So I am driving in to work this morning - the low tire pressure monitor light comes on. Don't really think much about it. Then gradually the car starts pulling to the right - eventually make my way carefully into work parking lot. The right side front tire looks much more deflated than the rest.

Now, my idea was that run flats are supposed not to look very different even if the tire has burst. So am I wrong there ? Or is it that the tire itself is a goner ?

I am just planning to have it towed to the dealership, because there is no way I can drive the car.

 

Normally a Run Flat tire will show very little deflation compared to the other tires but if the tire is damaged it can show almost as flat as any non runflat will.

 

Sounds like there is something wrong with the tire sidewall. Hope the rim was not damaged.

 

Thanks for the replies. So I was right in thinking that the run-flats should not show deflation just from low pressure. So possibly a tire damage.

Anyway, car's been towed to the dealer. Will know soon what's gone wrong.

I assume tire's are not part of warranty

Damn San Diego roads!

 

A tire gauge is your friend and the only way to tell if a tire (especially a runflat) is properly inflated. Buy a couple and keep one in your car.

 

I have run flats on my BMW. The only way I know a tire is flat, is when the car tells me. It drives normally and I can only tell which tire is flat by using my tire guage as rhawth99 stated.

 

Tire had a nail on it. Had to be replaced. $400

They checked the alignment too - the back axles were off (unrelated to the tire problem) $300

Zooming down the highway again with the top open: Priceless.

But the costs are still ouch! A good chunk of change from the vacation savings :(

 

At least you get a mini, or rather MINI, vacation every time you put the top down.

 

Question: how long/far did you drive on it "flat"?

- a runflat - the type MINI uses anyway - gets the runflat property by having a much stronger sidewall. Strong enough that the sidewall can support the car for a time with no air pressure - what normally carries the weight.

- if you put that load on the sidewall, the car's weight, for very long the side wall begins to break down. I believe the owner's manual says 50 miles? I know a guy that drove a MINI on a flat runflat for over 2000 miles but sure don't recommend it.

- this is why many repair places won't repair runflats, they don't know how long you ran it with no air pressure and therefore don't know how badly the sidewall is compromised. Note that with regular tires, I've had plug/patch refused when the tire showed any signs of having been run flat such that the wheel crushed the sidewall. Same issue....

- btw an RF that is found with a nail in it but no significant air loss is just as repairable as any tire BUT the repair places have liability concerns when they wonder how far you might have driven with no air pressure. That's why I just plug my own with DYNAPLUG.

 

Heh. That's actually almost always when I drive, doesn't matter how cold.

 

Thanks for the information. Between the time, the low pressure warning came on and I pulled into the parking lot, it was only about 10 minutes - perhaps 3-4 miles. Air loss was quite significant. I took it to the dealer, so obviously they weren't going to just repair the thing.

I am actually seriously considering replacing the run-flats with regular ones and keep a patch kit handy. I hardly travel out of town with this car, so it isn't as if I will get badly stranded in the middle of nowhere.

 

I have a 2010 non "S" convertible and it has a spare tire well under the car, but no spare tire. Has anyone mounted a spare in the spare wheel well? Can you do it with non-MINI parts?

 

$400 for a new tire? What did you get? I picked up a nail at the sidewall-tread border (irreparable) and only dropped $200 at my local mechanic's.

 

There is absolutely no reason not to repair a run-flat with a nail in the tread as long as it has not been driven too much and damaged the tire. The tire shops are simply trying to sell you a new tire instead of a twenty dollar repair. The dealer selling you a new tire for $400 in this case is unconscionable.

 

I picked up a puncture on my left rear tire on I-4 and drove to the rest area as soon as the low-light came on. I called AAA and the guy was there in about 10 min. He put the air to it and found the hole. He would not plug it but did go on his computer to find where I could get a can of fix-a flat. He also sugested when I put in the fix-a-flat to be sure the hole is on the bottom. I got it and put it in. Of course the station did not have an air hose so I went to another station that had a broken air hose. I gave up and drove the 125 more miles to Tampa. I had to go because of my cancer treatments. When I parked I always made sure the hole was on the bottom. I filled the tire up to 38psi the next day after my treatment and the air stayed in the tire. I drove back to Daytona the next weekend and went to a tire store and when they pulled the tire off it had a big plastic blob where the hole was that can not be removed. They are not allowed to plug a run-flat at all but the guy did it for me without writing it up. I just plain don't have the $$$$ right now for new tires so I will just run it until I get the $$$ for four new tires. To replace the Dunlap that is on it. It is $324.00 for one tire. I can buy all new Michelins for $949.00 so I opted to get the four Micheline ZP's. I have 13,000 miles on the Dunlaps and except for the plug and big glob of plastic they still look good. I think the sensor is OK because the low tire pressure light is not on. I will let some air out of that plugged tire to see if it still works I sure hope it does.