How does a flat runflat tire look and behave?

I got into my car after meeting a friend for coffee this morning and got the tire pressure warning indicator in red on the OBC display and in yellow on the speedo. I drove the car home, knowing I had runflats and there wasn't a service station that could service my tires nearby. There's only one place in town that will touch runflats and they're a good 30 minutes away. Home was closer.

What struck me as odd is that the car did not feel any different than it normally does. There was no vibration, no odd noises, nothing. The tires look just like they did yesterday and I did not notice anything stuck in the tire. All of my valve caps are in place and to this casual onlooker, it does not appear that I have a flat. The car drove like it always does, and I thought that there should at least be some odd vibration when driving on a flat runflat...

I'm going to try just putting air in my tires, but would like to know what to look for in the event that I actually do get a flat.

Thanks guys!

 

The TPMS works by monitoring rotational speeds so if one tire goes a little low (resulting in a smaller diameter and a faster rotation) it'll show up as an alert on your dash. I had one the other day for a tire that was 2 PSI lower than the others.

So just grab a tire pressure gauge and check all the tires. Fill where appropriate and then do the TPMS reset through the left turn stalk computer.

Someone jump in if I got any of that wrong.

 

Depends on the generation of MINIs - R53s 2002-2006 uses rotational speed to "alert." R56's up until 2007 week 32 production used the same system. That week introduced true TPMS which means (tire pressure monitoring system) and is actually calibrated to the proper inflation amount - if it declines it will send an alert to the display. If you have GPS you can actually see the inflated values for each wheel on your car.

 

Are you sure? I've seen screenshots where the Nav shows which wheel is low, but not inflation values.

 

Dude, you're making me wish Viola had the nav... It's an option I would have purchased had I custom ordered the car, but decided wasn't so high on the list that I wanted to wait and risk getting stuck with not being able to pick up my car due to inclement weather because the dealer is so far away.

 

Krut - Thanks for the clarification. Now I kind of wish I got nav in my 2008. Maybe just a little. It was just too much money.