5 flats in a year - Stock OR tires suck!

Stepped in my truck to get some donuts Sunday morning and had my 3rd flat in 1 year's time. Starting to get pretty annoyed with this...

1st flat they patched. 2nd flat, I had to get a new tire at about 8,000 miles. Now I'm at about 18,000 miles on the truck. I suspect this 3rd flat might be the patch failing from the repair of the first flat. I don't seen any screws or anything in the tire.

Wondering how to fix this since my 3 good tires are now showing some wear at 18k miles. I'm assuming they might not be able to repair it this time, but I'm not sure a new tire with full tread would be good at this point. Way too early to buy all new tires.. maybe they have something used.

I was a fan of these tires... they do great in the mountains on 4x4 forest service roads, but I'm starting to get frustrated! Both previous flats were due to nails/screws though, so I guess maybe I've just been really unlucky this last year.

Any thoughts on best or most economical way to fix this?

 

PS - I had the other tires fixed at local tire shop to avoid hassles at the dealership, but should I be taking this to the dealer? I avoid dealership as much as possible and will be taking to my local shop as soon as free services (and maybe warranties) are expired.

 

not the tires fault you're running over sharp shit

 

Sounds like you just had some bad luck to me. Nails and screws - cant blame the tire itself. Personally, if you like the tires then i would continue to use them. A patch in the tread of the tire from a screw usually does not fail unless improperly performed.

 

I had a tire do that before.

the tire ended up with a razor blade piece in it, that worked its way inside the tire.

Just happened the patch glue broke loose when I dropped down from uneven ground. Like a step. the first shopped fixed it, but it did not last. Went to another shop when it leaked after 3 weeks from the first time.

they resanded the inside of the tire which the first shop did not do a very good job.

 

you can't really blame the tires for getting punctured by nails, screws etc. If you like them, keep running them. Get that one patched, and hopefully you have better luck.

I know it's frustrating, I've lost 3 tires in 1 month before, and it sucks.

 

What positio is the the tire? I bet it's the right rear, most common punctured tire. I work at firestone and we're not allowed to patch a tire more than twice. But I've seen people leave my shop, go a mile down the road and pick up a nail in the same exact tire that we just patched.

Ps
Always get the extra warranty tire shops offer. 100 bucks extra for example can pay for itself many times. I've had customers road hazard many tires just because they got the road hazard.

 

Put the spare on? Isn't it full size?

Find the new leak. If safe to do so (location of puncture) plug it yourself.

I've run as many as 3 plugs (not fancy patches) in race tires that were down within a whisker of the tread bars. No issues, even when they got really hot.

 

I know they say not to use them, but I have had great luck with the rope-type plugs. I have never had one leak on me. The only limitation is that the hole must be small and nearly circular for them to seal adequately. They usually come with rubber cement, but I have never used the stuff.

I guess they are not supposed to be used in "high speed" applications (highway tires), but like I said, I have never had one leak on me. And... you can install them yourself, sometimes without having to pull the wheel off the vehicle. You might give these a shot.

 

I've had a flat or two with the Kevlar Wranglers.....

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/ode-to-a-tire.494159/

 

Yeah the take home plug kits reduce your tires speed rating to basically nothing

 

Never had one fail.

Even in competition.

While those 'speeds' were not high, there was much more stress on the tire than running legal highway speeds.

So while I'd rather be plug free, I won't toss a good tire to avoid one either.

 

I'd take it back to the shop that did the repair.

Or use the spare. That's also a great idea if your worried about the patch again.

Have the shopswitch the rims.

 

Well yeah legal speeds on average are what 65? When speed ratings I performance tires are 111+

 

maybe just replace the other one on the same axle if you get new?
Given you shouldn't be using 4x4 on pavement, only on ground with enough slip the slight difference shouldn't matter much.

 

Thanks for the feedback. They were able to patch it again. Good to go! Just wanted to have to avoid buying 2 or 4 new tires.

 

Another fucking flat on my way heading out of town for the backcountry. This is starting to seem like more than bad luck. These tires go flat if you run over a fucking thumbtack. Might have to just get new ones.
Don't know much about tires. Can anyone recommend a durable tire that won't go flat from a pin prick!? The stock tires seemed great on rocky trails but can't hold up in the city.

 

My .02...

If you suspect the 3rd flat is from the first repair patch failing, than the first step is to verify by airing up tire to max lbs as stated on tire side wall, then taking a spray bottle filled with a soap & water mixture start spot spraying at the approximate area of the repair i.e. middle, left or right area if you can even remember. If by any chance they used a plug (not the best method) you’ll plainly see it and mark it with chalk or soap bar.

If you still can’t find the leak even after spraying the whole tire, unscrew the air valve cap and spray it to see if it bubbles (leaks).
If you’re lucky, the valve core might have gotten loose and tightening will seal it. Worse case, the o’ring (or whole valve) needs replacement.

The reason for the diy check is that if the repair they did failed, they might own up and do it over for free.

The best course of action I would follow if I was in your shoes is to try & save the tire at all costs, and unless the puncture is at the side wall or less than 1” away, it should be repairable.

If not repairable, I would check to see if the spare is the same size and make\brand as the rest on the truck and if so, I'd buy one new one and put them it on the same front or rear axle.
I would then use the old tire to use as temporary spare.

Hope that helps
Cheers!


Best and permanent repair type is the tire patch/plug combo done at the pro shop. More expensive than either a patch or plug, but repair is the most reliable that should last the life of the tire.

 

Lost my first tire at 3k miles on the driveway of the house I just bought. Tire shop found the puncture between the smallest thread gap close to the wall, they couldnt tell me what it was because it was too small to extract, but it had to be replaced. Bought a new tire and they allowed me to warranty the rest of them so next time there's a puncture to the wall, tire is free.

 

LT rated tires have extra side wall/tread layers in the carcass than P Rated, the extra layers may stop a nail/screw puncture from penetrating the complete carcass and causing a flat. if the tires are getting replaced for free or repaired for free than I wouldn't worry about it your luck will change and not run over anymore nails/screws eventually.