Services
Flat tire repair
Nail, screw or slow leak. Bring it to Westheimer at Winrock. We take the tire off the wheel, find the leak and tell you straight whether it can be fixed before any work starts.
Before you drive anywhere
If you have a flat right now
- Stop driving on it. A few blocks on a flat can ruin a tire that could have been saved.
- Do not count on a can of sealant or a roadside plug kit as the fix. Those are made to get you to a shop, not to stay in the tire.
- If you drove on it flat, do not pump it back up. The inside may be damaged, and the tire needs to be looked at before it holds pressure again.
- Put the spare on, or bring the tire and wheel in. If you can see the nail, leave it where it is so we can find the spot.
How a proper repair is done
The U.S. Tire Manufacturers Association publishes the repair standard the tire industry follows. Here it is in plain words.
- The tire comes off the wheel and gets inspected on the inside. Some damage only shows from the inside.
- The repair is a plug-patch, also called a combination unit, put in from the inside. The plug part fills the hole. The patch part seals the inner liner, the layer that keeps the air in.
- Only the tread area can be repaired: the part of the tire that touches the road.
- The puncture can be no bigger than 1/4 inch (6 mm) across.
- No repairs in the shoulder, where the tread turns down toward the side, and none in the sidewall.
- A plug pushed in from the outside, with the tire still on the wheel, is not a permanent repair.
- A new repair cannot overlap an earlier one.
After the repair, the tire goes back on the wheel, gets balanced again and is checked for leaks. A repair changes how the weight sits around the tire, so skipping the balance can leave you with a shake at highway speed.
Can your tire be repaired
Most nails and screws in the middle of the tread can be fixed. These usually cannot:
- A hole bigger than 1/4 inch.
- Damage in the shoulder or the sidewall.
- A puncture so close to an earlier repair that the two would overlap.
- A tire that was driven flat and is damaged on the inside.
- Some run-flat tires. The tire maker's guidance decides those.
Why driving on a flat matters
With no air in it, the tire carries the car on its sidewalls. They flex far more than they were built to, and the inner liner and the sidewall can tear or wear through from the inside. From the outside the tire can look fine. That is why the standard calls for taking the tire off the wheel to look, and why a tire that was driven flat is often a no.
When we tell you no
If the damage is outside the repairable area, too big, or inside the tire, we tell you it cannot be safely repaired and show you the spot. That is a safety call, not a sales pitch. A repair in the sidewall can fail and cause a blowout, and a patched shoulder flexes every time the wheel turns.
If it cannot be fixed, we have used tires and new tires for cars, SUVs and light trucks. We look for one that matches the size of the tire on the other side of the axle, so the pair wears together.
What happens when you come in
- Walk in any day we are open. No appointment.
- Tell us which tire and what happened: a nail you saw, a slow leak, the pressure light on the dash.
- We find the leak, take the tire off the wheel and look at the inside.
- We tell you what it needs and the price before any work starts. No surprise fees.
- We repair it from the inside, mount it, balance it again and check it for leaks.
- While the tire is off, we check the valve stem and the TPMS sensor, then set the pressure to the number on your door placard.
We also look over the rest of the set for other nails and low tread, since a road that put one screw in a tire often put two.
Related services and tires
Questions we get
Can my flat tire be fixed, or do I need a new one?
If the hole is in the tread, no bigger than 1/4 inch, and the tire was not driven flat, it can usually be repaired. We take it off the wheel, look inside and tell you which it is before any work starts.
Is a plug good enough?
Not on its own. The industry standard is a plug-patch put in from the inside of the tire, which fills the hole and seals the liner. A plug pushed in from the outside is a way to get to a shop, not a permanent repair.
Can you fix a tire I drove on flat?
Sometimes. Driving flat can damage the inside of the tire where you cannot see it, so we look inside before we decide. Please do not pump it back up before we see it.
Is a repaired tire safe at highway speed?
A plug-patch repair done to the industry standard is the accepted permanent fix. A plug alone, or any repair in the shoulder or sidewall, is not.
Does the tire need balancing after a repair?
Yes. We balance it again after the repair, before it goes back on the car.
Why did you say my tire cannot be repaired?
Because the damage was outside the area the standard allows, too big, or inside the tire. It is a safety call. Ask and we show you the spot.
Can a run-flat tire be repaired?
Some can and some cannot. The tire maker's guidance decides it. Bring it in and we check.
Do I need an appointment?
No. Walk in any day. We are open seven days a week.
Related
- Services
Mount and balance
Done while you wait. - Services
Tire rotation
Spreads the wear across all four. - Tires
Used tires
Car, SUV and light truck sizes. - Guide
Tire pressure in Houston heat
The door-jamb number, and why to check it cold. - Guide
Hit a pothole? What to check
Bulges, bent rims, pulls and the 311 report.
Walk in any day, or text us first.
6302 Westheimer Rd at Winrock. No appointment. You get the price before we start.