Puncture Question

May 7, 2009

On my way back from work today i took a short cut through some lanes. I must have driven over a nail or thorn which punctured my n/s front wheel. Its the stock alloy with standard tyres. I only recently bought the car in which the previous owner had put 4 new tyres on! As there is loads of tread left on the tyre can i just get it repaired instead of paying out for a new tyre? If so how much is the average cost of repair?

Worst case scenario i will have to replace the tyre. How much should i be looking to pay from kwik fit or national tyres? If i do need to replace then i would like a same tyre which is not budget and not top quality....somewhere in the middle entry level.

Cheers

May 7, 2009

http://www.etyres.co.uk/etyres-press-media...-area-gauge.htm

Use the above to check if it's repairable, remember to follow the printing instructions so as to print the guide the correct size.

If you are unlucky and need a new tyre don't put cheap nasty ones on, stick to the best you can afford. Having said that it is also adviseable with the Roadster NOT to mix tyres, if you do you can turn your car into a ditch finder... so your best option for a replacement is the same as currently on the car, if they are mixed at the moment then put on the same tyre that is on the opposite side of the axle and get all 4 tyres the same make and model on the car ASAP... remembering to keep the staggered setup (rear tyres bigger than the fronts)

May 8, 2009

This has happened to me a few times on fresh rubber. My local does it for about £12 for the repair and balance. I has to be a certain distance from the tyre wall tho.

May 9, 2009

I went to my local tyre dealer who advised that the side wall of the tyre was damaged as a result a new one had to go on. I took you advice to sticking to same correct set up and using the current branding but unfortunately the current tyres are budget.

I bought the car 2 weeks ago with plan to fit 17's so hope to buy a package inc. tyres (hopefully non budget)

thanks for the advice

May 9, 2009

Remember you need a staggered setup with tyres sizes... some places won't do this as a package, I have 205/40x17 on the front and 215/45x17 on the rear. I bought the wheels on there own and purchased the tyres seperately (was cheaper for me as I'm the manager of a tyre dealer), some people have fitted 225/45x17's on the rear.

I will also point out that when I put my 17" on mine the car felt VERY light at the front at motorway speeds and the steering was very sensitive and twitchy... wasn't a pleasant driving experience. This was due to the car's ride height changeing a little (higher) and more air getting under the car. There are little spoilers under the front which sit infront of the wheels, these are there to divert air around the tyre but with the extra air getting under they didn't work very well, I solved the problem by fitting Tien Lowering springs (TTE springs would do it too), I would advise budgeting a set of springs at the same time if possible.. if you can't quite do it altogether.. then see how the car feels and maybe get them later, you will also find that the 17" will make the car look too high.

Before springs

After springs... you can clearly see the difference.