I recently read in Roundel that taking runflat tires off a rim, lets just say to put a winter tire on your stock rims, ruins the Runflats because it comprimises the strength of the sidewalls. The article warned against buying/selling unmounted Runflats on forums and on Ebay.

Has any one heard this before?


Ryan

 

I'm not an expert on runflats, but it seems to me if the guy doing the dismounting knows what he's doing there should be no problem. That being said, if one was going to mount & dismount runflats every winter season to mount snows yep it'll ruin them. It's not a good practice for regular tires either.

 

welll, the sidewalls are ungodly thick.

i ended up cutting the runflats of of a set of wheels as my tire changer (FMC) wasnt able to break the bead on the runflats!!!

 

As long as the place doing the dismounting and mounting is good, it shouldn't be a problem. Just find a GOOD front-end shop.

 

The local SCCA racer that we all use to mount & balance has told me..."Don't bring those stinking runflats here, I won't touch em!"

 

My wife had a flat this week with a run flat. Manual says not to repair them, but to purchase a new one. Took it to dealer: They don't repair them, have to have "special equipment" to break it down and they don't have the special equipment. They do know of one place in Charlotte, NC that does repair them and has the special equipment. Took it there and in thirty minutes, repair was made and was out the door. While at the dealer I was told MINI recommends not repairing them based on following: Flat tire, loss of all air pressure, you drive 60+ miles with no air pressure the thick side walls are destroyed. If you have a flat and do not lose all air pressure and only travel short distance, tire would be OK to have repaired. (Note: was shocked when I priced new 16 run flat (should I have chosen to replace it)...$235!

 

I dont quite understand the rediculous prices I see here on run flats...... a visit to tirerack.com shows much lower pricing. I understand you'd have to pay for install, but is it any more expensive to INSTALL a run flat? I don't get it.....

EDIT: I suppose perhaps the problem is replacing with the same tire. I found this:

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires....e1=yes&place=2

Not too shabby, but the PAIR would need to be replaced......

 

then I guess they get ruined by being put on in the first place!

Matt

 

Must be spring in the air. Everyone's starting to worry about runflats.

Remember what society we are in and all the warning labels many people ignore. I'm sure there are people out there that don't know they even HAVE runflats and likely would run one or more flat, over-speed, until they actually come off. Use common sense and follow the warnings.

I have my old Pirelli's sitting in the basement, dismounted, and undamaged. It appeared they may have been glued to the rim, I dunno, but the shop took them off with some hassle claiming the wheels were strange. First clue, now looking for a new tire mounter to mount non-runflats for this summer. Just find someone through a fellow motor's reference to do the work.

 

I actually got my FMC changer stuck on a 16 inch wheel with a runflat on it.

I cranked it up over 250 PSI and it wouldnt budge. i ended up getting out my sawzall and cuting the tire off the rim while it was still on the changer because the changer wouldnt retract off the rim!!!

 

So Rick, still have that changer? Wanna mount up my 17's in a couple weeks for me? I'm looking for a place that will mount the tires without beating up my repainted wheels. Of course, a good balancing is a must also.

 

Runflats require special tire changing machines and trained tire technicians. Most machines will not work on a rf tire. In fact there are darn few places that can properly change a rf tire.

If you do a search you can find which machines are certified to change rf tires. It would be to your advantage to know which machines can be used so that you will know if the shop that is doing the work will be able to preform without damaging the tires. Just my $.02.

If the correct machine and technician are used it should not cause any damage to the tire. That said, it is not recommended to be changing tires repeatedly between summer and winter tires, or for that fact between road and race tires. It is much better to purchase a second, or third, set of wheels as the situation calls for.

I currently have summer and winter wheels and am considering a set of race wheels.

 

Read THIS box and the box after it (for RF changing machines)

 

I agree with multiple sets of wheels for specific uses. I went with a set of ASA wheels to go with new Blizzaks. They've been great through the winter.

Getting most local garages to honestly tell you they can or cannot properly do runflats may be an issue. No one let's the customer in the garage bays anymore to even look around. Years ago I learned by accident that my usual Ford Dealer's alingment unit wasn't REALLY big enough to handle the supercab pickup, but they usually did use it anyway with the rear wheels barely hanging on. When I had new tires mounted they sent it out to a shop that could do it properly "because they were new tires." WHAT? I lost all trust. I wouldn't be surprized if most MINI dealers certified to mount RFs.

I really wanted multiple sets because I can change them in the driveway. I trust myself to use care changing sets. I've left runflats for the time being, I can use a winter unit for a spare.

 

I have a related question; I'm thinking about buying new wheels but my run flats still have a good amount of tread left...Could I removed the RFs from the stock wheels and mount them on the new wheels? Obviously I run the risk of damaging the runflats, I just don't feel like springing for new tires while these are still good.

 

Providing no damage in mount and dismount, no problem.

Alex

 

If run flats are ruined by not being mounted, what keeps them from ruin while in stock? They don't come on wheels, ya know.

 

NTB in Westlake dismounted my Dunlop RFs off my R84's with no damage to the tires or wheels. The service manager said these "little" RFs are not a problem. It's the bigger ones on Vettes that are dangerous and need special care and tools and training. They'll be doing my next set of tires.

Just my 2 cents.

....Les

 

Hey Les, if ya put some of those big Vette bologna's on your car your lap times at Nelson Ledges will be so much better.

 

Hi Chuck, ya think maybe? That was fun tho, wasn't it......

 

Yep, what do ya say we do it again this year?

 

Heheheh......bring your helmet.....

 

You got it Les....

 

Of all places, my local Costco has both the right machines, and trained techs who had no problems unmounting, then re-mounting the OEM

 

Of all places, my local Costco has both the correct machines and knowledgeable technicians who removed and remounted my OEM RF's on stock R84 wheels. No problems. The tire shop manager said their tire removal machine is a Coats Robotic Euro.

Hope that helps.