How long before tyre flat spots emerge from storage?

[Mulsanne-Speed]

My Bentley Mulsanne Speed has been stood for a month now. With new tyres fitted all round only 3 months / 1,500 miles ago. It probably won't get used again now until Spring. How long will it take for tyre flat spots to emerge if stood in the same spot?

I only have 6 inches space either side front and back of the internal garage wall, so can't really move it much in the garage and don't want the new tyres to become damaged so soon after fitting.

I have read that flat spots can occur in as little as 30 days - If so, are there any ways to avoid this (over inflating for example)?

Many thanks

[Louis Balfour]

Mulsanne-Speed said:

My Bentley Mulsanne Speed has been stood for a month now. With new tyres fitted all round only 3 months / 1,500 miles ago. It probably won't get used again now until Spring. How long will it take for tyre flat spots to emerge if stood in the same spot?

I only have 6 inches space either side front and back of the internal garage wall, so can't really move it much in the garage and don't want the new tyres to become damaged so soon after fitting.

I have read that flat spots can occur in as little as 30 days - If so, are there any ways to avoid this (over inflating for example)?

Many thanks

Overinflate the tyres by 25%.

[Saleen836]

Most years I park my Mustang in my garage over winter and it sits there for anywhere between 3-6 months (depending on weather), the only thing I do is connect the battery to a minder!
In 17 years of ownership never had a problem

[Mulsanne-Speed]

Thanks for your prompt replies Louis and Saleen - I've got it on the charger, seems to be working well and will over inflate by 25%.

Thanks again to you both

[Funky Squirrel]

Garage floor can have an effect too. Place wheels on wood or carpet rather than concrete

[escort 1983]

I would use tyre cradles to prevent flat spotting which helps a lot

[London GT3]

I also have a 2016 Mulsanne Speed which I purchased in June 2022 with 5,000 miles on the clock and original tyres. I just changed the tyres this year because they had small flat spots which manifested themselves as tiny fluttering through the steering wheel. Not what you want in a Bentley! The new tyres have restored the serene driving characteristics.

I now inflate my tyres to 50psi when stored and make sure that I move it at least once a month.

[andyfeaver]

Flat spotting was an issue Bentley sometimes struggled with, both on the Mulsanne and the Continental family. A combination of relatively high axle weight and the very highest demands of comfort and performance from the tyre could make tyre development challenging. On the second generation GT, the increase in track made the car more sensitive to irregularities in the tyres.

The normal cause of flat spotting was parking the car up on a cold surface, having driven it a considerable distance. The tyres then cooled and took a plastic "set". This manifested itself as a vibration through the steering and the seat when you drove away. The trick was to get the tyres up to temperature again and it would normally run the flat spots out. The OE spec Pirelli and Dunlop tyres were extensively tested to ensure that they did return to normal with this runout procedure.

Flat spots from storage were generally less of an issue. The factory trick was to set the tyres to storage pressure - which was about 4 bar / 55PSI from memory; you just needed to remember to drop the pressures to running condition when you wanted to use it. The use of tyre cradles, periodic rolling of cars and use of "soft" floorings could also help.

Good luck!

AF

[Mulsanne-Speed]

Sorry for the slow reply.

Thank you all for your advice. Unfortunately, I only have literally 2 inches to spare either side of my garage wall and door once parked, so getting the car to sit on tyre cradles will probably be tricky.

I have however increased the tyre pressure as largely recommended to circa 50psi.

Many thanks again