How much does car tyre puncture repair cost?

Matilda Douglas-Henry

 

There’s nothing more frustrating than an ill-timed tyre puncture. Your car’s tyres are always vulnerable to sharp objects and other obstructions that might cause them to lose pressure and become a serious safety hazard for anyone in your vehicle. On the bright side, punctures are such a common occurrence that for the most part they are a quick, cheap fix. DingGo is here to help with all your tyre puncture repair needs, including:

1. How to identify a tyre puncture on your car
2. How much car tyre puncture repair costs
3. Preventative measures to avoid tyre punctures

 

How to identify a car tyre puncture

There are a few early telltale signs that can indicate a car tyre puncture. Your vehicle might wobble while you are driving it, or an isolated wheel feels unsteady. In the event of a slow puncture, where the tyre is steadily deflating, you will find it difficult to maintain control of your steering wheel.

When one of your tyres has experienced a medium puncture, your car will naturally veer in one direction. A blowout occurs when one of your tyres has been severely punctured; in that case, the car will swerve suddenly as if out of control.

Nails are the main cause of car tyre punctures. They are often bent, making them flat and easily able to puncture any nearby vulnerable objects. They can be kicked up by the car in front of you, or your front tyres can kick them back to your rear ones.

Other common causes of punctures include screws and bolts, broken glass, sharp rocks, and construction debris. Essentially anything small, jagged and angular on the roads can be a cause for concern^[1].

 

How much does car tyre puncture repair cost?

Tyre puncture repair is cheap and relatively effortless for any qualified technician, making it all the easier to repair your puncture as soon as it happens. This is essential for ensuring that your car is safe and driveable.

Car tyre puncture repair should cost approximately $26 to $40. In most cases a standard plug-patch method will be used. This is when the technician removes the tyre from the rim and locates/cleans the hole with soapy water. The inner liner is prepped with a rasp, and rubber cement is applied to where the plug-patch will be inserted. A plug-patch is pretty self-explanatory: the plug fills up the hole created by the puncture, partially sealing the area, and the patch is pressed against the liner to complete the seal. Once the process is complete, the tyre will be reinstalled and rebalanced onto the rim^[2].

The plug-patch method is only applicable if the tread of your tire has been punctured. If the sidewall of your tyre has been punctured—or if the tread puncture exceeds 5mm—the tyre will need to be replaced. Refer to our “How much does alloy wheel repair cost?” article for price estimates for alloy wheels, but in general tyre replacement can be anywhere between $100 and $700 per tyre, depending on the make and model of your vehicle^[3]. (Smaller cars, for example, are in the cheaper range, and SUVs/sports cars become more expensive.)

 

How to avoid car tyre punctures

While a puncture to your tyre’s tread won’t cost you much at all to fix, it’s obviously ideal to avoid punctures in the first place. We recommend regularly changing the positions of your tyres so that the tyres wear evenly. Consult your vehicle manufacturer to learn how often you should be doing this with your car—each vehicle is different^[4].

And it might be stating the obvious, but it never hurts to emphasise how important it is to exercise caution when driving on unpaved roads or driving over an obstruction on the road. Pull over as soon as you can safely do so, and inspect your tyres for exterior damage.

Conclusion

Punctured tyres shouldn’t keep you off the road for long, but what can take a while is looking for the best specialist in your area. Let us do the work for you: use DingGo’s quick quotes service today, and we’ll have you safely behind the wheel again in no time.