Flat Tire on a 7,000+ lb EV: What’s Your Plan and Tools?

[KBabione]

Double‑Pump Method for Lifting the Rear of a Rivian R1

Thanks for putting this procedure in such clear words. When I first got my XL puck (thank you) and my bottle jack, I tested my setup in my garage in "ideal" conditions so that I'd better understand what it would be like in "real" conditions. It surprised me how much the Rivian moved as I started raising it and common sense told me to lower it and shift the jack. I think I moved the jack, as you described, twice before I lifted the tire off the ground.

One other question for readers of this thread: What do you like for tire chocks? This thread reminded me that I'd like to keep them in my kit, but I'd like them to be small enough to keep in the sub-trunk with my other tire-related stuff.

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[Mark_AZR1T]

Thanks for putting this procedure in such clear words. When I first got my XL puck (thank you) and my bottle jack, I tested my setup in my garage in "ideal" conditions so that I'd better understand what it would be like in "real" conditions. It surprised me how much the Rivian moved as I started raising it and common sense told me to lower it and shift the jack. I think I moved the jack, as you described, twice before I lifted the tire off the ground.

One other question for readers of this thread: What do you like for tire chocks? This thread reminded me that I'd like to keep them in my kit, but I'd like them to be small enough to keep in the sub-trunk with my other tire-related stuff.

Thank you. Like many things, there are hundreds of options, but I have two set's of these below from Amazon, as I prefer solid rubber and I like the built-in handle. YMMV.

Rubber Tire Chocks Amazon

 

[veerthetiguy]

Our magnetic jack pucks have a 1.30" diameter port, so any hydraulic bottle jack with a top hat slightly smaller than that will fit properly. The jack you described has a much larger top hat, so it will not fit inside the port.

For reference, here is a picture of the 1.30" port on our puck for anyone who wants to see what we are referring to.

Damn, thanks - guess I should've asked before I bought it. I just liked the case

 

[Luvolbikes]

Full size spare. Jack pucks. Harbor freight off road jack. I won't have a car without a full size spare. Too many flats are not repairable.

 

[schlosrat]

Full size spare. Jack pucks. Harbor freight off road jack. I won't have a car without a full size spare. Too many flats are not repairable.

I agree!

I had a sidewall blowout on the left rear tire on a Hyundai Santa Fe years ago. It was on the interstate, and weirdly, I could barely feel it when it went. It just tugged a bit to the left. I pulled over to see what the matter was, and the sidewall was shredded! I'd never seen anything like it.

I had a full-size spare, so getting back on the road was simple, whereas it would have been anything but that without a spare. Having a tire repair kit is a great and inexpensive solution to a lot of problems. It's definitely worth the space in your kit, but there are some problems it just can't fix.

 

[Luvolbikes]

I agree!

I had a sidewall blowout on the left rear tire on a Hyundai Santa Fe years ago. It was on the interstate, and weirdly, I could barely feel it when it went. It just tugged a bit to the left. I pulled over to see what the matter was, and the sidewall was shredded! I'd never seen anything like it.

I had a full-size spare, so getting back on the road was simple, whereas it would have been anything but that without a spare. Having a tire repair kit is a great and inexpensive solution to a lot of problems. It's definitely worth the space in your kit, but there are some problems it just can't fix.

I've had many argue against full sized spares in a different chat. Seems to be a generational thing. More boomers and gen X prefer diy solutions with all scenarios considered. Younger folks more likely to favor plug kits and road service. A sign of the times.

 

[LosAngelesR1S]

I had a blowout today on the highway... looks like this is beyond repair. Womp. Time to get a spare... is the Rivian one our only option? And we need to use a jack puck too, right?

 

[Proxy]

Decided use the scissor jack to lift our other Rivian with sliders to see if I could use it for that one instead of the 4,000 pound quick Jack I have. I put the jack puck in the accesses hole for one of the bolts, so there was a chance for the puck to slip. I used the two stage method and…

 

[schlosrat]

I had a blowout today on the highway... looks like this is beyond repair. Womp. Time to get a spare... is the Rivian one our only option? And we need to use a jack puck too, right?

Rivian's spare is definitely not the only option. What you need is a wheel that's the same size and compatible with your truck, and then a tire that's the same size as what you've got now. If you have the same wheel and tire for your spare, you can switch to a 5-point rotation, but if all you want is the safety and convenience of a full size spare, then the most impotant things are that (a) the wheel is compatible with the vehicle, (b) the tire is compatible with the vehicle, and (c) the tire is the same size (or at least the same outer diameter) as the other tires. That will get you down the road safely.

Also, yes, you do generally need a jack puck, though it's also possible to jack up the truck using the control arm as the jacking point, as shown here: https://www.rivianforums.com/forum/threads/flat-tire-on-a-7-000-lb-ev-what’s-your-plan-and-tools.56615/post-961666

 

[Dark-Fx]

Full size spare. Jack pucks. Harbor freight off road jack. I won't have a car without a full size spare. Too many flats are not repairable.

Lol, that flat was driven on for at least a mile.

 

[usulio]

I've had many argue against full sized spares in a different chat. Seems to be a generational thing. More boomers and gen X prefer diy solutions with all scenarios considered. Younger folks more likely to favor plug kits and road service. A sign of the times.

Full size spare comes with tradeoffs. Take the R1S. I was originally mad about no full size spare but it would have caused a lot of compromises. Either less ground clearance and departure angle, worse aerodynamics and range, less storage space, maybe all the above. So I don’t mind the compromise where I bring a full size spare for offroading and just a repair kit most of the time.

 

[LosAngelesR1S]

Rivian's spare is definitely not the only option. What you need is a wheel that's the same size and compatible with your truck, and then a tire that's the same size as what you've got now. If you have the same wheel and tire for your spare, you can switch to a 5-point rotation, but if all you want is the safety and convenience of a full size spare, then the most impotant things are that (a) the wheel is compatible with the vehicle, (b) the tire is compatible with the vehicle, and (c) the tire is the same size (or at least the same outer diameter) as the other tires. That will get you down the road safely.

Also, yes, you do generally need a jack puck, though it's also possible to jack up the truck using the control arm as the jacking point, as shown here: https://www.rivianforums.com/forum/threads/flat-tire-on-a-7-000-lb-ev-what’s-your-plan-and-tools.56615/post-961666

Thanks for the advice. Would you not recommend using the jack that comes with the Rivian, then? I'm tempted to get the spare from Rivian only because I know it will fit inside the spare compartment and I've yet to find another product that will.

 

[schlosrat]

Thanks for the advice. Would you not recommend using the jack that comes with the Rivian, then? I'm tempted to get the spare from Rivian only because I know it will fit inside the spare compartment and I've yet to find another product that will.

I have no knowledge about the Rivian jack other than pretty much everything in the Rivian shop seems to be overpriced for what you get. I'm sure it works, but is it actually better than getting a Big Red 10-ton bottle jack and a set of Jack Pucks? I doubt it's better, but I assume it's good.

The spare compartment in the bed is sized for the tires Rivian specifies for the truck, so it's going to fit anything you're likely to want to ride on. For me, it's got a 275/60R20 Goodyear Wrangler SR-A mounted on a Ram 1500 20" wheel. There's plenty of room, as you can see, and it fits fine. There's room to put the jack and other things in there, though I've not located them there yet.

My truck is riding on a set of 275/60R20 Nitto Terra Grappler G3's that are also on Ram 1500 wheels. These rims are the best budget option I know of for an AT rim. I paid $400 for the set of 4, then $125 for the spare with the GY SR-A on it. If you shop around, you can find these wheels for less. You can also spend more to get rims that work as well or better if you like the look of them better.

If you're sticking with the 21's, they have the same 33" outside diameter as the 275/60R20's, so they'll fit just as well in the spare compartment.

 

[Mousetrap]

I have no knowledge about the Rivian jack other than pretty much everything in the Rivian shop seems to be overpriced for what you get. I'm sure it works, but is it actually better than getting a Big Red 10-ton bottle jack and a set of Jack Pucks? I doubt it's better, but I assume it's good.

The spare compartment in the bed is sized for the tires Rivian specifies for the truck, so it's going to fit anything you're likely to want to ride on. For me, it's got a 275/60R20 Goodyear Wrangler SR-A mounted on a Ram 1500 20" wheel. There's plenty of room, as you can see, and it fits fine. There's room to put the jack and other things in there, though I've not located them there yet.

My truck is riding on a set of 275/60R20 Nitto Terra Grappler G3's that are also on Ram 1500 wheels. These rims are the best budget option I know of for an AT rim. I paid $400 for the set of 4, then $125 for the spare with the GY SR-A on it. If you shop around, you can find these wheels for less. You can also spend more to get rims that work as well or better if you like the look of them better.

If you're sticking with the 21's, they have the same 33" outside diameter as the 275/60R20's, so they'll fit just as well in the spare compartment.

FYI, the R1S doesn't have a compartment for a full-size spare, it uses a compact spare that compresses down smaller and then gets up to full diameter as it inflates. Kinda neat!

 

[schlosrat]

FYI, the R1S doesn't have a compartment for a full-size spare, it uses a compact spare that compresses down smaller and then gets up to full diameter as it inflates. Kinda neat!

Good point! I was being completely dense and didn't notice that @LosAngelesR1S is driving an R1S (obviously).

If I had an R1S, I'd probably look at options for mounting a full-size spare behind it (hitch-mounted tire carriers), but that's me. If such an option isn't appealing for whatever reason, then maybe the Rivian spare is the best way to go - I've never looked at that, and it would depend a lot on what you want to do with your R1S.

Would the Rivian compact spare be suitable to get you back out of an off-road situation?

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