Tony

This happend about 4 weeks ago now.
I was taking my daughter to a Bday party at the RedRock Bowling lanes and hit one of those small water main manhole covers. They are about 8" in dia and it is pretty common, around here atleast, to see them flipped up on edge while still stuck in the hole...some tiems they are completly gone (another threat when im cycling!!) When this happens you have about 3inches of solid steel jutting up from the road. As you can see by the damage to the rim i was about 1/4' from missing this SOB when i saw it! It made one he!! of a whack...and that is a great understatement....and put two holes in the side wall of the tire!

The tire had about 100 miles on it..if that!..BFG KDW. The rim was flawless.
Long story short.... the car started to pull to the right so i knew it was flat. I made it to the birthday party, parked the car and came back to it later. My wife picked me up, i stopped by Autozone and got a plug kit....then at the house to pick up my small pancake compresser.

In the parking lot of the Red Rock Casino i did the repair below and was on the road in 20 minutes later!!!

Ive since ordered a new tire and the rim has been repaired and repainted. Thankfully the rim is still true...i just caught the outer lip as you can see. They Straightend the lip, filled it, shaped it, painted it, and mounted and balanced my new tire...all for $125 bucks.

If you still carry the Porsche compressor, this little tire plug kit would be a good addition to your "tool kit"

Nicole

Wow - I'm glad to hear it was only the wheel that got damaged. Remember what happened when I thought I could avoid an obstacle of about 2" in height? It's hard to drive THAT exact - you may miss most of the time, but not always.

Again, I"m glad it was only the wheel. As sad as it may be.

Tampa 928s

My friend hit a block of coral kids had placed in the road. Took out his oil pan, front suspension and dented the frame. By the way way this was a Mercedes and they totaled it.

fraggle

Those wheel repair guys can do wonders. As long as the trim is still true they can pretty much make any painted wheel damage completely disappear.

Pizza

Tony,

Who repaired your wheel? I have a major scuff on one of mine that needs repair.

Thanks,
Charles

Jim M.

If this had happened to me I would be writting to the city or water department demanding payment with a threat of a lawsuit. If it's common to see them then they know about the problem. There has to be a better way to prevent this from happening. If you hit it while ridding a bicycle you could be seriously injured.

Tony

...i'll have to aim for one on my next ride? If i wasnt heading to my daughters party i would have stopped and called the ploice police to file a report and then ran with it....hopefully there wont be a next time

It was a local shop Charles...D and H wheels. If you go to any tire store in the area im sure someone knows someone who repairs rims.

Charley B

Now there is a tire repair I don't think I would have even attempted. Those kits are amazing.

dprantl

I had a somewhat similar experience, except my flat was cause by a veritably gigantic nail. It was on the sidewall too and happened while I was driving; didn't even notice as it never made any noise. I had no idea how it could happen. No damage to the wheel, but my tire lost air in a matter of seconds. As luck would have it, I was right across the street from autozone so I bought that very same kit and did the repair right there. Good thing I also had a compressor that still worked. Maybe it wasn't luck, maybe autozone had nail gunners hiding in the bushes

Dan
'91 928GT S/C 475hp/460lb.ft

hitbyastick

I didn't think you could use the plug kit so close to the sidewall.

Charley B

The kits all advise against it, but in this case he used it to be able to drive it to a repair facility where he replaced the tire and repaired the rim. Perfectly safe in that situation. Not a good idea if your intention is to use it as a permanent repair.

SharkSkin

Or if you're planning on driving at triple-digit speeds on your way to the repair shop.

nsantolick

I believe the owners manual for my 89 S4 expressly states that if dented, the wheels should NEVER be straightened. (going from memory here - but I've heard that a lot, from all over, over the years...)

Anyway, I'd like to hear any opinions on whether or not a repair, such as the one in this thread poses any risks???

My own car has a minor dent, although not nearly as bad as this one. It's STILL in the shop, but if it ever gets done, this was the next issue for me to address.


How safe is this? What are the risks?






Nick - Hazleton, PA - S4 owner for 7 months. Still haven't driven it...

Tony

The tire is new...and the rim is fine IMHO. Only the lip was tweeked..i watched it as he spun it on the balance machine with out the tire. The plan is to get a set of new ones on the front....they show up now and then. I may even switch to a set of the newer "turbo" rims...they would be knock offs as i need 18". I love the twists i currently have..they match the style of the car so well and are a snap to keep clean.