As many of you know from my prior postings, I proudly took ownership of my new DD in early November, a 2010 PTT. Love, love, love the car! Living in the Midwest with sketchy weather in winter I went to our friends at Tire Rack and bought Pirelli Sotto Zeros, which were awesome in the two snow storms we have already had. That being said, just before Christmas I was heading to work on a 4-lane highway (after snow #1) and hit a pothole - no way to avoid it. Even though the car was driving fine and the tire pressure on all four tires never changed, about a week later I noticed a small bubble in the sidewall of the driver's side front tire, so I didn't take a chance of a blow-out and just replaced it. Today (a week after snow #2) I found myself confronted with another pothole, with, again, nowhere to go but through it. I was only going 10MPH coming off of a stoplight but as soon as I went through it my dash warning light went on and I watched in dismay as the tire pressure for the same driver's side front reading rapidly descended. I immediately pulled over to find a small cut in the sidewall (see pic). Dammit. I realize these things are low profile, and potholes are potholes, but I've driven low profile tires on my cars for the past 20 years without one problem like this. Is there something about the Turbo II wheels or the Sotto Zero tires themselves that make them prone to this. I would think that a dedicated winter tire would be a little more robust to endure harsher conditions (including temperature, moisture and rough pavement). It's getting to be an expensive exercise in futility. Anybody else have these issues with these tires?

PS - I know that I should avoid potholes - no advice needed there. I was simply unable to avoid them both times due to cars on both sides of me and behind me.

PPS - Porsche's roadside assistance was terrific. Prompt and courteous on the phone and coordinating the tow, and follow-up afterwards to confirm my satisfaction.

 

Wow thats bad luck. Beautiful car BTW. Love the yellow calipers. Hopefully you had tire hazard warranty...

I noticed the flatbed in one of your pics - is this typical if you have a flat with this car?

 

I feel your pain. With another car, I grazed a curb in about zero visibility and blew out the tire. Got a new tire and within a month I got a screw in the sidewall.

As for potholes, it could be worse. I went over a huge one in one of my old cars and the rear suspension springs broke. It seems to me the local government should be liable for car damage when they don't maintain the roads.

 

Thanks for the compliment about the car - the yachting blue metallic is really a gorgeous color and the yellow calipers compliment it nicely. As for the tire warranty, sadly I didn't get it, and with this second flat it would have paid for itself already. As for the flatbed, I've now had each of my P-cars towed one time. The 911 when the alternator went out and now the Panny with the bad tire. Both times they used flatbeds. They pulled the Panny up using the tow hook - I can't recall what they did with the 911. Also both times they were smart enough to have wooden planks for ramps to keep the front air dam from scraping. With the Panny I showed the driver how to raise the car with the air suspension, which also helped.

 

It is the 20's, I have always gone done a few sizes for winter 18's even 17's. It is a pain to change out wheels and tires every 6 months but I even do it for my SUV's. I am not a fan of all season tires, I think they are not well suited for snow in winter or hard driving in summer.

 

My condolences regarding your tire misfortunes. I had the worst luck with the PZeros I had on my former BMW 135i...it seemed that the least disruptions on the road surface would cause a blow-out. I had 2 of those as well within a 3-month span. Personally, I much prefer Michelins or Continentals to Pirellis. Also, experience from living in the northeast has taught me that wheel and tire hazard insurance is a MUST for wheels 19-inches or larger.

 

Does the Porsche roadside assistance cost anything if you get the car picked up on a flatbed or tow-truck for a tire issue? Its not really a warranty issue.....

Also, will the tire hazard insurance pay for the flatbed/tow

 

UPDATE: New tire is now on, and I bit the bullet and bought the wheel and tire warranty, which I'm confident guarantees that for the next five years I'll never so much as have a scratch on the wheels or a flat tire.

 

Potholes this year have been brutal.

I have seen a car similar to yours in the Manchester/Woodlawn area. Is Parktown doing your tires?

 

Yep - that's mine! Not too many yachting blue metallic Panny Turbos with yellow ceramic brake calipers floating around St. Louis, eh?

 

Not many P cars period! We aren't exactly the exotic car universe around here, thus the reason I buy out of town. Thank goodness we at least have a good clear bra installer.

 

Agreed - I bought my 911 from a seller in Florida and the Panny from Las Vegas. As for Mark - no doubt, he's the best.

 

I know what you mean. I had a blowout/bent rim last Sunday (1/12), and as of Monday 1/20 I still am without the car. Waiting on parts.

 

[QUOTE=erekcat;4028640]Wow! What happened? Pot hole?

One of Chicago's finest pot holes . . . it was actually a missing chunk of roadway on an overpass, so I hit the expansion joint on the far side of the overpass. Immediate blowout/bent rim. I can affirm that the Panamera handles quite well with a blown tire - I was on the interstate doing 75 or 80 when it happened.

On the positive side, the suspension is undamaged (or so the tech says; I'll verify after I get the car back).

 

where I live the city is responsible for damage to cars caused by road damge, if speedlimits were obayed and chassis is not modified etc. So far I have just had one punture due to a nail.