Tire sidewall repair/ patching ?. Please help!

S

skywalker1020

New member
I drove through some cactus, apparently, in the middle of town last weekend. I came out to my car after having it parked for 4 hours to two front flats. Crap!

After 3 trips to the tire place and several patches, it has been determined that both tires have at least one hole in the sidewall too close to the rim to be patched. Crap X 2!

I went to autozone to look at tire slime and fix a flat stuff. Both said they do not fix sidewall punctures and one said it could cause vibration over 65 mph.

Is there anything else to try? I really want to salvage these tires. They are 31" BFG All Terrains with half the tread life left. It's just too much for me to write off as a loss.

Thanks for any help.
 
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I've never known sidewall punctures to be fixable. Perhaps someone else has better news for you. (sure hope so)
 
That fix-a-flat stuff will mess up your tire pressure sensors.
From the Owner's Manual:
"Do not use liquid sealants for a flat tire as air pressure sensors will be damaged."
If that happens, you'll be out a tire and a $100 sensor!
 
4bummer said:
i would like your life is worth more than used tires. i had flat tires on highways and it's dangerous.
Click to expand...

:iagree:

Not something I would look for a cheaper fix for. Bite the bullet and get a new tire.
 
It's new tire time... sidewalls might be fixable in the short term but the strength of the tire will be seriously compromised making it far more likely to suffer a blow-out at high speed. In other words, you'll be riding on not one but two death trap tires.
 
Replace the tires before someone gets hurt in a blowout and potential rollover. Its not worth risking your safety and your passenger safety to save a couple of bucks.
 
Replace them.

Tires are the most important part of the vehicle. Everything else, including the driver, is just there so they can do their job.
 
Thanks everyone for your replies.

Let me try to respond to all of you.

I have had both tires patched at the shop (except for the holes too close to the rim). The patched tire that is in use is holding pressure so far (~36 hours). The other one is under the truck and I have yet to test how long it will hold air. Keep in mind these are tiny cactus thorn holes, not large nail holes. If the tire on the truck keeps holding air, of course I won't change it. Soon I'll test the other punctured tire to see how long it will hold air. I don't mind going to the gas station for air once a week to avoid replacing tires.

With just a tiny (thorn) hole, is there really a blowout danger?

I have a 1994 so no pressure sensors, no airbags.

"Good Times"- which product on that website are you recomending? I thought the "beef jerky stick" plugs only worked on the tread area. Is there a product by Safety Seal that works on sidewalls?

Again, thanks everyone for the replies. I'll keep you posted.
 
my .02$ added...

Had a friend who owned a Tire Shop and definitely would recommend REPLACING those tires. Especially if you'll be driving at speed with them.

If you wanna keep em for Off Road use then patching a real small hole possibly wouldn't be that big of a concern but Dont Depend on Repaired Sidewalls (no matter how small) to keep pressure at speed on blacktop....Your life in your ride depends on your tires!

If you still want to go with repairing the sidewalls, please email me your name, DOB and SS#, I'll be needing it for the insurance policy I'll be taking out on you.....:naughty:
 
I would never spend any time on tires that had sidewalls repaired. The sidewall flexes too much and changes temps more quickly than other parts of the tire which means you have an increased risk of a blowout and could never have a fully sealed sidewall, even for tiny holes from cacti. You might try contacting BFG, since these are AT with the triple ply sidewall, they are supposed to be very durable, and a cactus is definitely not like driving through nails... In any case... REPLACE those tires.
 
I'm surprised a shop would even patch a sidewall. That in my opinion is setting them up for a lawsuit by your relatives when you crash and burn on these tires. Good luck.
 
Any damage to the sidewall looses the integrity of entire tire especially at highway speed. Remember the tires heat up and stretch and shrink each time you drive, what do you think happens to the holes (fatigue). I've seen sidewalls blow out without damage completely going through because they were rubbed up against the curb one to many times.
 
This is the kit I carry with me all the time in my 4runner: http://safetyseal.com/store/offroad.htm

I've used this product to plug up nice holes experienced by some trail damages and have never had any problems.

Note: all of my damages has been on my sidewall (right smack in the middle) on the inside wall.

skywalker1020 said:
Thanks everyone for your replies.

Let me try to respond to all of you.

I have had both tires patched at the shop (except for the holes too close to the rim). The patched tire that is in use is holding pressure so far (~36 hours). The other one is under the truck and I have yet to test how long it will hold air. Keep in mind these are tiny cactus thorn holes, not large nail holes. If the tire on the truck keeps holding air, of course I won't change it. Soon I'll test the other punctured tire to see how long it will hold air. I don't mind going to the gas station for air once a week to avoid replacing tires.

With just a tiny (thorn) hole, is there really a blowout danger?

I have a 1994 so no pressure sensors, no airbags.

"Good Times"- which product on that website are you recomending? I thought the "beef jerky stick" plugs only worked on the tread area. Is there a product by Safety Seal that works on sidewalls?

Again, thanks everyone for the replies. I'll keep you posted.
Click to expand...
 
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