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Got a small drywall screw in the center tread area of one of my one year old Pirelli Scorpions. It was a short screw, and at an angle, so the leak was very slow. I unscrewed it out, then managed to plug it with quite a bit of effort. I poured some 303 (seems better than water) over the plug to look for air bubbles. No bubbles. All fine.
Now this is where my OCD kicks in. The G550 is a 6,000+ lb. vehicle. The plug is in a rear tire, which has to deal with my happy lead foot. No burnouts or anything, but I do like to accelerate hard... just to know the power is there. I couldn't deal with the idea that the long term durability of the tire is compromised, even by 1%; is moisture going to reach the steel, and will the steel then begin to rust little by little over the next couple years, and then catastrophically tear off on a highway on ramp?
I went ahead and bought a new tire, and took a peek at the plug from the inside. (Photo attached.) I'm not a tire expert, so I don't know if I did a good job plugging it, or maybe the plug didn't go in far enough. So I'd like feedback on that.
But more to the point, I'm debating whether or not I should use the one year old plugged tire as my spare instead of the original spare that's been mounted on the tailgate for probably 8 years. Rubber does degrade over time, even with minimal sunlight. The tire cover does not cover the rear of the tire, so that rubber does get some UV on it... at least the top side.
So my question is this: Is it worth using my 1 year old plugged tire as a spare instead of the 8 year old spare?
Do you drive this a lot? If so, I would just use the plugged tire than an 8 year old spare.
The right way would be to get this patched and rebalanced. Most shops now have the plug/patch combination patch
By the way, to be clear, what I'm asking is which tire would serve as a better spare... the old rubber or the new rubber with a plug. I already replaced the drive tire with a new one. I'm just considering replacing the old spare with the one year old tire that has a plug in it.
Given the likelihood you'll need the spare and for any distance I'd consider it fine..... and if needed only use it in the rear. blowout is unlikely but slow leak once it has real weight on it could be an issue, but minimal risk as a spare.
I've plugged tires my whole life... Ford trucks, Dodge trucks, Subarus, Nissans, Porsches, BMWs and now Mercedes.... I'll plug it and call it a day without ever losing sleep! I've never had one of my plugs leak! I did, however, take one to a tire shop, as it was a rather large hole, to have it patched from the inside.
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