Ok, I am a Corvette rookie. I have a 2014 Stingray and love it. However, I keep running into little aggravations. I have "run flat" tires and got a small nail in right rear that created a very slow leak. Dealer advised me they do fix these tires and that I needed to purchase a new tire....really???? One little nail and it is going to cost $575? The Corvette tires are like a magnet to nails in the road...wow!
I had a tire shop fix the tire, but what is the deal here?

 

you talked to a DEALER about your tires......need I say more?

 

Go to a high end tire shop and see what they say. I had run flats repaired on my '00 and ran the tires for many years without any problems. The shop used the plug and patch method. I did not use the car for track use or any real high speed runs though.

 

I have had at least 6 corvette run flats plug and patched over the years with zero issues.

Supposedly a repair will void the speed rating of the tire, but I so rarely drive 186 mph it's no biggie.

 

As previously stated, it voids the speed rating of the tire. But I know many people that have had them plugged with no problems. Now depending on how badly the tire was punctured, you will probably not want to go track the car with those tires. But for everyday driving there is nothing wrong with the plug and patch method. The Goodyear Tire place down the road from me say they actually have a specific technique especially for run flats. Not sure exactly what that is though. However, any dealer is just going to tell you to get a new tire because that's more $ in their pockets. Unless you know people there and they don't BS you. Which is my case. I paid $37 to fix the hole left by a 5" landscaping nail...absolutely no probs thus far and saved myself $500!

 

I used a cheap plug kit that took all of 2 minutes. Saved me about an hour wait getting a patch and also saved me the grief of having my wheel scratched by a minimum wage employee wrestling a low profile run flat tire off and back on the wheel.

 

I ran across this problem about 6 mo ago when I picked up a nail on my C5.
There are about 5 tire shops within 5 miles of my house.
All are "authorized [runflat brand] retailers"
All refused to repair the tire.

One told me why, and another concurred:

There is a self-imposed industry rule (gentlemans agreement) stating runflats will not be repaired, they must be replaced.

This is a crossbrand agreement; i.e. a goodyear shop will not repair a michelin, and vice verse.

Ergo, if you go to a shop that is an authorized installer/reseller of any brand runflat, they are bound by said agreement to tell you no, can't repair them.

However,

an "independent" tire shop is not bound by that industry agreement,
and will likely repair the tire if possible.

That said, my Chevy dealers service department performed a tire repair on my C7 last week. Charged me 16$ and change.

 

high end tire shop? ummm why??

Sounds like your a car rookie. Not just a vette rookie.

A tire can take 3 plugs before it is considered "unsafe" for road driving. This does not mean for the track.

Take your butt down to discount tire. They will repair your tire free of charge, no matter where you bought the tire.........Your welcome.

 

Hogwash.

Next time tell them to look up the tire manufacturer's own policies:

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tirete...jsp?techid=226

The truth is they're just covering their own liability, in case a tire fails after they repair it. That may be logical, but there's no "industry rule" prohibiting repairs of run flats. There may be a "gentlemen's agreement" between all the tire shops in your town to minimize their liability and maximize their profits. That's called collusion, by the way, and is illegal.


A couple of other thoughts: Onyx, those "gummy worm" tire plugs are really intended for short term use. The only safe long-term repair is a plug / patch installed from inside the tire. Those temporary plugs may last for the life of the tire, or may work loose in a matter of weeks. I wouldn't want to rely on one at interstate highway speeds.

Santaguy, check the link I posted above. No manufacturer of run flats supports the repair of a run flat three times. The issue isn't whether the plugs are safe, it's the amount of damage the carcass may sustain while operated without pressure. If each of the three repairs are done after only very short drives while flat, three repairs might be fine. OTOH, the tire might not be safe after even 1 repair if it was driven 200 miles without pressure.

 

Not sure where folks get their numbers from!
My experiance with flats starts with my '08 C6. Had a flat in next to the out tread. At the time we had a Goodyear Tire shop in town and they repaired it with a plug/patch. Got another flat at about 15,000 miles but it was in the center of the outer tread. Goodyear dealer no longer in town so went to the only shop in town I trust to touch my tires/wheels, a Firestone dealer. In fact this where the Chevy, BMW, Mercedes Dealer brings their run flats to get fixed or for new tires. That shop with 20 technicians has only 2 that will do wide low profile run flats.
The manager said they can not fix a flat that is in the outer treads only inner and max two repairs as you note is mentioned in TireRack. He suggested I try and independent tire shop. Tried one that looked good from the outside and the manager said they don't have the equipment to assure they can remove the tire and not damage the wheel! Went back to Firestone and bought new tires! The left front was close to the wear marks anyway!
As you note a quality tire shop does not want the liability. If you can find a shop you trust can remove the tire and has the combo plug/patch fine. But be sure they don't ding your rim!
I just bought a Dynaplug Ultimate Tire Repair Kit that looks much better than standard plugs. If I get a nail in the outer tread I'll give it a try. Just Google if interested.

 

jerry - the one independent shop here that will patch a runflat say the same thing - no guarantee they wont scratch the rim.

that said, in the 16 years ive been on runflats, no damage (knocking on wood, of course)