The Tire Saga
Friday:
1. Leave work at 18:00, notice that front left tire on Bronco looks a bit low. Resolve to stop on way home to add more air.
2. Drive one half block down Wilson before rim is scraping ground. Pull into loading zone to change tire. Call fenriss to inform that I'll be late getting home.
3. Discover that spare tire bracket plate is broken, preventing removal from spare. Attempt various workarounds, to no avail. Call AAA for assistance.
4. fenriss arrives, to keep me company while I wait for AAA. When driver shows up, he is in a pickup, not a tow truck, and is there to help me change the tire. However, the bracket remains stuck, and finally he calls for a tow truck, ETA about an hour.
5. We are expecting guests, so fenriss heads home to greet them. Wrecker shows up at about 20:30. Weather is clear but very cold, and I am not dressed for it. By the time I climb up into the cab I'm shivering hard, way down in the solar plexus.
6. Drive home is entertaining. Driver is young, maybe mid-20s, and playing nu-metal on stereo. We are wearing identical Red Kap work jackets, though I doubt he regards his as a fashion statement. We talk about snow and climate change, and what constitutes a really sucky job. It's a little past 21:00 when he finally offloads the Bronco by my house.
Saturday:
Procrastinated. Also picked up Gibson from shop, plays much better.
Sunday:
1. Drag spare tire onto back porch, attack bracket with angle grinder. It doesn't give up easy, but eventually I have a usable spare again. Truck is jacked up, flat is removed, spare bolted in place.
2. Jack is released. When full weight of truck comes down on spare, it is revealed to also be flat. Evidently it had just enough air to look okay, but not enough to hold up the truck.
3. Go inside. Get warm. Pout for about an hour.
4. Notice that snow has started falling. Rush out to finish before snow or ice become obstacles. Jack up truck again, remove flat spare, put heavy jackstand under axle. Wrap plastic bag around brake disc to keep ice off lug threads. Put both flat tires in back of Scion.
Monday:
1. At about 08:00, fenriss drives me to work in Scion. We stop to drop off tires at local shop for inspection and repair.
2. At 18:00, she picks me up from work. We return to shop. Total charge is $20; the mechanic has inflated and examined both tires, but found no punctures, just dirt around rims. His theory is that the seal around the rims was broken by debris. I think cold-weather contraction of the metal may have also been a problem. Resolve to watch closely for further pressure loss.
3. Get home, watch tv.
Tuesday:
1. At 06:00, put on warm coat and head back outside. Put spare back in truck, bolt original wheel back in place. Remove stand, lower the jack. Pressure seems to be holding. Go back inside, shower and change.
2. Around 07:30, drive around block. Still no pressure loss, so I drive in to work. No problems during commute.
3. Current time is about 10:15, and pressure still looks good. Will continue to monitor, but I'm allowing some guarded optimism...