just fixed a rear tire puncture after only 1500 miles. a buddy of mine says should not be a problem even for the track, since puncture repairs are very reliable. i am, however, worried about the safety of myself and others. any opinions?

thank you. I will not recommend what you do, but I have used a well repaired tire on track and autocross without any problems. Anything near the sidewall is instant trash though. Safest thing to do is ditch the tire. But if you have a "mushroom patch" installed, the thing will be bulletproof. This requires the tire to be taken off the wheel since it has to be done from the inside. The tire's speed rating is maintained too.

This is *very* different than those gummy worm kits you can do on the side of the road from the outside of the tire. Never trust those short cut tricks. thanks, it was a clean shot to the center of the tire tread, ran over a #8 torx bit (%!*^#!!!). Along the lines of Stan's comments.

If the tire was "plugged" it is nowhere as safe as if it has been removed and patched from the inside. The "mushroom patch" is an extension of this with the "stem" inserted into the hole to seal it even better.

I'd feel safe with an inside patch. Better with the mushroom. Never (not even on my regular cars) with a tire plug. Do they still plug cars? The "free" flat repair at Discount Tire is an inside patch. thanks for the feedback and for confirming my inclination.

i guess this will be my street set of rears! Do they still plug cars? The "free" flat repair at Discount Tire is an inside patch.
discovered right before my first autocross run ever last saturday, done onsite with the help of others in a pinch. I wouldn't worry too much at autox events. I have used a repaired tire on the track. I think I got a nail in a new Michelin (like two weeks after they went on) and there was no way I was going to ditch the tire Of course, the place I brought my wheel for repair, dismounted the tire, used a mushroom type plug and then placed a patch over the plug as insurance.

Now I have access to a tire changer, I can do these repairs all day long. I would be concerned about the tire on the track, but even more...if it did go bad, I'd be three hours from home with no spare. Are those the same tires you got from me? I wouldn't worry about it failing on the track as much as I'd worry about the possible consequences if it were to fail on track.

Most of this country is pretty sue-happy. In TX, we still just show up with a truckload of friends carrying baseball bats.
Are those the same tires you got from me?
yes but obviously the puncture was simply a freak occurence. since the tire has already been plugged from the outside can i remove that plug and redo the repair with a "mushroom" plug described above?

thanks. since the tire has already been plugged from the outside can i remove that plug and redo the repair with a "mushroom" plug described above? I'd just have a regular tire patch applied to the inside and leave the plug in place. Probably do more damage trying to remove the plug. All the mushroom plug is doing is trying to fill the hole with the "stem", but the real sealing is happening with the patch (top of the mushroom). I've never used a mushroom plug (it's something relatively new, and I haven't had a flat in a long time), but I always patch from the inside. I've never had a problem with a patched tire.

In reality, 99% of the time, a plug is good enough for most people - that's all most tire shops do, because it's very quick and easy. I'm old school, and go one better and patch instead - then I don't have to worry about the 1%.

For the record, if the hole is on the side wall, you get a new tire...