[Sunnysm]

Hi all,

After exactly 50 days and 2400 km of fun with my new BMW 320d, I have experienced the high cost of maintaining this German beauty.

While driving the car yesterday on a pretty good road, a message flased on my screen.

Left Rear Tyre pressure Low.
Stop carefully.

I quickly stopped and inspected the tyre and it looked just fine. There was no visual difference at all, probably that's why they call it Run-flats. I decided to go directly to the BMW workshop, which was just about 6 kms away. I kept the speed under 60kmph.

BMW offers a free one year insurance on the tyres of a new car. However, there is a catch here. You would still have to pay for tread wear. As my car had done just 2400 kms, I assumed I would get a free tyre. However, that seems unlikely now as they say the tread depth is a little less than what I need for 100% free replacement and that I would need to pay 25% of the tyre cost.

I told the dealer it is not acceptable that within 50 days of buying a car and with just 2400 kms done, the tyre tread depth has gone below the acceptable level. They have promised me that they will try and get me a free tyre but they are not sure if that would be accepted by the insurance company.

Also, even if the tyre is replaced free of cost, I would still have to pay Rs. 2500 as labour costs. So, this is what it would cost as minimum for a puncture.

Apparently, the puncture can be fixed outside like a normal tubless tyre puncture but BMW does not recommend it.

The surveyor is going to come on Monday and I am going to take a call after I get to know how much I need to pay. If i have to pay 25% of the tyre cost, I will skip the tyre change and just get the tyre puncture fixed.

Probably its time to move on to the tubeless like many have recommended on this forum.

[Akshay1234]

Don't change the tyre. Just fix it like a normal tubeless. It would be as safe or dangerous as fixing a puncture on a normal tubeless.

BMW recommends changing the tyre even for a puncture, but we don't drive on Autobahns or at Autobahn speeds to warrant that.

BMWs secure package covers 4 free tyre changes a year. What they mean by free is that it won't be counted towards your claims, so you will get your no claim bonus for secure next year. But you do have to pay for the treadwear.

BTW I remember I had a puncture on my car when it had done about 3500kms, and I was eligible for 100% paid by them. I wouldn't have to pay anything. Its odd that they are making you pay 25%. They all have treadwear gauges, check it yourself and compare to the price list how much you have to pay.

But again, would recommend you don't go through this hassle and keep your replacements for something more than a puncture.

[drmohitg]

Doesn't make sense at all in paying so much for a puncture. If it doesn't negate the warranty then just go ahead and fix the puncture. I feel we have all started becoming more paranoid these days. Until yesterday we all had tyres with tube and they used to work fine. The incidence of tyre bursts and all would be less than 1% ( much less actually given the number of tyres out there running every minute). Most of my cars have one or more tyres running with repaired punctures and there is absolutely no trouble.

[androdev]

i got the runflats repaired just like tubeless tires and had no issues. i too have the BSI, btw. the runflat has a stiffer side wall and it is not much different from a regular tubeless tire. if think about it, it is safer to get the runflats repaired compared to the tubeless tires. suppose the plug comes off at high speed, a tubeless tire will become flat in an instant leading to loss of control whereas a runflat will not do anything dramatic.

[dadu]

Originally Posted by androdev

a tubeless tire will become flat in an instant leading to loss of control whereas a runflat will not do anything dramatic.

I think you meant tube type tires, as tubeless ones don't loose air instantly unless there a big hole.

[karan561]

Originally Posted by Sunnysm

Apparently, the puncture can be fixed outside like a normal tubless tyre puncture but BMW does not recommend it.

I had a puncture on my RFT in my 3rd month of ownership.

You can read more on this here;

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/tyre-a...ml#post2951473

So i fixed it and used it without any problem (Cost: Rs 300)

I recommend you for doing the same instead of replacing because of a puncture as there can be no tire which can be puncture proof, be it tubeless or RFT type.

Replacement should be done immediately if you have a side wall cut or bubble.

[Sunnysm]

Thanks all. You guys are awesome. That's what I am planning to do. Will get the car tomorrow and get the puncture repaired. This makes a lot of sense.

[androdev]

Originally Posted by dadu

I think you meant tube type tires, as tubeless ones don't loose air instantly unless there a big hole.

What I meant is if you repair a tubeless tire puncture by inserting that plug and if the plug comes off suddenly while on the move (it happened to me once), the tire will be flat in an instant and you could lose control. If the same thing happens on an RFT, the stiff side wall will prevent you from losing control.

[nirmaljusdoit]

What i follow is to keep a portable compressor kit in the car along with a puncture repair kit. It fits in the space below the boot floor and if you are faced with pressure loss, just pull over to a safe place , plug into the cigarette lighter and fill the tire up.

Most punctures are slow ones, atleast ive never faced a catastrophic one in my experience on all my cars. Getting into a pothole at high speeds could lead to a tire burst though, ive heard of it happening to friends of mine. RFT's could be a bit more resistant to this due to tougher construction.

When you reach a puncture repair shop, just fix the puncture like a normal tubeless.

Im guessing that it would be rare that RFTs will develop a sidewall puncture issue due to the toughened sidewalls. Members with technical knowledge of RFTs could shed some light on this !

[drmohitg]

Originally Posted by Sunnysm

Thanks all. You guys are awesome. That's what I am planning to do. Will get the car tomorrow and get the puncture repaired. This makes a lot of sense.

BTW since you suffered a puncture so soon, any thoughts on buying a space saver?

[Sunnysm]

I already have a space saver. Got it with the car as a part of the negotiated deal. Had to make up for the lack of Corona rings

Originally Posted by drmohitg

BTW since you suffered a puncture so soon, any thoughts on buying a space saver?

[Sunnysm]

Thanks all. Got back my car today and got the puncture fixed. INR 50. And I was about to spend INR 2500 on labour charges alone.

On another note, did get info on performance kit. Have posted that in another thread.

[drmohitg]

Originally Posted by Sunnysm

Thanks all. Got back my car today and got the puncture fixed. INR 50. And I was about to spend INR 2500 on labour charges alone.

Thats a huge difference. I am indeed surprised with the rate you mentioned. Who fixes punctures these days for 50 rs? The last time I had to pay 150 Rs after a lot of haggling with the guy who was hell bent on asking 200. For a BMW I thought they will charge still more .

BTW some of the threads mention that to repair the puncture the RFTs have to be taken off the rim. Is this really necessary? I have seen punctures on tubless tyres repaired 2 ways.

1. Where they remove the tyre from the rim and repair the thing from inside.
2. They don't remove the tyre from the rim and just make the puncture big enough for that sticky rubber string to pass through it. Pass it through and it seals off the puncture and cut the extra protruding part.
Both the methods have not given me any reasons to complain. Any merits and demerits on them? And can we use the second method on these RFTs?

[midazolam]

Originally Posted by drmohitg

Thats a huge difference. I am indeed surprised with the rate you mentioned. Who fixes punctures these days for 50 rs? The last time I had to pay 150 Rs after a lot of haggling with the guy who was hell bent on asking 200.

The guy near my college in Delhi takes Rs50 for fixing the puncture
And he uses the second method you mentioned.

[Sunnysm]

They used the second method. Not sure about the merits.

Originally Posted by drmohitg

Thats a huge difference. I am indeed surprised with the rate you mentioned. Who fixes punctures these days for 50 rs? The last time I had to pay 150 Rs after a lot of haggling with the guy who was hell bent on asking 200. For a BMW I thought they will charge still more .

BTW some of the threads mention that to repair the puncture the RFTs have to be taken off the rim. Is this really necessary? I have seen punctures on tubless tyres repaired 2 ways.

1. Where they remove the tyre from the rim and repair the thing from inside.
2. They don't remove the tyre from the rim and just make the puncture big enough for that sticky rubber string to pass through it. Pass it through and it seals off the puncture and cut the extra protruding part.
Both the methods have not given me any reasons to complain. Any merits and demerits on them? And can we use the second method on these RFTs?