gash in tire unrepairable?

I have a gash of about 1 inch long and it only goes down into the rubber. The gash is about 1/4th inch deep. Don't know how it happened but the gash is located on the outer sidewell near the rim part of the wheel.

I went to Firestone and the man behind the counter said I needed to replace the tire because things like that are unrepairable and dangerous to drive around with.

I am sure this guy knows what he's talking about but I had been under the impression that these little 2 dollar patch kits sold at Wal-Mart were made to repair things like this (put on the rubber cement, wipe it all off except a thin film, let it dry, apply patch) because they say "Radial patch kit" or something similiar.

Just wondering what folks think here about whether I should get a new tire.

Reply to
mZ
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Those kind of patch kits are intended for things like a nail-hole in the tread, not really a gash, and not in the sidewall (I'd be surprised if the instructions didn't prohibit using them on the sidewall).

Reply to
Robert Hancock

Reply to
Tony Hwang

No.. he shouldn't. He could be the guy driving right next to you who swerves into you when his tire blows out. Then who learned the hard lesson? Innocent lives are at stake. You obviously are willing to take the risk. I am not.

Get the tire replaced. Like Robert said, the patch kit is intended for a nail hole, possibly bigger, and in the tread, normally through the steel belt. Discount tire will not patch anything on the shoulder or the sidewall. I imagine it's not only because it's unsafe but they're restricted by their insurance.

-Bruce

Reply to
Bruce Chang

Problem is he may not get a lesson; my brother managed to pull a tire off the wheel doing some stupid shit in a Grand Am, then drove 3 miles on the rim to put on the spare. In the process, he took a number of large chunks out of the sidewall.

That tire lasted another 30,000 miles, until the tread wore down to steel belts and he replaced them.

One lucky SOB!

Reply to
Mike O'Malley

Yeah, I was at wal mart looking at a Douglas Touring tire rated for 80,000 miles and also I was looking at a Goodyear Viva 2 tire that only had maybe

60,000 miles and each is about $60. I asked the manager at the tire and lube counter which I should go with and she said the goodyear tire had more "problems" and i asked what she meant by that and she said they had more "returns" of that tire because of "separation". Can you believe that? Sounds like very unprofessional way to make a sale to a customer but if it's true, I do appreciate her honesty.
Reply to
mZ

Go to wal mart and take a look at these little kits and the visual instructions appear to be the patching of the gash of a tire's sidewell. There are no disclaimers of any kind that I saw on any of these $2 or so kits. I don't see what purpose they would have in doing anything of benefit to a nail hole in anything though because I doubt they can stop an air leak very well. Anyway, I'm convinced they are worthless for reparing a gash.

Reply to
mZ

I'm surprised that such a thing is sold... I would consider any gash or any sidewall damage to be unrepairable, not that it can't physically be done, but it sounds like asking for trouble to me. I'd replace the tire and just be done with it - tires are not something to mess around with.

nate

Reply to
Nate Nagel

I wouldn't risk repairing this sort of damage.

Is your life only worth the $50-100 that a new tire would probably cost?

Reply to
Larry Smith

She made more profit on the Douglas than the Goodyear. If they are getting returns they are probably buying blemished tires and selling...

Reply to
Qwack

We have no kind of idea what kind of gash the OP is talking about. It might be so minor that no danger was created by it. Apparently it does not leak and was being driven. The tire guy can only give one answer (new tire) because there is no "fix" for something like that.

Reply to
MaxAluminum

He said "one inch long and 1/4 inch deep". That gives us some idea of what the damage was. if he's able to see that it's a 1/4 inch deep, I'd suspect that it's not just a cut, but a gouge. Worse comes to worse, if I coudln't afford to spend the money, I'd put the tire on the rear and hope that it never fails. Even a take off tire would only cost $25 at Discount tire.

-Bruce

Reply to
Bruce Chang

According to the Rubber Manufacturer's Association,=20 "Serviceable Tire Injuries

Injuries larger than 1/4 inch must be referred to a full-service repair facility. No repairs to the sidewall of a tire should be made without consulting the tire manufacturer. Improper repairs can cause sudden tire failure.

Air loss due to punctures can ruin tires that might have been saved had they been removed in time for proper repair. Gradual air loss raises a tire's operating temperature. This can cause some of the components to separate, or damage the tire body in ways that create rapid or sudden air loss.

Such internal damage may not always be readily apparent and rapid loss of air may still occur despite later installation of a proper repair."

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Reply to
saeengineer

Alas, sidewall (or even at *edge* of the tread) cuts, punctures, gashes, etc. are the death of a tire. a small clean puncture in th emiddle of the tread can *sometimes* be repaired from the inside, if the tire was not damaged by being run flat, but often you are out of luck. A kit such as you describe (and a compressor) can be useful to get you around at low sppeeds fopr a day or two till you can return to civilization or the tire emporium of choice opens, but that's about it. I'd get a new tire (or a pair and use the other take off as a spare, depending on the tread left, the condition of the current spare, how long you plan to keep the car and how much money you have in your wallet lately). Sorry.

Reply to
The Masked Marvel

I used a $4 kit from a hardware store on a motorcycle inner tube gash about

1/4 inch long. It lasted a couple hundred KM. Because it was the tube it was impossible for it to "blow" so I had a lot of warning to pull over, no danger. If you buy the walmart kit you wont even make it out of the parking lot I bet. You need a new tire.
Reply to
aberrant

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