A blowout is not a puncture that happened quickly. A puncture lets you decide what to do; a blowout takes the decision away for two or three seconds, and what you do in those seconds decides how it ends.
If a tyre has failed at speed, DK’s Recovery covers Sheffield and South Yorkshire 24 hours a day for breakdown recovery and roadside assistance. Call 07867 860723.
What to do in the first seconds
The instinct is to brake hard. That is the one thing not to do.
- Grip the wheel firmly with both hands. The car will pull, and you are holding it straight, not fighting it.
- Ease off the accelerator. Do not lift off sharply either — come off it smoothly.
- Keep pointing straight and let the car slow under its own weight.
- Only then steer towards the nearside, once the speed is well down.
- Hazards on as soon as you have a hand free.
The reason braking is dangerous: one corner has lost most of its grip while the other three still have theirs. Heavy braking throws weight forward and unbalances the car further, and that is when a blowout becomes a spin.
Front or rear makes a difference
A front blowout pulls the steering hard towards the failed side. It feels alarming but the steering still tells you what is happening.
A rear blowout is less obvious and in some ways worse. The steering feels roughly normal while the back of the car moves around underneath you. It is easy to misread as a crosswind or a slippery surface, and the temptation to correct with steering is strong. Hold it straight and let it slow.
Once you have stopped
Get as far off the carriageway as the car will go. On a motorway or dual carriageway, everyone out through the passenger doors and behind the barrier — and do not attempt to fit a spare there under any circumstances.
On an ordinary road, look before you get out. A blowout often leaves debris across the lane behind you, and drivers coming round the bend do not expect it.
Why you usually need recovery, not a spare
A blowout rarely damages only the tyre. The failing carcass whips around the arch at speed, and it commonly takes the wheel-arch liner with it, sometimes wiring or a brake line. The rim itself is often buckled — and a buckled rim will not seal against a spare.
So even where fitting a spare looks possible, the sensible sequence is to get the car somewhere it can be inspected properly rather than to put a wheel on at the roadside and carry on.
Why blowouts happen
Underinflation causes more than anything else. A soft tyre flexes more than it is designed to, that flexing generates heat, and heat eventually destroys the structure. It can fail on a motorway having felt fine around town for weeks.
Impact damage is the other big one. A kerb or a pothole can weaken a sidewall without any visible mark, and the tyre fails days or weeks later. If you hit something hard enough to make you wince, have the tyre looked at.
Then age and perishing — tyres deteriorate even on a car that does few miles; worn tread, with 1.6mm the legal minimum across the central three-quarters; and overloading, which matters on a fully loaded van or a car towing.
Reducing the risk
Check pressures monthly when the tyres are cold, including the spare. Look at the sidewalls while you are there for cuts, bulges or cracking. Replace tyres before they reach the legal limit rather than at it. And after any hard kerb or pothole strike, treat it as worth a proper look.
Common questions
What should you do during a tyre blowout?
Do not brake hard. Grip the wheel firmly with both hands, ease off the accelerator, and keep the car pointing straight while it slows itself. Only steer towards the side of the road once the speed has dropped. Braking hard during a blowout is what turns it into a loss of control.
Why should you not brake in a blowout?
A blown tyre means one corner of the car has far less grip than the other three. Heavy braking shifts weight forward and unbalances it further, which is when a car spins. Letting it slow gradually keeps it stable.
What does a front blowout feel like compared to a rear one?
A front blowout usually pulls the steering hard to the side of the failed tyre. A rear blowout feels looser – the back of the car moves around and the steering stays comparatively normal. Front is more dramatic; rear is easier to misread as something else.
Can I fit the spare after a blowout?
Sometimes, but often not. A blowout frequently damages the wheel rim, and a buckled rim will not seal a spare. It can also tear the wheel-arch liner and brake lines. If you are on a motorway or dual carriageway, do not attempt it at all.
What causes tyre blowouts?
Underinflation is the most common cause by a distance – an underinflated tyre flexes, overheats and eventually fails. After that: impact damage from kerbs and potholes, age and perishing, worn tyres, and overloading.
Do I need recovery after a blowout?
Usually. Even where a spare could be fitted, the wheel and surrounding components should be checked before the car is driven, and a blowout on a fast road is not a place to be working on a car.
Had a blowout in Sheffield?
Get clear of the carriageway first, then call. 07867 860723 — 24 hours a day. For a slower deflation, see what to do with a flat tyre or puncture.
None of this matters if the wheel will not come off. Our guide to a missing locking wheel nut key covers where the key hides and what happens when it has genuinely gone.
Age and provenance are worth checking on the other three as well. Our guide to tyre age, date codes and part-worn tyres covers how to read a date code and the rules a part-worn tyre must meet before it can legally be sold.
