I knew my cars tires were worn but I drove it 100 miles away to see a state park. I figured I would only get a flat tire if I hit a nail or something. I made it home but noticed my tire was flat the next day. A guy came to put a spare tire on and he showed me all the metal on the tire and told me not to touch it since the metal will cut me. Once tires are so worn does this metal flatten the tire? Is it likely that this tire was so worn that it was bound to go flat?
No, that doesn't have anything to do with your flat tire. Think about it, the metal is there anyway, just because you wore away the rubber on the outside of the steel belt, that doest have anything to do with what is under the steel belt. What happened is that you ran over something that punctured the tire and you just have a lot less rubber to stop it from happening then if you had a tire with more meat on it.
Thomas, from your description I think the metal you described is the steel belt inside the tire. If that is the case, your tires are well worn and beyond the condition of being driven on. Extremely worn tires actually overheat from excessive friction from road contact. This can cause the tread to actually separate from the casing and even more dangerous condition than a flat tire. Tires are a primary thing to keep in shape for your car, so I suggest you get them inspected by someone with knowledge about tires. Brakes and tires should always be in the best condition for operating a car.
The tire was so worn that it was bound to go flat. The metal he was showing you was actually part of the tire. Underneath the rubber on a tire is a web of metal wire that adds to the strength and structure of the tire. Under normal conditions the tire should be replaced long before you see the metal. Once you've worn the tire to that point it's bound to fail soon because the rubber is what seals the air in and you no longer have enough to do the job.
