A system for allowing vehicles equipped with pneumatic tires to continue operating after a tire failure which would normally cause deflation of the tire employs one or more airbags stored in deflated configuration either about the exterior surface of the rim supporting the pneumatic tire or externally of the tire. The system further includes a container for compressed gases. A sensor connected to the inflated tire to detect sudden deflation releases the compressed gases so as to inflate the airbag to either support the tire or provide an exterior running surface adjacent to the deflated tire. The system may employ a rim with a specially deep drop-center section to allow mounting and dismounting a tire in a conventional manner despite the space in the drop-center section occupied by airbags.