So i've had my z now for a week and love every minute of it. Today turned out to be a very bad day though. Its about 4pm and i'm driving back to the office and i notice that yellow symbol of the tire being flat....iM like wtf? Then i look at the Psi and its at 5, i quickly pull over and by the time i put the parking brake on its at 0. So i get out (in the pouring rain) and notice a 5 inch bolt wedged in the tread. Great. Luckly i was a block from a pep boys. After taking the tire off in the pouring rain and rolling it to pepboys i find out the hole can't be plugged b/c inside the tire was two big nuts that were screwed onto the bolt. The hole was so big i could fit my finger in it. Now i have an appointment to get my tire changed tomorrow and its going to cost $350. Sucks...not only did i have to drive 45mph for an hour home but now my car looks so rediculous with the donut on it. I'm about to buy a beater in a week.....i have to get it sooon

 

Not only is it a bummer, but you have to lay out 350 besides! Ouch!! These things happen. ZRA.

 

Yea ....i'm kinda happy i have to get a new tire though, b/c i'm not sure i trust a plugged tire above 100mph. I dunno, just incase i decide to go that fast.

 

I once did 125 MPH with new tires on a 59 Thunderbird Conv. No way would I even think of going that fast on a plug! Your better off with a new one. ZRA

 

$350 for one tire?!?!?! I wouldn't pay for more than $250 installed. You might want to check tires.com and/or tirerack.com

And also, NO ONE should be "plugging" their tires. It's not safe. The correct way is to take the entire tire off the wheel and patch it from the inside. If you get your tires from tires.com, you get free tire patching for the life of the tire and free wheel balancing too.

 

i've had two screws in the same tire in the last 3 weeks, good thing for those tire pressure sensors. i plugged them both so i won't be doing any high speed driving.... guess i'll be waiting for bigger rims before shelling out more dough for a tire that will be replaced anyway

 

I had my left rear replaced for similar damage. The final cost? $284 plus damage to my Track wheel and my rear bumper, which took something like 7 trips to get fixed properly.

And yes, TPS rocks.

Regarding the integrity of a patched tire, most places that install "plug-patches" will tell you that they will outlast the tire. The tire itself usually isn't structurally compromised because its' strength isn't derived from the rubber that's been penetrated, and while the belts may be displaced, they're *usually* not cut

 

how much is an avg Z tire (17 inch)?

 

Well, it really depends on where you buy it, but I got mine through the dealership (I was about a mile from the them when it happened). My wheels are 18's but I think the cost is pretty similar. During a normal install, I would never buy my tires from the dealer. Shop around.

 

Uhhh, what kind of tire? You can get Futura's for around $160-180 apiece for a 245/40/18. Trust me, I used to work for Pep Boys as an installer, so I've replaced/patched my fair share of tires (I needed a 2nd mindless job).

 

ITs a bridgestone potenza RE 040. I don't like to mix and match tires and that is what came with the car. I called two different places and they would replace the tire for $300 with labor but they can't get the tire until friday. My job requires me to do a lot of sales calls where i drive on the turnpike and parkway. I can't drive a whole day on a donut doing 50mph. So i'm stuck gettting screwed for 350 from the dealer....which i'm leaving to now. Hopefully today will turn out better than yesterday hah

 

Guess that's the "price we pay" for owning a Z . I'm used to paying $350 for a set of 4 tires!