The moment you start driving your car, there’s always a chance of running over something in the road, whether it be a nail because your neighbor is getting a new roof or metal debris from the latest storm. However, it does happen, and you’ll find yourself driving on a spare tire until you can get your flat tire back home. Luckily, though, Harbor Freight has many tools you can use to make fixing your flat tire an easy task.
Based on our hands-on experience and a wide range of buyer reviews, here are five Harbor Freight finds useful for repairing a flat tire. A more in-depth explanation of this methodology can be found at the end of this list. Please note that we are not recommending these tools for emergency flat tire repair on the side of the road but rather for when you have your vehicle in the safety of your garage.
Daytona 3 Ton Low-Profile Floor Jack with Rapid Pump
The chances of you walking out to your car one morning and finding a flat tire from a slow leak are possible. To make the switch to a spare tire and to make it easier to repair your flat tire, you’re going to need a reliable floor jack. The Daytona 3-Ton Low-Profile Floor Jack with Rapid Pump is a popular and affordable option at Harbor Freight. It comes with a 4.8 out of five rating from over 4,500 buyers and costs $190 — if you’re part of the Inside Track Club Membership, you may be able to find it cheaper through discounts throughout the year.
This jack has a lift capacity of up to 6,000 pounds and a maximum lift height of 19 7/8 inches. It has a dual-piston hydraulic system, which, according to Daytona, gives the jack the ability to lift most work loads in just 3 1/2 pumps, saving you time and arm strength. A downside is that the jack is quite heavy at 79 pounds, but it is a solid piece of machinery that will keep your vehicle safe while your tire is off the hub.
Quinn 8-Inch Long Nose Pliers with Comfort Grip
When you get the flat tire off your car’s hub, you’ll need to find the object that caused the hole. If you’re having a hard time finding it, many people use the trick where you mix dish soap and water in a spray bottle and spray it on your tire. When you start seeing bubbles, you’ve found your leak. When you find a piece of metal or other debris in your tire, though, you’re more than likely not going to be able to pull it out with your hands. That’s where having pliers will come in handy. Quinn’s 8-inch Long Nose Pliers with Comfort Grip is a good choice due to the inexpensive price of only $6 and the durability of the tool. It also comes with a 4.8 out of five rating from 373 reviewers.
You’ll want a set of long nose or needle nose pliers, so if the screw or nail is lodged into the grove of the tire, you can easily place the small tip of the pliers into the groove, grab the screw head, and pull it out. The comfort grip on the pliers, though, gives you a little extra ability for nonslip holding while you’re pulling. Better still, if the tool breaks or bends for any reason, it has a lifetime warranty.
Maddox Heavy Duty Automotive Tire Repair Kit
After removing the debris from the tire, you’ll need to patch it up. You could buy a simple tire repair kit that only comes with a couple of tools and a few repair cords, but if you want something that’s going to last you a while and is more cost-efficient, you can always invest in the Maddox Heavy Duty Automotive Tire Repair Kit. It comes with a 4.8 out of five rating from 149 reviewers and costs only $20.
It comes with mostly positive reviews. However, one reviewer did state that the reamer and insertion tools were larger than they were used to, which could make it more difficult to insert them into the punctured hole. With that being said, the reviewer didn’t actually try to use it. Just be aware of the size difference between this set of tools and the cheaper ones you would buy elsewhere.
This set some with the reamer and insertion t-handle tools, 60 pieces of repair cord, valve stems, core, caps, and a couple of other useful tools like a knife and hex keys. All of it is contained inside a carrying case, so the gunk on the repair cords will stay as clean as the day you bought them.
Maddox 12V, 125 PSI High-Performance Inflator
After you’ve plugged up your tire, you’ll want an easy solution to fill the tire back up without having to use a larger air compressor. Instead, you can opt for the Maddox 12V, 125 PSI High-Performance Inflator at $140. However, it’s still a fairly new product at Harbor Freight, so there are only three reviews, but each one gives it a five-star rating with a detailed explanation of how well it worked while off-roading.
To use this inflator, you just need to attach the alligator battery clips to the vehicle’s battery and use the screw-on tire fitting to attach it to the flat tire. From there, just start the inflator and watch the pressure gauge. It comes with a 3.0 CFM air output, which is an important component to look for when buying an inflator or air compressor. The higher the CFM, the faster the tires will fill up — for a vehicle, a 2-3 CFM is a good bet. Because of the Maddox’s CFM rating, it can do 10 to 30 PSI in two minutes, which is plenty if you’re filling up your flat tire.
Slime 24 Ounce Tire Sealant
A flat tire can occur on many different types of vehicles — it doesn’t always have to be a car. You can just as easily get a flat tire while riding your lawn mower or driving your four-wheeler, and Harbor Freight has an easy repair solution if that happens. The Slime 24 Ounce Tire Sealant has a 4.7 out of five rating from 446 reviewers and only costs $13. According to the company, it can repair holes up to a 1/4 inch and is guaranteed for up to two years.
What consumers liked most about Slime is how user-friendly it is. One reviewer mentions how it was able to seal up thorn punctures on their ATV tires, which is no small feat. The best part, though, is that it can also be used as preventative maintenance. While inside the tire, the Slime remains as a liquid and coats the tread area while the tires rotate, so if a hole is created, the liquid will run over it and seal it up instantaneously.
How we selected these products to fix your flat tire
Many people experience a flat tire and have found they can fix the problem themselves without having to call up the nearest tire business. With that being said, a few of these products were selected based on personal use. We also focused on the ratings and reviews each product received from users so that there was a well-rounded consensus of each product’s value. Each item has at least a 4.7 out of five-star rating, and they are all under the price of $200, making them both reliable and affordable. Additionally, many of these finds can be used for other projects, so you’ll be able to find other uses for them other than the occasional yet unfortunate flat tire.
