hi kids,just wanted to vent my spleen on the subject of run flat @##$$%(^ tyres......wife rings me at work....it seems our beloved bini has a flat tyre...no worrys me thinks,i will place a call at the nearest tyre outlet to get it fixed....turns out cant be fixed,need a new tyre.....540 F$%#@^g dollars later.sweet jesus,can buy six new tyres for my deluxe for that price,so lesson learned,next week spending $1500 on spare rim and 5 NORMAL tyres.....rant off.just be aware bini owners,will be selling the 4 run flats on ebay cheers andy..

why can't it be fixed?

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because apparently once they are flat and have driven on them they are deemed unsafe to repair,this was confirmed by bmw brisbane and two other tyre outlets,sounds like a load of bollocks to me,they are designed to travel 200 kliks at 80 kays an hour once flat,but if you do there knackered...

Be the best thing you do to get rid of the runflats. Once you put a performance tyre on the difference is amazing. You can get a compressor and goo pack that fits into one of the cubby holes in the boot in case of flats.

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1965 Riley Elf
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1997 Rover Cooper
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lmao. welcome to the new generation of tyre technology minimy and other bini drivers. run flat tyres have been designed to continue driving at 80 km/h for a rough 200km to the nearest tyre place to get it replaced. you cant repair these tyres and only certain tyre stores can fit them. becareful who fits your tyres because the slighest stuff up will cost more, reason being is that most cars with runflat technology are also fitted with air pressure monitoring systems in each tyre, someone that does not know how to fit a runflat tyre can easily break these sensors and can cost a fair bit.also be sure that they havent removed the sensor either. the rims on your cars are a different rim to a standard rim that suits run flats which allow the thicken sidewalls and wider beeds to support the weight of the car while it has gone flat without fallening apart

the tyres cant be fixed because of the way they are designed. once something pentrates the rubber surface and distrupts the meshing it weakens the tyre and there will become useless next time it goes flat.

if you want to spend the money on run flats which are about $800 and up they are a great idea for drivers that cant change a spare. here are some websites of the runflat technology.

http://www.bridgestone.com.au/tyres/tec ... faq.aspx#2

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oil leak?..what oil leak..that puddle under the car is just sweat from all that horsepower

yes ok...but seriously if you get a puncture you have to replace the tyre,and at 540 dollars each they can stick that where the sun dont shine.there is a lot to be said about normal tyres,i was told by the head honcho at bris bmw that normal tyres would give a better feel than run flats,and quite frankly my wife travels the ipswich motorway most days,and all the punctures ive had in my deluxe,and ive had plenty, have occured on that road,and usually roofing screws. and all because of tradesman who dont clean there ute tray,now i might be speculating on that,but its a pain in the arse.....as i said run flats suck,and if i had known that before buying the car i would have choosen conventional tyres hands down.as for the sensor its an infrared sensor in the mudguard that measures the distance between it and the tyre,much like a motion detector in alarm systems.to conclude sounded like a good option at the time of buying,by christ was i wrong.....cheers andy

ah must be different with the minis then. on bmw and caprice commodores you they are in the rim. and i know what you mean but i dont think you get a choice to choose when you buy the car do you?. also you dont have to stick with runflats you can go back to a normal tyre but change the rim. its a simple as that. and for $500 thats not bad for a run flat i feel sorry for the bmw driver with 19" pays $800 a tyre

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oil leak?..what oil leak..that puddle under the car is just sweat from all that horsepower

You know they brought in an ADR ruling for cars so that very low speed collisions ( <5 klm/hr??) do not leave you with an extensive repair bill.

How ridiculous that a simple tyre puncture can cost 500 dollars? I mean, if you rolled to a stop within 30 meters of the puncture, get out and change the tyre in snappy time, does this mean you are still up for a 500 dollar repair?

It's pretty unreasonable that an efficient method of repairing tyres (which costs less than 30 dollars, is reliable, efficient and a century in proving) is deemed by BMW to be unworthy for their cars.

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SooperDooperMiniCooperExpertEngineering

All garage work involves equal measures of enthusiasm, ingenuity and a fair degree of irresponsibility.

yes mate,its a barstard,but i...we have choosen to drive mini,s and at the end of the day,i wise choice...my wife has just informed me that the tyre deflation light has come on again,after replacing that tyre,so whether its the same tyre or another...crap eh.what can you do,just hoping maybe its a dodgy valve,will know tommorow....i realise there are certain hazards with owning mini,s new and old,but i tell ya,there is no other car on this planet i...we would rather own,i...we have 6 of the buggers,and its a full time job maintaining the classics,and in true mini ownership the new one as well.you can jam your ferrari,s and your porches,i...we have reached a pinnacle of pride and pleasure in mini,s as im sure that other owners feel the same way,can,t say enough about the car,tearing up as i type,...well close too. cheers andy

I have never heard of a runflat for a MINI costing anywhere near $800, $300 - $500 yes.

I have had runflat tyres repaired, and have travelled long distances at high speed on the repaired tyre with no problem. If there is damage to the side wall then no it cannot be repaired but if it is just a nail through the tread then yes it can be repaired. The Perth BMW dealer routinely repairs runflats where possible.

There is no air pressure monitoring system in the tyres on the MINI nor in the mudguard, it is part of the ABS system and measures the rotating circumference of the wheels and will work with any tyre and rim combination.

The rims on the MINI will handle normal tyres as well as the runflats and I know of MINI owners who have had their runflats transferred to third party wheels, so no special rim is required.

minimy, if a wheel has been changed then the tyre monitoring system needs to be reset, if it is not reset then the light will come on even if there is no problem so hopefully you just need to reset it.

Runflats get a lot of bad press but they are really good tyres just a little too expensive. I agree with Babes that changing to normal tyres on the standard rims is all you need to do, then buy a can of goo and a compressor to keep in the boot. MINI even sell a mobility kit which is an expensive can of goo and a compressor. Early MINI Coopers in Australia had 15" wheels with standard tyres and a mobility kit in the boot.

didnt say on a mini that they would cost $800. i said usual runflat prices is around $800 but thats for something like a 17 or 18" rim.

let me make this clear. YOU CAN NOT REPAIR RUNFLATS. you physically can yes. but you are not meant to and who ever repaired that tyre should be shot. the courses tyre fitters need to do on runflats explains it to a T not to repair them. they are to be replaced.

and with the air pressure system i didnt say it was in a mini. BMW AND HOLDEN CAPRICE HAVE IT. they have a sensor inside the rim on the valve that when fitting the tyre you need to be aware of. once you replace the tyre yes you need to reset the system. i havent dont any mini runflats yet to date but i have done one caprice each tyre costing that person $700 each.

??? did you read my post properly. are rim that a runflat is fitted to is completely different to a third party rim. it can be fitted with a standard tyre though its not recommended. if you want to get rid of the runflats all together change them and be done with it.

has much as a pain in the ass these tyres are to fit they are really good and are worth the money. not so much for city use but when you drive out in the country or do alot of highway driving.

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oil leak?..what oil leak..that puddle under the car is just sweat from all that horsepower

here read up bit about it on the bridgestone website. these guys did my course and handed me a certificate to fit runflats, some of the info is in the site. this link explains how the pressure sensors work.

http://www.bridgestone.com.au/tyres/tec ... ssure.aspx

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oil leak?..what oil leak..that puddle under the car is just sweat from all that horsepower

yes my friend,believe me we have covered every avenue with run flats,i realise the importance of run flats but simply the bini has no spare tyre,and since we have covered 1000 plus kays in the bini,ignorance to the fact that they were the ducks guts,having had a flat,would rather they were normal tyres,so having said that,we will be replacing them with conventional tyres and a spare. i realise the potential of run flats,but not all of us are brain surgean,s with huge salarys

LOL thats fair enough minimy im not trying to convince you to stay on them. just showing you why they are so dam expensive. and $500 is pretty cheap for a runflat to be honest.

id be doing the same in your position anyway

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oil leak?..what oil leak..that puddle under the car is just sweat from all that horsepower

For an ordinary puncture, the issue is not the repair, it's the integrity of the sidewall after running flat for a time period. There is a probability that there is mechanical separation between the plies in the structural part of the tyre if this has been too long, but it would be ok I'm sure if you noticed the low pressure pretty quickly.

Tyre companies sell tyres, why wouldn't they say it's unsafe, they are the experts in their tyres.

A certain tyre company told us (I work in Mining) that their brand of tyre couldn't be repaired in a certain area and to scrap them and replace. Funny now though, since they have opened up their own repair facility, they now CAN be repaired in those areas!

Daniel

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Videos - Turbocharged A-Series on Dyno & at Wakefield
Mafs waz not my strong subgeckt at skkol