Tires are so wasteful

[Romulas]

I have a screw in my tire, and it's too close to the sidewall to be patched. So I'm supposed to throw away a perfectly good tire that had another 20k miles of life on it.

But then you're not supposed to just replace one tire. Because now you have uneven tread, so you're actually supposed to replace all your tires at once. Although the more honest tire shops will at least tell you that you can get away with only replacing 2 at a time, both front or both rear, but never just 1 tire at a time.

So because of 1 screw I have to at least throw away 2 good tires?

Seems super wasteful to me. If we were back in the days when they used inner tubes then you could keep your tires until they wear out. Just replace the tubes.

What kind of car is it?

Sounds like the tire guy wants to sell you a new tire. Plug the tire yourself and see if it holds. I have had to double plug sidewalls multiple times and they've always help up.

Go on youtube and figure it out. I've done it on shit tires, huge off road truck tires and $1k a piece racing tires.

 

[Romulas]

But the Internet is full of people saying they use those plugs and they last for the life of the tire.

My wife has had a double plug in the side of her Lexus GX460 for 5 years/40k miles. I'll send a pic if you want...

I've had maybe 1 in 25 or so plugs I've put in give me problems and leak but you notice it right away and redo it or use two plugs and rubber cement and then it's fine.

Having a plug kit in the trunk with a small air pump has saved me dozens of times. All my cars have them.

An older dude named Nick in the neighborhood showed my father when I was a kid and he flat tire. I say a prayer to Saint Nick every time a plug saves the day!

 

[Osculater]

Buy a used tire and problem solved

 

[Osculater]

Just buy a tire plug kit on Amazon or from harbor freight and plug it yourself after you've plugged it over inflate the tire about 5psi and spray a soap/water solution and check for leaks (bubbles) after that drop a little rubber cement onto the plugged area and deflate the tire to the proper psi and drive around for 10-15min and check again for any leaks either way repeat the sealing process i explained above and the tire should be leak free

Until the tire blows up while he's driving hahahaa

 

[Osculater]

Look for a used tire with similar tread remaining as your other 3, just to get you by until they all need replacing

Smrt!

 

[mozfonky]

What kind of car is it?

Sounds like the tire guy wants to sell you a new tire. Plug the tire yourself and see if it holds. I have had to double plug sidewalls multiple times and they've always help up.

Go on youtube and figure it out. I've done it on shit tires, huge off road truck tires and $1k a piece racing tires.

ya, the sidewall thing is just a technicality for the tire folks, they just aren't legally supposed to fix them. I suppose maybe a blowout is the reason but even a blowout, I've had a few and they were never dangerous in my case but I'm almost always driving pretty carefully and attentively, not with one hand on the wheel or whatever but I've never had a blowout make me drive crazy, so, I dunno.

 

[DragRacer]

Exactly.
What do you think the tire store does with the 3 perfectly good tires that would be removed from OP’s vehicle if he goes ahead and buys all 4 new?
They sell them to used tire stores to provide a low cost option for people who only need one or two tires.

Smrt!

 

[Osculater]

Exactly.
What do you think the tire store does with the 3 perfectly good tires that would be removed from OP’s vehicle if he goes ahead and buys all 4 new?
They sell them to used tire stores to provide a low cost option for people who only need one or two tires.

 

[mozfonky]

Exactly.
What do you think the tire store does with the 3 perfectly good tires that would be removed from OP’s vehicle if he goes ahead and buys all 4 new?
They sell them to used tire stores to provide a low cost option for people who only need one or two tires.

yup, that's where the used tires come from. Also, lots of people change all four tires well before they have to, just out of ignorance or anxiety but that's where they go. In fact, the last time I had a blowout, i got a used one for 75 bucks and it had the most tread wear I've ever had on a used tire that I've bought. I probably would have just gotten another if I'd known they were going to put a bald replacement, basically on it's last legs, on my car.

Costco treats their customers really good in my area, they'll change a tire for free, just making you pay tax but you have to be a member.

 

[Ezekiel 25:17]

You would have thought that after well over a century, they would have created at least a more durable or longer lasting form of tire. Then again, tire companies would start going out of business so that wouldnt be good for greedy companies.

 

[mozfonky]

You would have thought that after well over a century, they would have created at least a more durable or longer lasting form of tire. Then again, tire companies would start going out of business so that wouldnt be good for greedy companies.

that's just capitalism in all it's ugliness, so many things could be done differently but that would hurt the money flow. I remember when I was a teen, working with a landscaper and he said he wouldn't kill the blackberry bushes because that would take away future work, we'd trim them down to the nub and I guess his customers were none the wiser.

 

[Thepaintbucket]

For the most part unless your other three wheels are significantly worn down, the difference is usually negligible. Even if you have AWD or a sports car with staggered Wheels

 

[Get To Da Choppa]

 

[Zyklon R]

Until the tire blows up while he's driving hahahaa

nodog.jpg

 

[ricc505]

I used to be an emergency roadside technician I've plugged many tires including my own using the method I explained and I've never had any issue

I've plugged hundred tires at least. Keep a nice plug kit in my truck. Metal handled ream and plug tool. Pliers for puncturing object removal and a pump to to off tire. My truck has kevlar belted tires and nothing has gotten through, I keep it to help others. I've been plugging tires since high school and I've never had one go bad and I've pulled some large bolts and mystery objects out. Just pulled a broken off pliers handle from wife's explorer plugged it and I have nothing but confidence it's ok

 

[PG29 red0 Jr]

Tires and gasoline are the number one expenses in my life.

I probably use 75k plus of tires and fuel a year.

 

[Fedorgasm]

Just buy a tire plug kit on Amazon or from harbor freight and plug it yourself after you've plugged it over inflate the tire about 5psi and spray a soap/water solution and check for leaks (bubbles) after that drop a little rubber cement onto the plugged area and deflate the tire to the proper psi and drive around for 10-15min and check again for any leaks either way repeat the sealing process i explained above and the tire should be leak free

So you're gonna laugh at my noob behavior but I used the harbor freight plugs, and when I was pushing the plug into the hole, it wouldn't go in. So I start pushing really hard and then finally it lets go and suddenly all goes in at once, but way too far. So the entire plug is inside the tire.

So I get a second plug and try again, same thing happened! Felt like a dummy, so the third time I used a little piece of wood next to the handle so I would bang my knuckles on the wood, but at least it would stop me from pushing the plug in too far.

It worked. But man they should make that pushing tool shorter to stop idiots like me from shoving plugs all the way in.

 

[Zyklon R]

So you're gonna laugh at my noob behavior but I used the harbor freight plugs, and when I was pushing the plug into the hole, it wouldn't go in. So I start pushing really hard and then finally it lets go and suddenly all goes in at once, but way too far. So the entire plug is inside the tire.

So I get a second plug and try again, same thing happened! Felt like a dummy, so the third time I used a little piece of wood next to the handle so I would bang my knuckles on the wood, but at least it would stop me from pushing the plug in too far.

It worked. But man they should make that pushing tool shorter to stop idiots like me from shoving plugs all the way in.

It takes practice my brother it's rare to get it right the first time I've pushed many plugs into the tire when I first started so did you follow the procedure I outlined how did you make out

 

[Zyklon R]

Tires and gasoline are the number one expenses in my life.

I probably use 75k plus of tires and fuel a year.

Do you work in transportation or something

 

[Streeter]

Makes good multch