Wrench Tip: How To Plug A Tire

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Once trimmed, the last step is to seal the plug. Tire Slime provides a small tube of rubber cement. This seals the tiny air pockets and helps the plug vulcanize. Apply liberally and let the cement dry; about 10 minutes or so.  
 
You're finished! Air up the tire and reinstall it on your car. Keep an eye on the tire and the pressure for a few days. If your plug didn't work, you will know pretty quickly. If your tire is still holding air after a week, then you are in the clear. You may notice that this is not a VehiCross. While we still have the VehiCross (and it will be making a return soon!), it is no longer a daily driver. It was relieved of DD duty when I picked up a brand-spanking new Tacoma TRD Off-Road last winter. While the truck itself is pretty nice, the Goodyear tires are clearly not as tough as they look. 
 
These are the little bastards that made a mess of the new tires on my new truck. It's amazing that it's all it took to vent a tire…

As an added bonus, let's quickly mention why it's a bad idea to drive on a flat tire. Driving on a flat tire will start to cut the sidewall, as it is pinched between the rim and the ground. Drive like this too long, and the inside of the sidewall will be destroyed.

 

Michelin down! This is an extreme example of what happens when you don't fix your flats! God I'm glad I got my “edumacashun” so I don't have to work on these messes anymore.

The above tire came off a Mercedes Benz. The owner didn't install their spare and kept driving. This turned what could have been a $15 repair into a $400 nightmare. It took an hour to remove the bead of the tire from the damaged rim (which suffered some severe road rash). We also had to grind the rim to remove the sharp edges and use a ton of sealant to get the new tire to seal properly. This owner was lucky. We had another customer whose tire shredded and actually cut through his inner fender liner, shredding his rear wiring harness. MotoIQ's readers aren't this stupid, but these are good stories to tell your friends and family to prevent them from making the same expensive mistakes.

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