My N/S/R tyre is loosing pressure - I have to re-inflate about every 3 days or so.

 

I think the reason the pressure is dropping is due to corrosion around the valve and in another 2 places around the wheel. There is nothing else in the tyre to suggest anything else i.e. a nail, screw or cut.

 

 

Who would be able to fix this - is it a tyre place or general repair agent?

 

 

Have you a tpms sensor on each wheel, those are prone to corroding but an internal fix kit can be had for 5.99 instead of 55 for a complete new one 

We had this some years ago on my wife's Citroen ZX Aura. We fixed it by taking it to the tyre depot where they deflated the tyre and "squashed it " to break the seal with the rim. They then wire brushed the rim where the tyre meets it, to remove any corrosion, did the same with the valve. They then replaced the valve with a new one, re inflated the tyre and we had no further problems.

It was suggested one of the problems was we only did 4k miles a year. Whatever the cause (I blamed it on high salt levels on NE English roads in winter) we had no further problems.

Have you a tpms sensor on each wheel, those are prone to corroding but an internal fix kit can be had for 5.99 instead of 55 for a complete new one 

 

No TPMS on the car.

 

 

We had this some years ago on my wife's Citroen ZX Aura. We fixed it by taking it to the tyre depot where they deflated the tyre and "squashed it " to break the seal with the rim. They then wire brushed the rim where the tyre meets it, to remove any corrosion, did the same with the valve. They then replaced the valve with a new one, re inflated the tyre and we had no further problems.

It was suggested one of the problems was we only did 4k miles a year. Whatever the cause (I blamed it on high salt levels on NE English roads in winter) we had no further problems.

 

Perhaps it's the bead which needs resealing it's hard to tell. Could be first point of call.

I would think that is it the beading, any decent tyre fitting place would wip off the tyre, give it a wire brush up,paint some sealant jollop on the rim, refit the tyre,balance it, job done.

Check it by either submersing the wheel in a bath of water or covering with soapy water to see where bubbles come from. Then go from there.

I had this issue with one of wheels on my xc90,

 

I removed tyre and rubbed down surface where tyre mounts with wet and dry and then got a can of silver wheel paint and painted surface where i had rubbed back,

 

Took about 2 hours to do but it was quiet bad, sometimes you can get away with just rubbing surface up with a wire brush on a drill

I have had a similar issue, but it was on a Ford which I am led to believe are bad for this type of thing. Its about 11 years old, and I had the same situation you describe, ie the tyre loosing pressure for no obvious reason. I had the bead broken and the wheel cleaned, sealant applied and the tyre reseated. It worked for a length of time, but didn't permanently fix it. My understanding was that the corrosion may not have been cleaned properly, or came back so ending up in the same situation.

 

I'm surprised you have suffered on a younger car though.

Check the valve itself before going too far..

Just spit on it

I had the same problem on a legacy, three of the four wheels would go down in a week. Alloys will go porous with age, I removed all four and had them refurbed which provided a permanent fix.   

Thanks for all the comments and advice.

 

 

 

Check the valve itself before going too far..

Just spit on it

 

Tyre fitters came out to work and after removing the wheel/tyre and spraying with fluid, it turned out it was the valve. Slight crack in it at the point where it meets the rim.

 

Tyre removed, both inner and outer edges cleaned, resealed, new valve fitted and so far so good.