Car appreciation... the aesthetics, the engineering, etc

Pop in to your local tyre shop and ask. It can depend on where the screw is. I’d always go with ‘new tyre last option’ but I am tight 😄

I'm pretty sure its not in the "safe area" due to a repair I needed a few years ago that meant a new tyre.

I think I just want someone to tell me I don't need to spend a load of money...also being tight 🤣

I’m no stranger to over thinking these things and I’m happy with a repair.

+1 to that
Not all repairs are made equal tho! They range from a £5 off the shelf job banged in and the tyre reinflated, to a properly fitted one, which includes grinding the inside smooth and rebalancing the wheel.
All the local places seemed suspiciously cheap (literally £5-10), but our local kwik fit seemed to do a proper job (they described the proper process at least) and I caught the young lad torquing my wheel bolts on which I saw as a good sign. That’s not to say that I’d trust any other branch, but I was pleasantly surprised.

The general rule of thumb is screw in centre of tread: plug no problem, screw right by tyre wall: hello overdraft.

Tyre shop time then. Bite the bullet! I do sympathise 😀 Happened to the wife’s car recently.

I think it was a screw from my driveway so I can only blame myself.

Are plugs a permanent solution or should I go and get a patch. And, are patches permanent or should I get a new tyre...?

As above Plugs are not recommended solutions (you can't really even buy them easily in the UK unless eBay or amazon etc) but they can work indefinitely. Your local tyre dudes will either fix it properly with an internal patch or tell you to get new tyre(s).

If your local tyre dudes are any of the big cos. they will probably push you towards spending more and more money. A small local repair shop are more likely to be wallet friendly. in my limited experience anyhoo.

FWIW a bigger screw, driven in with a driver will form a good enough plug to get you to the tyre dudes. How ironic.

Yeah over the weekend I barely lost any air when parked, when driving was when the car flagged pressure loss.

I watched the guy plug the tyre this morning and its quite a "rustic" process. It's what lead me to believe it wasn't a permanent solution.

Am booked in for a new tyre tomorrow - I don't really drive but when I do its for long journeys and I don't want to risk it for those more significant journeys.

Just for future in case anyone is interested. I had a small bolt in my tyre (M5ish), plugged with a super cheap amazon kit (like a tubeless repair kit) as it was near sidewall and they would have wrote the tyre off. Over 12months and it hasn't lost any pressure at all. I can recommend them from experience.

Aye but I’m nae putting my faith in one of those on a car I’m putting myself or my family in.

Up to you, done thousands of miles on mine. Worst case scenario is it starts to go down slightly and you have a slow flat.

I have a compressor and spare wheel in my car so if it goes down it's only a 10/15min min top up or change.

It was cheaper, or so cheap as to be no contest, to have my tyre professionally patched at the local tyre dudes than getting the branded (Slime) plugs (that are pretty much banned from sale in the UK anyway). It was reasonably close to the sidewall. I suspect if I had take it to Halfords etc, they would have written it off, but this was a small indy and they were cool with doing it.

Thats fair.

Mine would have been scrapped due to position. £6.99 later and it's all good. Plus I have about another 9 repairs left as well. I was very impressed for the money.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/wlw-XtremeAuto-TRIKE-PUNCTURE-REPAIR/dp/B07FW34M8Z/ref=asc_df_B07FW34M8Z/?tag=googshopuk-21&linkCode=df0&hvadid=310744208542&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=12127516370291983279&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9045450&hvtargid=pla-529116804463&th=1

Tyres don’t catastrophically fail. You’d notice it going down long before it caused you an issue. I’ve sat behind a van on the motorway bobbing along on a tyre so flat he was getting sparks off the rim every now and then.

My concern would be the side wall failing around the repair If under heavy stress like an emergency stop or an evasive manoeuvre. And each to their own of course.
The amount you know about these things likely informs your judgement, and I’m ignorant enough, while also of the opinion that reliable tyres are one of the cars main safety features, that I err on the side of caution. That’s not to say I haven’t made similar decisions in the past either!

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I have an oil leak, it drips even when i not in use, the car has been parked for a week currently. This gives me hope that it isn’t serious (like not the head) if i get under it, it seems to be dripping from the back of the engine. It isn’t gear oil, it’s engine oil. XUD9 what’s the thing immediately behind the bottom oil reservoir/sump of the engine. car drives fine and levels are good, just a mess of splattered oil

Below the intake manifold? Could be crank case ventilation.

Back of the head? Cam seals.

Bottom of the gearbox bellhousing? Rear main seal.

Side of the head? Cam cover gasket.

Those are the leaks I’ve had anyway.

You’re right - sidewalls shouldn’t be repaired, garages will generally only do the middle three quarters of the tread.

Best not to start thinking about the dozens of safety critical bits in your car that could fail at any moment. They mainly don’t. It’s mainly fine. Like carbon seatposts.

He survived.

Only due to his powerful moustache

The stuff this guy jammed in was like pink putty/bubblegum (maybe it was!).

I am far too cautious/scared/often searching in Google to validate my concerns to run it like that for any amount of time and would constantly worry especially with my kid and wife in the car.

Out of those I pick rear main seal - would that be engine oil leak? how do i fix it? i’ve already tried one brand of additive - ‘oil seal something or other’

I disagree. They do. A quick google brought this up.

https://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/news/20198090.woman-died-a34-damaged-tyre-blew/

I’ve been driving a long time and have had tyres deflate - luckily slowly (ish) and I have been able to stop. Motorway speeds or highish speeds on country roads could result in serious consequences. If it happens to you, you will know what I mean - sudden pull to one side is a brown trouser moment.