Pothole Problems

Not having good luck with potholes this month. First off, I was driving my wife's Passat home from dinner on Feb. 1st when I hit a nasty pothole on the right side. Everything appeared to be alright when I pulled over and got out to inspect, but I knew something was wrong when I had a heavy vibration after I got on the interstate. Next morning I went out into the garage to pull the wheels off the right side. Discovered a bulged sidewall and a bent wheel on the right front. Wheel was bent just bad enough to create a noticeable vibration in the steering wheel when mounted on the front, so I decided to go ahead and replace both the wheel and the tire...about $500 overall from the dealership.




Decided to leave the car parked for a few weeks considering the condition of the roads and the nasty weather we were facing. Temps warmed up this week and some road crews were out patching potholes so I felt it was safe to have the wife drive the Passat again.

I was wrong. She was driving home tonight and hit a nasty pothole, tire went completely flat not even a minute later. Got out to discover the right front tire with a 1/2" gash in the sidewall. Yes, this is the tire I just replaced that has less than 100 miles on it. Threw the donut on there and we limped home. Inspected everything when I got home and luckily the wheel doesn't appear to be damaged, but the tire is trash.



Truthfully, I don't know what I will do now. I'm not too sure that the 18" OEM Contis and wheels can withstand the beating they are taking from WV potholes right now. I already have a set of 16" alloy wheels from our last Passat that I was planning on mounting on here with a set of Blizzaks for next winter, but am considering using them for a set of all season tires in 225/60R16. Numbers work out pretty close to the stock 235/45R18 at that size. I'll make a decision over the next few days whether to keep or ditch the 18s, but I hope everyone else has better luck than me avoiding potholes in the meantime.

I keep my thinker sidewall 16" tires on up until April to avoid that, Today must be bad luck as my 78 year old father just killed his sidewall the same way on his Accord on of all things, the rail in the car wash- no one there helped him swap the donut on either

Sorry to hear about this. Potholes suck! Call the county or state and give them a heads up.

I'm coming to Parkersburg the week after next. Thanks for the heads up.

I have a question for you - what tire pressure are you running? I find that most people I know that have had a pinch flat run their tires fairly low (mid 30s or slightly less). I always run mine on the high side (40+), have hit tons or major potholes, and have never had anything worse than a minor sidewall buldge.

The potholes are terrible up here - I think we were rated 'worst in North America' at some point. The ONLY way to have 45 profile wheels here is to be very vigilant. If you have a family member who isn't, then you will continuously replace wheels for the life of the car (I'm telling you from personal experience).

JRM is right - i keep a set of spring wheels - a set of 15s on steelies that I run for a month or 2 until the city fixes the streets up.

gforce1108 said:

I have a question for you - what tire pressure are you running? I find that most people I know that have had a pinch flat run their tires fairly low (mid 30s or slightly less).

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When I hit the first pothole and damaged both the wheel and the tire, I was running 33 PSI as listed on the door sticker. Tire light popped on yesterday morning so I actually had just checked and adjusted pressures before the hit. I bumped up to 36 PSI at that point but should have probably went beyond that in hindsight.

I've priced out a set of Michelin Primacy MXV4 tires in 225/60R16 98H to mount up on the alloy wheels I was saving for winter. Can get the set of 4 from Tire Rack for about $525 shipped after a rebate. I'll probably go this route as it is just not worth running a tire with such a short sidewall considering the condition our roads are in.

Factory size for the 16" is 215/60R16, which is what is standard equipment on the Trendline in Canada.

Any pictures of these "worst potholes in america?" Around here they are quick to fix any holes before they get big enough, but after patching, they put a 2" plate on top. Those are worse than the potholes!



-carl

Feel your pain x2. Wife blew out both tires on right/passenger side of vehicle (17" stock Hankooks) a few weeks back. I've never had that happen in the past.

I had a right front pothole blowout last Thursday as well. The rim was still in great shape, so I just bought an inexpensive tire to tide me over until the fall when I need a new set.

There is a dealer in North Carolina selling some 16" B6 Passat take offs with (crappy) 4k mile tires and 18" Bristols with tires for cheap @ Vorvtex. I almost bought the 16s.

No potholes in FL!

carlrx7 said:

Any pictures of these "worst potholes in america?"

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I just nailed a good one today scared the crap out of me, lucky I was only going 40 mph. I did a high speed test and the car still drives straight, smooth and no noticeable out of balance issues.

Wow $500. Could've gotten a set of them for that price on Craigslist or forums.

Not sure what the rule is where you live but here in Ottawa Ontario if a pothole caused damage to your car the City is liable !! Take pics of the pothole and damage and get estimates .... then submit to the city for compensation. And we do get refunded for the damage !!! Our roads are garbage right now too ... its like navigating a minefield .....

To the OP - That wheel can be 95% fixed with a very large deadblow hammer and a very hard swing. You may need to run it on the rear after that, but it is salvageable. if you intend to scrap it I would gladly pay for the shipping to have a spare.

I hit a pothole that was 8" deep - no kidding. A back road that had been dirt for many years, but was paved this fall. The entire layer of asphalt flaked off. I was hauling a$$, car went airborne on the drivers side.

I coasted to a stop expecting to hear a thump-thump-thump sound, or the smell of leaking fluids. After my body stopped tingling I cautiously hit the gas and continued onward.

Front wheel is definetly bent, but only a small tick at speed. I did not get a flat on my new snows.

The rear tire was fine - because it was airborne over the hole!!!

nothing compares to hitting a frost heave at 100mph in my civic on the way to Alaska, both struts blown, oil drain plug ground in half and bent into the pan, manual transmission case cracked- ground down and bent radiator support. I did catch a few feet of air though kind of like a $2,000 dukes of hazard stunt

50pascals said:

if you intend to scrap it I would gladly pay for the shipping to have a spare.

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I have somewhat of a tentative plan to use the bent wheel in a household project, but will keep you in mind if I decide to scrap.

To hopefully wrap my pothole saga up, I removed the 18" wheel and tire set today and replaced with the set of 16" wheels I was saving for next winter. Went ahead and purchased a set of Michelin Primacy MXV4 215/60R16 tires and I will use those probably until I decide what wheel and tire combo to go with for next winter. As has been discussed here before, the 16" wheels are tight but indeed work. I removed all the old wheel weights and had my tire shop place any new weights on the back lip to be sure nothing was going to hit the calipers. Everything clears but there isn't much extra room.



Aired up the new tires to 42 PSI and I just hope the larger sidewall on the 215/60R16 will give me better luck than the original 235/45R18 tire.
Also realized tonight that I probably still had both pothole hits on my dash cam. Pulled the SD card and they were both on there:

crn3 said:

Everything clears but there isn't much extra room.

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That's plenty of room. No worries.