Hey all

 

Rear tire is loosing air. Upon inspection I spotted a small nail buried in the middle area (not side walls).

Was going to take it to local tyre place but they closed for 2 weeks. Tire still has plenty of life in it.

Can any one recommend a decent tyre repair system other than the foam/sealer stuff which is dreadful. I was thinking one of the old skool plug kits but wanted to get some recommendations.

 

Thanks

I have seen these recommended on this forum: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/373815285566 although I haven't used them myself yet.

I've used these (not on my own car) and it has stopped the leak. Meant to be a temporary measure but some people have used and left them in without issue. 
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0C6QFGN7S?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_fed_asin_title

6 hours ago, pcaouolte said:

I have seen these recommended on this forum: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/373815285566 although I haven't used them myself yet.

 

6 hours ago, Frembrit said:

I've used these (not on my own car) and it has stopped the leak. Meant to be a temporary measure but some people have used and left them in without issue. 
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0C6QFGN7S?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_fed_asin_title

Thanks fellas, I will pick up a set of each for the toolbox 👍

On 10/15/2025 at 10:24 AM, pcaouolte said:

I have seen these recommended on this forum: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/373815285566 although I haven't used them myself yet.

Sonic,

Some years ago, in the same situation as you, I purchased a repair kit as above.

Since then I have home repaired several of my tyres very successfully this way.

Just a few notes. Firstly when you rasp the leak hole out it does require a fair amount of elbow grease.

Then when inserting the black cord type plug, it does need a lot of effort to push it through.

Second, on one leak I measured up the position of the hole, compared it with the tread width and determined that it was in the safe area for a repair. I took it to my local tyre shop, the fitter took one quick look (no measurement) and declared that I needed a new tyre which he could fit there and then. No thanks and did the repair safely at home myself.

ScaniaPBman.

 

22 minutes ago, ScaniaPBman said:

Sonic,

Some years ago, in the same situation as you, I purchased a repair kit as above.

Since then I have home repaired several of my tyres very successfully this way.

Just a few notes. Firstly when you rasp the leak hole out it does require a fair amount of elbow grease.

Then when inserting the black cord type plug, it does need a lot of effort to push it through.

Second, on one leak I measured up the position of the hole, compared it with the tread width and determined that it was in the safe area for a repair. I took it to my local tyre shop, the fitter took one quick look (no measurement) and declared that I needed a new tyre which he could fit there and then. No thanks and did the repair safely at home myself.

ScaniaPBman.

 

Thanks for the reply. Hoping to get it done this evening. Will update when complete. Thanks for the tips 👍

I may be a bit late but echo the usefulness of the string kits (providing it's on the central section of the tread).
I don't know about the screw plug but once the string is inside and twisted, there's no way it's coming out IMHO whereas the tapered plugs may not hold as well?
Only thing I'd add is to coat the string with rubber solution which helps it o go in and should improved adhesion.

11 hours ago, Shearers said:

I may be a bit late but echo the usefulness of the string kits (providing it's on the central section of the tread).
I don't know about the screw plug but once the string is inside and twisted, there's no way it's coming out IMHO whereas the tapered plugs may not hold as well?
Only thing I'd add is to coat the string with rubber solution which helps it o go in and should improved adhesion.

Thanks for input. Any recommendations on the rubber solution to use?

4 hours ago, sonic113 said:

Thanks for input. Any recommendations on the rubber solution to use?

Any standard bike or other puncture repair stuff such as possibly:
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/205739717706
I'd suspect each tube would be single use as, once opened, they often dry up?

7 hours ago, sonic113 said:

Thanks for input. Any recommendations on the rubber solution to use?

You get a Tube of the stuff with the Kit. Once opened it does have a shelf life though.

I tried to reuse it after it had been opened for several years in the back of my car and it had dried up so I just bought a new Kit for convenience because I couldn't find the Bike stuff locally.

Back in the 90's we saw a woman panicking by the roadside..... she'd got a puncture, I went over to help and get the spare on, she then said ''the spare is on the car as my husband got a puncture a few months back'' ......I looked at her flat tyre in the boot which had big bent screw in it, close by was B&Q, so we nipped into the shop where I purchased Bostik super glue and a pack of screws and a screwdriver!!

I removed the bent screw out the tyre and pumped super glue into the hole then quickly screwed in a fresh wider screw until it was flush to the tyre, opening up the side of the rubber around the screw, then poured even more super glue down the side of the screw, left it for a few minutes then got my electric tyre pump out our car, repumped the tyre up and checked for leaks, it was fine, so swapped the tyres over and got her on her way, told her to either go home or go to a tyre garage, she said she'll go home and let the husband deal with it.

I followed her home just in case and watched her park up, was just about to give her the thumbs up then drive off but she waved her arms frantically, she said do you drink whiskey! she nipped in the house and gave me a huge bottle of Glenfiddich, she said this is my husbands fault I've ended up like this so I'm giving you his whiskey as a thank-you and he can go to hell if he curses me.

People who travel abroad must be aware that some countries do not allow tyres to be repaired this way.

For example Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands only allow for tyres to be professionally repaired from the inside using methods that are approved by the tyre manufacturer. Most of these repair kits are only allowed as an emergency measure. 

It is not only checked during the periodic national MOT equivalent but also during roadside technical vehicle inspections performed by the authorities. Germany does generally have the strictest regulations regarding tyre repairs. Worst case the car insurance can even be declared invalid after an accident.

For emergency situations I always carry a mushroom repair kit in my car.

These mushroom plugs are installed from the outside using the installation tool but seal from the inside without any glue. Works great and recently saved me from having to install the space saver.