I got a flat tire in my 2015 911 Targa. The tires are Pirelli P-Zero. There is a small screw in the center of the tread on the left rear tire. I asked the Porsche dealership, and they said they can't repair tires, only replace them. Apparently, this is related to the "speed rating" of the tire. I decided, at least initially, to take it to a private tire shop. They seemed to think it was no problem to repair the tire. Is this a safe approach? I'd rather not replace the tire for $500 every time I get a flat. Thoughts?

 

Patch from the inside is fine. I would not track the car with a patch but normal driving is fine.

 

what he said

 

I think an independent shop will say the same thing: they can repair it, but the speed rating is void at that point. The only caveat is if the puncture is in the shoulder area; no one will repair it at that point.

In retrospect, I was never really sure what that implied. Am I only good to 75mph? 90mph? Or, just 1 mph lower than the original speed rating. Murky. However, for normal driving it's fine.

 

I mean if you hit 150MPH for few seconds it won't generate a ton of heat, the issue with track driving is your tires are under A LOT more load for A LOT longer periods of time repetitively in one day. I wouldn't worry about your tire exploding for normal or even spirited street driving. If you are pushing your car to levels where you need to worry about a properly repaired tire on the street, you will face more dangers in harming others or yourself.

 

Totally agree wiht Joec500. I've been driving on P-Zeros for over 4 years with a patch in the center tread on one of the fronts. No issues whatsoever. If you don't track the car or drive at insane speeds on public roads, don't worry about it. Just enjoy your car.

 

had a nail in center tread, used a plug, ok for few hundred miles, started leaking, tire shop put inside patch, $40. been good for 5K,,,beats $495 for new tire..

 

Patch and go.

 

It's only a problem if you are rapidly heat-cycling the tires (for example on a track). The rapid heat cycle causes stresses that can lead to catastrophic failure of the tire compound at the point of the patch or nearby.

For the road, it's just fine - just don't use a patched tire for track work.

cheers!

 

I patched one of the left-rear Pirelli myself a year ago. After 4k miles, no leaks at all. Pressure is always consistent with the opposite tire. The nail was a pretty decent size too.

 

These repairs are pretty effective, but I would personally take it to a tire shop for a proper internal glued patch for piece of mind especially as it only costs around $40. But I guess if it held for 4,000 miles. Meh.

 

Everyone who has had the nail in the tire knows the feeling, lol:

 

I wish I had all the good tires people throw away because of a small hole in the tread!

 

Just be smart as mentioned. Patch, no tracking. Normal driving with some bursts, fine.

 

Thanks for pointing that out