Tyres going flat.

[stevepeanut]

I went to take the e30 out Saturday, the front left tyre was flat to the floor. I got my compressor out, tried to blow it up, nothing was happening, it was like the air was going in and going straight back out. I jacked up and the car and put the spare on, and off I went.

Now today I was off work and had to go out, I did a quick visual check to make sure all the tyres were ok and I popped out to the opticians, and then came back home. An hour later I went to go back out again and as I went to reverse off the drive the car felt very hard to move. I got out and checked my tyres, just like at the weekend, another tyre was totally flat to the floor. It was fine an hour earlier.

What's going on here? I'm really confused. I should mention these alloy wheels and tyres were the original ones from the car but they were in a lock up and the car had steels on so they may have been stood for some time.

[VW]

Someone taking out your valve cores?

[stevepeanut]

Feb 20, 2017 18:32:53 GMT VW said:

Someone taking out your valve cores?

When I took the wheel off the car, it blew up ok, it just wouldn't blow up with it being flat and the weight of the car squashing it which is strange.

[Rich]

Probably want the tires off and the rims cleaning, how old are the tires? I'd imagine that they are pretty old?

[welshpug]

not strange at all, sounds like a displaced bead.

how old are the tyres?

[bortaf]

Feb 20, 2017 18:53:22 GMT stevepeanut said:

Feb 20, 2017 18:32:53 GMT VW said:

Someone taking out your valve cores?

When I took the wheel off the car, it blew up ok, it just wouldn't blow up with it being flat and the weight of the car squashing it which is strange.

Not strange at all, the squashed bottom part will have pushed the bead off the rim and let the air out as quick as it went in, the normal thing to do is just jack the car up let the tyre expand back to round then pump it up
TBH is the colder weather my tyres loose 10 PSi over a week (then it stops at 20/22), in the summer they don't loose a thing, i'd check the tyre tread for a nail then if it still happens maybe get the tyre reseated on the rims or have sealant put on the area of the bead, could be corrosion allowing air out, sometimes i'd have the rim sanded and teh tyre reseated, it just happens with old wheels and tyres more so in the winter as the rubber tends to be harder and just not seal as well

[stevepeanut]

I don't know how old the tyres are but it sounds a good idea to take them to a garage and get them removed and refitted.

[welshpug]

look at the sidewall for the date code.


anything older than 5-6 years is bin fodder.

[stevepeanut]

Feb 21, 2017 18:27:11 GMT welshpug said:

look at the sidewall for the date code.


anything older than 5-6 years is bin fodder.

I'll do that next weekend, if they are very old I might put the steels back on.

[rustydan]

As Bortaf says, its a good chance to be corrosion on the bead seat. I have had the same happen to me, I used it as an excuse to get my wheels blasted and powder coated, and justifiable to the misses

[stevepeanut]

Another issue I have is that I'm not massively keen on the bottle top wheels that are on it. I want to get some correct e30 bbs 15s for it. So I don't really want to fork out loads of money sorting these ones out. It'll be £100 or more for powder coating, and I bet it's at least £10 a wheel to get the tyres off and have them cleaned and refitted. Even just getting the tyres took on and off, that could be £40/50 towards the wheels I want. I need to look at both sets of tyres and see which are best. I know the car was stood on the steels for a couple of months while my lasses dad was ill in hospital, and they held their pressure fine, so they might be best to use while I find some wheels I like.

[welshpug]

you're going to the wrong places for tyre mingebaggery!

[stevepeanut]

Feb 23, 2017 19:58:29 GMT welshpug said:

you're going to the wrong places for tyre mingebaggery!

What sort of money per wheel should I be paying for a tyre removal, clean up and re fit?

[ant260z]

Feb 21, 2017 18:27:11 GMT welshpug said:

look at the sidewall for the date code.


anything older than 5-6 years is bin fodder.

Not necessarily, i think it very much depends on how said tyres are stored

If they are parked outside all year round, open to the elements, then yes 6yrs might be enough for the side walls to start to crack from UV and the constant cold/hot day to day cycle

Garaged or under a decent cover that sits low over most of the tyre, then they can stay good for quite a while, mine were new 10yrs ago, the car is mostly garaged and when on the drive its covered, and they look perfect. I think the main problem by far is UV degrading the rubber over time, not so much how old they actually are.
I know there was talk of a law change regarding the age versus safety of tyres, but this was more for caravans and motor homes that sit outside for months at a time and then go on long journeys straight off the bat, without the owner giving the tyres anything more than a cursory glance for sufficient inflation!

[Dez]

These things are great for cleaning up rim beads.

www.cromwell.co.uk/shop/abrasives/flap-discs/115x22-23mm-polishing-flap-disc-medium/p/DRN2202020B?utm_campaign=pla+-+&utm_source=google&utm_medium=shopping-pla&utm_keyword=DRN2202020B&istCompanyId=6aa6787b-063e-4414-802d-129f235df603&istItemId=aqrxiawli&istBid=tztt

They basically a flap disc made of scotchbrite, you can't gouge the wheel with them or remove any material, and they leave a nice clean finish to seal to or repaint. I use my ones pretty much exclusively for cleaning ally wheels and the tyre seats.

[ant260z]

One of my front tyres kept going down to around 10psi over a 4-5wk period, so i took it to a local tyre shop.

While the tyre was off, i used a flap wheel on a cordless drill, course first to remove the real crappy bits and
then medium to clean up and smooth the rim edges where the tyre bead sits.

Since then its been fine, it doesnt have to be spotless, mine certainly wasnt, just not to bumpy/flaky/gungy

[stevepeanut]

I'm on another 11 days in a row so no time to drive the car, popped my head down the drive and 3 of the tyres have stayed up. So there's only 1 on the car and the spare that keep going down. I do need to check the dates, I know how to do it on motorcycle tyres, but I'm not sure on how on car tyres.

[bortaf]

Put a bit of spit on the end of the valve (where the cap goes) see if it's leaking ? date wont make a tyre leak and TBH i doubt any of my tyres are under 8 years old, non of them leak on the 4 garaged cars i have, whereas the 18month old ones on the mondeo wont bloody stay up for more than a week but at least they stop at 20 odd PSI.
My local charges £6 a go to clean/seal a rim but personly i'd put some water and washing up liquid in a spray bottle and sray the rim/tread and valve see where it's leaking from, all this guessing is pointless if there a nail in the tread ! you could try over pumping, 40 Psi in em can seat a badly seated rim but as i say find the leak first then decide what to do, a blanket buying of new tyres just cos they are over a set date is a waist of money if the tyres are perfectly fine, as i say spray bottle and find the leak.

[stevepeanut]

Now you've mentioned the valve, this has jogged my memory. A while ago when I first picked up the wheels and blew them up, I could hear a hissing and it was coming from the valve, I poked the centre pin bit a couple of times and it stopped. I never thought any more of it. I just thought the pin was sticking. Now I'm wondering if this has caused the problem.

[bortaf]

halfords sell new valve cores and a tool to remove them for under a fiver, try a spit blob on the valve and see if it bubbles lol TBH i've often sorted a leaking valve that simply doesn't seat right every time with some GT85 sprayed in it but in the end a new core is probably better