Over the weekend I had two flat tires on the same wheel with no external evidence of a puncture . Had the tube replaced on Saturday after the first flat and while driving the car on Sunday , the second flat ocurred. Again no evidence of an external puncture. Unfortunately the tire was damaged and must be replaced . Questions:
1) Is it likely that both flats were caused by a spoke puncture, even though there doesn't appear to be any problem with the spokes?
2) The tire is a Dunlop SP Sport VR15 which is nolonger manufactured. I have been told that the H rated tire which is availabe is the same tire and is interchangeable with the VR. Can anyone confirm this?

Submitted by dhobbs@ripnet.com on Fri, 08/27/2004 - 20:42

Hi Stew ;

Yes I would be very interested in your English tire source and any pricing ....if you don't mind sharing it. I will email you directly.

Thanks!
Don

Submitted by NE52-32043 on Fri, 08/27/2004 - 14:40

Don,

Another alternative is to buy a nice set of Dayton tubeless wire wheels. I got a set for my '70 FHC last spring with a nice set of Pirelli P4000's. Absolutely wonderful. And if you are not concerned about being concours perfect, get the 6" rims and put 205/70-15's on. Big improvement in ride and handling.

Steve Weinstein, JTC-NJ
'70 XKE FHC
'84 Ferrari Mondial QV

Submitted by cleavefamily@c… on Fri, 08/27/2004 - 13:41

Don, If you want Dunlops, I orderred mine from a website in England in June, and got them here on the west coast in four days. I was amazed. Contact me directly for the name and address if you want to go that route.

BTW, I never had any issues with flats, with my Avons. Just had to air them up to specs once or twice a year before venturing out, and put more miles on them in 2003 than any other year, liked it a lot, but had to worry about the tire and tube age issue.
Stew Cleave
JOCO Chief Judge
'69 E-Type 2+2 and other LBC's

Submitted by dhobbs@ripnet.com on Thu, 08/26/2004 - 22:57

Hi Stew ;

Thanks for the response to my posting! I think there may be a couple of contributing factors .
I purchased the car last year and with it came many of the invoices for parts and labor . I haven't checked yet but I seem to recall seeing an invoice for the tires and rims. The tires appear to have moderate wear and I think they are likely 8-10 years old.
Another factor may be the emergency stop I was forced to make last summer when a car turned in front of me when I was travelling at 50mph. It was very close to a disastrous accident and the tires were smoked very severely.
Most tire experts I have talked to about this and based on what I have read over the last few days suggests that the combination of spoked wheels and tube tires is simply problematic and flat tires are a common occurence.
The bottom line seems to be that all four tires should be replaced.... which is what I will now do.
Thanks !
Don

Submitted by cleavefamily@c… on Wed, 08/25/2004 - 15:58

Go to the Concours page and open Appendix B Tires and Wheels (I think) of the rulebook. There is information on the V rated tires being changed to H rated - same tire just industry rating criteria changed.

Can the age of your tubes and tires be causing the problem? I just got new Dunlops SP Sports after 15 years (scary) use out of Avons, probably less than 5,000 miles in 15 years and they looked brand new except for the faded red lines (I didn't know any better back then).

Stew Cleave
JOCO Chief Judge
\'69 E-Type 2+2 and other LBC\'s

Submitted by stuross41@eart… on Wed, 08/25/2004 - 11:27

Don, I may have a used Dunlop tire that matches yours. The tires may have gone flat due to rubbing inside the wheel that breaks the bead. I have had this happen on my Ser III. I replaced the Dunlops with Pirelli's but kept 2 of the originals with good tread. I will have to go out to the garage to check and see if they match yours. If you are interested, contact me off the server system (stuross41atearthlink.net)I am president of the Jaguar Auto Group and I am also listed on the regional club site here on JCNA.
1974 XKE OTS
2000 S-Type V8