Understanding Road Service Terms for Flat Tire

[PianoAl]

I'm deciding between buying a spare, using a tire repair kit, or relying on road service.

Tesla says (Roadside Assistance):

Flat Tire
Damage to the wheel or tire that causes flat or unsafe driving conditions.
Coverage: Flat tire services are provided for up to 50 miles.​

What does the "50 miles" refer to? That's how far they'll tow you if they can't fix the tire? Will they tow you home? To a tire store? Only to a Tesla center??

Thanks.

 

[jmaddr]

From my experience, they have a Tesla mobile tech meet you and give you a loaner rim and tire and take your tire and rim back with them to the SC. Then you goto the SC to swap it back, purchasing a new tire (or repair) from them, paying their prices, in the process.

EDIT: I carry a repair kit which has worm plugs and an inflator. I think back to all my flats over the past 25 years and every one has been repairable this way. It's the catastrophic one that would not be fixed this way (curb rash tire trauma or pothole pinch flat trauma). If you live where were there are plenty of potholes, this method might not be ideal.

 

[ewoodrick]

When was the last time that you had a flat on the road?

 

[PianoAl]

From my experience, they have a Tesla mobile tech meet you and give you a loaner rim and tire and take your tire and rim back with them to the SC. Then you goto the SC to swap it back, purchasing a new tire (or repair) from them, paying their prices, in the process.

Yeah, that wouldn't work for me. The nearest SC is 300 miles away. A roadside service call gets a greasemonkey from a local tow company.

When was the last time that you had a flat on the road?

About a year ago, and it was an unrepairable failure. Luckily I'd bought a spare for our Leaf.

It's a good point, however: Flats are somewhat rare.