Punctured RFT: Which brand can be repaired?
 

So the alarm sounds and the warning is displayed - do not exceed 50mph. After much cursing I have to come to terms with the nail protruding from the middle of the the rear tyre and off to the dealer I slowly go.

I am reliable informed Bridgestone Dueller Sport RFT's cannot be repaired. My 315x35x20 tyre with less than 4000 miles is confined to the recyle bin. I then do a bit of searching around X5world and discover that had my car been fitted with Dunlops then the tyre could have been repaired. WTF!! I check the X5 parked next to mine on the dealers forecourt - Dunlops. I am p***ed off that I am now having to pay for a new tyre all because of pot luck regarding which brand of tyre my car was delivered with. If you are about to take delivery of a new X5 I would insist on RFT's that can be repaired.
I'm sure you would like to know which brand to ask for...

What I would like to ask for is some technical data on which RFT's can and cannot be repaired. I am not prepared to risk my family by driving a car with a repaired tyre that "should be OK" - hence my request for valid info. I need to be armed with some exact details before I continue my rant with BMW.

BTW: Thanks to BMW Customer Care for sorting me out with my dealers rental X5 as a loan car - but 7 days to get a new tyre is bloody ridiculous! The cost of lost rent is probably more than 4 new Dunlops!!!

do the runflat tires have that steel belt in them that the Michelin Diamarias tires used to have? it seems more people are getting flats with these runflats than they did on previous versions of the x5 without runflats.... who knows.

Can you actually repair a Dunlop RFT?

Well, can you replace the puctured run-flat with non-run-flat?

So in that case, 3 tires will be run-flat and 1 will not.

Is it possible?

I have been told by a reputable tire shop that they can be repaired if the tech is certified by the manufacturer. They were going to repair my Dunlops, but I have the Tire & Wheel protection so I just got a new tire.

My Bridgestone RFT was repaired by a certified repairer. Bridgestone publish a set of conditions for that repair to be permitted. Perhaps your tire did not meet those conditions? Also, I am not sure about your specific model of Bridgestone.

Essentially, if you drive on a RFT for any distance, with less than x psi, or if the puncture is on or near the sidewall, you need to buy a new one. If the tire has not been weakened by driving on it, and the dealer can determine that to his satisfaction (it is his liability he is worried about) then it is repaired with a combination plug/inside patch that looks like a mushroom (not sure of the real name).

In my case, with a Z4 with RFT, it was a minimum of 22 psi. My post with my experience fixing RFTs is on this site if you search.

I just got a new vehicle with RFTs, and did not buy the insurance. I expect to monitor any low pressure situations or flats, and expect to be able to fix them, subject to where the puncture is.

Denalio - which tire package do you have for Canada (if you don't mind me asking)?

> Well, can you replace the puctured run-flat with non-run-flat? So in that case, 3 tires will be run-flat and 1 will not. Is it possible?

Possible, but extremely ill-advised.

Due to the great difference in sidewall stiffness, the handling would probably degrade to the point it would be dangerous.

:iagree:

In general it is best to replace RFT, not repair them.

rft repair
 

I had my 20" Dunlop RFT puncture repiared. No problems after some 16k km.

Official Dunlop response on repairing their RFTs
 

I received this from Dunlop when trying to ascertain their postion on repairs. Looks fairly clear cut to me.

Attachment 20473

This part is why some tire centers will not repair Run Flats:

"· If the tyre has been run at low or zero pressure (with warning alarm active) for a long distance or at
too high speed. This can be identified through driver feedback, worn appearance of the external tyre
shoulder or upper sidewall."

Some places simply do not want to take the liability risk of relying upon "driver feedback," fixing the tire, and then having the fixed tire fail and cause an accident shortly thereafter, because it was run farther/faster than the driver said and there was internal damage to the sidewall. Other places are willing to take this risk, figuring the risk of an untruthful driver and internal sidewall damage that is not visible is low enough.

Finally got our X5 back after over 2 weeks waiting on a replacement Bridgestone 315x35x20 Run flat tyre.

My original request was for the dealer to replace all 4 with a tyre brand that they could source e.g. Dunlops but they responded that the Bridgestone is arriving within the week - they didn't say which week!

I was provided with the dealers rental X5 for the entire duration and BMW UK paid the dealer the rental fee for this period. At £770/week!! I reckon the dealer could have returned my car within 2 days had they opted to replace all 4 tyres. Average cost of a tyre would be £300, plus one happy customer back on the road.

In fairness BMW kept us on the road in an X5. Thing is I didn't pay to drive around in someone elses X5 and quite frankly it was embarrassing after a week never mind 2 weeks to have to tell people that I was still waiting on a new tyre. BMW also choose to ignore the technical info that could have seen the puncture repaired. Overall it has been a very dissappointing experience and it may not be over yet. I have not seen the car yet as I work away from home but I am informed that they have scratched the wheel rim replacing the tyre.

Am I being unreasonable to expect BMW to have the most up to date technical information on RFT technology (and the repairs thereof), for BMW to be able to replace a tyre within a reasonable time - I would suggest 48hrs as reasonable and for BMW to take more notice of customer satisfaction in after sales?

It's a great car but not such a great company.