I just got back from a fun-filled hour changing the 2026 Lincoln Navigator’s driver’s side front right tire – in a snowstorm. In the slush. That’s my kind of fun, but I’m kind of twisted in that way, I guess!
It’s the why I had to change out the tire that might be of interest. I hit a pothole. That was enough to pop the sidewall and flatten the tire. The Navigator has 24 inch “rims” – as wheels are now often styled – and very thin sidewall tires. These are all the rage now, mostly for the appearance. The thing is, they do not have a lot of flex capability, to absorb a sudden impact – such as a pothole or curb strike. That’s what happened to me a couple of hours ago.
Lucky for me, the Lincoln did come with a proper full-sized spare. Probably because it’s a huge and very heavy (nearly three tons) SUV and it would be sketchy to drive it – even at a limp – on one of of those space saver spares that many new vehicles now have in lieu of a proper spare tire you can actually drive on at normal roads speeds.
But changing the flat isn’t what it used to be. The Navigator’s 24 inch wheel/tire combo felt as if it weighed 150 pounds. It is also very tall and so very awkward to handle. Picture your Libertarian Car Guy working the flimsy little screw-jack provided by Lincoln – in a snowstorm – hoping that the jack would be capable of raising the Navigator high enough for me to get air under the massive “rim,” in order to get it off the hub. Each turn of the flimsy little J-hook rod thing they provide to operate the jack seemed to raise the vehicle very little, but I kept turning and – after what felt like a damned long time – I got air under the “rim” and was able to pull it off the hub.
Getting the spare on was easy enough – if you’re a pretty strong man and can lift 24 inches of “rim” to align the holes with the studs. I wondered, as I did this, how many people cannot physically deal with a “rim.” I suspect it’s a lot of them. A good friend of mine does state inspections; he weighs about 130 pounds. I wonder how he – and other mechanics who aren’t gym rats – deal with these “rims.” My ’76 Trans Am has 15 inch wheels. These were considered pretty big wheels, back then. Most cars had 14 or even 13 inch wheels – and 70 series tires. It was much easier to change a flat tire, back in those days.
It took a mighty heave to get the “rim” with the flat tire into the back of the Navigator. I am glad I work out. If Dawn had been driving this beast, there is no way she could have heaved that “rim” into the back or even gotten the thing off the hub. There is irony here in that these huge SUVs are very often driven by women – exactly the demographic not built to deal with heaving 24 inch “rims” into the back or getting a flimsy screw jack under a frame rail and then using the cheesy rod with the J-hook to turn the thing. Especially in five inches of snow.
I find myself wondering whether we – men and women – might be better served by wheels rather than “rims” that can be handled by most men and some women, too. That might be able to take a pothole or a curb strike without blowing – and leaving you to deal with a flat tire in a snowstorm.
But what do I know? I’m just a cranky Gen X luddite. Or so I am told!
. . .
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Eric,
You’re lucky that wasn’t an Audi Q5 or VW Touareg. They don’t have lug studs and nuts (or any other Audi/VW product) they have lug bolts. Imagine trying to line up the hole in the hub and the wheel so that you can get a bolt started. Here in the shop I use a bolt with the head cut off to use as a tool to help line up stuff. I also carry one in my VW’s and Audi.
Thank God for that, Wlliam!
I might have just had to tuck and call roadside service… in front of Dawn.
I’ve noticed the proliferation of thise skinny sidewalls too, don’t know how anyone can drive with them around here without bending a rim on one of the multitudinous potholes. This is why I call bullsh*t on all the AI hype; can it do anything useful like change that tire in a snowstorm, or fix a roof leak? All it does is spy on us.
Strange article.
If these had been a set of 35” off-road wheels and tires (typically approx. 100 lbs) on a Jeep Wrangler, Bronco, or a Lifted Truck Bro Rig would there be the same complaint or would it be manly to be handling those?
I have big bro tires, and they are not at all hard to handle if one uses a little common sense. Just jack the vehicle to an appropriate height, and you can just slide the wheel on. It’s much more difficult to mount a wheel on my mower- although it can be easily lifted in one hand, it uses bolts instead of lug nuts, so you have to hold it in place at just the right spot to get it started……. But the truck tires? Easy-peasy.
One of my collection is a 49 Willys roadster pickup. It’s custom, I built the only one in existence, and it’s a whole lot of fun. However, I built it with a set of 22 inch rims (chrome wire triple spoke knock offs) which looked absolutely spectacular in the big Willys wheel openings. Unfortunately the first time I drove it at highway speed it nearly killed me, those 100 lb wheel assemblies were out of balance, and on a little 1600 lb toy the resultant shake was enough to throw the whole car out of control, and I just barely wrestled it down from speed and home, where I immediately replace them with alloy 15 inch rims and 235/75 15s.
Those big wheels can look great, but they’re surely not practical.
Does Lincoln offer the option of smaller, more manageable wheels over the rims?
Hi Mark,
Not really! The standard “rim” is 22 inches. It’s totally out of hand. The “rim” thing has its origins in rap “culture” (if you want to use that word) and became a mainstream thing about 20 years ago. Now we see factory 24 inch “rims.” Gnomesayin’?
I’ve seen the oversized rims in my area. I think that they’re RIDICULOUS! In contrast, my first car, a ’66 Chevy had 14″ wheels on it. My ’15 Focus, which has the sport package, has 17″ wheels vs. the 16″ wheels that used to be standard on the Focus. My car has P215/50R17 tires on it, which provide good handling, but not at the total expense of my ride; the ride on the firm side, but not too much so. While low aspect ratio tires may provide good handling, AFAIAC, the only place suitable for them is a race track.
I used to have an ’03 MINI Cooper that had 40 or 45 series tires on it, and that thing handled like a go-kart; trouble was, it RODE like one too! I can’t see why anyone would want to use anything less than a 45 or 50 series tire away from the track. Not only is the ride too firm; you’ll run into the same issue you had: unwanted flats.
And WTF is someone supposed to handle a tire like a 24″ rim? Even if you work out, I’d hate to change a tire with any snow or ice on the ground. SMH…
AI says that the Lincoln’s tire is roughly 40 to 45 pounds. Figuring about 40 to 45 pounds wheel weight, a fun lift on icy ground but no worse than a bag of concrete.
Curiosity make me ask why not call road side assist which I’m sure comes by default with a Lincoln and then you could rate the service because I’m pretty sure most Lincoln buyers would not even attempt it.
Either way it let you real world test the supplied tire changing tools.
RE: “Curiosity make me ask why not call road side assist”
The phrases: “learned helplessness” and, “Turn in your man-card” come to mind.
Also, by the time…
True enough Helot but I’ve never called road assist except when my car was DOA on the side of the road. I’ve patched brake lines at 5 below in a snowy parking lot. Heck I crawl under cars at the wrecking yard to get parts for my car.
I was looking at it from the point of a view that a potential Lincoln buyer would have and yes you wait a long time for the auto club to show up which is why I change my own flat tires.
Morning, Landru!
I understand people who need roadside assistance because they aren’t able to deal with such things as changing a huge/heavy SUV’s flat tire in a snowstorm. Dawn could not have handled this by herself. It’s not shameful. On the other hand, if you are or ought to be able to do deal with such things and don’t I think it is shameful. Every man who isn’t physically unable (due to age/infirmity) ought to be willing to deal with changing a tire. Every man who has a son ought to show his son how to do this and instill in him the desire to do it, if the need arises. It’s not just a point of honor. Roadside assistance often means waiting for hours for it. If you are responsible for women/kids, making them wait in a potentially dangerous situation such as that is irresponsible. Just my 50.
Hi Landru,
By the way – in re the weight of the Navigator’s 24 inch “rim”: I was at the gym yesterday. I grabbed two 25 pound plates to add to the bar. Easy to handle these two 25 pound plates. I can also easily lift a 45 pound plate with one hand; I do this all the time. I can lift a 100 pound plate by hand, but it takes two hands. So that “rim” (plus the tire) had to have weighed close to 100 pounds. because it took both hands and pretty much everything I had to heave that thing into the Navigator’s rear cargo area.
Morning Eric:
I figured about 90 pounds for the wheel and tire total weight.
When I bought a 4500 Watt generator years ago I thought it was awkward to get it into my car, it turned out it was tagged at 118 pounds and a two person lift. The only spot I could get it to fit was the front passenger seat and I had to hold the box because every time the box shifted it pushed the shifter into neutral but I got it home box and all. Fun times 🙂
Luckily, Eric, you HAVE THE POWER!!
But was it really 150 lbs? That’s just insane. Think of how those “rims” unnecessarily gobble up your acceleration capability and fuel mileage. Then they fold on a little road blemish. All for questionable aesthetics? Brilliant.
Morning, BaDnOn,
It had to be close to that. Also just huge and unwieldy. 24 inches bees two feet across! Picking up that SOB on a snow-covered road and heaving it into the back of the Navigator was a good workout!
Jeebus what ever happened to the concept “strive for lowest un sprung weight” ?
This is nuts. The 18” wheels on my Grand Cherokee plenty big enough. The “chariot wheel” look never appealed to me. Now this, not enough tire cushion to soak up our crumbling roads.
Re: wrestling with mounting back on the hub, I adjust the jack so I can slide the tire/wheel into place, first rotating so the lugs and holes are somewhat aligned for a smooth slide into place.
Eric, that’s a Michelin tire. Michelin tires do not experience “blowout”; they experience rapid air loss (RAL) events. That’s what Michelin North America decreed some 20+ years ago.
Michelins are way overrated in my opinion. Recently they are not the quietest tire around either.
What is, “a good tire”, then?
…I took too long to rotate my aggressive tread tires (Wrangler Duratrec) and now I’ve got shitty vibrations at 45 m.p.h. which tapers off a bit towards 65 m.p.h.. The tire expert said that’s common with the more aggressive treaded tires & he thought it was because they use a different rubber to make the tires, vs. all-season tires & the like. Idk.
Every time I drive now, I think of either getting new tires, or, when/if will these tires wear down a bit & get smooth?
[R.A.L. – Ha!]
They also don’t last like they used to, of course the magnum weight gain of cars doesn’t help.
At least you have a spare. My (used) 2012 Cadillac came with a compressor and a can of goo. Might have worked for a puncture, but useless for any other failure.
Morning, Bob!
Yup. I’d have been SOL without a real spare. No fun in a snowstorm, especially if you haven’t got food or are within hiking distance of food!
One of the reasons I intend to keep my 2007 RAV4 until they pry it out of my cold, dead hands – it has a full-sized spare on the rear door.
Ditto that, 84Lion –
I feel the same about my Nissan truck. Not having a real spare is like going flying without a parachute.
An excellent cautionary tale, Eric. I have never thought of hitting a pot hole as a potential for a flat tire, until now.
Did you time it?
‘A Christmas Story The Flat Tire’
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JwF4qieecEM
Anyway, your experience reminded me of the time I got a flat out in the countryside, at night, with no moon, and no flashlight. Was like a blind man reading Braille. At least it was Summer. I never thought to time it.
[Note to self: lubricate the spare tire cradle underneath the bed of the 4×4.]