Why cars should have actual spare tires

My wife had a 1979 Chevrolet Camaro that had a spare tire you filled with the GM can of inflator stuff.  

Being a car guy I wasn't clear on the process.  It saved a ton of room in that trunk. 

codrus (Forum Supporter) said:  Modern tires are stronger, and the advent of TPMS means that people are less likely to run them really low on air, so complete blowouts don't happen anywhere close to as often as they used to.

I don't know about tires being stronger.  My wife and I had 3 blowouts on Continental tires, all sidewall failures.

As much as people badmouth runflat tires I love the Michelins that I have on the Vette.  And they were proved out on vacation when I picked up a nail in one tire.

triumph7 said:

codrus (Forum Supporter) said:  Modern tires are stronger, and the advent of TPMS means that people are less likely to run them really low on air, so complete blowouts don't happen anywhere close to as often as they used to.

I don't know about tires being stronger.  My wife and I had 3 blowouts on Continental tires, all sidewall failures.

As much as people badmouth runflat tires I love the Michelins that I have on the Vette.  And they were proved out on vacation when I picked up a nail in one tire.

Compared to the bias ply tires of the 60s and 70s, modern tires are much, much stronger.

Cost, and safety aside, I just don't want to wait for a tow truck. 
 

I had my first ever flat coming home a few months ago. Smelled something weird. Had a gut feeling. Pulled off and found my rear tire riding on the sidewall. I had picked up a razor blade and killed the tire. 
 

My county has tow trucks that roam the highways to help in situations like this. There's actually a lot of them. Either way, I had the spare on and inflated in about 10 minutes and was on my way home. Had I waited for a tow truck the whole thing would have taken an unknown amount of time and cost an unknown number of dollars. No thanks

In reply to codrus (Forum Supporter) :

A brief counterpoint - I got a pretty quick flat on the freeway in the carpool lane. Traffic was heavy but moving 70+.

in retrospect I probably could have moved right across 6 lanes of traffic but suspect the flat tire would not have liked it and had it blown apart could have caused other issues. 
 

however not knowing exactly what was happening, I quickly pulled to the left and stopped in the shoulder.  
 

while not fun, I was able to change to my spare in less than 10 minutes, merge with the flowing traffic and be on my way. 
 

Once I saw the problem, I did not think I could get across the freeway without becoming a massive hazard, risking both myself and others.  I'm also glad I didn't have to be there for any longer than I did.

jfryjfry said:

in retrospect I probably could have moved right across 6 lanes of traffic but suspect the flat tire would not have liked it and had it blown apart could have caused other issues. 
...
I did not think I could get across the freeway without becoming a massive hazard, risking both myself and others.  I'm also glad I didn't have to be there for any longer than I did

I would not have done that, and would never recommend it to anyone.  The left (center) shoulder is absolutely the worst place to be.  Traffic is moving faster, there is usually less room to move away, and you are trapped between two roadways with no escape.

A flat tire is unlikely to have failed catastrophically in the 30 seconds it would have taken to merge over to the right, and even if it had you'd have been much safer belted into a car with its crumple zones and airbags than you would as a pedestrian less than 10 feet from 70 mph traffic.  Target fixation is a real phenomenon, people drive straight into whatever it is that they're staring at.

In reply to codrus (Forum Supporter) :

Try that attitude in Montana, in winter, where there's no cell service. Different scenario of course, but it explains my opposing position.

Datsun240ZGuy said:

My wife had a 1979 Chevrolet Camaro that had a spare tire you filled with the GM can of inflator stuff.  

Being a car guy I wasn't clear on the process.  It saved a ton of room in that trunk. 

Some newer vehicles use these!  I'd like to say I saw it in a VW or Mercedes SUV.  Probably Mercedes.

When I was in high school the early 90s, the auto shop teacher had one to demonstrate.

maschinenbau said:

chaparral said:

Beyond the liability issue of getting one of your drivers killed roadside, or crashing after installing the lugs roadside without a torque wrench, there are other reasons I would move to eliminate spare tires or inflation kits at my next automaker:

1) Difference in crash performance between having an inflated tire under the car and not - and we don't have control over your keeping the spare inflated before the crash

2) Space use for the tire versus moving the load floor down for luggage space, or moving the rear seat back, or putting a PHEV/HEV battery pack there

3) Weight and fuel consumption - the fuel burned moving a spare tire around on everyone's car is substantial

I also don't want people to have the ability to jack the car up without being at home on a level surface with jackstands handy, so I'd also like to reclaim the space lost to collapse-o-jacks.

NHTSA should ban spare tires and tire changing equipment. 

Big disagree. Why don't we just ban working on cars period? This is GRM...

Yeah, if I get a flat, I'm not going to wait 3-5 hours for a flatbed to take me somewhere that they can tell me that they don't have my size tire.  Assuming that it doesn't happen on a weekend where I'd be sleeping outside the tire shop until Monday morning.

I throw a full size spare in the trunk of my rx8 when I am traveling anywhere more than about 60 miles from home.  Sure it takes some trunk space but I'm wiling to sacrifice that to be able to get where I'm going.

I had a slow leak due to a corroded rim a few years back but I can't remember the last time I had an actual blowout - it's probably been 30 years or more.  I hope I don't jinx myself by saying that.  Fortunately my car is old enough to still have a full size spare, and I keep one of those little air compressors that plugs into the cigarette lighter in the trunk as well.

Not long after I got the RX-7 running, I was driving home from work and had the right front blow out.  The entire sidewall was just gone, very similar to the OP's pics.  Somehow got safely stopped without getting plowed.  Naturally, the tire let go just after I merged onto the highway and got over to the left lane.  Ended up stopped close to the jersey barrier as heavy traffic went around me.  In a very short time, a motorist assistance vehicle came by and stopped behind me, and very kindly offered to help me change the tire.  I sheepishly admitted that I had removed the spare in the interest of weight savings, feeling like an absolute idiot.  He then politely informed me that he would summon a tow truck.

I'm not fond of the fact that Ford has equipped the Shelby with a can of fix-a-flat.  Not going to be very useful if the entire sidewall is missing.

I personally think it's asinine to drive a vehicle without a spare, and it's irresponsible for a manufacturer to offer a car without a spare and a means to change it.  Depending on where you have the misfortune of getting a flat tire, help can be hours away.

I've been fortunate to discover slow leaks before they become big problems, but picking up a nail or screw is a commonplace occurrence.  I've personally plugged dozens of tires in the 40 some odd years I've been driving.  TPMS is a very nice feature to have.

maschinenbau said:

One of my biggest pet peeves with new cars these days. Despite our brand new Subaru being a top-trim, fully-loaded model, it did not include a spare tire. But in other markets, Subaru sells the Impreza/Crosstrek with a spare, which even share a floor stramping for it.  So for $300 or so ON TOP of buying a new car, we can now road trip with some peace of mind instead of relying on a tow truck.

If the reason is cost, why can't I check an option box for it? If the reason is CAFE/environmental, tell me how much emissions are produced by unnecessary tow truck jobs?

The sad reality is a growing majority of our driving population couldn't swap a spare tire out anyway, so why bother taking the CAFE hit. 

I did exactly the same thing on my wife's '18 TLX.  Acura even offers a complete kit as an accessory part number, minus the tire.  That you have to buy elsewhere, or maybe as a separe p/n from Acura.  All in, $500 to add that piece of mind.  Feeling even better about that decision following what happened to my daughter (whose car, btw, has a donut spare that served her well that evening).  Hoping I never have to use the Acura spare, but it's there if ever needed along with a jack and a lug wrench that came in the kit.  My '21 RDX came with a spare and all the associted other bits standard, but other trim levels (A-spec) do not.  It is an extra cost accessory kit for that trim, but available.  Must be a cost savings thing.

I removed the spare from my FiST to gain storage space. I very rarely go very far away. Neither my wife or I have ever had a sidewall blowout. My thinking is even if I have one a couple hours away from home I will pay for the tow.

Attitudes change.

15 years ago I was driving someone in my Fiero Gt and had a flat.   my passenger was amazed that I just got the space saver spare out and changed it at the side of the road and the solid line of traffic driving by onto the bridge where the tire had blown were offering to call a tow for me, assuming that I wouldn't/couldn't change it myself.  Today, I think it is almost assumed that no one will change a tire on their own - independence has been overcome by cellphones and convenience.

Wow. Either I'm really cursed, or some of y'all are blessed. I have changed tires on the roadside probably 25-30 times in the last 20 years. At least 6 were complete blowouts like the OP. Living out in the sticks has a part in that, I'm sure, but half at least were on highways away from home. I carried 2 spares on trips over 100 miles for a certain flat prone truck. It had the best HD tires I could find for it. But my Cherokee has never had a flat in 14 years. I should drive it more.

In reply to llysgennad :

I've had five flats in my life in the sense of needing to swap a spare tire.  In only one case was the tire repairable.  The rest were due to sidewall damage or a hole too large to be repaired.  The last one I had, a little over a year ago, involved shredding the tire on the Interstate, and I was only a couple miles from work, so I just drove on it at lower speed.  Somehow the wheel survived.

The one where the hole was in the tread but too large to be repaired was fun because it happened when I didn't have a spare.  I did have a crappy 12v air pump and a collection of engine bolts.  I was able to use an M12 bolt to fill the hole enough for the tire to hold air enough to make it to the next exit, where I bought ALL the tire plugs.  The hole needed six or seven plugs to seal, and they'd spit out if too much air pressure was used.  So, I went through a lot of plugs...