What is life like with your car? Let us know and win £500 in John Lewis vouchers | No thanks
Any - Tyre goo - S40 Man

Recently I had a slow puncture on my Vauxhall Astra K 1.6 Turbo. The car has no spare wheel, but does come with an emergency container with latex in. This one has two car tyre valves on it. You connect over to the pump and one to the tyre.

I used about a third of the goo. It seems to have stopped the slow.puncture.

I posted about this on an VX Astra K Facebook group. Someone suggested this was a very bad idea as the latex will knacker the wheel and the TPS. Anyone have any experience of be this?

It's a a fairly new Michelin on the rears so might not need to worry for a while even if it's true

Btw the consensus was the VX wheels were very soft and prone to corrosion/flaking around the valve hole.

Any - Tyre goo - daveyjp

What does the manual say about use of the goo?

They are generally not meant to be a permanent fix, balancing may now be out and the tyre should be repaired/replaced asap.

Any - Tyre goo - skidpan

These kits are only intended to get you a maximum distance of about 50 miles at slow speed. They are not intended to be used as you are suggesting since you have no idea how serous any damage is to the tyre.

But the stuff in the bottle will not knacker the wheel and once cleaned correctly a repair to the tyre should be possible provided it in the correct area of the tread. Finding a place that will carry out a repair will be difficult, it takes ages to do correctly and they would rather fit a new tyre.

As for the TPMS valve I can see that would be an issue, a new valve should obviously be used if its contaminated by the goo stuff but most TPMS valves come in 2 pieces so it should only need the valve bit and not the clever electronics. Like cleaning the tyre finding a place to do this may prove difficult depending on where you are.

Get the car to a trusted tyre place and get it sorted. You are asking for trouble if you carry on.

Read your manual its all in there.

Its why I always have a spare wheel.

Any - Tyre goo - focussed

There seems to be very little of any mention of plugging kits for emergency get-you-going tyre repair following a puncture.

The two types - the "doughnut" type and the "string" repair kit.

Both are a valid, practical and effective method of plugging a hole in a tubeless tyre.

Most punctures over my driving career have been down to, nails, bolts, screws, and pop rivet shanks in the rear tyres.

The front tyre throws the object up and the rear tyre collects it so it seems.

I carry a string repair kit on each motorcycle because if you can't repair a puncture you are stranded waiting for recovery.

The other dodge taught to me by the motorcyclist manager of a national tyre depot was to carry a selection of large countersunk self-tapping screws and a tube of rubber solution. Pull the nail out of the puncture, put rubber solution on the suitably sized screw, drive it into the hole until it's under flush, inflate the tyre with your carry on board CO2 capsules and on your way to get to the next garage with an airline, then inflate to the correct pressure.

(The CO2 capsules are the standard 12 gramme sparklets threaded type included in motorcycle puncture repair kits - use two for a bike tyre - four for a car tyre they cost about £4 for a box of ten)

This dodge got me home 150 miles once, still held up for a week until I could get a new tyre of the correct size.

Any - Tyre goo - nick62

Once had a 4" packing case nail go through the middle and then out of the sidewall on a week old Avon Roadrunner back tyre on my 400/4 Honda, (I guess around 1979). It still had the "hero" nobbles on it!

Almost cried when the local tyre supplier refused to vulcanise it (even though it had an inner-tube). A 410 H 18 Roadrunner was the best part of a weeks wages (apprentice) back then!

Edited by nick62 on 20/03/2021 at 21:24

Any - Tyre goo - skidpan

There seems to be very little of any mention of plugging kits for emergency get-you-going tyre repair following a puncture.

The two types - the "doughnut" type and the "string" repair kit.

Both are a valid, practical and effective method of plugging a hole in a tubeless tyre.

Have read about these in the past and considered buying some for the Caterham but as you say they seem to be more popular with motorcyclists probably because its easier to identify and then access the offending object with no need to take the wheel off. It would be easier on the Caterham than any "normal" road car but even on that to avoid the risk of death doing an offside puncture repair you would still need to take the wheel to a place of safety and then pump the tyre back up and I have yet to find a reliable electric pump that does not burn out before a tyre is inflated.

Will stick to the Holts can of glue that repairs and inflates a tyre. I accept the tyre will be gash after (at £50 a tyre its not the end of the world) but unless its a slash or damaged side wall should get me home. Then its recovery.

Any - Tyre goo - focussed

"Will stick to the Holts can of glue that repairs and inflates a tyre. I accept the tyre will be gash after (at £50 a tyre its not the end of the world) but unless its a slash or damaged side wall should get me home. Then its recovery."

I had to use a can of that very stuff on a wet evening years ago, it worked and got the car back home about 10 miles. Took it to my usual tyre place next day and got the sharp intake of breath treatment. "We can't repair that it damages the tyre" etc. I got them to take the wheel off and remove the tyre which had a small nail through the centre of the tread then took the tyre out to the yard and washed the tyre out with the hose - the stuff is water soluble. Then asked them to inspect it and repair it which they grudgingly did with a mushroom plug but refused to warrant the repair. It held up ok for a year or so after that.

The reason for carrying the motorcycle plugging kits with the co2 bulbs is there isn't room on a bike for bottles of tyre sealant or a compressor.

All BMW bikes come with a kit as standard usually stowed under the seat.

www.bmw-motorrad-bohling.com/fr/bmw-set-de-reparat...E

Any - Tyre goo - edlithgow

Used the string things a lot on my Sierra DOHC here in Taiwan, which seemed to pick up a lot of nails, Never had one fail.

I have a kit (and a bicycle pump, CO2 bulb inflator, and a USB chargeable pump) for the Skywing but have not so far needed to use it. Narrower tyres, which I suppose are statistically less likely to pick up ironmongery.

It MAY also be relevant that I dont fail so many students these days (fewer, smaller, and better classes) and dont generally park on campus.

Mildly surprised the string things are popular with motorcyclists, though. The "ÿour only contact with the road" jive is only true with them until something goes wrong.

Any - Tyre goo - focussed

"Mildly surprised the string things are popular with motorcyclists, though"

Quite simply either the doughnut or string repair solution is the only thing between you getting home or to a tyre shop to repair or replace the tyre, or waiting for recovery.

You have no chance of pushing a big bike -they are just too heavy, especially with a flat tyre, so it's the only realistic option.

Properly done, a plugging repair is pretty reliable until you can get a new tyre.

Any - Tyre goo - Mike H

When we took delivery of our new Honda about 20 months ago, the owner of the garage pointed out the goo, but said that if we ever did get a puncture locally not to use it but give them a call so that they could recover us and repair the tyre, because it rendered the tyre unable to be repaired.

Any - Tyre goo - focussed

When we took delivery of our new Honda about 20 months ago, the owner of the garage pointed out the goo, but said that if we ever did get a puncture locally not to use it but give them a call so that they could recover us and repair the tyre, because it rendered the tyre unable to be repaired.

See in one of my posts above re repairing after using puncture sealant.

Any - Tyre goo - edlithgow

Saw a tyre inflation attachment for a CO2 fire extinguisher in use on the Andrew SPW 4X4 Youtube channel, That ought to be pretty effective for re-inflation.

I suppose a CO2 extinguisher would be fairly expensive, but if you are doing ship-of-the-desert stylee overlanding, where the vehicle is your means of survival, you won't be inclined to skimp, plus I'd guess such vehicles aren't/can't be insured for full replacement cost.

Plumbed to the intake, it might also be a means of stopping diesel engine sump eating runaway, if that was felt to be a risk.