Wheel leaking air
Thread Starter
Pro
Joined: Apr 2001
Posts: 606
Likes: 0
From: Des Moines IA
Wheel leaking air
I had posted this in Wheels & Tires, but thought I might get a response here...
I've purchased a set of ZR-1 aftermarkets from AFS about 4 years go. Two months ago, I had to replace one of my tires and now the new tire won't hold air for more than a week at most.
I finally took it in to have to tire reseated. When the shop was looking it over, they discovered the leak was was in the wheel, on the inside near one of the spokes.
I'm trying to figure out my options here...So far I have
1. Call AFS and replace the wheel.
2. Repair the wheel, if possible.
3. Squirt some Slime type patch in the tire and hope that will fix the problem.
Anyone have any other suggestions? I'm starting to have my doubts about AFS, they are still on ebay, but the AFS website isn't working right.
I've purchased a set of ZR-1 aftermarkets from AFS about 4 years go. Two months ago, I had to replace one of my tires and now the new tire won't hold air for more than a week at most.
I finally took it in to have to tire reseated. When the shop was looking it over, they discovered the leak was was in the wheel, on the inside near one of the spokes.
I'm trying to figure out my options here...So far I have
1. Call AFS and replace the wheel.
2. Repair the wheel, if possible.
3. Squirt some Slime type patch in the tire and hope that will fix the problem.
Anyone have any other suggestions? I'm starting to have my doubts about AFS, they are still on ebay, but the AFS website isn't working right.
Safety Car
Joined: Feb 1999
Posts: 3,504
Likes: 4
From: Mexico Beach FL
Originally Posted by RedHot94
....Two months ago, I had to replace one of my tires and now the new tire won't hold air for more than a week at most.
..
..
I had a problem where the tire would only lose air when the car was moving -- and then it would lose air fairly rapidly. The tire would go flat in about 30 miles.
You could submerge the tire and rim in water and see no bubbles at all.
The problem was the wheel weight -- but this could not happen with stick on weights.
Only when the tire was rotating with the weight of the vehicle on it did it lose air. Everytime the tire would rotate so the weight of the vehicle was on the spot where the wheel weight was would it leave out a puff of air. So, every revolution would emit a puff of air. The tire gets slightly distorted where the weight is on it and was causing the weight clamp to leave air out at the bead.
Replaced the weight, and the problem disappeared completely.
Tom Piper
Last edited by Tom Piper; Nov 19, 2006 at 03:58 PM.
Le Mans Master
Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 5,141
Likes: 7
From: Metairie Louisiana
Originally Posted by Tom Piper
It seems strange that replacing the tire would cause the rim to leak.
I had a problem where the tire would only lose air when the car was moving -- and then it would lose air fairly rapidly. The tire would go flat in about 30 miles.
You could submerge the tire and rim in water and see no bubbles at all.
The problem was the wheel weight -- but this could not happen with stick on weights.
Only when the tire was rotating with the weight of the vehicle on it did it lose air. Everytime the tire would rotate so the weight of the vehicle was on the spot where the wheel weight was would it leave out a puff of air. So, every revolution would emit a puff of air. The tire gets slightly distorted where the weight is on it and was causing the weight clamp to leave air out at the bead.
Replaced the weight, and the problem disappeared completely.
Tom Piper
I had a problem where the tire would only lose air when the car was moving -- and then it would lose air fairly rapidly. The tire would go flat in about 30 miles.
You could submerge the tire and rim in water and see no bubbles at all.
The problem was the wheel weight -- but this could not happen with stick on weights.
Only when the tire was rotating with the weight of the vehicle on it did it lose air. Everytime the tire would rotate so the weight of the vehicle was on the spot where the wheel weight was would it leave out a puff of air. So, every revolution would emit a puff of air. The tire gets slightly distorted where the weight is on it and was causing the weight clamp to leave air out at the bead.
Replaced the weight, and the problem disappeared completely.
Tom Piper
I had a slow leak that could not be found. I had two tire shops swear that one of my rims was bad after they installed new tires on them. After several trips to the shop and a lot complaining I finally convinced them to replace one of the brand new tires. New tire installed, problem solved.
Thread Starter
Pro
Joined: Apr 2001
Posts: 606
Likes: 0
From: Des Moines IA
Originally Posted by rickreeves1
I had a slow leak that could not be found. I had two tire shops swear that one of my rims was bad after they installed new tires on them. After several trips to the shop and a lot complaining I finally convinced them to replace one of the brand new tires. New tire installed, problem solved.
Heel & Toe
Joined: Sep 2014
Posts: 22
Likes: 1
I had posted this in Wheels & Tires, but thought I might get a response here...
I've purchased a set of ZR-1 aftermarkets from AFS about 4 years go. Two months ago, I had to replace one of my tires and now the new tire won't hold air for more than a week at most.
I finally took it in to have to tire reseated. When the shop was looking it over, they discovered the leak was was in the wheel, on the inside near one of the spokes.
I'm trying to figure out my options here...So far I have
1. Call AFS and replace the wheel.
2. Repair the wheel, if possible.
3. Squirt some Slime type patch in the tire and hope that will fix the problem.
Anyone have any other suggestions? I'm starting to have my doubts about AFS, they are still on ebay, but the AFS website isn't working right.
I've purchased a set of ZR-1 aftermarkets from AFS about 4 years go. Two months ago, I had to replace one of my tires and now the new tire won't hold air for more than a week at most.
I finally took it in to have to tire reseated. When the shop was looking it over, they discovered the leak was was in the wheel, on the inside near one of the spokes.
I'm trying to figure out my options here...So far I have
1. Call AFS and replace the wheel.
2. Repair the wheel, if possible.
3. Squirt some Slime type patch in the tire and hope that will fix the problem.
Anyone have any other suggestions? I'm starting to have my doubts about AFS, they are still on ebay, but the AFS website isn't working right.
Drifting
Joined: Jan 2005
Posts: 1,354
Likes: 325
From: San Antonio Tx
I had a tiny crack in a wheel on the SLK I had. After I finally found it I had it welded. No more problem. A repair on an aluminum wheel if done properly will be just as strong as before. But first you have to positively identify the leak.
Corvette Stories
The Best of Corvette for Corvette Enthusiasts
Top 10 Most Expensive Corvettes Ever Sold on Bring A Trailer
Brett Foote
10 Things Every Corvette Owner Needs (2026 Edition)
Michael S. Palmer
8 Most "Only Corvette Owners Understand" Quirks and Problems
Pouria Savadkouei
10 Reasons the C6 Z06 is Still A Performance Benchmark After 20 Years
Joe Kucinski
How Much Horsepower Every Corvette Engine "LOST" in 1972
Joe Kucinski
Top 10 DOs and DON'Ts for Protecting Your Convertible Top!
Michael S. Palmer
Top 10 Most Explosive Corvettes Ever Made: Power-to-Weight Ratio Ranked!
Joe Kucinski
150 hp to 1,250 hp: Every Corvette Generation Compared by the Specs That Matter
Joe Kucinski
8 Coolest Corvette Pace Cars (and Replicas) of All Time
Verdad Gallardo
Racer
Joined: Aug 2021
Posts: 321
Likes: 44
Squirt some soapy water around the valve stems and anywhere else it might leak . Don’t take someone else’s word for it. Did they replace the valve stems ? Did you tighten the Schrader valves in the stems ? Some people use bead sealer, did your installer use bead sealer ?
Instructor
Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 203
Likes: 12
From: Caldwell Texas
Many years ago, I had a service station. A friend wanred some new wheels on his Duster. We ordered new wheels and new tires for it. They all came in, I got them mounted up and balanced, then put on the car. The next day he brought one of the wheels back by. It had gone flay overnight. It had less than 5 miles on it. I aired it back up and dunked it in a tub of water. Lots of bubbles. The tire didn't have any leaks, it was the rim leaking on the inside flat portion of the wheel. The cast aluminum wheel looked fine, but was porous and leaking air. The wheel had to be replaced.
