Tyre mysteriously losing air

[stripmonkey]

How do all.

My front left tyre is slowly losing about 5 PSI every couple of weeks. All the others are fine. Had it checked for a slow puncture and also leaky valve, neither of which gave any answers. Anyone have any ideas as to what else it might be??

Ta

 

[gannet]

cracked rim :?

 

[Anonymous]

+1 on the rim

and the crack can be tiny - as in very tiny and hairline

put the whole wheel in a bucket of water and look for air bubbles or start spraying water around the inside and look for bubbles.

 

[bcworkz]

Crack, or bead not seated correctly on rim, maybe due to damage.

If you use the spray method to locate leaks, mix in some washing up liquid so the leak is more obvious.

 

[sars]

Crack, or bead not seated correctly on rim, maybe due to damage.

If you use the spray method to locate leaks, mix in some washing up liquid so the leak is more obvious.

Yes soapy water is perfect for checking small leaks

 

[Stuart Truman]

Crack, or bead not seated correctly on rim, maybe due to damage.

If you use the spray method to locate leaks, mix in some washing up liquid so the leak is more obvious.

Yes soapy water is perfect for checking small leaks

+1 on the soapy water, or even submerge the entire wheel. I had a similar problem with my mini and a mysteriously deflating tyre. It got to the point where I thought it might have been kids. Turned out to be a tiny manufacturing flaw in the wheel and it was coming out very slowly around the bead where it meets the wheel. They only found it by submerging the entire wheel. There was a tiny air bubble release every few seconds.

 

[Ewazix]

Probably a seal not bedded on the rim, it only takes a bit of rubbish, or wheels can become porous over time, particularly around tiny scratches on the rim from fitting which corrode and cause micro-leaks. I've had it on VW/Audi rims in the past, they can be polished and sealed.

 

[stripmonkey]

Thanks for the replies guys. I'll give the bucket test a try.

 

[cj10jeeper]

Thanks for the replies guys. I'll give the bucket test a try.

If you havn't got a big enough container to immerse the whole wheel, lay it flat on the ground and pour the soapy water solution between rim and tyre until it fills. Watch it closely for a minute or so. Repeat on the other side. This way you can eliminate the most obvious tyre to bead join before checking the entire tyre and rim.

Btw don't inflate the tyre more. It sometimes seals the very thing you testing for, until you lower the pressure to road setting,

 

[stripmonkey]

Thanks for the replies guys. I'll give the bucket test a try.

If you havn't got a big enough container to immerse the whole wheel, lay it flat on the ground and pour the soapy water solution between rim and tyre until it fills. Watch it closely for a minute or so. Repeat on the other side. This way you can eliminate the most obvious tyre to bead join before checking the entire tyre and rim.

Btw don't inflate the tyre more. It sometimes seals the very thing you testing for, until you lower the pressure to road setting,

Good tip, thanks for that.

 

[boblez]

yes had the same problem with my front two wheels, solved easy enough, took to my local friendly tyre dealer, there was slight corrosion on the inside of the rim. He ground it off then put the tyres back on, firstly using some sealant on the rim. Perfect now!!