I was coming out of the supermarket this afternoon and saw a 1 1/2 inch nail maybe like a roofing nail as it had a large round top on it sticking slightly sideways out of the inside of outer tread on my left rear tire.I was like WTF!! So I tried to pull it out with my fingers but it was pretty deep so I drove to the local tire store right away.Well he said they don't carry runflats in stock or patch them either.I am thinking to myself,"Great can my day get any worse!?!" He told me to just leave it in and see if any air is lost in the morning since they can't do anything for me on a Sunday.

When I got home I used a plier to remove the nail and waited for that sudden rush of air to escape which it didn't<phew a sigh of relief>.Anyway I checked and noted the tire pressure and will see what it reads tomorrow.

If for some reason it is flat then I will have to call MINI roadside assistance.

 

I had a catastrophic failure of the tread of a run flat Conti 16" on Thursday, on the way home from work. Hole about the size of a quarter. Still driveable, though. Took it to a local retailer on Friday who found a replacement Conti same day.

Luck of the draw here, where roads conditions are always miserable.

 

Bummer. I can't imagine it not leaking, but it may be slow.

I've been hearing reports that some places will patch runflats, and some wont.

I gave up on runflats. Ride was too harsh and they were too expensive. I haven't had a catastrophic blowout since a defective Michelin came apart while driving a 1967 Citroen DS21 at 65 mph.

All other flats were slow enough that an air pump was all that was needed to get me to a tire shop. Now I carry these:

http://www.tirerack.com/accessories/....jsp?CCK_Qty=1

http://www.dynaplug.com/domestic.html

Hopefully, my luck will hold.

 

Funny, I just discovered a nail my runflat yesterday. I only noticed because of the low pressure sensor. I'm on a tire maintenance program with my dealer, though, so I'll be able to stop in at the tire store across the street and be reimbursed. Anyway, I've been filling it up the 5lbs of pressure that it seems to leak overnight and been fine for local driving, since no one was open on Sundays. But I'll be stopping in first think in the morn since I don't want to risk a 60 min commute, most of which is highway.

 

they dont patch runflats? whats the point of these things anyway! grrr goto to change these out asap

 

they do, you just have to find a tire shop that knows what they're doing.

 

Yup, few things...

1) Runflats can be patched, most shops don't do it though.

2) Even if the tire is completely flat you can still drive on it (Up to 50 miles or so, but I know people that have driven 100+ miles).

3) I can't for the life of me think of a reason why if you had a nail in your tire you WOULDN'T lose air pressure after pulling it out. Generally the best thing to do is leave the nail in the tire until it's fixed, that way it acts as a temporary plug.

Good luck!

 

The point is that you don't have to get out of the car and change or repair the tire. Some people are horrified at the thought, and in some weather conditions it can be nasty. So, you pay extra so you can just keep driving until you get to a place where someone else can fix it for you.

However, running a runflat without air may get you to your destination, but it may damage the tire. So, you risk the replacement cost for the convenience of not getting out.

If you have a catastrophic tire failure (tire comes apart) with a runflat, you still may have to have the car flatbed trucked.

 

From what I have read here on NAM they can plug/patch runflats but it depends on the tire shop you take your car to.

I haven't check my tire yet this morning but if it maintained the air pressure over night then I will just go and buy a can of either Fix-A-Flat or Slime from an auto parts store.

My MINI dealership did offer me the tire and wheel protection policy for 5 years but at the time I bought my MCS $475 + tax was well beyond my financial budget.

I guess the runflat tires are a blessing and a curse meaning you can still drive on them when totally flat but you pay the price to replace even one.

 

You'll mess up your TPMS on that wheel with fix a flat or slime and have to replace it from what I understand.

 

a) runflats are the same as any tire with regards to plugging and patching. But tire shops don't like to mess with them cuz they are harder to mount/dismount, and they don't know how far you might have driven with no press' thereby compromising the sidewall precluding a safe patch.

b) a nail can enter at an angle and not actually pierce the tire. I picked up a 3 incher on the 79, pulled it out with no loss of pressure....dodged a bullet on that one....it had gone in sideways. Short roofing nails and small screws sometimes don't go thru all the way. I leave it in until I'm standing by with the plug....

c) Forget SLIME and fix a flat....pick up a DYNAPLUG kit, a small pair of pliers for yanking the offending item, and a small compressor (like the SLIME kit). If there is an easier way to plug a tire then DYNAPLUG I haven't seen it. I have those plugs in a tire for over 15,000 miles without a problem... A cheaper plug kit works too - but DYNAPLUG makes the process nearly foolproof.... as long at the damage is not in the sidewall...never patch/plug a sidewall problem....
http://www.dynaplug.com/
{Harbor Freight was carrying this, but it is not on their website currently}

 

I wasn't sure of that so I will just return the can of Fix-A-Flat that I bought today.Thanks.

Thank you Capt_bj for the information and also the dynaplug link.I have a Harbor Freight near me so I will stop by and pick up the dynaplug kit.

The good news it that the nail didn't puncture the tire even though it was in it sideways.<Phew lets out a huge sigh of relief>

 

What tire, tirerack has the Contis for like $125.

 

Dunlop SP Sport 01 205/45 R/17 DSST runflats which are the factory tires on my '08 MCSa.

 

I found my first runflat nail on my way to a Mini group trip to the Oregon coast back in February. The tire store I went to (Les Schwab, a giant Northwest company) pulled it out, patched it and got me on the road in time to get to the meeting place on time.

I haven't had a problem with it since.

 

That is great to hear.

On a side note:

From the help of my fellow NAMers with posting the Dunlop DSST Tire Warranty pdf. which I then printed out.I then was able to locate a local Dunlop Tire store by calling Dunlop directly 1-800-RUN-Flat(786-3528) that deals with my specific tires.It also states in the warranty information that a nail hole in the tread can be repaired by using the proper materials and procedures.Then again it also states that repairable punctures will also be covered for 12 months from the date of purchase but I need to get better clarification on that by calling them directly.

 

Yikes they run over $280 a tire.

 

Yikes is right!! Although the factory 17" Goodyear Eagle ZR performance tires on my '06 Mustang GT cost over $300 each.I had to replace 1 that went flat from a nail in the sidewall when I owned the car.

Unfortunately this is after the fact since I bought my MCSa from the dealer lot and never owned runflat tires before and what they cost to replace.

UPDATE
After my last post I did call Dunlop Customer Service directly at 1-800-321-2136 and asked about the free tire puncture repair within 1 year and they do cover that but a 1 time repair per tire at an authorized Dunlop Tire Dealer.The reason stated is that multiple repairs such as plugs or patches reduces the speed rating of the tire compared to the others on the car.

On the other hand personally that doesn't bother me as fine they can plug the tire once for free and heck if I have to I will plug it again myself because of the cost of the tire to replace just one.