Someone took the term "run-flat" WAY too seriously.

"Battery Tender Unnecessary" (carac)
02/23/2014 at 17:57 • Filed to: None

100

The wheel well trim was melted as well. I can't imagine what this sounded and felt like.

DISCUSSION (100)

Brian Silvestro > Battery Tender Unnecessary
02/23/2014 at 17:59

Looks like....an X5/6 wheel?

TheBloody, Oppositelock lives on in our shitposts. > Battery Tender Unnecessary
02/23/2014 at 18:04

yay stupid people... le sigh.

Luke's Dad Sold His 2000TL To Get a Sienna > Battery Tender Unnecessary
02/23/2014 at 18:06

Your Friend: Sir, the tire meant to say that you can run the tire flat, not the rim flat.

drunkenup4 > Brian Silvestro
02/23/2014 at 18:10

X5-spec style 214 rims plus running boards... an X5 fo sho

Brian Silvestro > drunkenup4
02/23/2014 at 18:12

Not too much of a loss then.

Leadbull > Battery Tender Unnecessary
02/23/2014 at 18:21

These people walk among us.

desertdog5051 > Battery Tender Unnecessary
02/23/2014 at 18:58

"Huh? I never noticed anything".

damnthisburnershitsux > Battery Tender Unnecessary
02/23/2014 at 20:20

Kinja'd!!!

looks like a carwash

PatBateman > Battery Tender Unnecessary
02/23/2014 at 20:20

FP'd!! Woooo!!

Now everyone can realize that there are these kinds of people driving around!! Also, this is the reason why I drive a 4x4 full size truck.

SnowBallin > Battery Tender Unnecessary
02/23/2014 at 20:22

Holy shit, look at the body damage. What kind of fool drives likes this?

ICantStandNewJalopnik > Battery Tender Unnecessary
02/23/2014 at 20:22

Food for thought: Wife's out on the Interstate. Knows tire's flat. Has been told by husband she has run-flat tires. Husband says, "Whatever you do, get off the damn highway. I don't care if we have to buy a new rim. It's not worth your life." Wife does that. She also believes she heard her husband say, "Just get to the dealer."

Me about what I see... "Who cares. As long as the person was safe. I have seen too many news stories about people with flats getting injured or killed over a stupid tire."

Flame suit on.

eidolon6 > Battery Tender Unnecessary
02/23/2014 at 20:22

Ehhh...it will buff right out...

 > Battery Tender Unnecessary
02/23/2014 at 20:23

Was this car involved n a police chase?

Captain_Spadaro > Battery Tender Unnecessary
02/23/2014 at 20:25

What. The. FUCK.

I lurk the greys for fun > Battery Tender Unnecessary
02/23/2014 at 20:25

You don't actually expect the person to stop in the ghetto do you? I mean HONESTLY.

stigshift > Battery Tender Unnecessary
02/23/2014 at 20:26

Behold the impact of fox "news" upon the masses...

Maxxuman > Battery Tender Unnecessary
02/23/2014 at 20:27

"I demand a refund. You told me these were run-flat tires but this one's clearly run ragged!"

puddler > Battery Tender Unnecessary
02/23/2014 at 20:28

Kinja'd!!!

morepowerigoragain > damnthisburnershitsux
02/23/2014 at 20:28

looks like Jimmy Cliff

JayHova >
02/23/2014 at 20:29

Either this or it's the SLR owner from a few days ago.

The World of Vee > Battery Tender Unnecessary
02/23/2014 at 20:29

I had a blow out of a low profile tire on the highway right before a major bridge (probably a quarter mile) and I pulled over right before the bridge and the copper made me drive OVER THE BRIDGE on the rim.

I tried to explain to him that it is near Sacrilege to run a D2 Audi S8 Avus wheel on the rim but he was having none of it. I was so sad. But it wasn't destroyed and I did get it refinished.

jalop1991 > drunkenup4
02/23/2014 at 20:30

so, a 24 year old girl driving it, then.

Boomsticktmo > Battery Tender Unnecessary
02/23/2014 at 20:33

10 to 1, rich dudes daughter took out the 3rd car for a night on the town... I can already hear the conversation... "Daddy, i think that there is a problem with the car" "DID YOU HIT ANYTHING?" "No, well, yes... but he looked homeless, and he wasn't even trying to get to the sidewalk, and after I hit him, he totally didn't seem to be moving, and the car seemed fine so it just didn't seem like stopping made any sense.... might have a flat though." "THANK GOD. Don't tell your mother you were out this late and don't forget that we have brunch with the Flanagan's tomorrow morning." "Whatever."

PatBateman > SnowBallin
02/23/2014 at 20:37

A fool that can afford a $60k+ mom mobile.

Think about that for a second.

davedave1111 > Battery Tender Unnecessary
02/23/2014 at 20:39

I don't find it hard to imagine situations where that's exactly the right thing to do. Anything involving changing a tyre on the side of a road with fast traffic on, for starters. Your life is worth a lot more than the cost of fixing that damage.

Many years ago my grandmother picked me up from primary school (long before the days of mobile phones) and on the way home got a puncture. (Also a BMW, as it happens.) She ruined a tyre that could probably have been fixed, by driving on it a couple of miles to the nearest tyre place. I didn't understand until recently, but it wasn't long after my mum (and us kids) had been lucky to escape unhurt from a serious accident on the same route, and the cost of destroying a tyre was well worth it because she didn't make my mum worry by turning up very late.

Even the most expensive car on the planet is only stuff. Lives are much more important.

DoctorNine > PatBateman
02/23/2014 at 20:40

Any middle manager or dentist's wife.

ICantStandNewJalopnik > davedave1111
02/23/2014 at 20:44

Said the same thing in my comment. Good work. It's a tire and rim, people. It's stuff. You can't put a price on your life.

Johnny Utah > Leadbull
02/23/2014 at 20:45

And the female character in the movie drove a nice E30 coupe, just to let you know.

Kinja'd!!!

marc1220 > Battery Tender Unnecessary
02/23/2014 at 20:48

No one said it "Asshat!"

DasWolf13 > Battery Tender Unnecessary
02/23/2014 at 20:50

Kinja'd!!!

"Honey, I can't find my keys?" "By the way the car was making a funny noise yesterday".

Freakusaurus-Rex > Battery Tender Unnecessary
02/23/2014 at 20:50

A long time ago, was about 4 in the morning (here in New Orleans, nothing closes) and me and some friends were heading home when this guy pulls up next to us at a red light with his tire falling off the front driver's side rim, blaring heavy metal music. Light turns green and he takes off. We were going the same direction. This guy got it up to about 60mph.. chunks of tire flying off... Then the rim shattering.. then riding on the brakes. I know it had to be hard to hold straight, no matter how drunk he may have been since it was his front tire... Sparks were flying everywhere.. At one point he flew over some train tracks never slowing down a bit... pulled in a driveway & straight into a garage. I don't know what he was running from, but that was crazy just to see... We were following from a little ways back so not to get hit by stuff flying off his car.. Not chasing him, just happened to be going the same direction.

FromCanadaWithLove > Battery Tender Unnecessary
02/23/2014 at 20:51

Of course it's a BMW.

Haze > Battery Tender Unnecessary
02/23/2014 at 20:53

Just out of curiosity, how is the driver supposed to know when the tire has finally internalized too much heat that is just going to disassemble? I mean this is what happens when you drive a damaged tire either run flat or not. For instance, I once changed a tire that was actively on fire while driving up the highway. The woman driving the BMW had no idea that her tire had gone flat or that it was actually burning. I pulled her over. It nicely went out after stopping. While waiting for the whole mess to cool down so that I could change it, I asked her what had happened. She said that she had heard a boomp a little bit before I stopped her. That was the blow out. I asked her if the tire had been damaged recently, and she said yes that she had driven over something in the road that had destroyed the front tire on that side as well as the wheel, but the rear tire had looked OK to the mechanic. This was the first long drive after that damage. What happens to a damaged tire, or a run flat that has no pressure, is that the tire starts to heat up, and it heats up, and it heats up, then it just comes apart. One second it is a tire, and the next it is on fire or melting. So how are you supposed to know when the run flat has had too much heat, and it is about to completely melt from the driver's seat? Personally, I hate these things. I don't think that they are any more useful than a regular tire. Amongst other problems, I have seen two Continentals with bubbles in the sidewall with only 15K miles of driving. Those tires both had to be replaced, and they are very expensive.

Erzhik Tem > Battery Tender Unnecessary
02/23/2014 at 20:54

How do people like that get driver's licenses?

coqui70 > Battery Tender Unnecessary
02/23/2014 at 20:54

POP! thump thump thump THUMP THUMP BUMP scree screeee scrreeeeeeeee THUMP BUMP SCCRREEEEEEECCCHHHHHH THROUNGGGGG KERCHUNK SCREEEEEEECCCHHHHHH ... just my guess.

getchapopcorn > Leadbull
02/23/2014 at 20:54

Not for much longer if they keep driving on tires like that.

getchapopcorn > PatBateman
02/23/2014 at 20:55

Don't front, that's just because you're Texan.

puppyknuckles > The World of Vee
02/23/2014 at 20:59

What the hell? Where?

Adam FTW > Battery Tender Unnecessary
02/23/2014 at 21:00

My father had a tire blowout on the highway maybe 4 miles from home. It was during a snow storm, so there was a ton of snow on the ground. He just drove it home slowly. Car didn't have runflat tires on, but he wasn't waiting 2+ hours for AAA (during snow storm) or having the car slide off the jack (icy out as well).

Tire just had a small rubber ring around the outer lip when he got home, rim dinged up, but he had a full size spare with the correct rim on it, so he didn't care much.

yamanote > drunkenup4
02/23/2014 at 21:02

It's an X6.

thedevilinside > davedave1111
02/23/2014 at 21:02

This makes sense, but this person didn't slowly limp off the road to cause this damage.

hethoughtofcars > Battery Tender Unnecessary
02/23/2014 at 21:03

Almost guarantee the guy was drunk. I saw a BMW going up Burnside St in Portland when I was 20-ish. A rear tire was down to the rim and cutting into the pavement spraying sparks everywhere. At my job, where I refer people convicted of DUII to treatment, I read police reports daily. This kind of stuff is not as unusual as you think. It's almost always someone going in the face of reason (hell they got in the car after drinking in the first place, didn't they?) so that they can just make it home, where everything will be ok. Thing is, the cops don't usually have that difficult a time tracking them down. A trail of debris leading to your front door usually does the trick.

Sk33t3r33 > Battery Tender Unnecessary
02/23/2014 at 21:03

BMW driver. Is more information required?

Howie > Battery Tender Unnecessary
02/23/2014 at 21:04

Spent 22 years in the tire biz, I've seen that and worse.

Manual, bitch! > Battery Tender Unnecessary
02/23/2014 at 21:04

This is more evidence to support the theory that BMW drivers are idiots.

MacVaugh > ICantStandNewJalopnik
02/23/2014 at 21:04

Note, also, that a car with run-flat tires generally has no spare. So you aren't talking about changing a tire on the side of the road, you are talking waiting for a tow truck.

PanchoVilleneuve ST > Battery Tender Unnecessary
02/23/2014 at 21:05

Kinja'd!!!

As long as they could still see that, they don't care, since that's what they bought it for in the first place.

JordanJ > davedave1111
02/23/2014 at 21:06

Personally I'd be worried about the danger to everyone in and around the car actually driving with a tire that bad. Limping it slowly on the shoulder doesn't shred things that bad, and if the driver was on the highway, it would be better to exit and swap it out in a parking lot than keep driving on it

Spectre1 > ICantStandNewJalopnik
02/23/2014 at 21:06

Actually you've got a good point. And really, if they can afford that expensive of a car, a few hundred bones worth of rubber, rim, and body repair really are inconsequential.

S30Z > Battery Tender Unnecessary
02/23/2014 at 21:08

20 bucks it's a California driver...

Spectre1 > coqui70
02/23/2014 at 21:08

Not to mention the light show as steel carves up pavement and vice-versa.

Jason Adrian > getchapopcorn
02/23/2014 at 21:09

Just arrived in Houston this evening. Everything on the road is giant.

Pickles69 > Battery Tender Unnecessary
02/23/2014 at 21:09

Runflats ride so hard when properly inflated- the driver probably couldn't tell the diff. And since most BMWs no longer give you a spare, why the heck would you stop? I'm being dramatic and of course, in most situations, it would be nuts to wreck the rim and the body like that but there are easily situations when it's explicable. Expensive but explicable- sort of like selecting a BMW instead of a car that comes with a spare tire.

shiftndrift65 > Battery Tender Unnecessary
02/23/2014 at 21:09

women or bmw driver , no difference to me

Noroxus > PatBateman
02/23/2014 at 21:10

So...in your special world; you think that trucks are impervious to tire damage?

Truck drivers...

deutschman > Battery Tender Unnecessary
02/23/2014 at 21:11

Our BMW had an "SOS" button and most people these days have phones.
I was driving along CA 101 past Marin in my girl friends 135i with three other people in the car, when a spade drill bit sunk it self into our non run flat tire's side wall (drivers rear). It instantly deflated the tire, and then took all the paint off of the fender lip as it spun around. SHIT! We pulled over, I hit the "SOS" button, and we had a tow to the BMW stealership in minutes. Not sure why the same could not have been done here...

bobtheo > Battery Tender Unnecessary
02/23/2014 at 21:11

at least it will be easier to unmount. im not kidding, i hate changing these at work. i wish the person who developed these tires gets ball cancer in his face (joking about that, these are good tires to have on a expensive car in case something like this happens, but only for 50 miles, and unless you were this dumbass.

bpromersberger >
02/23/2014 at 21:11

That was my first thought.

Bimmerjared > SnowBallin
02/23/2014 at 21:11

Matt Karolian > puppyknuckles
02/23/2014 at 21:12

This story is totally unbelievable, the D2's transmission would have given up way before the tire.

Bimmerjared > PatBateman
02/23/2014 at 21:13

Not to be a total douche, but that's a 34-45k mom mobile....

ICantStandNewJalopnik > MacVaugh
02/23/2014 at 21:13

Nope. I want her out of there. It's a tire, rim and body work. Big deal.

ICantStandNewJalopnik > Spectre1
02/23/2014 at 21:14

If you have insurance, it really doesn't matter. Your deductible vs. your life. Thanks for understanding.

smalleyxb122 > Battery Tender Unnecessary
02/23/2014 at 21:14

I have destroyed a tire in a similar fashion (though not quite to the same extent). I was pulling onto the expressway about 5 miles from home and got a flat. When I bought the car (used), it came with no spare, and I made the conscious decision that even if I ruined the rim, it would be cheaper than a tow, so I took the first exit and drove home (slowly) on the flat, taking surface streets. The only damage was that the belts from the tire had worn through the finish of the inner fender by the time I got home. A spare has since been added to my trunk.

OldElvis > Leadbull
02/23/2014 at 21:15

Biggest issue is that we need all safety equipment because they lack common sense

ataraxia > Leadbull
02/23/2014 at 21:18

They also vote...

coqui70 > Spectre1
02/23/2014 at 21:18

A glow to rival the 4th of July fireworks at the Esplanade on the Charles River.

The World of Vee > Matt Karolian
02/23/2014 at 21:20

Oh yeah...this totally didn't happen.

Kinja'd!!!

khansobro > Battery Tender Unnecessary
02/23/2014 at 21:21

I'm embarrassed admitting this, but my oldest sister is guilty of doing the same if not worse. She was driving home (about 20 miles North of Boston) from a friend's place in Jamaica Plains, and her tire went flat a few miles into the trip. It being the middle of winter, and middle of the night apparently dissuaded her from wanting to stop at all. I can't put into words the confusion that came over my early morning mind as I walked by the almost destroyed wheel (tire was completely gone) before getting into my car to head to work.

The World of Vee > puppyknuckles
02/23/2014 at 21:23

I was in upstate new york, the tire blew out and I pulled to the side and was gonna change it and the cop told me it wasn't a safe spot to change and that I had to go across the bridge to the wider shoulder. I literally pleaded with him, I had a hydro jack in my trunk, told him if he could close the lane for 5 mins I'd be done.

Nope. made me drive it.

See my reply to Matt Karolian asinine comment for a pic of the aftermath

but like I said, the wheel was refinished and it worked out great.

Ricky Weston > Matt Karolian
02/23/2014 at 21:24

As would all the ball joints

GoDogGo > Leadbull
02/23/2014 at 21:26

This is the work of today's BMW driver. My how the brand's prototypical customer has changed.

Niquemarshall > SnowBallin
02/23/2014 at 21:26

Someone who could theoretically afford the purchase price, but not a replacement tire.

Niquemarshall > ICantStandNewJalopnik
02/23/2014 at 21:32

In order for the damage to be that great, they would have driven like that for quite some time. Also it was pointed out, it may be the result of a police chase maybe?

Cynical > Battery Tender Unnecessary
02/23/2014 at 21:35

What were they supposed to do, stop and look? Like some fucking prole? They said RUN FLAT, so they did. Now it's time to write up that lawsuit for false advertising or something...

BrettAM > The World of Vee
02/23/2014 at 21:35

I can't speak for Matt, but I think he was trying to make a joke regarding the questionable reliability of that particular vintage of Audi.

Darigaaz > The World of Vee
02/23/2014 at 21:35

Wow that....soooo sucks. Did your insurance cover it? did you file a complaint or something with the PD? I would have argued that it was my right as an American to wait for a tow truck atleast and by making me drive across the bridge the terrorists have officially won by destroying such a nice rim (I don't normally like non 5 spoke rims but those are nice).

PatBateman > Noroxus
02/23/2014 at 21:36

In my special world, where things like physics come into play, I stand a much better chance of shrugging off a minor-medium collision in a vehicle with more mass than the other person is driving.

SCIENCE!

The World of Vee > BrettAM
02/23/2014 at 21:37

I got it, it's a shame it wasn't funny though :/

MAP2 Photography > The World of Vee
02/23/2014 at 21:38

I fully believe it. A CHP officer made my wife do the same thing with our Benz on Carlssons. He said that she was in a dangerous area on the highway... She was in between the white lines, on the shoulder, near an on ramp. Bent the damn barrel. I sent up a claim and they shot it down. BS.

xInfantry > Battery Tender Unnecessary
02/23/2014 at 21:39

I find it interesting that a vast majority of the visitors here come to read about cars they will almost certainly never own and likely never even see but then piss and moan about the people who CAN afford them. Class warfare at its finest.

And allow me to make your two arguments for you...

REPLY ONE: Well, actually, i DO own...blah..blah...blah.

REPLY TWO: i ALSO own...blah...blah...blah (thank God i'm on the internet and no one knows that i'm 29, live with my parents, drive a 12 year-old Jetta/Subie/Civic/Miata [gay] and know automotive facts only from the many websites i read daily.)

Bunch of fucking whiners.

TheRallyStache > Battery Tender Unnecessary
02/23/2014 at 21:39

I've had to change trailer tires that had grenaded like that before, and it took an angle grinder and a chisel to get that bead off the rim. I can't imagine what it would take for a BMW runflat...

The World of Vee > Darigaaz
02/23/2014 at 21:40

Nah I didn't bother with insurance or the PD or anything. I have 4 sets of these wheels so I just ate the cost and got this refinished.

As an Audi dude, this is the only wheel I run on my Audis (I have 3 jesus I have too many). It makes ANY Audi instantly look amazing.

Here's my 04 6-speed Stage 3 2.7tt A6. Google a picture of a C5 with the regular wheels. Night and Day

Kinja'd!!!

Jamesondizzle > Battery Tender Unnecessary
02/23/2014 at 21:41

my cousin did this driving my grandfather's Chevy Blazer. She got a flat. Stopped to look at it. Didn't know what to do so proceeded to drive 5 miles home. Destroyed the rim! She could have picked up a phone and someone could have easily helped her. Some people just don't think.

The World of Vee > MAP2 Photography
02/23/2014 at 21:41

Police just don't understand :(

M54B30 > Battery Tender Unnecessary
02/23/2014 at 21:43

Kinja'd!!!

LodestarRunner > Brian Silvestro
02/23/2014 at 21:48

X5 wheels look awesome on other things.

Kinja'd!!!

Don't worry, it's on bags.

CruzeHatch > Battery Tender Unnecessary
02/23/2014 at 21:48

Kinja'd!!!

Are you surprised?

MrBowles > Matt Karolian
02/23/2014 at 21:49

Brian Silvestro > LodestarRunner
02/23/2014 at 21:50

Better than an X5, that's for sure.

CruzeHatch > Niquemarshall
02/23/2014 at 21:50

If it was a result of a police chase the Bimmer would be in impound not at a shop lol.

Jay Lauer > Battery Tender Unnecessary
02/23/2014 at 21:53

I loathe that I belong to this group of drivers.

BMW.

Jay Lauer > The World of Vee
02/23/2014 at 21:55

I still can't figure out why I like the D2 Audi S8. No idea.

I had a bad experience with a B5 S4 which soured my taste for used Audis, but they do look pretty nice.

drunkenup4 > yamanote
02/23/2014 at 21:55

looks like you're right! congrats lol

caddyak > Battery Tender Unnecessary
02/23/2014 at 21:56

A girl from my high school posted this on her Facebook. She had a flat, didn't know how to change it, so she drove home on it and the metal cords ripped her car apart.

Kinja'd!!!

Moarloud > Battery Tender Unnecessary
02/23/2014 at 21:57

Of course, it would be a mom-mobile X5 Bimmer. No other car has such a high rate of carrying brain-dead idiots inside it...

PatBateman > Jason Adrian
02/23/2014 at 21:57

You expected us to drive Fiat 500s?

Not enough interior room for our hats.

PatBateman > getchapopcorn
02/23/2014 at 21:58

Okay. It's ONE of the reasons I drive a 4x4 full size truck.

The World of Vee > Jay Lauer
02/23/2014 at 21:58

The D2 S8 is just a fantastic looking car. If you're looking for power you're better off with the C5 S6 (same engine, lighter, wagon) but with some slight tuning it can sing 400hp and it's a hoot.

And did I mention how nice Audis from 2001-2004 look?