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The Flat Tire Tread... Oops, Thread

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by Rokeby, Jul 2, 2008.

  1. Rokeby

    Rokeby Member

    Joined:
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    Location:
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    Vehicle:
    2008 Prius
    I'm starting this thread with the hope of bringing together in one place
    information and anecdotes on flat tires, on Prii and otherwise. The impetus
    is my recent experience with a flat tire on Amapola. My last flat tire was 39
    years and ~750,000 miles ago. This was almost a first-time experience!

    Two days ago, the tire pressure alarm went off, and I found the left front
    tire low. With about 100 pumps on a good bicycle pump, I raised the
    pressure from 32 to 44 PSI. I wanted to go to the dealer given that I have
    only ~6400 on the car and I was concerned about possible damage to the tire
    pressure sensor during any repairs. The tire is the OEM Bridgestone Turanza
    EL400 195/55R16.

    At the dealers shop, the tech brought the ummounted tire to me to discuss
    what he had found. There were not one but two nails in the tread, roughly
    centered from side to side, and separated by about 1/4 diameter. The nails
    had entered at an angle, and torn 3/16 inch dimeter holes on the inside of
    the tire -- probably from driving around, the nailheads were worn off on one
    side. It was about 20 minutes after the car was driven into the repair bay.

    The tech recommended that he patch the holes as opposed to putting in a
    plug. He was concerned about a plug not being secure. As to how much it
    would cost, he said, "6/10ths of an hour at $90 an hour," about $60.
    Rebalancing was included. I have a number of 500+ mile trips in the near
    future and agreed that patching could be more secure, both for the tire and
    for my peace of mind.

    Forty minutes later the tech pulled the car around front. I intercepted him
    before he got to the service writer; $25 and change. I looked closely at the
    paperwork; it clearly said two holes patched. I asked what was up. He
    winked and said, "It didn't take as long as I thought." I whispered thank you
    and hurrried him on.

    I'm not mentioning the dealer as I'd hate to get the young tech in trouble.

    Now it's your turn. Please feel free to post flat tire stories, good or bad,
    Pruis or other makes, that occurred recently or in the distant past.

    [I found 5 threads with "Flat Tire" in the title in the last four
    years. I encourage the OPs of those threads to repost their stories here,
    perhaps as copy and pasted quotes to save time and effort.]
     
    #1 Rokeby, Jul 2, 2008
  2. JimN

    JimN Let the games begin!

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    My right front tire was punctured early on. I was going to the dealer anyway to get my interior lights reconnected. They patched the tire for $25 (as I remember). I'm not sure you'll find a shop that will plug a tire.
     
    #2 JimN, Jul 2, 2008
  3. rigormortis

    rigormortis Active Member

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    32 psi? i probably would of just drove slowly on it to a tire repair place instead of pumping it up with a bicycle pump, yeah the average tire repair costs about 10-15.00 and i have had this done before, but americas tire stores (aka discount tire stores) gives everyone 1 free flat repair whether you buy the tire there or not, pretty good i think

    the better places will plug the tire and then put a patch inside the tire

    the not so good places will just plug the tire witwhout taking it off the rim, i had
    to get it redone i think

    the worst flat i ever had was when my turanza picked up a 8" screw on 580 east bound, i later found screw halfway into the wheel well

    and i drove on the tire the less then 1 mile to the gas station, and it held air for 5 minutes, so i went to work, and then put more air in it and i was lucky that this tire place was only a couple blocks away so i just drove on it again, and they patched it for like $15, and when they asked me how long i drove on it, i didnt say anything heh



    REALLY IMPORTANT SECTION
    ======================
    since your last flat tire was 39 years ago, never ever ever use those flat tire repair spray cans, all the new cars here
    have tire pressure monitoring systems, and the glues in those spray cans will clog your transmitters, and at $100 a piece
    that $5 can can cost a lot of money
     
    #3 rigormortis, Jul 3, 2008
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