I'm cruisining down the freeway at around 70 MPH. All of a sudden I see what appears to be a partially crushed 12 ounce aluminum can in front of me. I realize my right tires are going to hit it. I decided not to swerve in heavy traffic. BA-BANG! It wasn't aluminum, and must have been a piece of steel. Immediately I begin listening and feeling for anything unusual. All feels normal. Ding, ding, ding, about 10 seconds later my computer starts talking to me saying that my right rear tire is flat.
I went to a Chevrolet dealer that proved worse than worseless-they wouldn't even look at my tire and had no clue where the nearest Good Year Tire dealer was! Then they gave me directions to an independent tire dealer, the service writer's kid worked there, but the independent tire dealer didn't want to have anything to do with run flat repair.

I then found a Good Year dealer that appeared to me as ignorant and confused as the independent tire dealer. I then was disgusted to find out that after driving 8 to 10 miles on run flats they can't be fixed-heck even if they repair them they say don't drive fast on a repaired run flat? WTF good are these run flats? So to make a longer story short-I bought some GSD 3s for 1K out the door. The noise was gone. The tires stick a lot better, and it seems to be on tracks when negotiating a curve. I love my new tires! No more run flats for me.

 

You got some good tires.

I'll never go back to run-craps.

 

Plus, you got a great price!

 

Same story, different day.

I agree. When my GY runcraps are shot, BFG's for me!

 

The manager of the shop that removed my runflats told me that they can guarantee no damage to my wheels when removing runflats, but cannot do the same when installing them. Working with runflats is a 2-person job - nuff said about that!

I too, went with GSD3s and they are without a doubt the best tires I have ever had - bar none (and I've had plenty over the years). Congrats for choosing the best all-around tires you can buy!

 

Did the dealer tell you the tire can't be fixed because of the size of the puncture or just because it had a puncture? Runflats can be repaired if the puncture is not too large, but you may end up losing the speed rating. At any rate, you made a good choice going with the GS-D3s. They are a fine tire.

 

I made the same choice 4 years ago on my C4....
I liked them so much last year I bought the GS D3's for my C5

 

Welcome to quiet world of the Non Runflat Club. Enjoy...

 

First, let me say that I am a huge fan of GS-D3's, got a set on my C4.

Second, your next run-in with steel will be very different, worse case the blow-out causes you to wreck your Vette, and maybe some one else also. At the least, if the tire sidewall is punctured you will have to wait, at the mercy of the weather, area, and time of day/night, for a flat bed to come to you and your Vette. Thats the benefit of runflats you can drive on a flat tire to 3 different repair shops, a very expensive drive at $350 - $450 per tire.

Third, did you know that GY makes GS-D3's in some runflat sizes? So you can have your cake an eat it to!

 

On my second set of GS-D3's. Never been more comfortable with traction and grip, especially in the rain than these. I am convinced, there is not a better tire made anywhere on the planet. {strongly opinonated}

 

I live in So. Cal. I always have my cell phone and AAA card with me. And the tire guy told me you can drive for 8-10 miles on a flat run flat, then the tire is junk. So what is one to do? Buy 1 new tire? Drive around in a world class sports car with a compromised (repaired) run flat? Wonder at what speed the repaired RF will fail? I drove professionally for years, and have been driving for 45 years. This is the first blow-out I've ever had. I wont go back to RFs. The GS D3s handle too much better than the RFs.

 

He said that driving on a flat RF ruins them, at around 8 to 10 miles.

 

Thats from all I've read. the OEMs are rated to 200 miles (although someone said recently that the new ones are only 50). The reason the walls are so stiff - and therefore why the ride is so harsh, is that you can drive that far. I suspect that if you did 200 miles it may suffer but saying that they are shot after 10 miles is just wrong.

All that said, the GS-D3s get a great reviews so you made a great choice

 

for all the cons I would not change to non runflats. I don't see the point if the only benefit is better handling, and from what I've read on here, some recent tests proved otherwise. If there was a spare tire kit I would consider it, but I don't like the idea of having to actually repair the tire. I'm supposed to find the hole, plug it and then inflate the tire , or so I understand, on the side of the highway in the middle of the night, no thanks, not to mention I'd rather be on runflats in a high speed blowout. If you like them then that's all that matters, just not worth it for me.

 

I can see a Tire Shop making that statement when pulling in with a flat so they can sell New tires. I wonder what they would say if you were pulling in to buy some Runflats? "oh, if you have a flat on these babies, you could drive 200miles and they would be perfectly fine, how soon can I sell you a set of these fine magnificent tires".

 

You might want to carry along a spare alternator and battery, just for piece of mind......

Seriously, I've been driving for 33 years now and have NEVER been stranded because of a blowout. Any nail or screw punctures I've had have been fairly slow leaks, easily allowing me to get to a gas station without problems. Keep in mind that the C5 typical non-runflat weighs 6 lbs less than a runflat tire. That's about 24 lbs of unsprung weight. The non-runflat ride is significantly better than the OEM runflat ride. I was pleasantly shocked the first time I drove on my GSD3s. My kidneys are thankful and so is my wallet!

 

Run flats are derated when patched. Not just on Corvette's but any car. However, not many of us will exceed the new lowered speed limit so its a relatively minor issue.

 

Have you tried the Michlen Pilot Sports? Very similar tire...

 

The F1-GS Extended Mobility Tire Owner's Manual, from Goodyear, says, on page 1, and again on page 2, If you have a flat tire "you can continue driving for up to 200 miles at up to 55 mph (speeds under 55 mph and driving less than 50 miles will extend service life and increase tire repairability)." As for buying 1 new tire, how well is the old one is repaired, and what speed will it fail at, those questions all apply to non-runflat tires as well.

I think it all comes down to driver preferences So enjoy those GS-D3's they DO handle much better on dry pavement, and they are FANTASTIC on wet roads!

 

Maybe that has a lot to do with you choice to go without them. I've been driving half of that and have been stranded with a flat more times than I could count. Even with a spare it's a pita to change a tire. The last time I was stranded it was well below freezing in the middle of winter and my crowbar wouldn't unscrew the lugnut so after pushing it by stepping on it the bar snapped. (note: never do this) That was not a fun night. The time before in a minivan in a funky neighbourhood somewhere in toronto at 2 am. Another time i ran over a board with nails in it flattening both tires on one side, instantly, no slow leak there. Those are just off the top of my head, trust me flats do happen and if you've had some bad experiences you may see your runflats in a different light.