Tyre plugs. Legality issues.

Haven’t you answered your own question when saying no commercial tyrefitter will carry out the repair as it is illegal ?
On that basis how do you think a DIY job is legal?

I have had to place a plug in the upper side wall of a tyre. Yes on return, the commercial response was the tyre is unservciable. I did keep driving on the plugged tyre at the time for many kilometres, and on the rear only, till I was able to source a new replacement. It was bad luck that I had a small stick go through it at only 1000k's, as I just put it down to bad luck, and the risks you take when going on an adventure.

The emergency string style plugs that you get in say an ARB tyre repair kit exactly that , for emergency use only. They are to be replaced as soon as possible by approved repairs such as the mushroom type repairs from within the tyre. Continued use of the emergency strings is illegal but they do tend to hold up OK.

The approved repairs do not have do be done by an approved repairer and you can do them at home if you can take the tyre off and use an approved repair method. However you also need to have the knowledge of where or where not repairs can go - eg not in sidewalls, how damaged the tyre case is, how far into the shoulder is OK.

So just take the tyre with the strings in it to a repairer and they will make a judgement on how to repair - it is relatively cheap to get done.

But the emergency string repairs are illegal when it is no longer an emergency and are illegal to make a permanent repair.

.
Hi John,
Maybe the question should be "Is it safe?" rather than "is it legal?"

You can have sidewall damage “major repaired” generally not done by most tyre shops. But a lot of rural shops that deal with agricultural tyres may be able to do a major repair .
Cheers

Hi John
They are repairable, depends on size and position of hole.
Can be repaired cold with right patches, or heat repair if needed.
Again hole size and position.
I would try a agri or truck place, for them to have a look, as most passenger places would not have anything to repair it or maybe the personnel that knows what to do, easier to sell new.

Charlie

http://www.beadelltours.com.au/tyre_rules.html

As said above, string type repairs are for emergency use only to get you back to where you can have the issue properly resolved.

Here is a link to the VicRoads rules:

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://www.vicroads.vic.gov.au/-/media/files/documents/safety-and-road-rules/vsi/vehiclestandardsinformation16_tyremainternancerepair.ashx&ved=2ahUKEwiv8JnHo7D6AhWLLMAKHRSWArYQFnoECFoQAQ&usg=AOvVaw3xf1FnJ37nmGVgcM_ZYFEZ

According to them sidewall repairs are not permitted.

Hi John,

This topic is always a tough one, especially when looking down the barrel of an almost new tyre being tossed out.
I wrote an article on this topic and its published in the current Western 4W Driver magazine. The article includes a photo of a 'bone through the nose' stake, there's no plugging that one of course, but it may bring back memories of a trip we did way back.

I've been told in the past (when getting temporary plugs fixed correctly), that when they install the Rema patches from the inside they have to check that the belts arent stuffed and that they haven't begun to rust prior to repairing, otherwise they get condemned.
It isn't so much the temp plugs are no good, just there is no inspection process and the damaged belts can be open to the moisture inside the tyre - so I've been told.
This is aside from the location checking (no sidewall repairs on radials).

The fact is that I haven't been able to find it written anywhere in government documents that repairing a sidewall is illegal. All the literature seems to be from tyre manufacturers or associations. There's the legal aspect of driving on potentially faulty equipment to consider where culpability could be found in the event of a serious accident. Tyre repairers wouldn't have a bar of getting involved in that for obvious reasons plus they sell a new tyre, so win win for them.
For everyone's sake, the government should make this cut and dried, clear as crystal so there's no debate. Staking the sidewall of a near new tyre is a bitter pill to swallow that I have had happen to me. It would be easier to swallow if the law was seen to be more visible in black and white rather than the case of some people seem to be able to do it but most won't.
If anybody can find this as law in their particular state then I would be greatful.

Regards of what you hear, ask your insurance company.

When push comes to shove, they will have the ultimate say if they are going to pay out, regardless how safe you think your 200 Series is, even with you TPMS

Legal or not is not the question.
These matters will only be tested if the repair is a substantial CAUSE of damage or injury which leads to a court case or insurance claim.
The point is though, as the owner/driver of the vehicle who performed the repair, you will accept the legal responsibility if/when it goes pear shaped.
If a commercial organisation makes the repair, they will accept the legal responsibility.
Cheers,
Peter
OKA196 motorhome

As far as legality goes: a brief search suggested to me that State motor vehicle Acts refer to Aust and/or trader standards, most often AS 1973 and/or the Tyre and Rim Association of Australia Standards Manual .

That is, unless you have followed said standards (as vague/open to different interpretations as they may be) then you are not compliant (legal).

Clear as mud, as many have said.

Probably depends on the location and size of your plugs John and I'm not judging, but even with a TPMS I'm not sure I'd personally be confident of driving at high speed with three "sidewall" plugs for any longer than necessary. Esp for the sake of a few $hundred.

John, you don't say how big the holes were that you plugged, or how they were acquired.

The best rule of thumb for tyre repairs is that if no plies have been fractured, and the hole has been made by a nail, a screw or a sharp piece of metal - then a plug should be a satisfactory repair.

The problems start when plies have been fractured by a large stake, which can then also lead to ply separation in the tyre carcass.
I rarely use plugs, but they're not banned by anyone, and they need to be used with a degree of care.

The biggest problem is that if a tyre receives some severe damage that potentially has fractured plies, it needs to be dismounted, and the interior of the tyre and the hole checked for carcass damage that could affect the tyre adversely down the track.

Even with nails and screws, I still dismount tyres (I have my own tyre changing machine), remove the offending item, check the tyre thoroughly, and then patch it from the inside with a properly buffed and glued patch.

I've used Michelin tyres from the mid 1960's in W.A., and back in those days, the Michelins were tubed radials - as were all the truck tyres.

Bell Bros were the Michelin agents and had a huge tyre supply and repair depot in South Guildford - which depot would repair sidewall damage to both car and truck radials - using a vulcanising process - provided the plies were largely only separated, and not substantially fractured.

Bell Bros repaired tens of thousands of radial tyres in this manner, and I had many radials repairs done by Bell Bros after staking them in the sidewalls - sometimes with lengthy cuts.
As long as the break didn't reach the bead or the tread plies, Bell Bros were happy to repair the damaged tyres - and they guaranteed their repairs.

It's testament to Bells repair work that one could probably still find some old Michelins sporting their vulcanised tyre sidewall repairs.

However, with the advent of cheaper and cheaper tyres in recent years, tyre wall repairs have become uneconomic - and pressure from safety authorities and lawyers has made tyre people decline to repair substantially damaged tyres today.

Bell Bros repairs involved buffing back the damaged rubber around the hole and installing fresh liquid rubber, which was vulcanised in their tyre repair machines.
I still have a portable 240V tyre wall vulcaniser, but the work required to repair a seriously damaged tyre wall is so substantial, it's not really economic, unless the tyre is an expensive truck tyre, and it is nearly new.

Most large stakes from timber and sharp rocks usually damage a number of plies in the wall (or tread), thus making any major (vulcanised) repairs to wall or tread, a no-no.

Cheers, Ron.

legally, your ok until that tyre fails then your liable.
The problem is the sidewall massages the plugs each turn, then air starts escaping, usually very slowly, resulting in an under inflated tyre that gets hot till it goes bang, OR as i found out, you need to swerve to miss a wombat and end up going backwards at 80km/hr. My life almost ended that morning.

G'day All

I've been interested in this thread and read every reply and comment !

So what I would like to know is, as I'm none the wiser now

Are tyre plugs legal or illegal ????


Happy and safe plug free travels

Cheers
Gazz