GenVibe - Community for Pontiac Vibe Enthusiasts

I changed my first flat tire today. In 20 years I have never had a flat until today when my Vibe (only 6,000 miles) went into a pothole and came out with a 1/4" carriage bolt embedded in the front tire. low pressure warning light went on and everything worked as it should. Even the little jack and spare in the trunk worked well. My question for all you experts is, will I need to buy a new tire or is this the kind of thing that a tire shop will just patch? If you say I need to buy a new one, will I be able to get one of the the exact same (OEM) Goodyear Eagle RSA, P205, 55 R16s? If so, will its being 6,000 miles younger than its co-workers screw up my handling?

Usually they patch "=plug" radial tires if the damage is in the tread area. If it's in the sidewall, there's no hope.If they're still installing them on new Vibes, the OEM Goodyears should be available from a warehouse SOMEWHERE. It might take a day or two to get one.My wife's car (Ford Taurus) had a similar tire incident 6 years & 18,000 miles after the car was new and they still found a matching OEM Firestone. Wasn't a warranty claim by that time, of course.It seems that both Conti and Goodyear OEM tires wear pretty fast, but I doubt you'd notice a handling difference if the other 3 tires are still in balance. If you didn't damage the rear tire belt internally (or the front or rear suspension) when you hit the pothole with the front, you should be OK.It does make me wonder what the 1/4" carriage bolt that you 'found' came off of!

You are in luck if you need a new one.. Tire Rack has them in your size for $89 each. If the tire place you go to can't find 'em, see if they can order through Tire Rack... I know some probably frown upon them (read: they don't like the competition) but several shops I know of actually order from them so they may be able to get 'em for you. And Kostby hit the nail right on the head for everything above. Great advice.

Also depends on the tread wear, if you're under 2-3mm of tread, they probably won't patch it. I can't remember what they said when I ran into my first screw...I do agree, Goodyears wear freakishly fast. When I got my OEM tires replaced and went Goodyear (for reasons I still can't remember), they look like they're more than halfway through the tread in 10k miles. (I have the 17" OEM Rims)Plus Goodyears are stupidly expensive...But yes! They should patch it if you have plenty of tread and it's a simple hole through the tread.

Patch from the inside is the way to go, no plugs unless you want to revisit it later on again from a leak. Plus you will rarely find a shop to plug unless it is in the tread. Get a plug if you plan to off the car soon and it does not sound like you are going to sell it soon.

So, I took the tire to a tire shop yesterday and the fellow looked at it and said he would try to patch it from the inside but if "it had damaged the belts, then I would have to buy a whole new tire." What do you think he means by "damage the belts." Does that sounds on the up and up? The bolt is straight through the flat of the tread (nowhere near the sidewall), which from what I've read, is the most fixable place to get a puncture right?

Quote, originally posted by mauthner »So, I took the tire to a tire shop yesterday and the fellow looked at it and said he would try to patch it from the inside but if "it had damaged the belts, then I would have to buy a whole new tire." What do you think he means by "damage the belts." Does that sounds on the up and up? The bolt is straight through the flat of the tread (nowhere near the sidewall), which from what I've read, is the most fixable place to get a puncture right?I would try another person then, sounds like that guy wants to sell you a tire. I had one once too on my Vibe with 6,000 miles and I insisted the shop to patch it and not try and sell me a new tire. Mine too was in the tread... You are right on the sidewall...

Ive always had luck with Firestone (*knocks on wood*) my family has used them for a long time and have yet to be dissapointed with their work and their tires. Granted it can vary from store to store depending on the managment. However, if you do get a new tire(s) make sure to purchase the road hazard warrenty. For $20 it has yet to fail me in its use...replace many a tire for free with them and no questions asked.

So the conclusion of the story is that he was able to patch it from the inside and I did not have to buy a new tire. Only cost me $10 too, which seems like a fair price. Now as a follow-up question to you all, as I was putting the wheel back on and tightening up the lugs I began to wonder "how do I know how tight is tight enough?" I know there is an official spec on the foot-pounds of torque you should apply to the lugs, but my arm ain't calibrated in foot-pounds. I need the pressure expressed in some other unit like, "as tight as a fairly strong man in his 30's can crank the trunk wrench" or "less tight than that" or" much tighter than that." Right now, as you can guess, I tightened the lugs per the first in the list above. Is that close to spec?

Quote, originally posted by mauthner »Now as a follow-up question to you all, as I was putting the wheel back on and tightening up the lugs I began to wonder "how do I know how tight is tight enough?" I know there is an official spec on the foot-pounds of torque you should apply to the lugs, but my arm ain't calibrated in foot-pounds. I need the pressure expressed in some other unit like, "as tight as a fairly strong man in his 30's can crank the trunk wrench" or "less tight than that" or" much tighter than that." Right now, as you can guess, I tightened the lugs per the first in the list above. Is that close to spec?Apparently, if the lug nuts are torqued too much, they can break a stud or warp the rotors. See http://forums.genvibe.com/zerothread?id=22331

In the future----Discount Tire does free flat repairs. Even on tires not sold by them. Just part of their service.

It is 76 Foot Pounds each. Under torqued nuts can cause vibrations while braking...

Quote, originally posted by xssiv1 »In the future----Discount Tire does free flat repairs. Even on tires not sold by them. Just part of their service.No kidding! So does Belle Tire! I know because I took a tire and rim of mine to them that developed a sow leak from last year when Belle removed and installed a new tire pressure sensor for me at a whopping price of $5.00! I almost fell over at that price...So the slow leak pops up this year and I take it back to Belle tire. I ask the guy how much and he states we repairs tires for free. I said OK well to me this really is not a repair just simply needs to be resealed. The guy says again, we do not charge for that. This time I said the tire was not bought from you and is many years old. He said it is just a service we supply! I still cannot believe it!

Quote, originally posted by MiVibe-ToolGuy »Under torqued nuts can cause vibrations while braking...ABSOLOODLE!great advice that solved a problem of mine this weekend. Over the last week or so i started to notice some trembling during braking...i read this post and went out and sure enough, my front driver's side wheel lugs needed a bit of a tightening! Solved my problem!Thanks!Now, why did they loosen? We have had a bit of heat wave...aluminum rims...expansion contraction...vibration?I wonder....