cpbmd

I have a nail in my right rear tire of my '07 C2. It has a an intermittent slow leak requiring air every 2-3 weeks. The rear tires are 295/30 ZR 19 N1 tires. I can't find them on line to purchase. I can find the N2 version of the same tire. I don't track the car.
2 questions.
1. Can I have the tire plugged to save some $$. There is about 30% tread left in the tires.
2. Can I buy the N2 version for the rears and leave the N1 version on the front until I need to replace the fronts, then buy 2 more N2's to make them match.

Apparently Porsche is putting the N2's on the new cars now so it is hard to find the N1's.

Thanks
Constantine

cviles

If the leak/puncture is through a block of tread and not the shoulder or sidewall of the tire, it can usually be repaired. A good tire shop will dismount the tire and patch from the inside. I prefer this to the old-style plug repair and have never had a problem with it on a street car.

As to mixing N-ratings, Porsche will play it safe and tell you not to, but I have done this before on my Boxster without issue. I wouldn't mix ratings on the same axle, but I really couldn't tell the difference between ratings front to rear.

kosmo

your 3rd option is to buy a used set of N1's. theres a few around on this board as well as others,

No HTwo O

I think you'll be fine with the N2's. You'll probably need to buy a pair, since the rears are about 60-70% gone. You don't want one new rear tire with 100% mixed with an old rear with 30%. But, I think you know that already.

Get the tire professionally plug & patched. Save both tires. Now you have a great set of rear emergency spares. They will be good for about another 1-2 years. You don't want to use tires much older than 5 years, regarless of remaining thread life.

cpbmd

That is a great idea. I can get teh N2's at TireRack and have my Indie guy install them at a lower cost compared to the stealership.
Thanks for the help NoH20. I appreciate it.
Cons

No HTwo O

Make sure your indy guy can dynamic road force balance the tires. If your wheels are "mint" take pictures and review with service writer. Have him assure you the wheels will NOT be marked or scratched. If not, consider the dealership, and pay the crazy money. I still use the dealership for wheel work only, for this reason (no damage, proper weights, expert balance).

The new rears will need about 200-500 miles to "scrub in" for maximum traction, this is to wear off the mold release. Be cautious during this time period.

Macster

If you can find a place to patch the tire as long as the tire is otherwise in good condition it can be fixed.

Not too long ago I had the rear tire -- I forget which side -- of my Boxster fixed after it picked up something that caused an air leak more severe than the one your tire has.

Had it done at an indy tire shop the local Audi dealer recommended.

The even more recently the left rear tire of my Turbo was found to have a screw in it. The Porsche dealer didn't want to fix the tire but did help me find a nearby (different) brand of car dealer that fixed the tire for no cost.

In fact when the tech removed the tire from the car he found another piece of something in the tire and fixed that too.

The Boxster has covered a few thousand miles with no problems though the tires are very near the end of their life and are due to be replaced shortly.

In fact truth be told I think the tires are at the wears bars now.

I put several thousand miles on the patched Turbo's tire with no problems but before I left on a trip I had 2 new rear tires installed. The old tires (with nearly 24K miles on them!) had some life left but not many, not 4 or 5K miles left which is the number of miles I'll have covered by the time I return home.

Oh, and I'm typing this in Clinton OK in a motel room and looking out the window at storm clouds. Rain, sometimes heavy, is forecast for this area today and I'm glad I have new fresh rear tires on the car.

I've never mixed N number tires on my car but others have and have reported no problems.

But different tires and different cars and different drivers are, well, different. All I can advise is if it not forbidden by the owners manual it is up to you. If you want to mix N1 and N2 tires as long as they are the same brand, model of tire, you'll probably be ok.

I can't promise this though. You are on your own if you go ahead.

As someone else pointed out the new tires will need a few miles to scrub in, shed their squirrely feeling. Be sure all 4 tires are inflated properly. Buy and use a good/accurate tire gage. I like the dial style but I have a digital tire gage too and it works very well. I can measure tire pressure to the 0.5psi.

Sincerely,

Macster.

cpbmd

thanks Macster
I just got back from the Indie shop today. I had my tire patched from the inside. They did a nice job as far as I can tell. They found a small rusty nail in the middle of the left rear tire. They also said that the tires are good for at least 4k mile unlike what the stealership told me. So for now I have saved $1300 until the spring. I am also glad not to buy new tires now only to put it away for the winter in a month.

Thanks for your help.
Cons

Macster

Glad it all worked out for you.

BTW, you might want to order those tires now. I ordered a set of tires a few months ago -- the dealer parts manager said no need to pay for the up front he'd hold them because even if I backed out he could move them no problem -- and when I went to have the 2 new rear tires installed I was told the price of the tires had gone up $50/each, but since the parts department had bought them some months ago I paid the older lower price.

Who knows how much the tires will cost you come spring?

Sincerely,

Macster.

cpbmd

thanks Macster
I am going to give them a call tomorrow. With commodity prices rising I think that might be a good plan to lock in '11 price. Everything is getting more expensive these days. Looks like I am going to be working for a long time so I can have my toys.
Take Care
Cons

T997

Hello, I have a similar problem on my porsche 997 turbo 2010 I have 2 back tires which are N2 and now I have to change both front ones but I can only find N1 tires will it be ok?

garyinseattle

Never mixed N1 and N2, but I have put new tires on the back, and left 65% tires on the front. 964 C4. Did not work out well. Car was all over the place on fast corners. I Put new ones on the front right away.

Mumbles

Is it ok to mix PS2 rears and PSS fronts ?

semicycler

The purists say same make/model on all four corners. I say it depends.

Never mix make/model on the same axle. For a short term emergency like a spare tire, go for it. But if the rear left goes, match it to the rear right.

If you track the car then no, do not mix the front axle to back axle either. The different compounds, tread styles, and grip will affect handling - oversteer or understeer. It can be dangerous in a high speed track situation. Unless you are intentionally tuning the handling like the way different brake pad compounds are used front/rear while racing, match all four corners.

For a gently driven never over the speed limit daily driver you could get away with it. PS2 and MPSS are similar enough that the softly driven car would not notice any handling differences.

For the aggressive street car, canyon carving, high speed on/off ramps, open highway at speed type driving, I'd be cautious and match all four corners.

If you do choose to mix them front to rear on your car, plan on matching them eventually.

Mumbles

When I recently purchased a used set of OEM wheels the rear tires were shot but the fronts were good, but replaced the rears with PS2. I'll give them a go and see how she rides. It'll be interesting to see how good these front tire PSS are.