grrr......hold in the sidewall

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chefwong

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Jul 17, 2003
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Slow leaking air turns out to be a hole in the sidewall. Grrr....brand new tire just shy of 2 months. At $300+ plus for a replacement, I'm not a happy camper.

No nail, nothing on the protrusion. I'm the only one that drives it and it's not caused by the curb. The hole is ever so minute as it loses about 2 psi over a course of 12 hrs.

Anyone have any ideas what would cause this hole....just short of someone putting a small sharp object into it.
 
someone tried to slash the tire, only wasnt very successful?

On a nice car with $300 tires, I can see that as a possibility.

JMH
 
They wouldnt sell road hazzard, if in the long run it wasnt profitable. Generally, self-insurance is cheaper, or more cost effective given the typical risk.

if he can afford a car with $300 tires, then he can afford a $300 tire. I'll bet it is more the principle of it. It is a waste of rubber, time, resources, etc.

JMH
 
Originally Posted By: JHZR2
They wouldnt sell road hazzard, if in the long run it wasnt profitable. Generally, self-insurance is cheaper, or more cost effective given the typical risk.

if he can afford a car with $300 tires, then he can afford a $300 tire. I'll bet it is more the principle of it. It is a waste of rubber, time, resources, etc.

JMH

Road hazard has always been included with my purchases, but at most, it was a $15/tire add-on.
 
Right, and like any insurance, it is pure profit for them 99.9% of the time. Otherwise they wouldnt sell it (see folks buying flood insurance in flood-prone areas - high risk, dont sell it)

For folks who dont have much money, it might help that one in a hundred or one in a million times. Im not here to speculate on how loaded chefwong is, but Id guess that he can afford to self-insure.

Just like the "warranty" or "protection plan" they try to sell you on an alarm clock or walkman, if it wasnt extremely profitable, it wouldnt be sold. Self-insurance is cheaper in the long run... most of the time.

But thats not really the argument here.

JMH
 
Originally Posted By: The Critic
Originally Posted By: JHZR2
They wouldnt sell road hazzard, if in the long run it wasnt profitable. Generally, self-insurance is cheaper, or more cost effective given the typical risk.

if he can afford a car with $300 tires, then he can afford a $300 tire. I'll bet it is more the principle of it. It is a waste of rubber, time, resources, etc.

JMH

Road hazard has always been included with my purchases, but at most, it was a $15/tire add-on.


If I spent $15/tire every time I bought tires that would add up to about $600 over the last 13 years. I've never had to replace a tire due to damage so I'm glad I never bought the road hazard insurance. It would have been $600 of pure profit for them.

I'm not sure what to do with the hole in your tire. I know they won't normally patch a sidewall but it sure seems like if it is that small then what damage could have been done? I'd try begging them to put a patch on it. More damage could be done hitting something that doesn't even cause a leak.
 
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Originally Posted By: WishIhadatruck
If I spent $15/tire every time I bought tires that would add up to about $600 over the last 13 years. I've never had to replace a tire due to damage so I'm glad I never bought the road hazard insurance. It would have been $600 of pure profit for them.

I don't know what you drive, but the lower profile 17" and 18" tires that are found on many vehicles today are extremely vulnerable to damage. Many people I know with this setup damage at least one time a year due to potholes.
 
Originally Posted By: The Critic
Originally Posted By: WishIhadatruck
If I spent $15/tire every time I bought tires that would add up to about $600 over the last 13 years. I've never had to replace a tire due to damage so I'm glad I never bought the road hazard insurance. It would have been $600 of pure profit for them.

I don't know what you drive, but the lower profile 17" and 18" tires that are found on many vehicles today are extremely vulnerable to damage. Many people I know with this setup damage at least one time a year due to potholes.


Not sure I can remember all the sizes.

1 set of 195/70R14, 1 set of 205/60R15, 4 sets of 215/60R16, 2 sets of 225/60R16, 1 set of 225/75R15, and 1 set of 245/60R17 plus all the tires that came on the cars when I bought them.

I drive over plenty of pot holes so I try to avoid an aspect ratio of less than 55 or 60. So far so good. I did trash a front wheel bearing this year hitting a couple of nasty holes however.
 
In most cases road hazard protection, just like almost every extended warranty, is not worth the cost. Obviously, the company has to charge more than the expected costs of claims to make a profit. It only makes sense if you have a significantly higher than average probability of a claim.
 
Originally Posted By: Kestas
Just a thought - couldn't this tire be salvaged with an inner tube?... or is this a thing of the past?


No, innertubes only change the air holding property, but do nothing for the structural integerity of the tire. A hole in the sidewall is a stress concentrator and the sidewall goes through some very peculiar motionns and eventually the sidewall will fail - structurally.
 
I agree on the price of the road hazard. Not worth it. I only had 1 flat (knock on wood) which happened to be on the sidewall. [censored] me off cus it was a brand new pirelli too
 
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Originally Posted By: rpn453
Is it possible the tire is simply defective? What else could cause such a tiny hole?


If it was a defect, it would have been there from the beginning - right after the tire was mounted.

It's a shame, but sometimes tires roll over stuff that cause leaks.
 
Originally Posted By: CapriRacer
Originally Posted By: rpn453
Is it possible the tire is simply defective? What else could cause such a tiny hole?


If it was a defect, it would have been there from the beginning - right after the tire was mounted.

It's a shame, but sometimes tires roll over stuff that cause leaks.


Manufacturing defects often don't show up right away on most items, but tires may be different. It just seems odd that one can roll over something with their sidewall. The only time my sidewall is in contact with the road is when I already have a flat.
 
Originally Posted By: rpn453
.....Manufacturing defects often don't show up right away on most items, but tires may be different. It just seems odd that one can roll over something with their sidewall. The only time my sidewall is in contact with the road is when I already have a flat.


In this case, the cause of the leak (a hole) was either there or not there from the beginning. You just don't develop holes in rubber without a cause.

And a hole can be caused by stuff that tumbles along the road and gets trapped between the tire and the road surface. That means it can occur on the tires and the sidewalls. I've seen quite a few sidewalls with nails in them. I'll bet other guys have too!
 
If you bought the tires locally, go to the dealer, get him aside, and explain what a great favor he'd be doing you, and how much you'd appreciate it in the future, if that nearly new tire could be "adjusted" because of the odd "shake" you feel at certain speeds.

Most of us(dealers) can get away with quite a lot occasionally, if it'll keep a good customer happy.

Bob
 
Originally Posted By: The Critic
Originally Posted By: JHZR2
They wouldnt sell road hazzard, if in the long run it wasnt profitable. Generally, self-insurance is cheaper, or more cost effective given the typical risk.

if he can afford a car with $300 tires, then he can afford a $300 tire. I'll bet it is more the principle of it. It is a waste of rubber, time, resources, etc.

JMH

Road hazard has always been included with my purchases, but at most, it was a $15/tire add-on.


The cost of road hazard is proportional to the cost of each tire (my last tire purchase they stated around 10% of cost). Self insurance works for me. In 20 years of driving not a single unrepairable flat. I have been running on 17" 45 series the last 8 years.

With a two month old tire call the maker customer service and at least ask. If a top tier one like Michelin or Bridgestone coworkers got a free tire.
 
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