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Thread: Need a permanent fix for winter tires that won't hold air every fall.

  1. #1
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    Default Need a permanent fix for winter tires that won't hold air every fall.

    For the last 3-4 years, my winter tires (Nokian Hakkas) have slowly gone flat over the summer. Not a big deal. I fill them up and it's good go you'd think, right? No luck. After I fill them up, they'll hold air long enough to get to work and back again, but the next morning they need 10-15psi again. I'll often top them up again if I have to go anywhere in the evening, and they're down again by morning.

    The last couple times I took them into a tire shop, they just popped the bead off and re-mounted them and they were good for the rest of the winter, so I don't think it's anything to do with the tires.

    I've done it now for this winter and it's the last winter for the tires (I probably shouldn't be running them this winter, but I can't afford new ones and my other tires are full summers). Just wondering, what I can do over the summer to prevent this problem in the future.
    The worst race live is better than the best race on TV.

    "Understeer is when you hit the wall with the front of the car and oversteer is when you hit the wall with the rear of the car. Horsepower is how fast you hit the wall, torque is how far you take the wall with you."

    "Oversteer is best because you don't see the tree that kills you."
    -- Richard Hammond, Top Gear - S2, Ep.5

  2. #2
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    New rims?
    Potential cracks in the rims could cause very slow leaks.
    Have the valve stems changed, the rim lips buffed as to remove and dirt or grime and have the bead of the tire washed off with rubber cleaner.
    I'm assuming you bought them from Kal tire and when I worked there this was a pretty standard issue that came up often. That's what we always did and it seemed to be ok.
    What kind of rims do you have? Any sort of chrome finish will peel off overtime and cause leaking issues, quick fix would be tell them to use bead sealer.
    If its aluminum as I said above make sure they buff off the lips and clean the bead of the tires to remove any dirt that gets in there.


    Secondary thoughts, problems with the tire casing or tread causing leaks. In which case call in your warranty and get a good deal on new ones
    Last edited by lellowrx7; 11-15-2011 at 10:25 PM.

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    you can also give nitrogen a try.

    removing almost all of oxygen/moisture from the tire, can prevent wheel corrosion if you have your winter tires mounted on aluminum wheels.

    corrosion between your wheel and tire bead will cause air to leak.
    Last edited by dooman24; 11-15-2011 at 10:26 PM.

  4. #4
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    Originally posted by dooman24
    you can also give nitrogen a try.

    removing almost all of oxygen/moisture from the tire, can prevent wheel corrosion if you have your winter tires mounted on aluminum wheels.

    corrosion between your wheel and tire bead will cause air to leak.
    this

  5. #5
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    Best to unmount them, clean the mounting surface of the rim and the beads, and remount.

  6. #6
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    Originally posted by lellowrx7
    New rims?
    Most certainly not.20+years old.

    Originally posted by lellowrx7
    Potential cracks in the rims could cause very slow leaks.
    Have the valve stems changed, the rim lips buffed as to remove and dirt or grime and have the bead of the tire washed off with rubber cleaner.
    Changed the valve stems last year, they gave the rims a wipe when they had the tires off, but no buffing.

    Originally posted by lellowrx7
    I'm assuming you bought them from Kal tire and when I worked there this was a pretty standard issue that came up often. That's what we always did and it seemed to be ok.
    Was OK tire on 99st in Edmonton the last time. Been basically random tire shops. I stay away from Kal Tire 'cause they're dicks here and charge way more than everyone else in town. Taht said, It could be a problem, but not year after year...

    Originally posted by lellowrx7
    What kind of rims do you have? Any sort of chrome finish will peel off overtime and cause leaking issues, quick fix would be tell them to use bead sealer.
    If its aluminum as I said above make sure they buff off the lips and clean the bead of the tires to remove any dirt that gets in there.
    Now that you say that, that's probably the source of the problem. They're 20+ year old stock AW11 MR2 wheels. The finish is peeling pretty badly on the visible parts, but I thought that was from the elements. This might be the motivation I need to get them restored this summer.

    Originally posted by lellowrx7
    Secondary thoughts, problems with the tire casing or tread causing leaks. In which case call in your warranty and get a good deal on new ones
    Yeah, no warranty. They're used up. Like I said, if I could afford others I wouldn't even be using them this winter.
    The worst race live is better than the best race on TV.

    "Understeer is when you hit the wall with the front of the car and oversteer is when you hit the wall with the rear of the car. Horsepower is how fast you hit the wall, torque is how far you take the wall with you."

    "Oversteer is best because you don't see the tree that kills you."
    -- Richard Hammond, Top Gear - S2, Ep.5

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    IMO its a problem with the rim, its probably oxidized and not making a good seal with the tire bead.

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    I know you've said Kal tire are dicks but honestly take them to them this one time because they do flat repairs for free (unlimited number). Get them to buff the rim with the wire buffer and the use bead sealer. It should be enough to keep you going atleast one more winter

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    Happened to me last winter. Two of my tires kept loosing air. Turns out they were too old and weren't sealing correctly on the rim. Even though they had decent tread, they were about 5 years old if I remember. Got new tires and now there's no problem.

    There's a way to check the date of manufacture on your tires with the code on the sidewall. You might want to check that if you find out the rims are fine.

  10. #10
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    before you even find.the solution, find the problem first otherwise ripping the tires off their.bead seal or bringing it to a shop over and over is useless especially when theres no results obviously, sometimes you just gotta do things yourself to get it done right:

    get a spray.bottle and fill it with sunlight.or w/e liquid soap you want and water. spray it everywhere(with the tires.filled up of course) open up then valve stem cap too, sometimes.the problem.will show itself right away. sometimes it wont so let it sit, from experience, even a hairline crack in the rim will eventually reveal itself with a nice concentrated line of bubbles.

  11. #11
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    I've got it solved for this winter. They've held air for nearly a week now. I was just looking for a proper solution I can do over the summer for when I replace the tires in the fall. It looks like refinishing them will be the best bet.

    Thanks for the help.
    The worst race live is better than the best race on TV.

    "Understeer is when you hit the wall with the front of the car and oversteer is when you hit the wall with the rear of the car. Horsepower is how fast you hit the wall, torque is how far you take the wall with you."

    "Oversteer is best because you don't see the tree that kills you."
    -- Richard Hammond, Top Gear - S2, Ep.5

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