Panamera, a Flat Tire?

On the last day of Golden Week, after finishing some shopping, I started the Panamera’s engine and noticed an error message on the dashboard. It said, “Please inflate the tire.”

I wondered, “Will the message disappear after driving a bit? Or is it a flat tire? Luckily, I’m near the Porsche Center, so I’ll have them check it on the way back.” However, since it was Golden Week and the center was closed, I decided to return home. Just to be safe, I emailed my husband, who was on a tour in Tohoku, saying, “This message popped up—do you think it’s a flat tire?”

He replied, “Yeah, it might be a flat, so better not drive it.”

That made sense, so I avoided driving. Still, since I didn’t feel any flatness, I got out and checked the tires. There was no sign of nails stuck in the tires, nor did the pressure seem significantly low.

But when I checked the tire pressure deviation again…

Hmm… it really looks like the right front tire is flat. So, the next morning after the holiday, I contacted my dealer representative, Mr. H, who said,

The first warning appears on the tire that’s lost 0.3 bar, but if all tires show negative values, it usually means just low pressure and can be fixed by inflating. However, in this case, it might be a flat. It’s better to act quickly—would you like us to arrange a tow?

I felt bad about asking for a tow (−_−), so I adjusted my schedule and decided to bring it in for repair that day. Since I was there, I also asked them to top up the oil as well.

Flat Tire Repair at the Porsche Center

When I arrived at the Porsche Center, the service staff checked the Panamera and said the repair would take about an hour, so I waited inside the store.

Since it was a weekday morning, there were no other customers with kids, so my younger daughter had the kids’ play area all to herself and played freely.

(Kappa roll sushi on the car… quite creative)

The work finished as scheduled, and the explanation revealed that a 1 cm screw was stuck in the right front tire. I wonder where it got stuck… Now that I think about it, the right front tire was the one that got a flat last time too. In the end, the flat tire repair and 1.5L oil top-up cost about Glad it wasn’t a full tire replacement… Phew.

When I told my husband after returning home, he said,

“So it really was a flat. But the right side gets flats a lot. Maybe because the tires are wide, or because when turning right or merging, you often drive over dusty or debris-filled zebra zones.”

We don’t drive on construction sites or gravel roads, nor do we tailgate construction trucks (lol), so that might be the cause.

Panamera Oil Top-Up

I also had the Panamera’s oil topped up this time. I felt like I had been topping up oil quite often lately, so I decided to do some quick calculations.

The last oil change was at the end of September last year, when the mileage was 13,246 km. At the time of this oil top-up, the mileage was 21,037 km. So,

I drove 7,791 km and added 1.5L of oil.

That’s how it stands.

Considering that, the oil isn’t decreasing abnormally fast; it’s just the distance driven. Next month, I plan to drive the Panamera to Fuji Speedway and participate in the Porsche Track Experience, so for now, I feel reassured.

Still, I’m really looking forward to next month’s Porsche event!