a nail in my run flat tire, HELP!!!!

[shiccobm]

SO i heard it very hard to fix run flat tires ,
but how hard is it?????
where can i get this fixed in the gta , w
ho do u guys recommened ,
My Tire pressure warning showed on my dash
i know it happened to one other guy ,
from the pictures u see , does it look fixable or do i have to buy a new one ... anything would help thanks
( sorry for the bad Quality)

[Lester]

If it is in the sidewall, it probably can't be repaired. Check with a good tire repair shop just in case, to see if it can be patched. Tirerack.com has the best prices for replacements.

[warmtoes]

By the looks of it, it is too close to the sidewall for a lot of tire shops to repair.

[dbtheo]

Originally Posted by warmtoes

By the looks of it, it is too close to the sidewall for a lot of tire shops to repair.

agreed, it needs to be closer to the middle

[bimmerfile]

OP;
Call your local Green & Ross outlet. Some of their outlets have RFT mounting equip and will repair RFTs (if they are repairable)..

[lovemywhip]

mines in the shop for that now... running me 100 F'n bucks!... let me know how much u spend and how bad i got ripped

[looking]

It just happened to me recently - The one other guy you mentioned, that's probably me.

Despite what the dealership tells you, you can repair the tire. Keep in mind that runflats are technically not suppose to be repaired though so, it's at your own risk. Oh, another factor to take into account is, how much you've driven on the tire. If you've driven on it a lot, the sidewall is probably not in great shape.

I personally think RFT are crap and I am getting a new set of tires (conventional) next summer. I'm absolutely disgusted at how expensive RFT are - i'd have no problem with the price if they performed exceptionally, but that's just not the case.

Anyways, I took my car to steelcase tire in markham http://www.steelcasetires.ca/ - a lot of great reviews. Got a plug first (didn't seem to work) so, now I have a patch (seems to be holding). Cost me $40. My punctures were on center thread though. If you're closer to Mississauga tire23 seems to have a pretty good reputation.

[shiccobm]

Originally Posted by excel

It just happened to me recently - The one other guy you mentioned, that's probably me.

Despite what the dealership tells you, you can repair the tire. Keep in mind that runflats are technically not suppose to be repaired though so, it's at your own risk. Oh, another factor to take into account is, how much you've driven on the tire. If you've driven on it a lot, the sidewall is probably not in great shape.

I personally think RFT are crap and I am getting a new set of tires (conventional) next summer. I'm absolutely disgusted at how expensive RFT are - i'd have no problem with the price if they performed exceptionally, but that's just not the case.

Anyways, I took my car to steelcase tire in markham http://www.steelcasetires.ca/ - a lot of great reviews. Got a plug first (didn't seem to work) so, now I have a patch (seems to be holding). Cost me $40. My punctures were on center thread though. If you're closer to Mississauga tire23 seems to have a pretty good reputation.

Thanks for all ur replies , i went to tire 23 today and they said they cant fix it ( side wall) so i drove off pissed of , my psi dropped to 16 psi ... so i went to a grag a coffee and i found another shop from good year and my tires are from good year so i stopped there , just to see what can i get , i found the guy working there i already kinda knew , i knew his best friend , so i told him my story and he took a look at my tire and he said i can try for u , it can work or it might not .. so i said lets give it a shot , i am buying winters soon , but i did nt want to put them on that soon and i will buy tires next summer , non of this run flat shit. so he patched it and i really hope it works atleats for a month or so until i get my winters. The other thing , i lost another 5 psi in the process of patching it , so i need to fill it up with nitrogeon which the shop they did nt have , i will get guys posted , and it costed me $ 20 so its not bad at all

[looking]

is nitrogen going to make a difference if the patch doesn't work? IF not why nitrogen?

[bimmerfile]

When you have a puncture in your RTF repaired, make sure it is both plugged and patched (not just one or the other).

[looking]

it seems like the new patches now are plug and patch (2 in 1). When I got my patched, the used what looked like a plug as a "lead" - to go through the path of puncture - that was attached to the patch.

[shiccobm]

Originally Posted by excel

is nitrogen going to make a difference if the patch doesn't work? IF not why nitrogen?

well i need to fill it right since i lost some psi in the process ( i am sitting on 31 psi at the moment )and nitrogen does nt inflate or deflate wether its hot or cold ,

[shiccobm]

Originally Posted by carnut

When you have a puncture in your RTF repaired, make sure it is both plugged and patched (not just one or the other).

yeh its both plug and patch , its a gluey piece of like lead stick and they stick it in the hole and get off the access whats left

[EspressoBoy]

FYI
air is 78.1% nitrogen
Nitrogen I am told...
helps with tpms (CA claimed we get less false alarms)
tire wear less... tires last longer
Change of temp less issues

For just getting a plug/patch I don't think it is worth worrying about nitrogen till you are sure that tire is going to stay on the car. (the one you patched)

When you get a new replacement, then consider using Nitrogen.
I don't know if Costco charges for Nitrogen alone, but they offer it free when you buy tires from them.

EspressoBoy

[never]

Originally Posted by EspressoBoy

...helps with tpms (CA claimed we get less false alarms)...

Doesn't matter with Canadian 1-series as they don't use TPMS.

[turbojayc]

I wish I tried patching my RFT 2 weeks ago. I got it changed at the dealership. I first brought in the car thinking my FTM was malfunctioning as it went off twice and I didn't notice any flats. So once they had the car on the lift they found a small leak. Anyways long story short, I didn't have much choice at that point and I paid the $578 for a new tire. Fucken brutal. The car is almost 3 months old.

The RFT's will be coming off in the spring, and I will be replacening them with BETTER perfomring tires then these crappy RFT's.

Other then that, LOVING the car.

[never]

Is there a market out there that need 215/40 and 245/35 18" RFT so all of us can sell our tires to them next spring?

[EspressoBoy]

Originally Posted by never

Doesn't matter with Canadian 1-series as they don't use TPMS.

We do have TPMS, but it is the INDIRECT type. If we do not have TPMS how is it inside the car we can see the tire pressure is "ok" then?

The TPMS we have in Canada does not use a device inside the tire. So when ordering tires, remember we do not need to buy any extra TPMS devices. We do have to calibrate when we change the tire(s) though. This is very important and a safety issue if not done correctly. I have new winter tires and have yet to try this myself. Can't wait! *yeah right*

As for Nitrogen... I will post again.

EspressoBoy

[turbojayc]

Originally Posted by never

Is there a market out there that need 215/40 and 245/35 18" RFT so all of us can sell our tires to them next spring?

Can't do that if your leasing the car. You have to give the car back to BMW with RFT's and decent tread at the end of the lease.

[never]

Originally Posted by EspressoBoy

We do have TPMS, but it is the INDIRECT type. If we do not have TPMS how is it inside the car we can see the tire pressure is "ok" then?

The TPMS we have in Canada does not use a device inside the tire. So when ordering tires, remember we do not need to buy any extra TPMS devices. We do have to calibrate when we change the tire(s) though. This is very important and a safety issue if not done correctly. I have new winter tires and have yet to try this myself. Can't wait! *yeah right*

TPMS stands for Tire Pressure Monitor Sensor and the Canadian 1-series don't have sensors inside of the tire that monitor pressure. As it has been stated elsewhere, our 1s have TPW - Tire Pressure Warning system where tire pressure changes are detected by rotational differences between the tires. But with the TPW system, you could put a 245/35 on one side and a 245/55 on the other side, both with equal pressure, and the warning light would be tripped (i.e., nothing with the system is reading tire pressure).

[never]

Originally Posted by turbojayc

Can't do that if your leasing the car. You have to give the car back to BMW with RFT's and decent tread at the end of the lease.

Okay, I'll rephrase...is there a market out there that need 215/40 and 245/35 18" RFT so all of us who bought our 1-ers can sell our tires to them next spring? :smile:

[EspressoBoy]

SHOULD YOU STOP PUTTING

AIR IN YOUR TIRES?

As much as we preach inflation pressure maintenance, that might seem like a ludicrous question. What’s behind it, though, is the issue of whether or not air is the best thing to use for inflating tires.

Lately, there’s been more and more interest is using other gases, like nitrogen. Unfortunately, there’s also a certain amount of bogus information out there regarding nitrogen as well. We’ll try to provide some “real answers” regarding nitrogen’s potential.

Q: Is nitrogen inflation new?
A: It’s been used on giant off-highway tires, on aircraft tires, and on racing tires for many years


Q: Why did they switch?
A: Air is about one-fifth oxygen, and oxygen, especially at high temperatures and pressures, is a very reactive element.

When oxygen reacts with things, the process is called oxidation. When oxidation is extremely rapid, the process is called “burning.”

That’s one reason nitrogen is used in off-highway and aircraft tires. These tires run so hot they can actually catch on fire.

Nitrogen doesn’t support combustion, so nitrogen-filled tires don’t add fuel to the flames. And, nitrogen helps prevent slower forms of oxidation too.


Q: How does that happen?
A: Air migrates through rubber. Truck tires can lose 2 psi per month as a result of air passing through their sidewalls – like a balloon that shrivels up, but much slower.

That’s why regular inflation pressure checks are a must. Even if there’s nothing “wrong,” you can still be losing pressure.

And, when oxygen passes through rubber, it can come into contact with steel cords, causing them to rust too.
Between aging rubber and corroding steel cords, oxygen reduces retread ability.


Q: How does nitrogen help?
A: While both nitrogen and oxygen can permeate rubber, nitrogen does it much more slowly. It might take six months to lose 2 psi with nitrogen, compared to just a month with air.

And, nitrogen is far less reactive. It doesn’t cause rust and corrosion on steel or aluminum, and it doesn’t degrade rubber.

Wheel surfaces stay smooth and clean, rubber remains supple and resilient.
Inflation losses are minimized – and retread ability is enhanced.


Q: Are there other benefits to nitrogen inflation?
A: The air around us is full of water vapour. It’s called “humidity.” Compressing air concentrates the water in it.



Draining water from your air lines every day helps, but unless you have a really efficient air dryer, chances are there’s lots of water in your compressed air.

When you compress air,
it takes up much less volume,
but the percentage of water
by volume is greatly increased.

Q: What’s the harm in that?
A: Water vapor in compressed air acts as a catalyst, accelerating rust and corrosion.

Water vapor also absorbs and holds heat. And, when it changes from liquid to vapor, water expands tremendously in volume.

So, tires inflated with wet air tend to run hotter and fluctuate in pressure more. That’s why racing tires, where fractions of a psi can radically change handling, are inflated with dry nitrogen.


Q: Where would we get nitrogen?
A: Some people use high pressure cylinders or big containers of liquid nitrogen as their source, but several companies now offer machines that separate nitrogen from air.

These machines can produce nitrogen that’s 95 percent or more pure, taking it from the inexhaustible supply in the air around us.


Q: Do we have to do something special to fill our tires?
A: Not really. If you take a truck tire that’s just been mounted, and inflate it with 95 percent nitrogen, you’ll end up with a concentration of about 93 percent nitrogen in the tire. That’s good enough to do the job.


Q: Why wouldn’t it be 95 percent?
A: Because the tire was full of air. So there was some oxygen in it before you added the nitrogen.


Q: What do we do when we’re out on the road?
A: Chances are, as it becomes more popular, you’ll find nitrogen inflation equipment at truckstops.

But in the meantime, consider this: With nitrogen inflation, you won’t need to “top off” your tires nearly as often – or as much.

And, if you do need to add pressure, the little bit of air that you might put in will have very little effect.

If you have nitrogen inflation capability at “home,” when trucks come in, you can let the air out of their tires and re-inflate them with near-pure nitrogen.

That will bring the concentration of nitrogen inside your tires back to optimum levels.


Q: Is nitrogen inflation cost-effective?
A: That’s going to depend on your situation. If your trailers go out and don’t come back for six months or more, being able to keep consistent inflation pressures may greatly lengthen tread life.

Some tests have shown increases of up to 26 percent. Less rubber aging and tire cord rust could also yield a higher proportion of retreadable casings – and casings that can survive more retread cycles.
That cuts cost per mile too.

There’s nothing you can do that is better for your tires than maintaining the right inflation pressure – all the time.

Nitrogen could help you do that. We’ll keep you posted on developments in this area.

Air
78.1% Nitrogen
20.9% Oxygen
1% Other Gases





Because air can migrate
through sidewalls, truck tires
can lose up to 2 psi per month,
even when valves and beads
seal properly and there are no punctures.



WATER
+HEAT
=VAPOR





While dry nitrogen is available from welding supply shops,
there are also machines that will extract nitrogen from air.



Note:
I got this from www.bridgestonetrucktires.com and formatted it for easier reading for the forum. Any issues and I will fix it, let me know.

EspressoBoy