rLx77

I have falken's 512's with about 9,000 miles on them. About 2 months ago, I started noticing that my rear left tire would lose air pressure at a faster rate than my other tires. For example, I would fill up my tires to 33 in front, and 31 in the rear. When I check my tire pressure in 2 weeks, the rear left tire would be at 27 or 28, with the other three tires very close to the pressure I filled them to originally. There's no way that only one tire would drop 3 to 4 psi in two weeks with the other tires remaining the same.

My question is: how does one repair the tire? My garage can repair punctures/leaky tires (so they say), but how do they find where the leak is? Also, how do they do it (ie, patch it up, glue, etc)? What is the cost generally?

I don't want to and can't really afford to spend more money on new tires, since these are relatively new. Thanks guys, I'm looking forward to hearing your responses before I do anything. Although I've been pumping air on a weekly basis to the back left tire, and it's getting tedious.

NmexMAX

iTrader: (22)

Put it in water and follow the bubbles. Either have your garage do it, or do it yourslef they sell kits. Don't use the fix a flat stuff because then if you ever get a flat in again or if the leak persists you cannot fix it anymore.

bigEL

If you got a puncture in your sidewall, generally nothing can be done about it. If it is in the tread, they usually plug it by jamming a rubber strip into the hole. I may be wrong, but I don't think they use any glue to hold it. You can also find kits in the store if you want to do it yourself. But it usually doesn't cost much to have it done professionally ($20?), but mine never held up. The leak would return intermittently, especially in the winter. But it is better than paying for a new tire and balance/mount if you are on a budget. Good luck.

maximalex

iTrader: (1)

There are a ton of tire repair stores in NYC. They don't charge much for patch jobs. Just take it to them and see if they can find the leak & patch it. If it's the sidewall or something beyond repair they will tell you. About 2 weeks ago my buddy had a flat (ran over a nail) and they found it, pulled it and patched it. Time = 10 minutes, cost = $7.