Before I switched over to my winter wheels I would notice one of my all season tires on cold mornings would need to be inflated again from about 26psi.


Last night I was in my garage and decided to see if I had a nail in my tire which I did.
I found in on the tread so I pulled it out and used two tire plugs to seal it.


Are plugs meant to be a temporary solution?


I'll probably end up patching the tire anyway since I have to replace the TPMS on that rim anyway.
Just curious to know.

 

Although many still use just the plug, a repair should be made with a plug/patch, not just a plug.

 

+1

 

I agreee with plug and patch

 

I've had several tires plugged and patched for nail/screw holes in the treads, including 4 tires at different times on the TL.
All the repaired tires lasted until the end of tread life.

 

As previously stated, a proper repair would be plug and patch.

 

Some people use just the plug. I've used a plug before in an all terrain tire that lasted for over 60,000 km, but for the extra peace of mind go for a patch as well.

 

Straight from the NHTSA:

Tire Repair

The proper repair of a punctured tire requires a plug for the hole and a patch for the area inside the tire that surrounds the puncture hole. Punctures through the tread can be repaired if they are not too large, but punctures to the sidewall should not be repaired. Tires must be removed from the rim to be properly inspected before being plugged and patched.

 

If it's a slow leak and you never ran it flat, a plug is fine. But a patch and plug is the right way.

 

+1. When my wife and kids are going down the highway at 70 mph, I feel better with a belt and suspenders approach. The local tire place I use offers free patching, so why chance it?

 

The biggest problem with plugs that I see is ply separation caused by air pressure getting between the plies from the inside of the tire. Other than that, not looking inside the tire for blistering, or shredded rubber is risky. Plus a plug will void any tire's warranty.

 

Discount tire/Americas tire will fix a tire for FREE, however since you already put the plugs in the tire. it is now considered non repairable. if it was me, since you just did it, I would yank them out and have it properly repaired

 

My personal opinion is once a tire is punctured/plugged/patched, the speed rating is no longer valid. Going down the freeway at 70, sure. Tracking the car or running it up deep into the triple digits, no way in hell would I do that on a plugged tire. I got sideways once at 140mph in the TL on a practically abandoned section of freeway around a curve. The tire had started to come apart near where the repair was. That was the closest I've ever come to losing control and if I had run off the freeway it was nothing but large trees. Lesson learned in both the excessive speed around a corner and high speed on a repaired tire.

 

Realize it’s just your opinion, but as some manufacturers agree with the assessment, some don’t.

Below was taken from a Goodyear letter to their dealers:

SUBJECT: Proper Puncture Repair Procedures For Passenger & Light Truck Tires
Follow the Rubber Manufacturers Association’s (RMA’s) step-by-step directions found in the attached PUNCTURE REPAIR PROCEDURES FOR PASSENGER AND LIGHT TRUCK TIRES wall chart to properly perform a puncture repair on a passenger or light truck tire…………….
Be aware that for H and above speed rated tires, Goodyear allows only one properly performed puncture repair for the speed rating of the tire to be maintained.

 

Yeah, I figure better safe than sorry. You never know exactly what has been severed inside (if anything) so once I have one patched it becomes strictly for cruising. I'm talking extremes as usual. I have a place that's slightly downhill where you can see for over a mile, no other side roads, basically one of the few places you can push 160mph and only danger yourself. I actually used that road to prove or disprove that the Tl has a 155mph governor which mine doesn't assuming the speedo is not 10mph off. That's not something I would do on a repaired tire.

In the older days I used to buy recaps for the GN. $60 each with an incredibly soft compound, required very little heat, and wouldn't leave skid marks, just dust that would blow away. Thinking back on making near 130mph passes at the track on recaps is scary but I was a teenager.

 

Interesting.

One of the OEM (Michelin Pilot HX MXM4) tires on my TL ended up with two plugs-and-patches a couple of years after I got the car-- I traveled through an area with lots of construction. Two of the other OEM tires ended up with being plugged-and-patched as well, before being changed out at 48K+ miles.
Glad I didn't drive over 130 mph or track the car then.

I'd be hesitant in driving on a track in a car with a plugged-and-patched tire.

 

Yup, good discussion!

Looks like it's a mixed bag among the major tire manufacturers:

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tirete...jsp?techid=225

Goodyear detailed info:

http://www.goodyear.com/cfmx/web/gov...e/psb_9811.cfm

Also, if the tire ran flat and was driven on, then all bets are off due to possible/probable sidewall damage...

 

americas tires offers free patching....not sure why anyone would go buy a plug and do it themselves