Photo: Jahongir Ismoilov on Unsplash
Never worry about a side-of-the-road tire change again.
Run flat tires are here to save the day and deliver you to your destination. While they may be a little more costly than your standard tire, they’re well worth the investment when it comes to travel. Gone are the days of changing your own tire or calling AAA to rescue you! Instead, you’ll be able to drive up to 50 miles to hit your destination and have your tires changed in a proper shop.
Related: Buying Tires: 10 Tips to Buy Smarter and Save Money
Did You Know?: There Are Different Types of Run-Flat Tires
Not every run-flat tire is created equal; in fact, there are two different types of construction for run-flat tires, and it helps to know the differences between them so that you can anticipate what your car will do when your run-flat kicks in.
- Self-Supporting System: The self-supporting system has sturdy sidewalls that can support the weight of a car when the tire goes flat.
- Support Ring System: An internal ring of hard rubber keeps the vehicle in a drivable condition, even when there isn’t air in the tire.
- Self-Sealing: These tires automatically fix small punctures on their own, without needing any input from the driver.
A word of advice: You’ll only want to use a run-flat tire on cars with a tire-pressure monitoring system. Otherwise, it can be difficult to detect a change in pressure, and run-flats don’t last forever! The whole goal is to give you 50 extra miles to get your car to safety after a flat, not to be taken off-guard when the run-flat starts to disintegrate.
Related: Don’t Buy New Tires Until You Read This: Tire Rack Review
Why Buy Run-Flat Tires?
Run-flat tires have two strong benefits. First, and most obviously, the ability to drive a few extra miles on a flat tire can be a life-saver when you suddenly find yourself losing air pressure on a highway or a sketchy back road. You can get where you’re going and drop your car off to be serviced without having to change a tire yourself or wait for AAA to rescue you.
Less obvious, though, is the fact that run-flats are usually heavier than their regular counterparts. That makes them great additions to a high-performance car or a vehicle you use for towing.
Now, let’s talk about some of our favorites!
Related: 9 Secrets You Should Know About Buying Tires
Bridgestone DriveGuard
- Benefits: Better-than-standard grip for family cars like SUVs, very comfortable, rolls well with a puncture. All-season tires.
- What owners say: “I must say the steering responsiveness of these tires are quite good and the tires like to speak to you a lot, which gives you a lot of confidence when you are driving at the limit. In dry conditions these tires are very predictable and you’d be hard pressed to go beyond your limit unless you simply ignored all the tire howling.” – Anon, Orlando, Florida
- Buy it here
Michelin Pilot Sport A/S Plus ZP
- Benefits: Great for high-speed driving on all terrains — but avoid heavy snow
- Buy it here
Bridgestone Blizzak LM-25 RFT
- Benefits: Perfect for winter driving in high-performance vehicles or luxury sedans
- What owners say: ” This is the pinnacle of non-studded snow tires” – Anon, Ohio
- Buy it here
Continental ContiProContact SSR
- Benefits: A larger rib pattern makes more contact with the ground; these all-seasons are great for all weather patterns
- What owners say: “I love these run-flats. They give me a sense of security that I can drive myself at least 60 miles from that ghost town of Cuervo, NM with not a soul in sight and darkness falling. And now that I live in Palos Verdes with the twisty roads and switchbacks, my car and these tires are amazing. The turn in is sharp and immediate and the traction is fantastic, especially for a 10 year old tire whose rubber should have hardened into petrified wood. It just grips and grips. Love it and will buy it again in a heartbeat.” – Anon,
- Rancho Palos Verdes, California
- Buy it here
Continental Contiprocontact Contiseal
- Benefits: These tires seal themselves in the event of a puncture and offer a smooth ride in most weather conditions.
- What owners say: “These tires have been some of the best I ever owned on a vehicle. I drive 120 miles daily so I need tires that have a good tread life. These have exceeded that expectation. Even with over 86k miles they perform well on dry and even wet pavement. When they were new and even up to 50k miles I couldn’t tell any drivability issues. After 60k I noticed they had gotten louder. Other than that the performance stayed the same.” – Anon, Georgia
- Buy it here
Dunlop SP Sport 01 DSST Runonflat
- Benefits: These strongly reinforced tires are great for summer driving, but some users have noticed that they’re noisy
- What owners say: ” I bought the car used in Jan 2017 with 7/32 tread on these tires. It was the first snowfall that night and these tires worked well up to the point where slush began to form. I was actually impressed that these Summer Tires had any traction in those conditions, but I garaged the car the rest of the winter. Spring into Summer (today) I have found that these tires perform very well in dry/wet conditions. HOWEVER, the stiff ROF sidewall for these low-profile tires means these things: (1) VERY HARSH ride. You can feel cigarette butts as bumps. (2) Very noisy..almost too loud a drone. And (3) when you do hit potholes, these sidewall do not cut [that’s a bonus].” – Anon, Connecticut
- Buy it here
Pirelli Winter Sottozero 3
- Benefits: Made for all kind of winter conditions, designed to maintain heat
- What owners say: “I have an awd car but still needed a snow tire due to my spirited driving, particularly cornering. My previous car was rwd bmw so I had blizzacs which were great but way more money then these. I love these just as much and they are still a RFT. I was a little concerned about wear and blows out but had these for a year now and no issues. I’ve blow out 2 of my pirelli all season tires in just 6000 miles. Those were the one that came with the car. I would buy these again for sure.” – Anon, Illinois
- Buy it here
Firestone Firehawk wide oval RFT
- Benefits: Designed to provide a smoother and quieter ride for summer conditions
- What owners say: “Great tire with a quiet ride” – Anon
- Buy it here
Goodyear Eagle LS-2 RunOnFlat
- Benefits: A great, durable tire for all conditions, though not ideal for heavy snow
- What owners say: “The Eagle LS2s are definitely weak when it comes to stopping or turning on snow and ice, and having AWD doesn’t help that. The LS2s do much better in more moderate temperatures, and are smooth quiet enough for me. Ride is fairly firm, but that may be due as much to the MSport suspension calibration as the tires. Michigan is notorious for poor road surfaces, but I can say that the LS2 can take a beating from potholes and come back for more. I have hit some potholes at highway speed that I was sure would have bent a wheel or suspension part, or at least ruptured the tire, but no damage was found.” – Anon, Michigan
- Buy it here
Yokohama AVID ENVIGOR ZPS
- Benefits: Great summer tires for sedans, and also designed to reduce hydroplaning on wet roads
- What owners say: “Excellent tire ,excellent value. I would purchase these tires again.” – Anon, Oregon
- Buy it here
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