Flat tire question


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Old 12-04-19, 06:48 PM
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Flat tire question

Changed out summer tires for winter tires in dedicated steel rims. After installation I checked the tire pressure. One tire was quite low. I inflated it to the prescribed level and monitored it for a few days. The tire slowly lost pressure over 2 days.
I took the tire off and took it into the tire shop. They said they could not find any punctures/nails and replaced the valve stem and re-beaded the.

The tire seemed ok until over three weeks later when it went completely flat when my wife was driving. It was close to home but she probably drove a few miles on it flat

i have a couple of questions. Does anyone know what possibly could have been wrong with the tire? Although the tire is not visually damaged ie shredded etc is it toast? Is the rim going to be toast?

Any help would be appreciated. I dropped the tire off at the shop tonight after telling the. I was not too impressed
 

Last edited by the_tow_guy; 12-05-19 at 04:51 AM. Reason: Typo fix

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12-06-19, 04:34 AM
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Explain to your wife that when a person experiences a flat tire it is best to stop and call for assistance. When she chooses to drive on the flat she has chosen to replace the wheel assembly (tire & rim) in the end .. plus possible other damage.
 
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Old 12-04-19, 07:17 PM
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Make and model of vehicle ?
Does it have TPMS ?
How could it go from "good for weeks" to "completely flat" all at once ?
What does the rim look like .. bent, dented ?

I found that a strong solution of water and dish detergent soaked over a tire will form little bubbles wherever there is an air leak
 
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Old 12-04-19, 07:29 PM
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The vehicle is a Sante Fe XL. No TPS or low inflation warning system.
I checked the “repaired” tire a few days after I reinstalled it and it had no pressure loss. I visually checked over the following 3 weeks but did not test it. The mystery is how all of a sudden did it go from looking ok to dead flat? Maybe it had a nail that further embedded?

tires are winter tires with about 5 winters on them but still plenty of tread
 
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Old 12-04-19, 07:32 PM
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Sorry, the rims look ok but it’s always hard to tell

I don’t see any obvious damage to the rims or the tire but my wife said it smelled like burning rubber when she got home. Roads were wet and snowy.
 
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Old 12-04-19, 08:07 PM
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I've had this situation:

The wheel is slightly dented, probably from hitting a pot hole.

The tire only leaks when the dent is pointing directly down (e.g. 6 o'clock) AND
the tire at 6 o'clock is flexed because it is under load.

You'll have a tire that doesn't leak when it's off the car.
The tire will hold air for weeks, but if then you happen to park dent-down, it will go flat in an few hours.

Try soap and water, then slowly roll the tire for a full rotation to check for leaks.
Always seems to occur on the INSIDE bead where it's an extra pain to find.
 
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Old 12-04-19, 09:04 PM
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Very interesting. We have terrible roads here due to freeze thaw cycles. That tire was on the front side last winter so it very well could have hit a pothole as it’s usually the front tire
that that hits the pothole . Sat in the garage all summer but it lost pressure the first few days but not completely.

i think your theory is what happened and assuming they tell me there is no flat what happens niw?

would I need a new rim? It’s a steel wheel rim so not really a huge price tag
 
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Old 12-04-19, 09:09 PM
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Hal,

in the last paragraph of your post are you talking about testing the tire for a leak? My wife parked all day at work and drove to her first stop on the way home not noticing any odd noise. After a stop of around 15 minutes she was driving home and noticed the sound from the tire. At that point she knew the tire was flat and drove the rest of tge way home ....about a mile or so
 
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Old 12-05-19, 03:24 AM
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If she keeps driving the car with a flat/soft tire she'll ruin the tire sooner or later! won't do the rim any good either.
 
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Old 12-05-19, 05:02 AM
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No no the “driving” was just to make it home from the point she heard the tire flopping. Was only about a few miles

will the tire and rim be ruined now? Also if the rim was bent initially and that caused the flat can the rim be fixed or would it be toast and need replacing?
 
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Old 12-05-19, 05:26 AM
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A few miles!!!!
A few hundred feet is usually enough to ruin a tire.

As far as the rim your tire folks would have to check it.
But if they say it is OK then make sure that if it goes flat again that they will replace that tire at no charge.
Odds are high that they will recommend replacing the rim.
 
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Old 12-05-19, 06:23 AM
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Place the inflated tire and rim in a tub of water so that the tire and rim are completely submerged. You are looking for a possible leak in the rim. Usually where the rim is welded. Good luck with your project.
 
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Old 12-05-19, 01:10 PM
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Originally Posted by Canuks2288
i think your theory is what happened and assuming they tell me there is no flat what happens now?

would I need a new rim? It’s a steel wheel rim so not really a huge price tag
Probably time for a new wheel.
Definitely time for a new tire.

Driving on a fully flat tire creases the steel belt and creates a risk of catastrophic blow out. Think of each time the wheel goes around like flexing a paper clip or steel wire.
 
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Old 12-05-19, 09:51 PM
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I ended up replacing both the tire and the wheel

frustrating that I had the same tire in the shop for a potential repair and then less than a month later this happens

tire was 5 years old so now CD any warranty but lots of tread remained as of course they are winter only tires. Now I am sure the new single tire will wear a lot faster

got the labour for free and a discount on the tire
 
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Old 12-06-19, 04:34 AM
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Explain to your wife that when a person experiences a flat tire it is best to stop and call for assistance. When she chooses to drive on the flat she has chosen to replace the wheel assembly (tire & rim) in the end .. plus possible other damage.
 
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Old 12-06-19, 07:17 AM
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I have to say, I don't know a whole lot about cars, but I always knew not to drive with a flat and the spare needs to be put on to get to wherever you're going.
It's an expensive lesson to learn.
 
 

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