Rant: When did car manufacturers stop providing spare tires?! - 986 Forum - The Community for Porsche Boxster & Cayman Owners

Finnegan · 02-13-2017, 10:49 AM

I'm shopping around for a sporty coupe or sedan, and keep finding models originally fitted with RFTs, and no spare. And I think that's ridiculous. /rant.

jsceash · 02-13-2017, 10:59 AM

I think you'll find Porsche decided in about 2005 to put a gell and pump kit in most models.

Flavor 987S · 02-13-2017, 11:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Finnegan

I'm shopping around for a sporty coupe or sedan, and keep finding models originally fitted with RFTs, and no spare.

I'm not aware of any Porsche with Run Flat Tires.

Giller · 02-13-2017, 11:46 AM

No, don't believe Porsche offers RFT - but they don't offer spare tires, just the compressor and fix-it kit.

The vast majority of car buyers never get a flat....and those that do, I would argue the vast majority of them don't change their own tire anyways, so it's few and far between the people that actually change their own tire. Most cars come with roadside assistance - they'll come and give you a tow to your local shop and you're all set.

You could always buy your own tire for a couple bucks - but then the other challenge - where to put it? Cars are so aerodynamic and tight, there isn't much space anywhere!

Quadcammer · 02-13-2017, 11:50 AM

I added a plug kit, so unless i have a blowout or a horrible bent rim, I should be all set.

Boxtaboy · 02-13-2017, 11:56 AM

I'm with you. I had a flat last year in my Audi right after work while coming home. I hit something that put a hole in one tire's sidewall. No plug or can of goo would have fixed it. I put the spare on in a few minutes and was on my way.

Nine8Six · 02-13-2017, 01:40 PM

Oh that's okay, we're a great community.... we'll just stand-still during rush hour until he gets his "road assistance" so that he can resume what he was doing before. Oh, road assistance is jammed up behind the 16km long trace of traffic he is creating with his stupid flat tire... might just take a while.

No spare tire = the most idiotic cost saving decision an automaker could possibly made... and he did it. /rantx2

bwdz · 02-13-2017, 03:39 PM

Run flats had a lot to do with the movement as did hybrids as they needed the room for the batteries and wanted to keep those heavy pigs down low. Even a truck as large as an Escalade in hybrid form does not get a spare. Funny thing: my father was an automotive engineer and spent a few years in Germany. Some time in the late 90s Ford had that little rebadged Korean car named the KA or something like that. The funny part is that they tried to make it cheaper by not installing a spare but it then failed crash tests as it was such a tin can.

mikefocke · 02-13-2017, 04:06 PM

My Prius has a spare. And jack. But it doesn't have near the weight in the little doughnut spare that a Porsche has and it isn't trying to set lap times around the ring.

It is one of the tradeoffs manufacturers make in search of corporate mileage numbers and profits.

BIGJake111 · 02-13-2017, 05:00 PM

Spares come in handy.

10/10ths · 02-13-2017, 07:12 PM

....It's a fuel economy issue. To meet CAFE, all the manufacturers are reducing weight. Spares are heavy.

Also, as tires got bigger and bigger, there's no place to put that flat 20 inch wheel and tire in your car anyway.

One of the reasons I decided to buy my 2004 Boxster S "50 Years of 550 Spyder Edition" was that it was the last Boxster with a spare tire. And the last Boxster with an oil dipstick.

I had the sidewall blow out on my driver's rear tire at Boxstoberfest last year and I limped 50 miles to a tire shop and just got there before closing time on a Saturday. If I had not had a spare, I wouldn't have been able to drive home until Monday because all the tire shops were closed and I was out of cell service south of Junction, Texas.

Deserion · 02-13-2017, 07:20 PM

My 911 has a collapsible spare - and at 26 years old, still works.

I'm glad my Subaru has a spare, in full diameter too.

thstone · 02-13-2017, 08:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Deserion

My 911 has a collapsible spare - and at 26 years old, still works.

Same for me! I used my 38 year old collapsible spare about 6 months ago when I got a flat and it worked fine.

Flavor 987S · 02-14-2017, 12:22 PM

Use BIGJake's picture as an example of how NOT TO USE A SPARE. If the rear tire goes flat, you remove the front tire and mount it on the rear, then mount the spare on the front. Keep below 50 MPH. All good. FYI.

algiorda · 02-14-2017, 01:00 PM

I'm actually over it...I've had 3 Cadillac SUV's without a spare and never needed it once. Both times I got a flat, I caught it in time and either stopped by a tire shop or caught it in the garage. I also keep a plug kit in the glovebox and was able to repair/plug the screw hole in about 5 minutes. I have the Goo and Compressor in my SUV. I will say I have more confidence having the spare in the Box

lkchris · 02-14-2017, 02:01 PM

Possibly an issue for we 986 owners is obtaining a new tire for our "donut" spares.

Yes, for the most part weight is the issue addressed by removing spare tires. For Mercedes diesels, the space for the spare tire is now used by the tank for "diesel fluid" (urea) injection into the exhaust system.

I doubt you'll soon see runflats on Porsches, as they'll likely not pass old Walter Rohrl's testing to be N-spec. They are for sure an increase in unsprung weight compared to conventional tires.

IMHO use of runflats rather assumes the whole world is urban. Where I live I can easily be 200 miles from a town with a car dealer and possibly a tire shop that can deal with runflat tires. It's nice that you can drive on a flat runflat tire, but that's limited to 50 miles at 50 mph and that doesn't work when I'm 200 miles away.

In addition, driving on a runflat tire that's flat ruins it ... so your simple puncture means buying a new tire if you do drive on it. Otherwise, it's call someone to come take it to be repaired if it's simply gone flat in your driveway.

Yes, haven't had an onroad flat since the 1960s, but I'm holding out for cars with spare tires. See ya BMW.

Topless · 02-14-2017, 03:17 PM

I can't be bothered with a spare on my Porsche. In 12 yrs of driving them, I never needed it once.

In other news, one of my field service trucks got a flat tire last week. The tech changed the tire but the spare stem failed and she would not hold air under load. Had to get a tow anyways.

We always carry a spare on these trucks and needing them is rare. Needing them and having the spare fail is more rare but it happens.