I have a 996tt cab (2004) and despite only driving a few thousand miles a year (at most) I seem to have yearly tire problems - of all sorts.

About 2 years ago (and probably less than 3-4k miles) I bought new Porsche rims and tires (Michelin Pilot Sport, after recurrent problems with custom rims and difficulties in finding tires for them) and today driving home there is hiss coming from a 1-2mm hole in the thread - front passenger side. There is no obvious nail or foreign body or material, but I can clearly feel the jet of air escaping. Otherwise the tire (like the other 3) appears brand new.

I was once told that these high performance tires can not be "patched" or repaired and must be replaced in pairs (regardless of age) - but to be frank, the ongoing reliability issues with "rubber" is getting to the point in which I will probably sell the car shortly.

I dont do any heavy/fast/crazy driving (I never race and rarely 'enjoy' all that my car has to offer with regards to performance... and you know what I mean) - most is on decent highways and rarely is the car driven in the winter/rain/snow/etc - and even during such times I move it occasionally so that there is no focal pressure spots. Just nice summer driving with the top down...I check the air frequently....

any advice?

can I patch or repair?
do I need to replace the tire and/or both front tires?

is it safe to drive with a slow leak to a place where I can get it serviced?

Given the cost per tire, I am afraid that if I bring it in (there is a dealer near my house) their knee-jerk response will be a $2000 charge.......

 

you can get it repaired if its not near the sidewall.


oh, and dont ever ever bring your car to a dealership under any circumstances.

 

^ yes to patch/plug body of tire. butnot sidewall. believe me, at 500 per tire, i've bought many a few extra miles by patching. just be mindful the tire is "compromised" moving forward. but it's a ***** to throw away an 80% tread life ps2!

...although your continuing? problems seem to put you in a class of your own unfortunately and possibly you'd be a good candidate for some kind of tire repair/failure ext warranty most/all tire shops offer. i'd look into that AFTER taking it back to the place you bought the last set. it's possible it's a mfg defect and you'd be covered with just some smooth talking

good luck.

 

If this is happening repeatedly as you say, I'd suggest a.) switching tire vendors, b.) getting hazard insurance for the next set, and c.) keeping an eye on a-hole neighbors and/or their kids.

Good luck.

-V

 

There is nothing special about tires on a porsche vs a honda other than the size and width. It seems like you're picking up nails or other problems that can happen on any car. Just patch it and keep driving. You can buy a plug kit at most auto parts stores and plug it yourself it's pretty easy.

 

These problems are completely unrelated to your Porsche, so don't punish it please. Just get the road hazard coverage and stop worrying about it.

And you can definitely plug it, or buy one new tire if needed, especially if it's pretty new anyway.

 

I'm not an expert but I have seen a lot of tire issues as in nails/flats with the tire sizes that we have on our cars and also the C4s. Its I believe from the width and tread etc. as noted above of course and not because of make of car. Patch if you can and if not will have to replace. Get a good tire warranty. I also believe its where you drive could be a part of it as my car was from a large city and previous owner fixed quite a few flats and replaced the whole set at like 5000 miles.

 

I brought it up to my local NTB and they patched it up - the guys there were great - but they were a little concerned about the patch holding due to the location of the hole to the sidewall and the thread. Hopefully it will last and for $22 out the door it is worth a try.

While I know these things happen and not to take it out on the car - to put this into perspective, I have an old Infiniti with 95k miles on it that I drive year round (northeast Ohio) and I have replaced the tires - full set - once about 30k miles ago and they are still going strong and never had a problem. On my 996, a car I only drive on "nice" days and probably overall less than 10k miles in the 4 years that I have had it, I have replaced all 4 as a set once (due to wear - which I hear is typical for high-performance tires, replaced the back set twice (once for a blow out on the highway going the speed limit and once from a sidewall blowout picking up a nail driving home from work - and was told that they needed to be replaced in pairs), and now this.....

-michael

 

A good tire warranty should solve most of the problem other then the aggravation. Hopefully you will get over what may just be a run of bad luck with tires= hang in there lol.

 

thanks for the words of encouragement - and I agree - and fortunately not that much aggravation - but just some concern and need to understand a little more to avoid the "oh, you own a 911tt-cab hence we can fleece you" syndrome

 

most/alll tire shops will only patch if they feel it's "safe" to do so and will in fact *usually* make you sign a waiver, and also only if it's NOT close the the sidewall.

my theory re flats/nails and who knows what all else we get stuck ( my last was a BOLT sticking totally thru the sidewall!!? )..

is it's G**'s way of keeping us in humility, despite our blessings; eg. porsche turbo's lol

 

yup......

 

Just don't do any high speed for long periods and you should be ok.

For regular driving, no problem. I did this many times on different cars. But if you feel like chasing a McLaren at 150mph+, remember that a tire bursting out at that speed "could" probably kill you.