The tire on my wife's 98 Toyota Avalon went flat. Front passenger. She had two new tires on the rear this past winter. The fronts were put on something like 10-15k before that some maybe 20k total on the fronts. Took just the tire in to a local shop. They told me the hole was too close to the sidewall to be repaired and that the this specific tire is no longer being made. They are trying to get me to put two new tires on.

She has had nothing but tire problems with this car the past few years...


Any thoughts you can help me out with?

Thanks,
Ryan

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2009 ML320 Bluetec
1985 300CD
1981 300TD

Past Mercedes
1979 300TD
1982 300TD
2000 E320 4Matic Wagon
1998 E430
1984 300SD
1980 300SD

Put a tube in it.

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1977 300d 70k--sold 08
1985 300TD 185k+
1984 307d 126k--sold 8/03
1985 409d 65k--sold 06
1984 300SD 315k--daughter's car
1979 300SD 122k--sold 2/11
1999 Fuso FG Expedition Camper
1993 GMC Sierra 6.5 TD 4x4
1982 Bluebird Wanderlodge CAT 3208--Sold 2/13

I highly doubt the guys at the tire shop would go for that.

Should I take it somewhere else? Get one tire, get two? Any more opinions?

__________________
2009 ML320 Bluetec
1985 300CD
1981 300TD

Past Mercedes
1979 300TD
1982 300TD
2000 E320 4Matic Wagon
1998 E430
1984 300SD
1980 300SD

Did you see where the hole was?
If it was really on the side and they aren't trying to con you I would replace both of them.
It's really not a good idea to replace 1 tire.

Danny

__________________
1984 300SD Turbo Diesel 150,000 miles

OBK member #23

(\__/)
(='.'=) This is Bunny. Copy and paste bunny into your
(")_(") signature to help him gain world domination

My local tire store did this to a tire with a cut in the sidewall. I had backed over a broken bottle in my drive way, a "C" shaped thick shard.
It finally blew, but I had an inner liner so was able to get to the side of the interstate and bolt on the spare.

__________________
83 SD

84 CD

A freind had a tire with a hole very close to the side wall. The tire shop repaired it but didn't charge for it. I'd say if too close to the side though they are doing you a favor. Now if the other side has a good tire, I might get a good used one. Then rotate the fronts to the rear.
Now the problem I usually have with used tires, is they cost almost as much as new. Or at least close enough that it is better to get new. I don't know your $$ situation. If you have the money, then two new ones might be the best way to go.
Tom

Just replace the flat tire, the car isn't AWD so they don't have to match. Rotate the rears up front, and put the mistmatched in the rear.

The are correct, anything in the sideway is very hard to replace. You can try to plug it, but no guaranties.

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1999 SL500
1969 280SE
2023 Ram 1500
2007 Tiara 3200

I probably wouldn't put a tube in a tire with a cut in the sidewall but a nail hole or something like that would probably be ok. Just have them give you back the tire with the bead broken, buy a tube, put it in and put the tire on the back.

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1977 300d 70k--sold 08
1985 300TD 185k+
1984 307d 126k--sold 8/03
1985 409d 65k--sold 06
1984 300SD 315k--daughter's car
1979 300SD 122k--sold 2/11
1999 Fuso FG Expedition Camper
1993 GMC Sierra 6.5 TD 4x4
1982 Bluebird Wanderlodge CAT 3208--Sold 2/13

I used to put used tires on my Supra, and sometimes had mismatched tires and never had any trouble with them. They were the same size of course, but different brands.

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1998 C230 330,000 miles (currently dead of second failed EIS, yours will fail too, turning you into the dealer's personal human cash machine)
1988 F150 144,000 miles (leaks all the colors of the rainbow)
Previous stars: 1981 Brava 210,000 miles, 1978 128 150,000 miles, 1977 B200 Van 175,000 miles, 1972 Vega (great, if rusty, car), 1972 Celica, 1986.5 Supra

Full size or doughnut spare?

If it's a full size and it's twelve years old, it may be dry-rotted. Maybe put the 15k tire in the trunk and put two new ones up front.

Same shop as last winter? Ask for some consideration - 10% goodwill or something. If the hole is near the sidewall (inch or so, maybe in the first row of treadblocks)

I always get the road hazard warranty. Too many nails on the roads in San Antonio. I've averaged a new tire a year for the past few years.

I had the same "can't match the tire" experience last time. They gave me 40% off a new matched pair and free mounting/balancing/etc because they couldn't fix the leak and couldn't order a matching tire. These were tires with 50,000 miles, but they pro-rated the wear by tread depth.

Can you have the tire dismounted and have a patch installed?

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Eugene

10 E63 AMG
93 300te 4matic
07 BMW X3
14 Ford F-150 Fx2

Any damage to the edge of the tread area is a PITA!!!
Best not bother with a repair.
Does the other tire match the spare?
Can you get a second hand tire to match the other one?
If the size is the same & the tread pattern looks similar, I would go with with such a match.
There are plenty of tires that are different brands but the same tire.

__________________
Grumpy Old Diesel Owners Club group

I no longer question authority, I annoy authority. More effect, less effort....

1967 230-6 auto parts car. rust bucket.
1980 300D now parts car 800k miles
1984 300D 500k miles
1987 250td 160k miles English import
2001 jeep turbo diesel 130k miles
1998 jeep tdi ~ followed me home. Needs a turbo.
1968 Ford F750 truck. 6-354 diesel conversion.
Other toys ~J.D.,Cat & GM ~ mainly earth moving

I just found out the hard way:

The tire warranties on new cars only cover tread wear.

Road hazard? hahahaha < O T D Y O Y O M F.


By the time the tire shop and the dealer got through with me, because the TPMS ("Tire Pressure Sensor Monitor") was ruined (it is a metal band inside all four tires but not the spare) because I drove on it to get to a safe distance to stop,

And I bought and had mounted, a new matching tire $158 for the tire, and $201 out the door,

and,


had to go to the Ford dealer in Carson City Nevada, and pay a flat diagnostic fee of $95 to diagnose why the "Tire Pressure Sensor Fault" message would not go out on the dashboard, and have the new tire dismounted and a brand new TPMS installed and the tire remounted, and 3 hours wasted in a nearby casino, while my friends with me, fumed, for a bill of $226,

So I paid $426 to have the car back like it was before the tire blew out.

NONE of this covered by warranty on the new car and its tires.


And both the tire shop and the dealer I went to, were *both* excellent, highly acclaimed businesses, charging normal and reasonable prices for all of this. I know that.



A lot of the new cars like BMWs, you get no spare tire at all. Instead, you get an inflator in the spare tire well. (to supposedly save "weight" or some ridiculous reason ).

The Carson City Ford dealer showed us a new $65,000 ( <---- yeah, )2011 Ford "Shelby" Mustang on the showroom floor, that had one of those inflators where the spare tire should be in the trunk.


So I asked him, "How does THAT thing work when your tire blows on the highway and your tire is in 50,000 pieces?


He had no answer to that.

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1991 560 SEC AMG, 199k <---- 300 hp 10:1 ECE euro HV ...

1995 E 420, 170k "The Red Plum" (sold)

2015 BMW 535i xdrive awd Stage 1 DINAN, 6k, <----364 hp

1967 Mercury Cougar, 49k

2013 Jaguar XF, 20k <----340 hp Supercharged, All Wheel Drive (sold)

"GRAPLER" sounds like the name of a tire model, ie, the Firestone "GRAPLER" or the Goodyear "GRAPLER"

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1991 560 SEC AMG, 199k <---- 300 hp 10:1 ECE euro HV ...

1995 E 420, 170k "The Red Plum" (sold)

2015 BMW 535i xdrive awd Stage 1 DINAN, 6k, <----364 hp

1967 Mercury Cougar, 49k

2013 Jaguar XF, 20k <----340 hp Supercharged, All Wheel Drive (sold)

Maybe she drives a bit to much to the right side of the road.
That is the place where all the debris end up.

Rob