Flat tire question

**mikey177** · April 16th, 2004 01:32 PM

If all the air is released from your tire, do you have to have it mounted again, or is it all right to just inflate it yourself using a footpump?

I'm trying to determine why the air keeps leaking out of my tires. After parking it overnight (last Tuesday), I discovered a flat in my left front tire, so I re-inflated it. The next morning, it was my left rear tire that was flat. Then last night, I went to White Plains and when I was about to go home, both my left side wheels were flat! I managed to re-inflate them, but I could feel the air slowly seeping out from an area of the rim --there were no apparent punctures on the tires.

Do I need to have them remounted, or do I need new tires???

**ghosthunter** · April 16th, 2004 01:56 PM

have your tires checked at your trusted suki vucanizing shop. You could have a slow leak on the sidewall of the tire or between the tire rim and mags. Wheel damage could be the culprit.

**kuljaw** · April 16th, 2004 02:24 PM

hapenned to me...a pinhole in the rubber, and also a hairline crack in my mags.......

**ian_rex** · April 16th, 2004 03:04 PM

my advice is, have your tires replaced- ASAP. or at least try to have it checked. also check the air valve, might be the problem. the last time it happened to me, it turned out to be a blessing in disguise. if i had had a flat tire i wouldn't have discovered my torn axle boots. though it was a separate incident, if hadn't had a flat tire i wouldn't have known that i have to replace something very important.

**Ungas** · April 16th, 2004 03:20 PM

If those are new purchased tires, air valves should always be replaced at the same time.

How flat did it went? As in flat out? As long as those tires are not moved from its original position no need to remount. But if you did turn the steering wheel even just a bit to either side, remounting and rebalancing is required. Check air valves for leaks, and tire lips for any visible damages. Or your mags may have microholes the air seeps out thru it. I used to have that same problem until I bought another set of wheels which turned out that my old set had production damaged micorpore holes.

**mikey177** · April 16th, 2004 05:05 PM

Thanks to all those who responded to my question.

I just got back from the tire shop, and what the technician found really made my blood boil. You see, my initial hunch was that someone was letting the air out of my tires on purpose --I mean, how probable is it to have two separate totally flat flats for different tires on consecutive days?

Anyway, the technician found two deliberately inflicted hair-thin cuts (each about 2mm long) on the side walls of my two driver-side tires.

This is the reason I could feel the air gushing out of the tires near the rim, but I couldn't locate the source of the leak. This is also the reason the tires took a slow time to let all their air out, as opposed to if there was a big puncture. I never would have seen the cuts if the tech hadn't dipped the wheel in water and pointed to where the air was rushing out.

Mods, could you please move this thread to Goonsquad HQ if you feel its appropriate. I admit that I don't have a garage and that I am forced to park my car in front of our apartment. But for someone to intentionally cut the side wall of a tire --aaaarrrggh!!! reckless endangerment of life na yan! I mean, I regularly drive along NLEX, and if I hadn't paid attention to the problem, I could have had a nasty blow out.

This cowardly deed happened in the Kamuning area, so Kamuning Tsikoteers better pay extra attention to their vehicles at night. I am a quiet, peaceful person and I don't have any known enemies,so I am ruling out personal grudges at this time.

If he is a prankster, I hope I never catch him, because if I do, I'll show him what a real cut looks like, many times over.