As we mentioned in the last update, a car tyre compressor is a really useful thing to have if you’ve got a soft tyre, or sometimes even a complete flat. You can go from a completely airless wheel to a fully inflated tyre in a matter of a few minutes, making your car able to get home if you need a more permanent solution.

They’re also a lot easier to use than foot pumps, which can require you to complete quite a workout if you need a significant amount of air in your tyres.

Even if it only lasts 10 minutes or so before it deflates again, that could well be the difference in getting out of danger and away from a smart motorway – you know the ones, with no hard shoulder and a narrow lay-by every mile or so!

It’s not ideal to have to stop and add air every few miles, but it does mean you can get home without needing to wait for the nearest breakdown patrol to reach you. It’s always the gift of the universe that these things strike when you’re busy or in a rush.

Tyre compressor reviews are a great place to start to help you find a good model to buy. Time and time again, the Ring brand seem to come up trumps, topping the best buy tables on sites like Which.

As you’ll see, they’re not particularly expensive things to buy, and you can even use them regularly rather than paying to use the air machines when you refuel. It’s actually a really sensible move to buy one, as you never know when you’ll need it!

When you find yourself with a flat, you’ll need to have a quick way to get back on your way.

If you’re well prepared, you may well have breakdown cover, which will cover you for roadside assistance, and possibly qualify you for help at your home address too.

If you happen to be on the hard shoulder, it’s always a good idea to call for help rather than try to deal with matters yourself – it’s a very dangerous place to be.

If you’re somewhere safe, you may wish to try to change the wheel for your spare yourself, but before you do – here’s a critical couple of things to check. Firstly, make sure you’ve got a locking wheel nut with you if you’ve got alloys. These are designed to prevent theft as they’re expensive, but they’ll also prevent you changing a wheel without the right ‘key’ in the form of your locking wheel nut.

Secondly, make sure you’ve actually got a spare wheel. Many new cars are now sold without them – meaning that you’ll need help from a mobile tyre company to get back on the road. It’s something that many motorists don’t realise until it’s too late, when they’re stranded with a blow-out at the roadside.

To get around this problem in at least some cases, invest in a foot pump or electronic compressor to keep in the boot, at least you’ll be able to solve the issue if your tyre is just soft, or some kind soul has let your tyre down as a prank.

Otherwise, make sure that breakdown cover is up to date and covers you for wherever you’re likely to be when you get stuck.

When we look at tyres, there’s very little that can go wrong with them. They’re designed to provide contact before your vehicle and the road, while at the same time maximising grip without causing excessive extra fuel consumption. Those two are clearly conflicting objectives, so needs to strike a balance.

In terms of failure, tyres will either wear down to the point that they are no longer legal and require replacement or suffer a failure which could well be catastrophic while the vehicle is in motion and result in the tyre disintegrating.

These days, the chances of tyres exploding are low – typically that will only happen if they hit an object at speed – even potholes generally won’t cause this outcome, at least not extreme damage to the tyre itself.

The in between element is what we’re concerned with here at the Oddi Tyre Views, our review of dealing with gradually decreasing pressure – commonly referred to as a slow puncture. That might be caused by a faulty valve or a low level of damage to the wheel or tyre. Typically we can temporarily resolve this by adding air to the tyre – or to put things simply, pumping it up!