Holts Tyre Weld any good? Discuss!

I don't carry a spare tyre in my ute. I've never had a puncture before in 7 years of driving and I've got a roadside assistance card (RAA), so I'm willing to risk it.

It works but writes off the tyre in the process and there is better out there at doing the same job (check out what the army uses) TBH in over half a million miles of diriving i've only had 3 puntures whilst actually driving, all the rest are slow or you come out to get in the car and notice they've gone flat overnight or sumink BUT i do check my tyre on a REGULAR basis, note the emphasis on the regular bit

can of tyre weld = £9-ish

Saving of fuel over a month or so, mayyyybe £3?




and if you get a torn sidewall/blowout, you're screwed. Just keep the spare tbh

11kg won't make much difference at all - it'll probably take you ages to recoup the cost of a tin of tyreweld. If you're going that far it would be useful to remove the carpets, sounde deadening (earplugs!), excess seats, radio, etc.

Things to make your car more economical:

[ecogeek]

-Tune engine up: 1) new lower-viscosity oil (in gearbox too), 2) new filters, 3) new plugs (iridium are supposed to be good), 4) check valve clearances, 5) as much ignition advance as you can get without pinking, 6) correct mixture (maybe a touch lean) and dashpot oil.

-Use low rolling resistance tyres at a high pressure.

-Set up the engine to run on super unleaded. Allows more ignition advance and thus better economy - I get 54mpg on super compared to 49 on regular, which means that a 300-mile journey comes in about £1 cheaper despite the more expensive fuel. However, if the compression ratio is low you won't see any benefit from super, since you will already be able to run optimal ignition timing on regular.

-Drive more economically. If you're accelerating or braking, you're burning lots of fuel... ;D

If you are driving fast for any distance on your commute (ie over 30mph) then aerodynamics are worth a look:

-Gaffer tape over all of the panel gaps other than the driver's door for better aero. Block up some of the rad grille for same - and quicker engine warm-up in cold weather.

-Remove near-side wing mirror, aerial, spoilers, door handles(?) for better aero.

-Add aerodynamic aids: moon discs at front, wheel spats at back, flat floor panels, rear 'boat tail' or kamm back:
ecomodder.com/forum/fuel-economy-mpg-modifications.php#41

[/economy geek]

Beware that the AA will not honour 'relay' if you are supposed to have a spare in the car.
They will only take you to the nearest tyre place.

I had an argument with them about it as I ripped a sidewall and the old Elise never had a spare or anywhere for one!

They wanted to take me to a Kwik-fit in Barrow at 0730 on a Sunday morning when I live in Preston...
Erm, they aren't open for another 3 hours, they won't have anything like what is fitted to the other side and I really don't want to be stranded in Barrow waiting for them to find something all day - just take me home now!

Eventually they did but it cost me £60 for excess milage!
/rant

In short carry a spare if possible!

I even went as far as swapping the space saver on the Porker to a full sized alloy, I'd rather have a decent spare everywhere than risk going without.

(I carry tyre foam too just in case... but it was cheap in halfords bargain box.)

having said that a can of tyre weld works well.
had a tiny leak in the side wall of a tyre i bought on ebay (6mm on it) not so long ago. banged a can of that sh1t in it. and it never lost another pound till it wore out and was changed.

but id be putting 40psi in the tyres and removing the wing mirrors before going to the lengths of fuel saving required to be chucking the spare at the side of the road.

Just carry a spare.

What my tyre fitter told me on those cans is that they can clean the tyre out and repair it but its an absolute curse word of a job and most places as a result just won't. Oh and I hate space savers with a passion horibble things. Mind my uncle had a MGTF with a full size spare but the spare had a directional tyre. As the wheels where different sizes front and back it could only be fitted to the offside front and left for all other wheels the same rules applied as to a spacesaver

Why not just replace the steel spare with an alloy one for a little weight saving (perhaps a kilogram or so.)?

Oh, and don't forget to fold the back seats down for a few added mpg!

Didn't some kid with a corsa say he folded down the back seats to make it lighter?