No Spare Wheel

[Usually007]

There was talk at Gaydon of the legality of not having a spare wheel (Si Skippy) and whether just a can of tyre weld was sufficient.

Well one of the young, very misguided, fellas at work has just bought a brand new Rover 25 and when we opened the boot it has a huge round piece of spongey polystyrene with a can of tyreweld in it and a pair of goggles where the spare wheel should be.

Surely if Rover are doing this as standard then it must be legal not to have a spare............................isn't it ??

[Nick]

I thought that legally you can't have an illegal spare (as per road wheels) but that it is legal to have no spare!!

Anyone in the police? who can answer this (mind you that may blow your cover) :P

[Matthew_McNally]

sorry - but theres a car that would be getting returned to the dealer in the morning.

a can of stuff to repair a puncture is all well and good, but what about if your tyre is shredded, or even worse, your wheel itself is damaged?

you could be stranded, in the middle of nowhere, with no possible means of getting home.

OK - if you want to take the risk, and remove the spare wheel - then you take the risks yourself.

But for a manufacturer to give you no option is not on.

[ricky_is200]

A number of cars come without a spare wheel these days, especially sports cars.

As Nick said if you have a spare it has to be road worthy, but it isn't law that you have to have a spare.

If you have a dodgy spare and have an MOT coming up, just take it out of the car!

[Matthew_McNally]

A number of cars come without a spare wheel these days, especially sports cars.

do they tell you when you buy it that you don't get a spare?

have a nightmare vision of busting a wheel, opening the boot, and finding a can!

/insert mental image of me (in Homer Simpson slippers :P ) scratching head with speech bubble saying "WTF??"

[Usually007]

I personally wouldn’t be happy to travel without a spare tyre whether it was legal to or not.

I was involved in an accident once that wasn’t my fault (honest) but left me with a rim so badly damaged that no amount of tyre weld would have got the tyre inflated again. If I hadn’t been carrying a spare it would have been a long wait for the RAC or AA.

The strange thing is with this guy's Rover is that they have actually supplied a lump of black squidgey polytyrene in the shape of a tyre. I suppose a spare tyre will begin to be offered as an accessory? Weird :duh:

[Steve ( West Mids )]

If you haven't got a spare .... some of the recovery companies will not come out to you if you hvae a puncture .... if in doubt check.

Smart .... does not come with a spare .... think the new Mini doesn't come with a spare ..... correct me if I'm wrong ...

[wildrnes]

you are quite right there

no spare in the mini

[Brian Berry]

Nick, I blew my cover years ago as I retired in 1986 and became a Chartered Planner.

From my knowledge of the Construction and Use Regs a driver need not have a spare wheel. If he does carry one it must comply with the regs. As the offence is driving.. with a faulty tyre... on a road ,the spare wheel if let say it was dangerous, there is an offence of ' dangerous parts and accessories'.

I know of one traffic pc who reported someone for only having two tyre valve covers, i.e. dangerous parts and accessories. His Sgt told him not to be so stupid as well intentioned advice was best. The driver was sent an advisory letter.

[ricky_is200]

I know Lotus's and the Vauxhall VX220 don't have a spare. I'm pretty sure cars like TVR's don't either. A couple of guys at work have such cars and their attitude is if the tyre weld won't fix it they will call the AA/RAC.

[Brettster]

New Style Fiat Punto's do not come with a spare either, just a can of squirt and an electric pump, there's not even a space for one to go, you would have to take up the boot space with it.

not very good at all!!

[furtive]

You don't need a spare. I just carry a can of tyreweld in my Westfield. Spare wheels just add weight and slow it down. There is also talk of using motorbike puncture repair kits which are even better.

If the tyre is shredded, a call to the AA will sort me out.

[wildrnes]

just rang police

you domt need a spare tyre

there u go

[djanderso]

I'm pretty sure this will soon be more common as cars evolve.

I'm also pretty sure in this day and age that tyre makers could make longer lasting tyres that are less likely to burst when a nail goes through it.

[NigeSt]

This trend of no-spare-wheel may be closer to home than you think guys...

From an article in the Winter Lexus magazine (page 6), the 2003 refinements of the SC430 include tyre upgrades meaning it's not necessary to carry a spare wheel.

It doesn't say whether the SC430 actually has a spare wheel...

Nige

[kamlex]

The latest BMW M3 does not have a spare - only an electric pump and some foam.

[McLean]

The SC now comes with a Foam & Fill pack (also part of the suspension/tyres upgrade), but has always had a 'skinny spare' option. Takes up too much space in the boot though I reckon.

I've been looking at Ultraseal (http://www.ultraseal.com) as an option instead of the usual Tyreseal can - anyone tried it?

[MsW]

Doesn't using foam mean the tyre can't then be fixed? What with tyres being 90 - 100 pounds its a costly idea.