Replace just one Tire -- or not?

I always try to replace tyres in pairs, or sets of four. If you have a slow leak, it might be the sealing of the tyre on the rim. If it's a very old (steel) rim, there might be corrosion on the sealing surface of the rim. I've had problems with a previous Toyota (Corolla) with steel rims, where the tyres kept losing air, and the solution was to get new rims. (I tried getting rims from a local junk-yard (recycler, as they 're called nowadays)), but they were almost as bad as the ones on my car which were leaking! When installing the tyres, air them up to about 50- 60lbs to get the tyres to seal properly, and then reduce the pressure to whatever you use. - hope this helps - Wil

 

I just had one tire replaced several weeks ago due to a screw in the sidewall.
There's been no noticeable difference in how the car handles, and no traction control alerts. Of course, as always, YMMV.

 

If you can, take the problem tire off, set it on the ground, and slowly roll it while looking closely at the tread. Have a small, flat blade screw driver at the ready, to pry out anything you notice. Most will be gravel/sand, but you might find a nail or screw.

If nothing turns up, then try a spray bottle of sudsy water on the whole tire, and look for bubbling spot.

If you do find something embedded, with any luck you can plug repair, or get a shop to do a more kosher repair.

 

I use windex if I can't find anything stuck in the tire. if that doesn't work, put the tire in a big tub full of water and patiently look for an occasional small bubble. if it is a leak at the bead, they do make a bead sealant which any tire shop should have. it works good.

 

If you need a new tire, you could experiment and see what happens with the purchase of just one tire.

It is recommended to at minimum replace both tires on an axle, and put the new tires on the rear so that the car would tend to understeer. In that case you would get rid of the worst tire of the remaining three tires.

 

if you drove like me, you could have 4 different tyres.

 

If you replace just one on the rear, you'll probably not notice any difference. If it's one of the front ones, then swap those two with the two rear wheels.

You might notice that your car will pull to one side when accelerating if you leave the new tire up front.

 

Have you put a drop of oil in the air valve(looking for bubbles), tightening it won't stop a bubble of air every 10 minutes, yes, do two, the front tires wear much faster, if it's a rear, put the two new tires on the front, when the fronts wear, replace all four.

 

I bet they'll find the leak, plug it and you'll be on your way. I've had many a slow leak discovered and remedied by tire shops (usually a nail, but one was a drill bit).

I've replaced just one tire (picked up a spike that left a hole too big to plug) but it was with the exact same tire and the tire on the other side had practically no wear. I'd be hesitant to replace with a different tire, since true size can vary a fair bit between different tires of the same size. Handling issues could also result.

 

Might be the valve, but I'd put money on a small finishing nail, with the head showing, and easy to overlook.

 

I routinely do this when rotating tires. I use a small pair of long-nose pliers to pull out the rocks. I've found a few nails over the years using this approach, prior to the tire actually deflating.

Agree.

 

Seems pretty expensive if you have 15" wheels. I would expect a Costco is located nearby in your area and if so, you can choose from the Michelin and Bridgestone brands there.

 

Sounds like a leaking bead, fixed by re-mounting! Congratulations!

 

if it leaks again, spray it with windex. wife shouldn't mind you using that, and it works good.

 

I plugged my last three problems, nails. Original tires.

 

I found a small finishing nail, about an inch from edge of tread, in one of our OEM tires (Michelin Pilot) while it was off the car during winter. That wheel had been chronically losing air, like a pound or two per week. Took the tire/wheel to our dealership, they said "no dice, too close to edge of tread". I decided to try plug repair, a first for me. Worked out fine, this was maybe 3 years back, still using it.

Then about a year later, one of our snow tires caught a small bolt, about the same distance from edge of tread, noticed in a mall parking lot the tire was totally flat. Plug repaired it too. Again, no further problems.