Yesterday my rear tire went to 0. Found a good size screw went through it just about in the middle.

We drove it about 35-40 miles to get home.

I read a thread from that came up from a Google search on another C7 forum from back 2014 where they said new tire, don't plug, plugging is fine...basically a lot different opinions.

Has anyone here plugged their tire with good/bad results?

I read about an internal patch?

Did I harm the tire by driving on it 40 miles?

I don't have the Z07 tire.

Thank you

 

The bad news first: yes, you will have to replace the tire after driving on it with zero pressure. If you had carried a 12 volt compressor (assuming a slow enough leak) you could have saved the tire. I have 10K miles on a do-it-myself plug repair in the tread center. (My tire had not even lost pressure; found a small screw while it was on the lift.) A dismount and patch would be a better fix, but I opted to avoid the risk of wheel damage from an inept shop.

 

Yeah I’d be concerned about driving around on 0

I plugged a tire twice with a nice kit from Amazon (my buddy, a Toyota tech recommended the kit). It’s a very simple process and both plugs are holding just fine. I plan to replace all 4 tires at 12-15K miles anyway so I might as well get another summer out of it.

 

Well, that is certainly not what I wanted to hear. - there was nothing I could do, we pulled into a station to get air, but the hole is rather large and it leaked right out.

Car has 6100 miles, and I don't drive too aggressive therefore I would not think the good tire is too worn, however would you all go ahead and replace both tires so as not to have uneven wear?

Is there a certain machine I should be looking for the dealer to have to change the tires? I recall reading about how they're a real pain in the butt to do.

 

If you do decide to plug your run-flats, I would recommend you go with these plug patch combinations. They have been around for quite some time and have been used a lot longer in the trucking industry. They do require dismounting the tire from the rim, but if the tire/rim is marked with chalk or tape it will likely nor require re-balancing.

https://tirerepairmaterials.com/coll...ound-box-of-24

You can buy them on line in various quantities including individually. I believe even Walmart advertises they have them, but I've also found many tire repair shops do not have them in stock. I keep a handful around at all times just in case. I did have to plug a rear runflat on our '06 Z06 a few years back and had no issues with it at all.

When runflats were introduced exclusively on the C5 Corvette in '97, GM and Goodyear decided a PR campaign was needed to convince us of their durability and safety. They arranged a so-called "lap of America" trip where they drove a new C5 with zero air pressure in one of the front tires for a "lap of America" of something like 6,000 miles, at normal highway speeds as I recall. It was widely publicized and articles appeared in a number of automotive related publications. Try as I might, without digging through hundreds of old car magazines, I can find no mention of this PR effort today. The story seems to have disappeared now that these tires have been widely accepted.

My personal view is that the story has disappeared more for legal reasons, than anything else. I believe the lawyers for most of the tire makers and car manufacturers have convinced them it is in their best legal interest to insist that the tires are only good for about 50 miles with no air and that in most cases they must be replaced. Considering how litigious our society has become I can understand them taking this position. That, and how many times have you witnessed some brainless idiot driving around for days, even weeks on a "doughnut" or even on two of them at the same time.

This is probably one you'll have to decide for yourself.

Good luck and be safe... GUSTO

 

A ZP tire that has been run flat is toast. I would replace both tires. I have patched a couple of flats on my Z51 with no problems but didn't run 'em flat.

Discount Tire is your friend. They do a good job around here.

 

More inaccurate Old Wive's Tales about repairing Run Flat Tires.

Read your Owner's Manual! The Michelin Zero Pressure tire can be successfully repaired after being driven on at 0 psi as long as you met the conditions specified in the OM. This is copied directly from the 2015 Corvette Owner's Manual:

Run-Flat Tires
This vehicle, when new, had run-flat
tires. There is no spare tire, no tire changing equipment, and no place to store a tire in the vehicle. The vehicle also has a Tire Pressure Monitor System (TPMS) that indicates a loss of tire pressure in any of the tires.

{Warning
If the low tire warning light displays on the instrument cluster, the handling capabilities will be reduced during severe maneuvers. Driving too fast could cause loss of control and you or others could be injured. Do not drive over 80 km/h (50 mph) when the low tire warning light is displayed. Drive cautiously and check the tire pressures as soon as possible.

Run-flat tires can be driven on with no air pressure. There is no need to stop on the side of the road to change the tire. Continue driving; however, do not drive too far or too
fast. Driving on the tire may not be possible if there is permanent damage. To prevent permanent damage, the tire can be driven with no air pressure for up to 80 km (50 mi) at speeds slower than 80 km/h (50 mph). As soon as possible, contact the nearest authorized GM or run-flat servicing facility for inspection and repair or replacement.

When driving on a deflated run-flat tire, avoid potholes and other road hazards that could damage the tire and/or wheel beyond repair. When a tire has been damaged, or if driven
any distance while deflated, check with an authorized run-flat tire service center to determine whether the tire can be repaired or should be replaced. To maintain the run-flat feature, all replacement tires must be run-flat tires.

You may encounter some repair shops that will refuse to repair them but that doesn't mean they can't be repaired.

Bill

 

I have plugged both of my runflat front tires 'on the car' (just turn the tire to where you can get to it and turn the tire out 'too' if it is the front) with the type of kit that you run a round file type tool through the hole to clean and open the hole enough to insert the threaded style plug about 2/3 of the way in. They have been doing just fine (0 air loss) for thousands of miles now.

This is the actual kit (Victor Brand) I used (with 'self' supplied razor blade to cut the excess plug off)





Note: There are two plugs missing. Oh, I keep this very small kit & a quality small air pump & pliers in the rear cubby hatch.

 

This is the one I've been using
Smart idea mentioned above, I wonder if there is a good small compressor that fits in the little cubby hole in the trunk under the mat

 

There is: VIAIR-85P Portable Air Compressor

 

Many of the newer cars are coming these days without a spare tire. Even some cars that do not use runflats/ZP tires. What they are including is a Temporary Tire Repair Kit. Honda is one of those manufacturers.


This is one that came in our recently purchased Acura. (The car came without a spare, but it can be ordered from the dealer. I did this, but kept the small compressor in the boot as well. There is even a place for it in the styrofoam insert.)



The good news is, that in short order the salvage yards are going to be full of these small compact compressors and will likely be very inexpensive, and many will never have been used. Most include sealant, but it isn't necessary to use it if you just want to inflate a tire.

Good luck... GUSTO

 

If a runflat loses all it's air, I would recommend dismounting the tire and patching from the inside. This will allow a good look at the inside of the tire. I lost all the air on a back tire while on an expressway traveling 70mph. It was a few miles before I could get off and had to drive over 50mph. When the tire was dismounted, the smooth inside surface of the tire had delaminated due to overheating. The tire was literally toast. Had I patched it from the outside, I wouldn't have known this. Life is too short as it is.

 

Bill I always forget about that silly book in my trunk that probably has the answers to 99% of my questions.

I determined the best way to handle this was to order 2 new rear tires. The Firestone shop just down the road assured me if they knick a wheel, they'll replace it with an OEM.

Now I am just hoping my jack will get under the car so I can pull them off.

Gusto- It does seem that way - My GF's Mini Cooper has run flats (ride's rough & loud as hell) and we had a Smartcar some years back that came with a small compressor and a can of sealant.

 

Got a screw in R. F. MPSS tire 4,000 miles (over 1 year) ago. Firestone shop dismounted tire but said they couldn't repair it. Took the dismounted tire to Sam's. They checked the penetration angle, said it was within limits, and did a DOUBLE repair (plug AND inner patch). 4,000 miles later including some track time and no issues. Note: they couldn't/wouldn't remount tire, so took it to Dobbs, who had no trouble remounting it.
Good luck.

 

I have driven on run flats with zero pressure for 50+ miles on several occasions. Each time I had the tire removed and patched and continued to use it with no problems for the remaining tread life of the tire. I would have it patched but not plugged.

 

I don't know about you but I have had on more then one occasion my perfectly good rims messed up on a number of cars by tire shops. So when possible I try to keep the number of people/procedures involved to a minimum.

 

I have plugged many runflat tires on my personal cars. I have never had any issues.

 

Does anyone know if we can use the liquid sealant, or will that mess up the tire pressure sensors?

 

Don't use that stuff unless your personal safety is at risk.

 

Reasons?