If a tire is out of round from being stored on upright for a length of time...

If I install some tires that seem to have been stored upright long enough to be out of round, will they ever return to round or should I just toss them?

if you dont mind spending $15, have them mounted on a steel wheel to check road force balance.

I have four S-03's lying in two stacks of two on top of each other unused for 8 months. I'm gonna mount them on rims and find out.

In your case, there's likely some flat spotting, however since the weight of a car was not on them, it's probably reversible.

From what I have learned about tires and flatspots, weight is required to get the flat spot . . . if the tires aren't mounted I highly doubt you'd come even close to having a flatspot.

Now if they were on a car sitting in one spot that would be a different story.

Originally Posted by TD

If I install some tires that seem to have been stored upright long enough to be out of round, will they ever return to round or should I just toss them?

A related question - I purchased new wheels and snow tires for this winter's snow season. I'll be storing the old wheels/tires for the spring. What is the best way to store them? I have a reasonable amount of space I can use:

Originally Posted by Terry Kennedy

A related question - I purchased new wheels and snow tires for this winter's snow season. I'll be storing the old wheels/tires for the spring. What is the best way to store them? I have a reasonable amount of space I can use:

I stack them 2x2 lying down on the garage floor, a blanket between them to keep the rims from nicking each other. No problems yet.

Originally Posted by Terry Kennedy

A related question - I purchased new wheels and snow tires for this winter's snow season. I'll be storing the old wheels/tires for the spring. What is the best way to store them? I have a reasonable amount of space I can use:

Terry, Check out this link

http://www.bimmerfest.com/forums/sho...ht=store+tires

Back on topic...

Let's say that these tires were stored upright (not by me), not on rims (so not inflated to any pressure) and now have a noticeable depression at the area which had been at the floor. If you roll them, they "catch" at that spot and keep rolling. It's not a big depression, but the tire is not round.

Now let's say you didn't notice this before having them installed and now that they are mounted and inflated (to 38 PSI), there is still a noticeable (to the naked eye) depression at one area on each tire.

Will this fix itself over time or are the tires a loss?

Originally Posted by Terry Kennedy

A related question - I purchased new wheels and snow tires for this winter's snow season. I'll be storing the old wheels/tires for the spring. What is the best way to store them? I have a reasonable amount of space I can use:

I just stack them up for the season, four high, use cardboard rounds in between from tirerack to prevent scratching, like Alee says. No problems for 4 different cars for last 2-3 years. Some folks buy brackets that bolt into the walls and will hold two tires through the hole. Nice roomy garage there.

Originally Posted by johnlew

I just stack them up for the season, four high, use cardboard rounds in between from tirerack to prevent scratching, like Alee says. No problems for 4 different cars for last 2-3 years. Some folks buy brackets that bolt into the walls and will hold two tires through the hole. Nice roomy garage there.

Looks like a nice garage though it needs some paint . . . that red brick looks very scuffed up.

Originally Posted by AF330i

Looks like a nice garage though it needs some paint . . . that red brick looks very scuffed up.

I thought it, but didn't say it. Spray primer on the brick and then a nice coat or two of paint and it'd look great. Then UCoatiT on the floor, his looks like a good base, and the place would be like a showroom.

Originally Posted by DougDogs

TD, I won't ignore your question. Most times, the tires will straighten out after driving on them for about 4-6 miles, depending on how long they were stored upright.

I used to park my Dodge Daytona at the airport for 1-2 weeks at a time. It had low profile tires (both Goodyear Eagles and Falkens) They always flat spotted, and the car used to shake bad for 2-3 miles each time I left the airport.

No long term damage was ever encountered.

Are they steel belted?? these might take a little longer to return to normal.

Nothing beats centrifical force plus the weight of the car to flex the rubber and steel.

Over the years I've stored many cars for 6 months at a time or longer. Upon retrieving them there was always a flat spot on the tires manifesting itself. Within a short period of time, after the tire warmed up, it disappeared and rode as smoothly as before, as Doug said. Never a problem. This is after being stored with the weight of the car on the tire. Tires with no weight on them shouldn't present any problems of lasting consequence, would be my bet.

Thanks guys.

The tires in question are S-03s and they are already on my car. I have now driven them ~50 miles and they still shake badly. They were installed on Saturday (used fronts, new rears).

After yesterday's round-trip commute (~30 miles) I tried to troubleshoot the vibration. I retorqued the nuts and adjusted the air pressures. But while it was jacked up to do the retorquing, I spun each of the front wheels and noticed the flat spots. At that point, like I said, I had already driven ~30 miles on them.

This morning's trip (post re-torque) still suffered bad vibrations. I had no vibrations before the tires were installed so it's not the suspension or rims.

Basically, I'm trying to figure out if they still will fix themselves or whether I need to order new front tires and toss these. I can't live with this much vibration.

Originally Posted by johnlew

I thought it, but didn't say it. Spray primer on the brick and then a nice coat or two of paint and it'd look great. Then UCoatiT on the floor, his looks like a good base, and the place would be like a showroom.

Let me apologize in advance for the topic hijack ...

The garage walls aren't brick, they're chimney flue. If I were going to do anything with it, I'd put a 1/2" mortar skimcoat on it. However, since it is 75 years old or so, the mortar joints need occasional maintenance and neither painting or skimcoating is a good idea because of that.

You can see the complete garage reconstruction pictures here - it started out looking like this:



Current pictures of the garage and contents can be found here.

Originally Posted by TD

Thanks guys.

The tires in question are S-03s and they are already on my car. I have now driven them ~50 miles and they still shake badly. They were installed on Saturday (used fronts, new rears).

After yesterday's round-trip commute (~30 miles) I tried to troubleshoot the vibration. I retorqued the nuts and adjusted the air pressures. But while it was jacked up to do the retorquing, I spun each of the front wheels and noticed the flat spots. At that point, like I said, I had already driven ~30 miles on them.

This morning's trip (post re-torque) still suffered bad vibrations. I had no vibrations before the tires were installed so it's not the suspension or rims.

Basically, I'm trying to figure out if they still will fix themselves or whether I need to order new front tires and toss these. I can't live with this much vibration.

I went through something very simliar last week with the new ContiExtreme's I purchased, I had them balanced on a Hunter 9700, torqued the lugnuts myself and set the tire pressures yet they vibrated.
I drove them about 250 miles and although the vibration wasn't as bad after driving for 10-15 minutes, I gave up on trying to wear out the tires to make them round though I will say that within the 250 miles, they were getting better (less vibration) then when i originally put them on.

Visually I don't see flatspots . . .

Sorry but you are going to be better off buying new tires especially if you actually see the flat spots . . . the only other alternative I can think of is to possibly find a place that can shave the tire down, perhaps a race shop and on that subject I have no idea if it can be done or not, maybe someone with more knowledge can tell you.

Something strange is going on. There's a missing piece to the puzzle here. The next step would be to have them spun up on a balancer. Whether you'd want to pay for that would be your call.


Terry, on that pre-garage fixup pic

Originally Posted by johnlew

I thought it, but didn't say it. Spray primer on the brick and then a nice coat or two of paint and it'd look great. Then UCoatiT on the floor, his looks like a good base, and the place would be like a showroom.

Ditto. The best mod to a garage is a coat of paint. I do like the brick though. I am going to have to investigate that UCoatiT stuff though for my own garage. Even though I get it power-washed regularly, it really isn't the same.

What I will NEVER understand is garages that are left in a drywall/taped state.

Originally Posted by Terry Kennedy

Let me apologize in advance for the topic hijack ...

The garage walls aren't brick, they're chimney flue. If I were going to do anything with it, I'd put a 1/2" mortar skimcoat on it. However, since it is 75 years old or so, the mortar joints need occasional maintenance and neither painting or skimcoating is a good idea because of that.

You can see the complete garage reconstruction pictures here - it started out looking like this:



Current pictures of the garage and contents can be found here.

Wow Terry! You already have come a long way with that garage!

Originally Posted by Terry Kennedy

Let me apologize in advance for the topic hijack ...

The garage walls aren't brick, they're chimney flue. If I were going to do anything with it, I'd put a 1/2" mortar skimcoat on it. However, since it is 75 years old or so, the mortar joints need occasional maintenance and neither painting or skimcoating is a good idea because of that.

You can see the complete garage reconstruction pictures here - it started out looking like this:
Current pictures of the garage and contents can be found here.

Wow Terry, that is one heck of a renovation you did plus your documentation is amazing !!!!

Beautiful job

Strange.

Just to add to the available data, these were my front S-03s.
When they came off of my car on Wednesday, I experienced no vibrations. They were unmounted on Thursday and I dropped them off at Tom's place that evening.

Strange.

Originally Posted by Nick325xiT 5spd

Strange.

Just to add to the available data, these were my front S-03s.
When they came off of my car on Wednesday, I experienced no vibrations. They were unmounted on Thursday and I dropped them off at Tom's place that evening.

Strange.

They are visibly out of round. Where they on your car until Thursday or were they being stored mounted?

They were on my car until Wednesday.

S03s flat spot badly.

I could feel the vibraton after just one day parked. If I left it at the airport for a weekend, it would take 4 miles for them to improve...

You know how rubber will turn a blacker black and get a bit glossy if it's had pressure applied to it for an extended period. Well, the area that is flat is also discolored in this way. It seems really clear that the tires were sitting on this one spot for a long time.

Originally Posted by nate328Ci

S03s flat spot badly.

I could feel the vibraton after just one day parked. If I left it at the airport for a weekend, it would take 4 miles for them to improve...

I have over 50 miles on them (30 of those on an 80+ degree day) and they still vibrate badly.

Originally Posted by TD

I have over 50 miles on them (30 of those on an 80+ degree day) and they still vibrate badly.

I know.

I read the thread.

Sounds like you need to order some new ones.