking this was an acceptable practice. I've bought my last GM car.

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MRO1791

· #2 · May 11, 2018 (Edited)

beaurrr said:
Almost a year ago, I had a flat on Interstate 10 in Arizona. The factory flat failed to inflate the tire; all of the sealant just ran out the hole. But, I did have AAA, so they gave me a lift into town where I had the tire replaced, and bought another cannister of sealant from gm for about $30.

Last week, 60 miles from my house on Interstate 5, I had another freeway flat. This time it was Saturday night. All the tire shops were closed and AAA was very busy. That tow cost me $134, after AAA's portion. That was an all day affair. I had a trunkload of groceries and a $150 worth of meat. Most of the meat went bad.

Look, I like the car. I think some things could be better, but I'm mostly happy with it. I also think the Fuel Max tires are decent as long as you don't run over sharp rocks or glass or whatever. But for GM to equip a car with tires that are not that robust is unforgivable.

I'll be buying some kind of spacesaver spare, jack and wrench is carrying that around in my trunk because GM was too lazy to engineer a better location for the DEF tank on the early models.

I don't blame the car, and I don't blame the tires (which should have a little tougher if no spare is supplied), but I do blame GM for thinking this was an acceptable practice. I've bought my last GM car.

You appear to have worse than average luck when it comes to flat tires. When I got my 1996 Saturn, I did not like the donut, compact spare.. so I went and found a regular rim, and put a full size tire in there which doesn't quite fit, but it has been there now for 22 years, and it has not been used, ever. Granted a much lighter car than the Gen 1 Diesel Cruze. I have one still and had another. Clearly the DEF tank was a quick fix for Gen 1, Gen 2 has the same compact spare as the Gas model. Those that have deleted emissions on their Gen 1, some have pulled the tank and made room for a compact spare. That said, if you had a spare, it is possible you'd never had to use it seems Murphy's Law knows you well.

Lastly, I would not be so sure GM had anything to do with the tires, nor susceptibility for a flat, most modern tires are very resistant to flats, and those Goodyear high efficiency tires seem to not be an exception. What pressure were you running? If GM screwed up, I'd say it was there pressure recommendation of 38PSI on a tire rated for 51PSI. I run about 49-50 in mine, so far, no problems.

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boraz

· #3 · May 11, 2018

beaurrr said:
, but I do blame GM for thinking this was an acceptable practice.

cars dont come with spares...its not a GM thing.

Reactions: 1

Rivergoer

· #4 · May 11, 2018

Sorry to hear about your flats @beaurrr. That plain sucks.

When I flew to Texas to buy my CTD I was floored to learn it didn’t have a spare. It was a big deal to me but I figured there was a solution. Thank goodness folks here already did the homework.

One of the the first things I did was get the http://www.cruzetalk.com/forum/64-g...cussion/161002-verano-doughnut-spare-ctd.html and jack kit.

The OEM fix a flat flat solution is a joke and I’m not always in a cell phone area. Even if I was it would take AAA an hour or more to reach me.

Sit on the side of the road in 120 degree heat or lose a little trunk space and carry around a donut spare...I choose the latter.

Look for the Verano donut spare on eBay, it’s a great solution. Don’t forget the jack kit and lug wrench.

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beaurrr

Discussion Starter · #5 · May 11, 2018

I keep the pressure at 40-42.

I don't know about my luck, but the last time I had a flat was 10 years ago. I've been driving almost daily since 1986, and I can count the number of flats I've had on one hand, with a finger to spare. And some of tires were junky, worn out tires. The issue is not whether the Fuel Max tires are good or bad, it's whether they are robust enough to compensate for the fact that if you do get a flat, there's a high probability that the GM sealant simply won't work, which means you're officially stranded. Those odds are not good enough.

In my case, I was stranded on a busy freeway for two hours the first time, and 4 hours the second time. This is real safety issue if you get stuck in a bad area. I could have been robbed or worse while I was sitting on the freeway for four hours.

If the GM's strategy was truly a good idea, all cars would have this, including the new diesel Cruze. But they don't for a reason.

I didn't come here to debate the issue, only to share, and hopefully for some elses benefit.

I was certainly of the mind that this was an acceptable trade-off for me. Two expensive, potentially dangerous strandings in one year has made that risk unacceptable. So, I'll get a spacesaver, a jack, and a wrench, and haul that mess around in my trunk.

But, GM can go eff themselves after this.

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beaurrr

Discussion Starter · #6 · May 11, 2018

boraz said:
cars dont come with spares...its not a GM thing.

Well, the 2018 Cruze (and Cruze diesel do). Thanks anyway for the reply.

boraz

· #7 · May 11, 2018

beaurrr said:
I keep the pressure at 40-42.

I don't know about my luck, but the last time I had a flat was 10 years ago. I've been driving almost daily since 1986, and I can count the number of flats I've had on one hand, with a finger to spare. And some of tires were junky, worn out tires. The issue is not whether the Fuel Max tires are good or bad, it's whether they are robust enough to compensate for the fact that if you do get a flat, there's a high probability that the GM sealant simply won't work, which means you're officially stranded. Those odds are not good enough.

In my case, I was stranded on a busy freeway for two hours the first time, and 4 hours the second time. This is real safety issue if you get stuck in a bad area. I could have been robbed or worse while I was sitting on the freeway for four hours.

If the GM's strategy was truly a good idea, all cars would have this, including the new diesel Cruze. But they don't for a reason.

I didn't come here to debate the issue, only to share, and hopefully for some elses benefit.

I was certainly of the mind that this was an acceptable trade-off for me. Two expensive, potentially dangerous strandings in one year has made that risk unacceptable. So, I'll get a spacesaver, a jack, and a wrench, and haul that mess around in my trunk.

But, GM can go eff themselves after this.

i dont want to debate this

debates this

boraz

· #8 · May 11, 2018

$10 plug kit helps too

beaurrr

Discussion Starter · #9 · May 11, 2018 (Edited)

Boraz: Why don't you go share your lies elsewhere and antagonize somebody else.

Rivergoer: thanks for the suggestion on the Verano spare kit.

Robby

· #10 · May 11, 2018

I have two cars with no spare.....2007 SRT8 Magnum and a 2009 Mazda Miata. The Miata comes with a jack (I guess to tease you) and a bottle of goo with a compressor......the Dodge just comes with the goo and a compressor.
Although it seems weird to not have a spare I guess 50 years of motor cycle operation tends to soften the blow of not having a spare.
The two cars and the bikes always travel with a plug kit.....the bikes carry CO2 cartridges as well for re-inflation purposes and (Good Lord,I hope I'm not setting myself up) and, so far, all remain unused.
I had the same tires on my ECO that are on your Diesel OP and never had a problem.......I swear my wife was driving her Malibu into construction sites though......seemed like I was repairing a tire every three months.

Guess it all boils down to luck......you have it or you don't........I've been fortunate and I tend to give thanks to anyone who has a flat......as in, 'Thanks for picking that nail up so I didn't have to'......heh heh.

Putting the spare in the trunk is a good idea though.....the car knows it is in there and will never have a flat again.....trust me.....it works!

Good luck!
Rob

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Tomko

· #11 · May 11, 2018

It sucks to get a flat. It’s even worse to get stranded by it. Talk about ruining your day. But a couple of questions strike me:

1) Did you know that your car didn’t have a spare before you bought it?

2) Did you know before today that you can buy a Verrano space saver and jack?

obermd

· #12 · May 11, 2018

The first car I ever had without a spare was my ECO MT. So I went out and found the parts and installed a spare tire. My second car without a spare is my Volt. I just put the spare in it as well for cross and back country travel. Unfortunately spare tires are becoming a rarity as manufacturers dump weight to bring their city EPA numbers up.

Reactions: 1

ChevyGuy

· #13 · May 12, 2018

Robby said:
Putting the spare in the trunk is a good idea though.....the car knows it is in there and will never have a flat again.....trust me.....it works!
Rob

^This

obermd said:
Unfortunately spare tires are becoming a rarity as manufacturers dump weight to bring their city EPA numbers up.

^And this

sailurman

· #14 · May 12, 2018

boraz said:
cars dont come with spares...its not a GM thing.

[FONT=&quot]AAA also offered up a list of 2017 models that don't offer a spare at all. Here they are in alphabetical order:[/FONT]

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sailurman

· #15 · May 12, 2018

Yeah, it's not just a GM thing. But don't let the door hit ya where the good lord split ya? :th_SmlyROFL:

Eddy Cruze

· #16 · May 12, 2018 (Edited)

sailurman said:
AAA also offered up a list of 2017 models that don't offer a spare at all. Here they are in alphabetical order:

Acura NSX

Audi R8

Audi TT

BMW 2 Series

BMW 3 Series

BMW 4 Series

BMW 6 Series

BMW i3

BMW i8

BMW X3

BMW X4

Cadillac ATS

Cadillac CTS

Chevrolet Bolt EV

Chevrolet Camaro

Chevrolet Corvette

Chevrolet SS

Chevrolet Volt

Dodge Viper

Fiat 500

Fiat 500L

Fiat 500X

Ford C-Max

Hyundai Accent

Hyundai Ioniq

Infiniti QX30

Jaguar F-Type

Jeep Cherokee

Jeep Compass

Jeep Renegade

Kia Forte

Kia Niro

Kia Rio

Kia Soul

Mazda MX-5 Miata

Mercedes-Benz B-Class

Mercedes-Benz C-Class

Mercedes-Benz CLA-Class

Mercedes-Benz E-Class

Mercedes-Benz GLA-Class

Mercedes-Benz S-Class

Mercedes-Benz SL-Class

Mini Cooper Countryman

Mitsubishi i-MiEV

Nissan GT-R

Nissan Leaf

Porsche 718 Cayman

Porsche 911 Carrera

Porsche Panamera

Smart ForTwo

Tesla Model S

Tesla Model X

AAA also offers AAA + and AAA Ultimate which offer 3 one hundred (100) mile tows and 1 tow good for 200 miles, $110 a year. I live in the middle of nowhere and being stranded can lead to death. The next exit on my Interstate with people or water is 2 hours away

LulzT1

· #17 · May 13, 2018

Yeah, no spare tire is definitely not GM exclusive. You just have bad luck my friend. I drove for about 3k miles with a piece of wire in my inner sidewall, and those tires had about 60k, too. I replaced the other 3 oem tires at 85k, never had an issue. The fuel max tires are plenty robust enough, I've hit some pretty nasty potholes and surprisingly never had a blowout.

Really just depends what you run over. Last week, the F550 I drove ran over a nail/bolt and punctured a nearly brand new tire. Stay out of the shoulder and avoid the right lane.

spaycace

· #18 · May 13, 2018 (Edited)

What you didn't mention is how many miles are on the tires, how often they're rotated, and what types of roads you drive on regularly. All that heat of desert driving is a bit tougher on tires too ... which is why you see more blown out semi tire treads on the road in hot summer climates, and not so much in the winter. Unfortunately, it doesn't sound like you will be able to buy any cars in the near future since nearly all manufacturers are going spareless. Granted, a lot of them DO offer a spare tire option at a cost, but they don't make that option blatantly obvious either. (you also have the option of getting a junkyard wheel/tire from a car with same size wheel/tire as yours and same bolt pattern & offset) My G8 didn't come with a spare, but there's an option to purchase one. My former Cadillac Escalade ESV didn't have a spare either, and that too was an optional configuration on the vehicle since it had true dual exhaust instead of single. I haven't owned any "foreign" cars (although technically my G8 is Australian) since I had a 2005 VW Passat TDI. I certainly wouldn't blame the manufacturer for a tire problem though, and your misfortune clearly sucks. Perhaps you simply had 2 tires that were in a bad batch made by the tire manufacturer, which seems most logical. But I certainly don't base my vehicle purchases on whether or not I have a spare tire available, although it is thought of. I agree that the DEF tank should have been re-located to keep a spare tire option in the vehicle though. I also feel like with the advent of cell phones and how "connected" everyone is these days, car makers don't feel the need to provide a spare because help is just a phone call away (or blue onstar button push for GM) ... unless you're stranded in BFE of course, with no cell signal (which is ironically where you'd need it most). Either way, flats suck and even more so when you don't have a spare but rather, the virtually useless "goop" and pump instead.

When you really think about it, what good is that stuff if you get a flat while driving? It's great to have for a slow leak you discover when you walk to your car in a parking lot and magically have a flat. Completely useless for a flat incurred while driving.

You should keep us informed as to what your next vehicle purchase is however, because I'd be interested to see what you end up getting.

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KpaxFAQ

· #19 · May 13, 2018

boraz said:
$10 plug kit helps too

This. I've had flats a couple times. A pair of pliers and a tire plug kit and I'm back on the road in 15-20 minutes. The same kit I bought for 7 bucks years ago has patched my tires and numerous other people's who called me to bail them out.

Reactions: 1

joshuab

· #20 · May 14, 2018

robby said:
guess it all boils down to luck......you have it or you don't........i've been fortunate and i tend to give thanks to anyone who has a flat......as in, 'thanks for picking that nail up so i didn't have to'......heh heh.

lol!

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