Puncture advice...

[Simon0867]

Hi all,

Went down to get my PCX out for the morning commute today only to find I had a flat back tyre.
Back home tonight for a proper look and I can clearly see what looks like a metal shard sticking out of the tread (see picture link below).

http://i1262.photobucket.com/albums/ii6 ... tetfkj.jpg

I'm thinking of using this as an opportunity to switch to Michelin City Grips which seem to be highly regarded for this bike. My dealer is only a couple of miles from home so what would people recommend in order to get the bike safely there? I've heard of hole plug kits, I even came across someone suggesting putting a wide fitting screw into the hole !

Swapping tyres is not a job I'd attempt myself and I don't really want the extra expense of having the bike uplifted.

In all the years I've had scoots I've never had a puncture like this so and advice would be much appreciated.

Thanks everyone.

[Chapel77]

Sorry to hear of your puncture!

How fast is the leak? Not sure how far you are from your dealer, but would it be possible to pump it up and get there before it gets too low, even carry a footpump under the saddle, or is it leaking too much?

Alternatively, the dealer may have a pick up service, may cost a few quid, but could be cheaper than having your scooter recovered. My previous Piaggio dealer offered a pick up service in one of their vans for £20.

Hope you get sorted!

[buddy1976]

Hi all,

Went down to get my PCX out for the morning commute today only to find I had a flat back tyre.
Back home tonight for a proper look and I can clearly see what looks like a metal shard sticking out of the tread (see picture link below).

http://i1262.photobucket.com/albums/ii6 ... tetfkj.jpg

I'm thinking of using this as an opportunity to switch to Michelin City Grips which seem to be highly regarded for this bike. My dealer is only a couple of miles from home so what would people recommend in order to get the bike safely there? I've heard of hole plug kits, I even came across someone suggesting putting a wide fitting screw into the hole !

Swapping tyres is not a job I'd attempt myself and I don't really want the extra expense of having the bike uplifted.

In all the years I've had scoots I've never had a puncture like this so and advice would be much appreciated.

Thanks everyone.

if the puncture is nowhere near the sidewalls then a plug kit should be fine, my rear city grip found a nail 2 days after fitting, its been plugged since, that was over 2k miles ago.

[stevecbr]

You'll save yourself some money if your able to take the wheel out yourself, and get it fitted loose by your dealer. I bought a set of Michelin City Grips for my PCX for the £80 mark online, and my local bike garage fitted and balanced them both for £20. My local Honda dealer quoted £180 for a pair of IRC's fitted!

[Simon0867]

Thanks for the comments, much appreciated.
I've ordered up a plug kit so will use that and then take the bike up to my dealer.
The tyre was fine when I parked the bike up Monday afternoon but flat by early the following morning, don't want to risk it.
I can do a few mechanical odds and ends but taking off wheels I think I'll leave to the experts, also I don't really have the garage space to do the work.
Will price up replacing both with City Grips, if it's some mad figure then I'll just get a new IRC for the rear.

[stevecbr]

The City Grip rear for the PCX is £45 delivered, just depends how much your dealer charges for fitting http://www.mytyres.co.uk/cgi-bin/rshop. ... p=R-217476

[gn2]

The puncture looks like it could be too close to the edge to be repairable.

I've had excellent service from Tyretec Trading.

Rear £34 http://www.tyretectrading.co.uk/catalog ... _weight=72
Front £33 http://www.tyretectrading.co.uk/catalog ... g=&brands=

Delivery for two tyres £7.50
Total £74.50..... plus whatever the dealer charges for fitting to the scooter.

Dunlop Scootsmarts are £6 less, they're very good on a Forza 300, no idea how good they are on a PCX though.

[Simon0867]

This is probably a silly question but could I put a City Grip on the rear and just leave the front as it is, a standard PCX IRC tyre? Should both tyres be the same make?

[Alibally]

You'll probably be ok fitting a rear only. Plenty people have. It's not a fancy sports bike after all. When I changed mine I got the wheels painted so replaced the both but I still had plenty life left in the front and would have left it otherwise.

[GeorgeSK]

I have Citygrip on rear and OEM on the front. When the front needs a new tire,THEN it will get a CG. Mantis rides just fine.

[Simon0867]

Got a Cargol temporary repair kit for the tyre (see link below). Very easy to use, had the tyre plugged and inflated within 5 minutes. Rode along to my local dealer who are going to replace the rear tyre with a City Grip for £77 all in. I discussed changing the front one to a City Grip at the same time, but the mechanic didn't think it was worth it as my current front tyre has plenty of life left in it.

Will be back on the road by Monday.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/232142758175

[Tomtic2]

I've just had a new rear CityGrip put on mine at Honda in Carlisle. They charged £63 inc VAT and they took the wheel out etc. That's the cheapest tyre I've ever had replaced.....and from a main dealer!
I could have saved a bit more by removing the wheel and taking it in for them to fit the new tyre, but since they cleaned the rear brake up as well as giving the scoot a health check-up at the same time, it was a great deal.
The City Grip felt fine in heavy rain riding the 30 miles back home.

[gn2]

If that £63 included the cost of the tyre it was a good deal.

[you you]

I've just had a new rear CityGrip put on mine at Honda in Carlisle. They charged £63 inc VAT and they took the wheel out etc. That's the cheapest tyre I've ever had replaced.....and from a main dealer!
I could have saved a bit more by removing the wheel and taking it in for them to fit the new tyre, but since they cleaned the rear brake up as well as giving the scoot a health check-up at the same time, it was a great deal.
The City Grip felt fine in heavy rain riding the 30 miles back home.

Excellent