Vehicles

Fix-A-Flat

Flat prevention and repair

Yes, this little thing really will fix your flat. Even huge pick-up and SUV tires. No need to jack up. Just press the nozzle — whizzzz — and it repairs and re-inflates your tire. You definitely should carry one in your car or truck. At $5 it is cheaper than getting your tire repaired at a shop.

But that’s not the best thing it offers. This amazing can of stuff will also PREVENT flats and slow leaks. Fix-A-Flat inserts a complex liquid into your tire. Leaking air instantly polymerizes it to plug up any hole. This magic material is similar to the stuff which keeps bicycle tires intact — see the amazing video in this review. Although I have not used the industrial version of this invention, farmers and the army use a similar compound to keep their gigantic tires going.

This consumer version works great as a flat cure. I need to pump up my treated tires far less often, even the tires with chronic leaks in them, and have had no flats on well-worn tires.

For non-emergency prevention you can buy the sealant in a non-aerosol squeeze bottle, but I found this hard to find in stores. They make a bicycle version which I have not tried yet…*

— KK

In my medical scooter’s on board tool kit I keep a bottle of the Fix-A-Flat for bikes. I like to be prepared for the inevitable, and on the way home from shopping, I used the Fix-A-Flat because I can’t call a tow truck or AAA if I get a flat. I pulled into a store to get out of the snow, rummaged around in my kit, and found the stuff. I attached it according to the directions and voila — I had a working tire. I rode on that tire another few weeks before my new tire came in (my scooter was an older model so they had to order the tire). I’ve kept the fixed flat as a spare and it’s still holding air! Fix-A-Flat in any size is a bargain.

— Sue Johnson

Fix-A-Flat
$8 (16 oz.)
Available from most hardware stores and Amazon

Fix-A-Flat Tire Sealant and Preventative
$14 / 20 oz.
Available from Amazon (no longer available)

Fix-A-Flat for Bikes
$17 / 3 oz.
Previously available from Amazon (no longer available)

NOTE: According to Fix-A-Flat, the bike version has been discontinued. If anyone has any suggestions for a comparable solution, please let us know.

Shown here is bullet proofing for jeeps; the liquid rubber inside a tire will instantly heal a bullet hole. It hardly notices nail and screw pokes.
$70
Available from Gempler’s

05/4/05

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