no spare tire

[mn54]

I am looking at purchasing a honda accord hybrid. I like everything about this car except it does not come with a spare. they do this to increase the mpg rating. would you buy a car with no spare? or buy an extra tire and wheel and throw it in the trunk?

 

[scottmn4]

The Mercedes I purchased a few months ago didn't have a spare either. It does have run flats which makes me feel a bit better. That being said, it has probably been 25 years since I had to use a spare anyway.

 

[mystang52]

Besides improved EPA mileage #'s, I believe the rationale is that flats are rare, and blow-outs extremely rare. So at worst one might get a flat, use that inflater-thingie to get them home or to a service station, so no need for spare tire. Both of my cars have spare tires. I'm still old-fashioned enough that if I were to buy a car I would spring for a spare tire and keep it in the trunk.

 

[Ronstar]

I’ve driven my 2001 corvette 90000 miles with no spare since I bought it in 2001. Never had a flat. It came with run flats, but I replaced them with regular tires at around 30000 miles.

I wouldn’t worry about not having a spare, unless you drive off road a lot. Just get AAA.

 

[jazz4cash]

i think they save a few nickels on cost too!

 

[Walt34]

A manufacturer who is too cheap to put a spare tire in the car does not deserve my consideration for business. No, I would not buy a car with no spare. And yes, I have needed to use them on more than one occasion.

 

[Car-Guy]

Even with run flats I carry a compact spare since most run flats are only rated to go about 50 miles. I also carry flat repair kits and a small air pump with me and "usually" I can fix the flat with the wheel/tire still on the car. YMMV

 

[braumeister]

I have this (probably irrational) fear of getting a flat in some "far from anywhere" location late at night with the flat wheel in soft dirt as the torrential rainstorm/snowstorm comes down with a vengeance. The thought of trying to use that little inflator and tire plug kit that came with the car in those conditions is just too daunting. So I bought a donut spare that lives in the trunk when I travel any serious distance from home. It adds a little weight and takes up some space, but gives me great peace of mind.

 

[Bamaman]

It's all to save you $100.

Enjoy your Hybrid. I have Toyota's latest version, and I'm missing nothing about conventional gasoline powered vehicles. And it's nice to get 20 mpg more than the typical car.

 

[Palmtree]

My 2017 Chrysler Pacifica does not have a spare. It comes from the factory with a flat repair kit that contains a bottle of tire sealant and a 12v air pump. Not very useful for a blowout but they're pretty rare.

 

[aja8888]

A spare tire isn't needed until you do need it. Cheap insurance.

A close friend hit a pothole three weeks ago and blew his tire. No spare and he called Roadside Assistance (which came with the car purchase). They told him 4 -5 hours wait (holiday weekend) to send a tow truck. Yeah, lots of fun.

Normally you only wait an hour or two....

 

[Aerides]

If the car has space for one, and I loved the car, I'd just budget the cost in (or negotiate it into the price), and get one after-market myself.

If the car had no place for one it would take up non-dedicated storage, that would annoy me enough to look at other options - but I think this is a common problem w/hybrids and electrics.

 

[Walt34]

They told him 4 -5 hours wait (holiday weekend) to send a tow truck. Yeah, lots of fun.

Normally you only wait an hour or two....

Exactly, and that was what I saw others waiting for with AAA's useless "free roadside assistance". Yeah, since they're low bid and if the tow truck has any other better-paying jobs pending you stay at the end of the line. And bet it's going to be either -10° or 110° while you wait. No thanks.

If it's available I can change the spare in 10-15 minutes. They can keep their stupid inflator cans.

 

[HF63]

If you have a car w/ no spare tire consider at least a plug plus a small air compressor. The fix flat cans do not always stop the leak.


The best thing is to buy a spare tire and a jack at a local junk yard.


My friend went to a fiesta to discover his tire was flat at 3:00 am and far from home not a good thing.

 

[ATX78701]

The title of this thread made me think there was a new way to trim my waistline - LOL imagine my surprise with all of the car talk

 

[RunningBum]

About 5 years ago I hit a deep pot hole hard enough to bend the rim, on a rainy night. I was able to get the car under cover, and change to the donut spare. Glad I had it, and I'd always want one.

 

[statsman]

If the car has space for one, and I loved the car, I'd just budget the cost in (or negotiate it into the price), and get one after-market myself.

If the car had no place for one it would take up non-dedicated storage, that would annoy me enough to look at other options - but I think this is a common problem w/hybrids and electrics.

This. Our kid moved out of state in the summer of 2016, and the vehicle we signed over didn't come with a spare tire. Just an air pump and sealant, which wouldn't help in a blowout and produced a mess inside the tire that was difficult to clean up later.

Fortunately, there was a dedicated spot for a spare tire and changing kit (available on the lower powered models), so both were purchased and added to the trunk before the vehicle was shipped to the new location.

 

[Golden sunsets]

Our last vehicle, which we owned for 10 years(a Mercedes), had no spare but had run flat tires. We never had a problem, even though we had to replace a couple of tires that had picked up nails during that period. We were never in a situation where were we would be more than 30 miles from service.

We just replaced that vehicle with a 2020 version of the original SUV that we had owned. Same situation.

Neither car had room for a spare and we would not consider driving around with a spare in the cargo area. YMMV.

 

[MRG]

I put an electric air pump and patch kit in my Tesla. Last time I tried to change a flat the EMTs had to come rescue me.

 

[Dtail]

No spare tire on my BMW Z4 with run flats. Do have AA and just not worried.

 

[pb4uski]

IIRC, Al had a similar themed thread on his Tesla a while ago. Never say never but I would prefer cars with at least a donut spare, and preferably a full sized spare. Both of our current vehicles have spare tires.

 

[badatmath]

I have had 3 flat tires in the past year. GET A SPARE.

No weird driving just messy roads here. (Nails).

 

[Souschef]

I had a flat in my driveway (thank goodness), and went to put the spare on to get it fixed. I was shocked to find no spare, just the inflater. Since the tire shop was a mile away, I just pumped the tire up and got it fixed.
I then got on line and ordered the entire kit- tire, jack, tools, etc.

 

[Sunset]

I am looking at purchasing a honda accord hybrid. I like everything about this car except it does not come with a spare. they do this to increase the mpg rating. would you buy a car with no spare? or buy an extra tire and wheel and throw it in the trunk?

You can probably buy one off a wreck at the junkyard pretty cheap, already mounted on the rim.

 

[Sunset]

I have had 3 flat tires in the past year. GET A SPARE.

No weird driving just messy roads here. (Nails).

I drove for over a year with a slow leak, kept having to pump up my tire. Finally decided to get it fixed as it was leaking faster (only last a couple of days).
Turned out it was a nail in the tire.

I had driven it with a nail in the tire for over a year !!

Weirdly, a few weeks later the other tire started to go soft, so I took it back to the same shop as they had only charged me $30 to fix the flat and I had watched the guy the entire time.
Turned out I had picked up another nail, so another $30.

Still have not used the spare that came with the vehicle