I have several of those kits but they don't do much good once the tire is flat unless you happen to carry a compressor as well. It didn't take long to put on the spare anyway. Would have sucked bad if it was raining harder than it was......

 

They actually make little aircompressors that run off your 12V. I have one myself and keep it in the car. Works pretty well.

 

Probably one of the few things I don't have in the back of my car. With all the work crap I have to carry, I can barely carry a passenger. Probably should make room for a compressor and a tire plug kit though. I could always leave the cooler of beer out.

Good news is after 2 days the tire hasn't lost a pound of air so I guess the free flat repair was well worth it.

 

My first thought about carrying around tire inflator in the FEH is that's overdoing it.

One of my tires had a leak that required a little air once a week. It was a pain, but there was no damage, it just leaked air much faster than the the other three.
I threw a POS 12V air pump with wires everywhere in the FEH to keep the tire topped off when I got gas.

After looking at that mess a few times, I found a BONAIRE unit that boosted a 25% faster fill (which anything would be faster than what I had), digital tire gauge, detachable worklight/night warning light and a neat sturdy compact carrying case. Everything is real neat and it is clear to make sure it's all in there. It takes up very little room and I love it. I got it at a great price at BJ's wholesale, but I don't see them there any more.

When people ask if I have a set of Jumper cables, I say no, but ask, do you need any air in those tires? Just kidding, but that air pump get used all the time. The tire and rim that has a slow leak is my spare that I fill when the others need air. My Bonaire unit is part of my rig now.

Teester, that's a nice hitch, rack and bike you have there. The air pump must be nice to have for the bike tires also!

GaryG

 

Thanks... It was a bit pricey. I'm thinking that I could motorize it so when there isn't a bike on it I could lower it when I'm on the road an use it as a battering ram against tailgaters!

I have filled my bike tires several times right on the rack because I forgot to check them before leaving! Sometimes I've had to hunt around in the console compartment for the darn presta valve adapter though!

 

I hear you there as well. I once hit something (don't know what...) when I had a Ford Ranger, but when my left rear tire hit it, it launched into the inner sidewall of my right rear tire. Once I had realized what happened and was able to get the vehicle to a safe stop (going a little over 70 mph down I-270 here in MD) the rim had cut the entire outter sidewall of the tire.

Complaining all the way to the top does help though you may or may not see it. With the same Ranger (a 1992) mentioned above, I had a cargo light that shorted out and damaged some other componenets. I took it to my closest Ford dealership here in MD (just moved here at the time and was in the Army.) The repair was covered under warranty. But they kept trying to tell me my truck was purchased before Ford lengthened the Bumper-to-bumper warranty to 3/36K.

I ended up calling the dealership I purchased the truck from in WI (Maritime Ford) and they gave me all the information I needed to call HQ in Detroit. When I called HQ and informed them what was going on, they asked if they could place me on hold for a few minutes. Whilel I was on hold, they called the dealership my vehicle was being repaired at and reemed them a "new one." Then the person returned and informed my my vehicle was inded covered under the lengthened warranty and was repaired at no cost to me.

However, the fun didn't stop there. The service manager was not pleased to see me walk into the door when I came to pick my truck up. He told me I should have called HQ just because I was confused... I then reemed him a new one telling him he shouldn't have people working there trying to confuse their customers because as long as the customers know which routes to use to complain, they'll use them.

This had happened around 1993. I have had to take my FEH to the same dealership last winter and the people there were all different. Who knows, if enough people complain to Ford about that horrible dealership in your area, the management there may change. Especially if Ford doesn't allow them to renew the franchize license...

 

I have one as well. Mine is rated to pump up to 250 psi. But since it is now 10 years old, I would try to go that high. However, that air compressor goes with us when we go on long trips.

 

I had also had a set of molded splash guards installed on my FEH last winter.

 

As a follow-up to my own post I've realized that some of my good ol' favorites are missing mudflaps so I need to amend my earlier statement. I saw a lot of base model Honda cars without mudflaps (maybe these were assembled in OH though). I then saw a top-of-the-line Lexus SUV and a Nissan SUV (both ugly) missing tmudflaps. A Cadillac did not have them but something like a Geo Metro or GM Aveo or some econo-car had them. Bizarre mix out there these days.

 

Plugging tires is no longer an acceptable method of repair. The latest method involves a combination patch/plug that is applied from inside the tire. If someone wants to plug your tires, stop them and go to another shop.