I survived the widow maker!
12-31-2008, 07:55 PM
#1
AudiWorld Super User
Thread Starter
I survived the widow maker!
The last day of the year and had to run into some bad luck, of course.
While driving on the snow covered road this afternoon, a taxi starts to move into my lane forcing me to hit a huge pothole. No immediate blow out but as I'm driving along on the Mass Pike, I noticed my steering wheel is off centered and a small vibration developed. I thought it was a bent wheel. As I'm going along, the small vibration gets worse but nothing like a flat tire feeling. But then the steering wheel becomes even more off centered and that's when I figured the pothole caused a leak somewhere and eventually caused the tire to go flat.
I get off at my exit and pull onto a side road to look at the tire. Just as I thought, completely flat. It was quite windy, still showering snow and low 20s. Didn't have my regular jack or breaker bar in the car. I was left with the factory tools <b>:shudder:</b>
I break out the widow maker and it took me a few minutes to realize how to use it. At the first try, it started to raise the car (not off the ground) but then slipped. Had to reposition it and this time it didn't slip while I got the tire off the ground. I kept an eye on the jack at all times for any signs of slippage. Changed the tire as quickly as I could...20 minutes from taking out the spare and tools to packing the stuff up. The dead tire is sitting in the trunk and looks like a deflated basketball with part of the rubber pushed in. Now I'm sporting 3 gunmetal wheels and one original finish with the Pirelli P6, woot!
Now I've got one dead Wintersport M3 and the 3 other ones that are still good (about half worn). The M3s aren't made in my size anymore, 235/45/17 either so I probably have to go with 4 new Winter tires. I haven't looked thoroughly at the flat tire yet but I'm guessing a pothole usually doesn't leave damage that is patchable?
While driving on the snow covered road this afternoon, a taxi starts to move into my lane forcing me to hit a huge pothole. No immediate blow out but as I'm driving along on the Mass Pike, I noticed my steering wheel is off centered and a small vibration developed. I thought it was a bent wheel. As I'm going along, the small vibration gets worse but nothing like a flat tire feeling. But then the steering wheel becomes even more off centered and that's when I figured the pothole caused a leak somewhere and eventually caused the tire to go flat.
I get off at my exit and pull onto a side road to look at the tire. Just as I thought, completely flat. It was quite windy, still showering snow and low 20s. Didn't have my regular jack or breaker bar in the car. I was left with the factory tools <b>:shudder:</b>
I break out the widow maker and it took me a few minutes to realize how to use it. At the first try, it started to raise the car (not off the ground) but then slipped. Had to reposition it and this time it didn't slip while I got the tire off the ground. I kept an eye on the jack at all times for any signs of slippage. Changed the tire as quickly as I could...20 minutes from taking out the spare and tools to packing the stuff up. The dead tire is sitting in the trunk and looks like a deflated basketball with part of the rubber pushed in. Now I'm sporting 3 gunmetal wheels and one original finish with the Pirelli P6, woot!
Now I've got one dead Wintersport M3 and the 3 other ones that are still good (about half worn). The M3s aren't made in my size anymore, 235/45/17 either so I probably have to go with 4 new Winter tires. I haven't looked thoroughly at the flat tire yet but I'm guessing a pothole usually doesn't leave damage that is patchable?
12-31-2008, 08:22 PM
#3
AudiWorld Super User
Thread Starter
Haha, yeah. I will get on that. Though I still would have changed it myself even with AAA. I had to
be somewhere and was running late.
Happy New Year!
Happy New Year!
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01-01-2009, 04:01 AM
#8
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The Dunlop 3D is an approved replacement for the M3, Just have tirerack shave it to the proper depth
We replaced an M3 w/ a 3D last winter on my freinds AWD Subi and it works just fine. Tirerack also suggested installing the shaved 3D on the rear wheel, not the front.