Minor tire repairs - nail in tread

Discussion in 'Cooper SE' started by GvilleGuy, May 12, 2021.

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  1. GvilleGuy

    GvilleGuy Well-Known Member

    Tonight I went for a drive and got a low tire pressure warning. Unfortunately, it did not indicate which tire. I guess our TPMS is not quite good enough for that kind of data. The message basically said 'you are safe to drive up to 80 mph but you have low pressure. Get it checked'. That message also showed up in the app.

    I got home and checked - my rear driver side was at 28 pounds instead of 35. Crap. So I turned on my phone flashlight, and, sure, enough, I see a small silver nail head embedded in almost the middle of the tread (not near the sidewall, thankfully). I have a compressor and pumped it back up and will check it again in a few hours to see how fast it is leaking. 1,000 miles on the tire.

    Do you think I am safe with going to a (closer to home) tire repair place such as Firestone or Discount Tire for a patch, or should I be lugging it across town to the dealer for a longer wait?
     
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  3. Puppethead

    Puppethead Well-Known Member

    It sure should say which tire is low, did you go into the tire pressure display where it shows each tire?

    I'd say a plug is a plug, you should be fine getting it fixed anywhere. Unless it'd be covered under warranty.
     
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  4. GvilleGuy

    GvilleGuy Well-Known Member

    When I check it again later I will go into the calibration screen to see what it shows. But I do not believe it showed which tire on the main display when the message popped up. My wife was driving, so I am not sure what displayed in the HUD.
     
  5. Newkirk

    Newkirk Active Member

    Sorry to hear that. Don't new tires come with a warranty? I would check with the dealer first.
     
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  6. GvilleGuy

    GvilleGuy Well-Known Member

    Overnight I lost 3 pounds of pressure, so the nail has been in the tire 2 or 3 days. Slow leak. I dropped it at a tire place this morning which is very close to my house (I use them for all of my ICE tire stuff). It will be a $30 patch unless they find something weird. We have some obligations this weekend and I needed a quick repair with gas being scarce. The one time my EV can really shine to show its value over ICE, and it gets a flat! :)

    I wish the TPMS would display actual current tire pressures, but it is not capable of doing so (2022 manual page 153). It is a speed differential system, and "the system does not measure the actual inflation pressure in the tires". I went into the TPMS screen last night and all inflation values were blank. After I get the car back this morning, I will double check the inflation pressures, get them set like I want, and re-run the calibration.
     
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  8. Chicago

    Chicago Member

    That is what I thought as well after reading the 2022 manual. Someone said they had actual tire by tire readings. ('22 SE appears Miata ND like, not S550 Mustang type.)

    Good idea to patch and not plug--plugs are only for emergency repairs and once done, most shops will not pull the plug and patch the tire.
     
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  9. insightman

    insightman Well-Known Member Subscriber

    I don't get it. What are those expensive MINI TPMS sensors doing if not measuring tire pressure? Our Clarity uses wheel-speed differential readings to monitor tire pressure--there are no TPMS sensors in its wheels. Like the MINI TPMS system, the Clarity cannot identify which wheel is spinning at a different rate due to the low tire pressure--another mystery to me.
     
  10. GvilleGuy

    GvilleGuy Well-Known Member

    I don't get it, either. I re-calibrated a little while ago as I drove back to the tire place to reclaim my Mini brand valve stem cap. They put a generic plastic cap back on the wheel! The guy apologized, at least. Anyway, I have recalibrated and will go back in that screen later to see if it has blank values again.

    I inflated to 38 / 35, and it estimated a little less. But close enough for me.

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  11. Puppethead

    Puppethead Well-Known Member

    Glad to hear you're up and running again. I know from personal experience how frustrating a leak is. And it is showing the pressure in each tire, which is good.
     
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  13. GvilleGuy

    GvilleGuy Well-Known Member

    The part I did not expect is that is the only time it will show the pressure. Next time you go in the values are blank and you have to calibrate again to see values.
     
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  14. Puppethead

    Puppethead Well-Known Member

    That's not my experience, I hope they didn't change the software. You may have to drive around for a mile or so, but it shouldn't need resetting.
     
  15. chrunck

    chrunck Well-Known Member

    That's how my wife's 2019 Clubman is. And you have to drive for a WHILE, so it's not terribly useful.

    Edit: wait, it might be the oil level that takes an eternity. I think the tire pressure is more reasonable.
     
  16. GvilleGuy

    GvilleGuy Well-Known Member

    Perhaps they changed things. The way mine is working, you can calibrate tire pressure and see the values (which is a 5 to 10 minute drive). Go back in the screen later and the values are blank and not displayed.
     
  17. Puppethead

    Puppethead Well-Known Member

    I tested this today, brought up the tire pressure display and it showed no values, told me to drive. I drove about 500 feet and it showed the tire pressures, no resetting necessary.
     
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  18. bmartinez028

    bmartinez028 Active Member

    The tire pressure values appear after about a mile or so on our 22.
     
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  19. insightman

    insightman Well-Known Member Subscriber

    Next question (too lazy to answer for myself): how accurate are the tire pressure read-outs?
     
  20. Puppethead

    Puppethead Well-Known Member

    My experiments, using a digital inflator that auto shuts off at set pressure, show within 1 psi of what I inflated my tires to.
     
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  21. GvilleGuy

    GvilleGuy Well-Known Member

    My readings were within 1 to 2 psi compared to my manual gauge.
     
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  22. Recoil45

    Recoil45 Active Member

    Pressure sensors go into sleep mode when no movement is detected. That's how they get the batteries to last for 7+ years. When the car has been parked a while and the sensors are sleeping, it would be irresponsible to report the last known pressure when you get in the car. It's not until the sensors wake from movement and report new data that it is displayed.
     
  23. TripleD

    TripleD Active Member

    Well found this thread about TPMS. Just had a low warning and checked pressure. A little low but not as much as indicated by the display. Pumped up to 38/35 Front/rear and and then did reset and drove until it displayed 35/32 so 3 pounds less than what my gauge showed.
    Which do I trust? TPMS or my dial gauge? Gvilleguy mentioned his was off by 1-2 pounds. Do I just ignore it?
     

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