I picked up a nail in the wall of a rear tire on my 2005 G35x. It cannot be repaired due to the location of the damage and thus a new tire is necessary. I had them put on the full-sized spare and thought, at least for the time being, that should work.

This being my first all-wheel drive vehicle (I don't normally run the AWD, but leave it in rear drive only 98% of the time), I was shocked to receive their recommendation that I should purchase 4 new tires, as opposed to simply replacing the damaged tire. I was told that this could destroy my transmission; riding on one tire with no wear and with 60-70% left on the remaining three tires. Is this true?

Would anyone recommend trying to find a used tire with approximately the same amount of wear to replace the damaged one?

Finally, would moving the new tire and wheel to the front axle and one of the two evenly worn front tires to the rear axle and thus keeping the rear axle on two tires with the same tread-wear and running the car in rear-wheel drive only prevent the tranmission from this supposed threat of destruction? Or is the front axle still engaged (even though it's not being driven by the engine) even when the AWD drive option is turned off and the transmission still at risk of being damaged?

 

Not sure who recommended this but getting a used tire with similar thread should work just fine. Done that a couple of times to mine without a problem.

Only thing I agree with is that you shouldn't have different thread on the tires. 60-70% left on 3 means u need a used one with similar remaining life for the 4th.

Buying new tires is their way of making money. Don't fall for it

 

take a pic of where the nails at. u can also try those diy nail repair kits. ive used it on a tire a shop refused to work on. saved myself money by trying the repair myself and never had a leak. jus monitor it for awhile after the repair. i will never just replace the tire again unless i absolutely have to. i screwed myself once by taking the shops recommendation and replacing a brand new tire that had a nail in it. never again!

 

It sounds like nail is in the sidewall from how he describes it. If that is the case then it shouldnt be repaired due to the fact that if he hits a bump or pothole the tire could be ripped apart. Thats way shops do not repair tires with nails on or near the sidewall, they can get in serious trouble so its not worth the risk. I'm not an expert at AWD but I would think that getting a tire with matching or similar tread pattern and about the same wear as the rest of the tires he should be ok. It is true that you can do damage to your tranny if the tires are uneven because that one tire is going to be spinning at a different rate of speed then the others and that will cause damage to the tranny.

 

^i understand why shops dont do it for safety reasons. but my point is that even tho ur not supposed to do it i said fk it and repaired it anyway and the tire lived a nice long life with its brothers and lasted until all 4 needed replacements

 

the thing is it won't "live a nice long life" like you say. All he would need to do is hit a good pothole and the hole will bust open. He is just better off getting a matching replacement.