The Problem With No Spare Tire

The Challenger parked beside one of the many historic homes at Old Washington.

As I discussed in a previous post, "sometimes ya gotta drive". We still love to hop in the Challenger and drive around the state of Arkansas. State parks are always some of our favorite destinations. For nearly six years, we have had no issue with the SRT8 not having a spare tire. That all changed in March 2015 during our spring break vacation.

Old Washington State Park has many beautiful scenes.

We had taken a day trip to Old Washington State Park in Arkansas. It was great to travel south and visit the historic Victorian era town. We toured many of the wonderful old houses and buildings most of the day. No trip to Old Washington is complete without eating in their tavern! We took numerous photos while we walked all over the park.

After a long day, we headed home taking the state highways rather than Interstate 30 north. It takes about an hour and a half driving the highway routes (about 70 miles). Most of the trip was uneventful until we were nearly 30 minutes from home. As we were driving, we heard a sudden sound like air being released behind us. I knew it had to be the tire because the tone changed with the rotation of the wheel behind me. Immediately the warning indicator illuminated on the dash. The dash information indicator switched to display the tire pressures. The driver's side rear tire went from 30 psi to 20 psi in just mere seconds. I remember telling my wife, "It looks like we are about to be stranded!" I pulled off to the side of the country highway as the tire pressure indicator informed me that the tire was now at 0 psi. I have no idea what we hit, but I knew it had caused significant damage to the tire since it went flat so quickly.

As previously stated, this model Challenger was not equipped with a spare tire. My only hope was in the supplied air compressor that also came with the equivalent of a "Fix-A-Flat" type product to inject into a damaged tire. I tried using this provided "goop" by forcing the material into the tire using the air compressor as the directions showed on the device. This resulted in a mess of white sealant coming out of the damaged tire all over the car and around the tire.

The provided sealant came out of the tire and made a mess!

I knew at this point there was no hope of getting the car back on the road. Luckily, my wife and I have maintained our AAA membership for many years. I called for towing assistance immediately. It took about 2 1/2 hours for the truck to arrive at our location. I had the tow truck drop the car off at our house since we were so close to home, and the auto repair shop I use was closed at that time of evening.

The Challenger being loaded on the tow truck.

It was easy to pull the tire off and take it to the repair shop the next morning. Luckily, the tire was repairable! However, I knew that I was never going to have confidence in this car ever again with no spare tire in the trunk. Flats are bound to happen when you put a vehicle on the road. I started doing my research to find solutions. Either I was going to find a spare, or the car was going up for sale! In the next entry, I'll share the outcome of this problem.

Go here for my article about the K&N Air Filter I use in the car!

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Sometimes Ya Gotta Drive...To The Lake...

My wife and I have owned either a sports car or muscle car since 2002. Since that time, we have enjoyed going for scenic drives. We are blessed to live in Arkansas where there are plenty of beautiful things to see very close to our home. We typically carry a camera and look for opportunities to take photos.

One of our favorite places to visit is DeGray Lake. When spring and summer are in full swing, we generally take a drive somewhere around the lake almost weekly.

There is nothing like hopping in a fun car and taking a quick drive an hour or two before sunset. Another fun activity is to take day trips. When time permits, we enjoy picking a place in Arkansas, driving there, and making a day of it. State parks are a great day trip destination since most have restaurants and/ or visitor centers. 

What are you waiting for? Go to your state park website, and pick a place to drive on the next Saturday you can make some time.  Fill up the tank, grab the camera, and find a sunset to ride straight toward... unless of course there is a lake in your way. 

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How Does A K&N Air Filter Work With the 6.1 Liter Hemi?

Many years ago a friend of mine suggested that I use a K&N air filter in one of my vehicles. He told me that my gas mileage would improve. He also said that the filter would improve the horsepower. This guy was a former competitive drag racer, so I trusted his opinion! When it was time to replace the air filter, I tried a K&N; and I noticed a significant improvement in gas mileage.

If you drive a muscle car, you probably don't care about gas mileage. I'm not the normal horsepower fanatic since I'm always looking to save a few dollars on gas when possible. One of the things I like about a K&N filter is that they last forever! I clean mine once a year, and it goes right back in the engine compartment. No more buying paper filters every 3,000-6,000 miles!

The 2009 should get a combined 15 MPG according to fuel economy.gov

I watch the fuel efficiency report on the dash occasionally. I have noticed (over the past 6 years) that I usually get around 21 MPG on the highway and interstate (if I keep my foot out of the accelerator). I'm sure there is an improvement in horsepower, but I have never tested this. We drove slow (35 mph) on some back roads tonight. After the short cruise, you can see in the photo below that the computer shows 19.8 MPG. I should also mention that I only run 93 octane unleaded gas in the car.

I still use the stock air intake in my car. I purchased the K&N air filter element that fits the stock setup back in 2009. When I go in for an oil change, I make sure to tell the service personnel that I have a K&N filter. I don't want them to discard this important investment!

I made sure to put the K&N notification sticker in plain view!

Stock air intake with K&N filter inside.

As always, do the research for yourself before you invest in any accessories for your vehicle. For more information on this topic, Google the term "lifetime automotive air filters." I've been pleased with K&N filters on all our cars. Each installation has resulted in improved fuel economy! 

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2009 SRT8 Dodge Challenger Memories

It must have been 2005 or 2006 that I saw the first Challenger concept car online. I had always liked classic American muscle cars (What guy growing up in the late 70s and early 80s could escape muscle cars on prime time television?). I remember going home that very day and telling my wife, "I want to start saving for one of these cars immediately!" That is exactly what I did!

Fast forward to 2009. We shopped around after the new Challenger was released in 2008. I decided to wait to see how they performed for a year. I heard nothing but good things and excitement; so I decided to purchase one for us! 

One of the first photos we captured in July 2009

I ended up buying a 2009 SRT8 Dodge Challenger on July 13, 2009. It is Hemi Orange with a  6.1 Liter Hemi engine. It is the automatic transmission version with a sunroof. I have had the car for nearly 6 years. We have really enjoyed this car!

Quick trip to Lake DeGray in 2009

In this blog, I'll share stories, photos, problems, maintenance, and solutions we have encountered since 2009. My wife and I do not drive this car very much (After almost 6 years, it only has 32,800 miles on it!). 

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