I'm going to start a Campaign..on spare tyres
Discussion
On Thursday night my wife was driving our newly aquired Mini One "baker street" car in the New Forest.
Earlier in the day I had changed the wheels from it's very nice black alloysin 16" tyres to a set of steel wheels on "winter" tyres
The car had done about 40 miles on the tyres, and she had a major blow out on the near side trye wall with a "V" shaped cut and a hole that you could push a 5p coin through.
(even though the tyre inflation warning light came on, and the car "bonged" a warning she ignored it thinking it was a warning that it was icy....she later claimed the sign looks like it's a thermometer...I said it was "red" so she should have stopped....and "RTFM" (read the flipping manual), anyway as it was rear near side, she said she didn't notice the handling change for the last half mile or so she drove on a completely flat tyre!.....we think she burst it on a cattle grid...she claims she did not hit any thing, and there is no damage to the steel rim....just the tyre wall)
The car has a tyre inflation system to reinflate you on a puncture....this wound was beyond repair....she was lucky I could come out with a spare alloy (the one I had taken off earlier) and drive the car home, then order a new tyre to arraive tomorrow to repalce the blown one.....but still 3 full days without a tyre. If we had not had a spare wheel we would have had to have left the car where she had driven it to......or had it recovered, both not really ideal situations
This must happen a lot around the country, and cause massive problems. It is stupid for the sake of even a not "ideal space saver wheel" to save a few grams of CO2 to not have as law a spare wheel in every new car sold, so at least one can carry on a journey of at least speeds of up to 50 mph.
I am going to contact my MP, and motoring organisations to help bring about a change in the law that we must have all new cars from today sold with a spare. It could save many problems and maybe even a life so has to be worth it.......it was a royal pain in the arse having to put the summer tyres back on and then on Monday will have to change them back again!
Do you agree?
Earlier in the day I had changed the wheels from it's very nice black alloysin 16" tyres to a set of steel wheels on "winter" tyres
The car had done about 40 miles on the tyres, and she had a major blow out on the near side trye wall with a "V" shaped cut and a hole that you could push a 5p coin through.
(even though the tyre inflation warning light came on, and the car "bonged" a warning she ignored it thinking it was a warning that it was icy....she later claimed the sign looks like it's a thermometer...I said it was "red" so she should have stopped....and "RTFM" (read the flipping manual), anyway as it was rear near side, she said she didn't notice the handling change for the last half mile or so she drove on a completely flat tyre!.....we think she burst it on a cattle grid...she claims she did not hit any thing, and there is no damage to the steel rim....just the tyre wall)
The car has a tyre inflation system to reinflate you on a puncture....this wound was beyond repair....she was lucky I could come out with a spare alloy (the one I had taken off earlier) and drive the car home, then order a new tyre to arraive tomorrow to repalce the blown one.....but still 3 full days without a tyre. If we had not had a spare wheel we would have had to have left the car where she had driven it to......or had it recovered, both not really ideal situations
This must happen a lot around the country, and cause massive problems. It is stupid for the sake of even a not "ideal space saver wheel" to save a few grams of CO2 to not have as law a spare wheel in every new car sold, so at least one can carry on a journey of at least speeds of up to 50 mph.
I am going to contact my MP, and motoring organisations to help bring about a change in the law that we must have all new cars from today sold with a spare. It could save many problems and maybe even a life so has to be worth it.......it was a royal pain in the arse having to put the summer tyres back on and then on Monday will have to change them back again!
Do you agree?
Aren't spare wheels an optional extra these days?
Blame the person who bought the car new and didn't spec it. Although, there's nothing stopping you from buying one if you think it's needed.
I agree with you though, all cars should have a spare. Stupid to think some gunk in a can will get you out of every situation.
Blame the person who bought the car new and didn't spec it. Although, there's nothing stopping you from buying one if you think it's needed.
I agree with you though, all cars should have a spare. Stupid to think some gunk in a can will get you out of every situation.
The original MINI One was one of the few MINIs that could be specified with a spacesaver spare. The problem in a MINI is that if you have a spacesaver, are 4 up with luggage, where do you put the large alloy with a flat tyre?
You take your choices with cars and research before buying. Personally I wouldn't have a car without at least a spacesaver spare. I have a F60 BMW company car which has runflats which are crap. But 99% of the time that car is driven by my parents within a 15 mile radius of there home and never more than 5 minutes from civilisation.
You take your choices with cars and research before buying. Personally I wouldn't have a car without at least a spacesaver spare. I have a F60 BMW company car which has runflats which are crap. But 99% of the time that car is driven by my parents within a 15 mile radius of there home and never more than 5 minutes from civilisation.
ADEuk said:
How many people would actually change the wheel at the side of the road if they had a spare? Not many I'm guessing. Probably more dangerous to try than driving on a borked tyre.
Me! Why? Because my leisure time is more important to me than a £200 worth of spare wheel/tyre/fuel used to carry it.I had a flat taking the kids to Hastings. Pulled into a petrol station and swapped over the spare. It took longer to tidy the car back up again than it did to remove the flat and put on the spare. 20 minutes later we were on our way. Day out still on the cards. Get home later and search for a new spare at a competitive price at your leisure.
With a holed tyre and no spare you use the gunk and compressor to find it doesn't work. Wait an hour for a recovery truck Get driven slowly to a tyre place if they are open (try Scotlandshire on a weekend). Get screwed by the gleeful garage owner who knows you have to buy at full price.
watchnut said:
I am going to contact my MP, and motoring organisations to help bring about a change in the law that we must have all new cars from today sold with a spare.
This is a set of wheels like those on my car:
Note that the front wheels are much narrower and an inch smaller in diameter than the rears.
This is my boot:
vikingaero said:
Me! Why? Because my leisure time is more important to me than a £200 worth of spare wheel/tyre/fuel used to carry it.
I had a flat taking the kids to Hastings. Pulled into a petrol station and swapped over the spare. It took longer to tidy the car back up again than it did to remove the flat and put on the spare. 20 minutes later we were on our way. Day out still on the cards. Get home later and search for a new spare at a competitive price at your leisure.
With a holed tyre and no spare you use the gunk and compressor to find it doesn't work. Wait an hour for a recovery truck Get driven slowly to a tyre place if they are open (try Scotlandshire on a weekend). Get screwed by the gleeful garage owner who knows you have to buy at full price.
This^, however Friday night I hit a pothole so severe it has ruined both front wheels, for this reason alone [ the state of our roads ] it is worth carrying one.I had a flat taking the kids to Hastings. Pulled into a petrol station and swapped over the spare. It took longer to tidy the car back up again than it did to remove the flat and put on the spare. 20 minutes later we were on our way. Day out still on the cards. Get home later and search for a new spare at a competitive price at your leisure.
With a holed tyre and no spare you use the gunk and compressor to find it doesn't work. Wait an hour for a recovery truck Get driven slowly to a tyre place if they are open (try Scotlandshire on a weekend). Get screwed by the gleeful garage owner who knows you have to buy at full price.
My car had a full size spare and all of the tools. They sit in a storage cupboard at home. It's a fuel consuming and performance robbing "luxury" to have.
If I ever get a flat the AA can recover it to home where I can put the spare on and then go get me a new tyre
If your away from home its not a problem either. BMW 5'er got a puncture on Great Yarmouth seafront, Tyre badly damaged by a great big nail sticking out of what looked like the corner of a window frame. BMW jacked up and left on 3 wheels, AA man takes the tyre to the nearest tyre centre who then replaced the tyre and brought it back to the car.
It has never been an issue to not have a spare wheel, so I just don't carry one
If I ever get a flat the AA can recover it to home where I can put the spare on and then go get me a new tyre
If your away from home its not a problem either. BMW 5'er got a puncture on Great Yarmouth seafront, Tyre badly damaged by a great big nail sticking out of what looked like the corner of a window frame. BMW jacked up and left on 3 wheels, AA man takes the tyre to the nearest tyre centre who then replaced the tyre and brought it back to the car.
It has never been an issue to not have a spare wheel, so I just don't carry one
My mum had a puncture yesterday. I was pleasantly surprised to find a full sized spare in the boot. However the wheel nuts have little plastic caps on them and require a flat head screwdriver in order to remove them. The kit in the boot included a cross head screwdriver. Truly a WTF moment.
Car and tyre manufacturers like to spout stuff that the average driver only gets a puncture every 7 years. Which is really helpful when you have a puncture.
My last 3 holidays were thus:
2011 Driving on the Ardnamurchan Peninsula. Hit a pothole covered by rainwater. Tyre borked. Swapped over the spacesaver and drove over 2 hours at no more than 50mph to Fort William. Ferrymaster on the Corran Ferry smiled knowingly at the state of the roads. Bent over and got a new tyre for £200 from National Tyres (normal price around £130)
2012 Nail in tyre 10mm from sidewall in North Devon. Relieved of £180 by KwikFit in Bideford.
2013 Put one of the winter tyres into the boot for our holiday to the Lake District. Armed with a spacesaver and a winter tyre....... absolutely bloody nothing happened!
My last 3 holidays were thus:
2011 Driving on the Ardnamurchan Peninsula. Hit a pothole covered by rainwater. Tyre borked. Swapped over the spacesaver and drove over 2 hours at no more than 50mph to Fort William. Ferrymaster on the Corran Ferry smiled knowingly at the state of the roads. Bent over and got a new tyre for £200 from National Tyres (normal price around £130)
2012 Nail in tyre 10mm from sidewall in North Devon. Relieved of £180 by KwikFit in Bideford.
2013 Put one of the winter tyres into the boot for our holiday to the Lake District. Armed with a spacesaver and a winter tyre....... absolutely bloody nothing happened!
davepoth said:
My mum had a puncture yesterday. I was pleasantly surprised to find a full sized spare in the boot. However the wheel nuts have little plastic caps on them and require a flat head screwdriver in order to remove them. The kit in the boot included a cross head screwdriver. Truly a WTF moment.
Are you sure it's not one that you swap from cross to flat by pulling the handle off?Spares are going out of fashion because a bean counter at a large car firm calculated that the extra Co2 generated by lugging them around kills 3.78 dolphins per annum.
I would imagine that a great number of people could get away with not having a spare without ever causing a huge problem.
I would imagine that a great number of people could get away with not having a spare without ever causing a huge problem.
It wasn't the cattle grid here was it? http://goo.gl/maps/UGx0o
I think it was Thursday I saw some council gorillas smacking it back into shape with a huge sledgehammer.
I think it was Thursday I saw some council gorillas smacking it back into shape with a huge sledgehammer.
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