No spare tire nothing but a kit???

[Hootbro]

Originally Posted By: zking67
IN the new honda Fits spare tire IS an option item. along with cargo cover . YuP great for a hatchback, what's next passenger side mirrors at extra cost? Dont forget Heater/winter package with rear defrost don't really need in texas or hawaii. long winded rant!
LOL

Mike Z


My then new 1986 Toyota PU had the passenger mirror as optional extra cost.

 

[ottotheclown]

In all my traveling always rentals. One of my trips was from Madison Wisc to St Paul Minn. got a flat once . Changed it on the side of the road in a very dark area. Made my way and the whole thing took about an hour. Was a Dodge Intrepid. Time was 11 pm. Scary as the only light came from the other cars. But I made it. Can you imagine taking your sample bags out of the trunk and finding a kit?????? They would find me screaming in the woods.

 

[Bladecutter]

I've run into this recently, too, while shopping for new cars.

It wasn't included in the RX8 I just bought, but I told them to order it, or no sale. They ordered it.

My gf's Crossfire doesn't have a spare tire in it, just an air compressor, and a can of flat fix goop.

The new Fiat 500 doesn't have a spare tire, but it is optional.
New Porsche's don't come with a spare. I don't even think they have fix a flat kits, honestly.

It saves a tiny bit of weight in the car, but saves the manufacturer quite a bit of money in the long run. Imagine the savings of the spare tire, wheel, and mounting bits over hundreds of thousands of cars a year, but charging the same MSRP for the car...

BC.

 

[GMBoy]

I paid for the optional full size spare in my Cadillac CTS. I didn't want the standard air inflator/repair kit.

 

[eljefino]

So? Think of how many other highway problems could be solved by spare parts. Blew an alternator? Hey, another in the trunk! Don't most brands of new car come with roadside assistance during at least the warranty period? Probably cheaper (and better marketing) to give that away than to subsidize some Geos to meet CAFE requirements dragging five tires around in every vehicle.

If, however, we keep passing along old junkyard donut spares, they will eventually be all dry rotted and rare and valuable as taxi medallions.

 

[IndyIan]

Originally Posted By: mechtech2
Originally Posted By: IndyIan
Spares at the wreckers are quite cheap, so I guess in theory you end up saving some money when the manufacturer pushes the base price lower.
I find for highway driving, when doing some coasting, adding weight really extends the distance I get off of a hill. Sometimes I'll have 300lbs of feed in the Neon and it probably helps more than it hurts mileage.


Uhhh....Ahem... You do realize that you had to get UP the hill with engine power first?

Yep, but with the short gearing of the 3spd, the engine can work at a more efficient (larger) throttle opening with the extra load without a downshift. So you get more gravitational potential energy more efficiently than you normally would.

 

[Jim 5]

Originally Posted By: IndyIan
Originally Posted By: mechtech2
Originally Posted By: IndyIan
Spares at the wreckers are quite cheap, so I guess in theory you end up saving some money when the manufacturer pushes the base price lower.
I find for highway driving, when doing some coasting, adding weight really extends the distance I get off of a hill. Sometimes I'll have 300lbs of feed in the Neon and it probably helps more than it hurts mileage.


Uhhh....Ahem... You do realize that you had to get UP the hill with engine power first?

Yep, but with the short gearing of the 3spd, the engine can work at a more efficient (larger) throttle opening with the extra load without a downshift. So you get more gravitational potential energy more efficiently than you normally would.

Then why stop at 300lbs? Think of the extra fuel economy you could get if you carried 3,000lbs of feed in the neon!

Just kidding.

 

[IndyIan]

3000lbs eh? The real farmers always get a chuckle with my 3 or 4 bag full loads.

I think there would be a point of diminishing returns, like this guy, he isn't getting better highway mileage...

 

[SteveSRT8]

That's not gonna buff out!

I love to hear the Little Neon just a workin'. I loved mine for its versatility. One terrific car.

Back OT, there is a spare well under the trunk floor, it just won't carry the size wheel and tire that my car uses (20 X 9). I've heard that you can get an 18 inch off a regular 5.7 C model and use that, but I have a spare wheel anyway that I got cheap. I bring it on long trips.

It has nothing to do with saving money on my car. The rim alone lists for 900.00!

 

[rslifkin]

Extra weight can definitely help in some vehicles under the right conditions on the highway. It will always hurt mpg around town though. My gearing is way too short as well, for the engine/vehicle combo (1750 rpm at 60mph), so I get better mpg in mild hills than I do on flat ground (about 18mpg at 60 on the flats, have seen just over 21 in the right hills).

As far as tires, my Jeep has a full size spare, which gets rotated with the others. I wouldn't be happy with no spare at all, and honestly, even having a donut bothers me slightly.

 

[Paulson]

I got a nail in one of my tires... decided the donut wasn't a good idea for getting home (350 mile trip)...

Most spares go unused and dry rot which is sad (especially when the full size spare is provided.)

Can't really get a whole lot of use out of a donut... might help you get to a gas station but if you're far from your destination it may or may not do the trick...

 

[R2d2]

You'll never miss your spare, until you need it. I've been driving for 25 years and have never had to change a flat, until recently. I hit a massive pothole and blew out the tire and rim on my brand new car in an undesirable area. I was able to get the factory spare on, and back on the road in twenty minutes, I was very proud of myself. BTW I was very happy it was a donut and not a full sized spare as I nearly broke my back getting the flat into the trunk. There was no way a can of fix a flat would have got me out of that situation.

 

[ChuckBerry]

I got rid of the full size spare in my Crown Vic. Never going to use it for towing, so there's no need to keep it. I have a can of fix a flat ready to go in the trunk instead.

 

[Falcon_LS]

Both my vehicles came with matching aluminum spares. Seems steel wheels are standard on newer versions, although repairing a tire on the side of the road is manic! The way people drive here, you're not even safe to stand on the hard shoulder, let alone remove a tire and repair!

 

[oldmaninsc]

Originally Posted By: Paulson

Most spares go unused and dry rot which is sad (especially when the full size spare is provided.)

Exactly. The only one of my vehicles that didn't have a full size spare is the 95 Ford van. When I first bought it (2 years old with about 30K miles on it) I was on I 10 going to Phoenix. The right front tire blew. It wasn't low on air I had checked about a hour before it blow. Scared the you all know what out of me.
It wasn't a lot of fun driving on the donut for about 60 miles to the next little city which was Blythe Ca.

The problem with the full size spare for the Chevy is it was on a generic steel rim. Can't exactly rotate it into use. I probably should have bought a matching rim and had it remounted.