Problem with tire

hockeyman

hockeyman

Original poster
Member
Aug 26, 2012
726
I've had a very slow leak on the rear diver's side tire. The leak wasn't really noticeable during the summer, but now that the temps are going down again, the problem is back. During temps below 60°F, I lose about 10 psi per day.

Last March, I took it to a local PepBoys (I know, mistake #1). The guy removed the tire and did whatever to look around for a leak, but found nothing. I didn't have an issue over the summer, so I forgot about it. Well, it's back again.

With the wheel still mounted, I sprayed the whole tire down with a spraybottle with water and some dishwashing soap and finally found where the leak is coming from. It's leaking very slowly on the inner bead, where the tire meets the rim. I guess it only leaks there when there's weight/load on the tire.

Question is:
Can a tire shop remove the tire and put some sort of sealant around the bead and re-install? Or will I have to start looking for a replacement?
The tires I have are Toyo Open Country A20's (245-65-17), and have about 75% tread remaining on all of them. I would hate to replace them if it's not really necessary.

Thanks in advance :biggrin:
 
HARDTRAILZ

HARDTRAILZ

Moderator
Nov 18, 2011
49,665
They can use glue/sealant, whatever you want to call it if it is a minor leak, I have done it a few times over the years. Works good, but I would want to see the damage to bead when they break it down.
 
tbyoda

tbyoda

Member
Apr 19, 2013
187
hockeyman said:
It's leaking very slowly on the inner bead, where the tire meets the rim. I guess it only leaks there when there's weight/load on the tire.
Click to expand...
Since you live in Philly, PA and have alloy rims what I believe is happening is the rim is pitted from salt or buildup, near the bead. I have seen this a bunch of times in the past on my cars, I hate alloy rims for this reason. I live in NY. What most shops do is use the sealant as a norm up hear because of the pitting and the ease of getting good seal. Most also fail to clean the rims next tire change to remove the old sealant because laziness. The sealant hardness and builds up over time, you need to tell them to take a wire wheel brush to the rims inside edge to clean all old sealant off. I did this myself to two of problematic rims and was able to seal them with just glass cleaner. The wire wheel does two thing clean all the old sealant off and smooths out any pitting or eliminates it. IMHO if the rims is in good condition you should not need any sealant other than water. Make sure they don't use a grinding wheel when cleaning the rim.
 
Playsinsnow

Playsinsnow

Member
Nov 17, 2012
9,727
I had the same problem driver front after my first year of flying through the mountains out west. Look at the lip of the rim with tire off, there may be some dirt build up preventing a good seal. Shop cleaned it up real good with a brush. Did they confirm your inner rim lip was clean?
 
HARDTRAILZ

HARDTRAILZ

Moderator
Nov 18, 2011
49,665
CaptainXL said:
I wouldn't run with slime in the tire for very long. It really is only an emergency type product. In the mean time the rim and bead needs to be looked at. Make sure to remind whoever looks at your tire that it has slime in it.
Click to expand...

Agreed. SLime it a temporary fix, not a true solution to the issue. Stuff is nasty. If I ever have to use it, I make sure to get it back out of the tire ASAP.
 
hockeyman

hockeyman

Original poster
Member
Aug 26, 2012
726
I have a can of Slime in the back of my Envoy, but it's only there for an emergency only. As mentioned, it's not going to used as a permanent solution. I'm sure it would probably work, but I'd rather have the repair done correctly. Kind of a "Peace-of-Mind" type thing for me...

Thank you for the replies!
I am going to a different tire shop today to see how much they charge for removal/re-installation. I really didn't see too much corrosion around the lip, but I do know that it could be hidden too. I will ask that they clean the lip up a bit before mounting the tire again.

Again, thank you for all of the help and suggestions!! :thumbsup:
 
hockeyman

hockeyman

Original poster
Member
Aug 26, 2012
726
Just got home from the tire shop (National Tire & Battery). They removed the tire and said that there was some minor corrosion around the lip that may have been causing the leak, so they cleaned, re-installed, balanced and put a new stem in the rim. All for $16. Just to be safe though, I'm going to take my Envoy back to them later this week to have the rest of the tires done. I don't want to second-guess the air pressure in my tires...or their safety.
 
Playsinsnow

Playsinsnow

Member
Nov 17, 2012
9,727
I would just set the tires and if the others don't fluctuate the same or less than the repaired rim I would stay at home and save your $48. I've never had the problem repeat yet myself 60k+miles afterwards. A reputable tire shop will clean and brush the lips for you when you install new tires. Sounds like you found one. :twocents:


I followed a service advisor at NTB for new tires for many years. Give the guy who wrote you the $16 bill your business again.
:thumbsup:
 
rcam81

rcam81

Member
Dec 3, 2011
209
Onsted, MI
I just had all 4 of my tires and wheels dismounted and resealed due to corrosion. The road salt that is used gets between the rim and tire and reeks havic on them. GM doesn't coat the inside of the rims anymore. The only way to stop the corrosion is to put bead sealer on the rims when installing new tires. Also if you have TPMS, do not use Slime, can of fix a flat, etc. It will screw up the pressure monitors.
 
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