| Author | Message | ||
     Ratyson |
Does anyone on here have the PAX run flat tire system on their vehicles? If so, what has been your experience with tire replacement? We have a 2006 Nissan Quest with the PAX system... I am in the process of finding a standard set of wheels/tires to replace them with. Tire replacement is a friggen nightmare with these things, logistically and financially. I did some research on these just prior to buying the van (used), but I guess I should have gone a step further than just seeing what the system was, and how much tires are. Tires run about 10%-15% more in price, however, there is barely sproadic support for changing them. They require special equipment to change the tire, and not many places have this support. Most dealers just swap the entire wheel/tire assembly, then charge you anywhere from $400-$1000 PER WHEEL. ugh... what a nightmare. Now, the system is actually quite good. If you get a flat, you can still ride another 100 miles up to 55mph safely on the flat. But then the trouble starts when you try to get it repaired. Plugging the tire voids the warranty, so replacement is the only option. Also, vehicles that come equipped with the PAX system, do not have spare tires... so if you have a catastrophic failure, you have no spare on hand to get back on the road... you have to call in help. Another problem is that these tires are not stocked normally, and lead times on orders have taken up to several weeks. So buyer beware... If you are on the hunt for a new/used vehicle, watch out for the PAX system. If it is a new vehicle, have the dealer swap them out for standard wheels and tires before you buy! | ||
| Xl1200r |
Oh man... I onced changed a set of PAX tires on a full-size Hummer when I was still working at a garage. I can't believe a 2006 Nissan would use that system - run flat tires with stiffer sidewalls for support are SO much better and have been around for a long time. The good news for you is anyone who tells you that special equippment is needed is blowing smoke - we did it using the standard tire changing machine we used for every other car that came through there. The bad news is it took me and the help of another guy 5 hours to change and balence 4 tires. It was hard, ackward and very messy (there's a grease on the outside of the ring to act as a lube between the ring and tire if the tire goes flat). Basically, you have to break the beads on the tire, get the outside bead off, disassemble the PAX ring (2 peices) and remove it, finish removing the tire, put the new tire halfway on, snake the PAX ring back in, bolt it together, finish mounting the tire, air up and balence. It sucked. If you want to keep your mechanic happy, I'd ditch them. They may not actually need special equippment, but I don't blame a single one of them if the they tell you can't (read "don't want to") do it, or chanrge you an arm and leg for the job. Ditch em. You should be able to find a decent set of used wheels on ebay or new ones on www.tirerack.com for about $100 ea. if you look hard enough. Then a regular set of tires would run the same as any other car - maybe another $80-100 for something cheap. Then just get a space-saver spare and toss it in the back. Good luck with that... | ||
| Ratyson |
Yeah, I priced out a set of wheels/tires/remote pressure sensors from tirerack.com. It is about $1100 including shipping. I think we are going to go that route and see if I can sell these things on ebay and recoup at least a little bit of the money. I am suprised that dealers still put these things on new vehicles. There is a honda dealer that is offering swap packages to people for their PAX systems. I found a training video for the PAX system online. It took 15 minutes for the guy to show how to remove the tire and then install a new one. It was ridiculous. | ||
| Xl1200r |
15 minutes for a pro. I can attest, it's closer to 20-30 in the read world, but that have been because we were dealing with big heavy truck wheels/tires. I can't believe dealers are putting these things on anything, either. That Hummer was the one and only time I've ever encountered that system. | ||
| Mikej |
Had to go look this up: http://www.michelinman.com/pax/ No thanks. |
