A rant about the lack of spare tires on modern cars

[Ken]

This enrages me.

I have a 2016 Prius that came without a spare, just a silly useless inflating tire patch kit. Back when I first bought it 9 years ago I went to Discount Tire and bought a full-size spare on a cheap rim and then tore out all the foam in the bottom of the cargo area and mounted the spare there just in case. Took me a long time to customize the cargo area to accept a full size spare but finally got it installed to my satisfaction and it has been there ever since.

This past weekend I was using the car to drive my daughter back to college at WSU in Pullman WA. We live in Vancouver WA so that is a 350 mile drive each way in winter through some exceedingly remote territory in eastern Washington. In route I had a rear tire blow out. The inside sidewall completely blew out on I-84 going through Hood River on a Sunday morning so the tire was in two pieces and completely unrepairable. The tires were a 1-year old set of Michelin Cross Climate 2 tires with only about 10,000 miles on them. They are also an odd size since this sport touring version of the Prius came with 215/45/R17 tires. No tire shops were open in Hood River on a Sunday morning. Luckily I had the full size spare to put on but after that experience I didn't really want to continue driving another 600 miles yesterday without a spare. We got the tires at Costco and the nearest Costco in route was in the Tri Cities so I dropped the tire off at Costco in Kennewick when they opened for a warranty replacement (luckily they had the correct size in stock) and continued to Pullman on the spare crossing my fingers since without an appointment it was going to be 4 hours until they could get it fixed. I drove the remaining 700 miles on the spare without issue and picked the replacement tire up from Costco on the way back so at least I had a spare for the last 200 miles.

Without a spare this entire trip would have been a complete disaster since I would have been unable to find a replacement tire within 50 miles on a Sunday morning. And there was no way to fix it. Probably would have had to spend the night in Hood River and get a replacement tire put on this morning. Or maybe just buy a whole new replacement wheel in the more common stock size of 195/65R15. So my daughter would have been missing her first day of class and I'd be missing a day of work unless I managed to rent a replacement car in Hood River to finish the trip yesterday. All because car manufacturers are too cheap to put spare tires in cars these days. Planning ahead and putting in my own spare tire 9 years ago saved our bacon.

In any event, we are about to hand this car down to my daughter and buy a new EV to replace it and once again, none of the cars we are looking at have spare tires. We are probably leaning at a Tesla Model 3 and of course they come with no spare so I'll be spending $400 for a donut spare and jack (Teslas don't come with those either... Sheesh). At least there are aftermarket options but I have to wonder about driving 700 miles on a donut spare since that is what I put on my regular spare yesterday.

In any event, I'm curious what the real logic is behind no longer putting spares on new cars. And how many others of you are doing what I do and buying your own spares anyway to compensate for the lack of spare tires on modern cars?

[ken_sylvania]

This enrages me.

I have a 2016 Prius that came without a spare, just a silly useless inflating tire patch kit. Back when I first bought it 9 years ago I went to Discount Tire and bought a full-size spare on a cheap rim and then tore out all the foam in the bottom of the cargo area and mounted the spare there just in case. Took me a long time to customize the cargo area to accept a full size spare but finally got it installed to my satisfaction and it has been there ever since.

This past weekend I was using the car to drive my daughter back to college at WSU in Pullman WA. We live in Vancouver WA so that is a 350 mile drive each way in winter through some exceedingly remote territory in eastern Washington. In route I had a rear tire blow out. The inside sidewall completely blew out on I-84 going through Hood River on a Sunday morning so the tire was in two pieces and completely unrepairable. The tires were a 1-year old set of Michelin Cross Climate 2 tires with only about 10,000 miles on them. They are also an odd size since this sport touring version of the Prius came with 215/45/R17 tires. No tire shops were open in Hood River on a Sunday morning. Luckily I had the full size spare to put on but after that experience I didn't really want to continue driving another 600 miles yesterday without a spare. We got the tires at Costco and the nearest Costco in route was in the Tri Cities so I dropped the tire off at Costco in Kennewick when they opened for a warranty replacement (luckily they had the correct size in stock) and continued to Pullman on the spare crossing my fingers since without an appointment it was going to be 4 hours until they could get it fixed. I drove the remaining 700 miles on the spare without issue and picked the replacement tire up from Costco on the way back so at least I had a spare for the last 200 miles.

Without a spare this entire trip would have been a complete disaster since I would have been unable to find a replacement tire within 50 miles on a Sunday morning. And there was no way to fix it. Probably would have had to spend the night in Hood River and get a replacement tire put on this morning. Or maybe just buy a whole new replacement wheel in the more common stock size of 195/65R15. So my daughter would have been missing her first day of class and I'd be missing a day of work unless I managed to rent a replacement car in Hood River to finish the trip yesterday. All because car manufacturers are too cheap to put spare tires in cars these days. Planning ahead and putting in my own spare tire 9 years ago saved our bacon.

In any event, we are about to hand this car down to my daughter and buy a new EV to replace it and once again, none of the cars we are looking at have spare tires. We are probably leaning at a Tesla Model 3 and of course they come with no spare so I'll be spending $400 for a donut spare and jack (Teslas don't come with those either... Sheesh). At least there are aftermarket options but I have to wonder about driving 700 miles on a donut spare since that is what I put on my regular spare yesterday.

In any event, I'm curious what the real logic is behind no longer putting spares on new cars. And how many others of you are doing what I do and buying your own spares anyway to compensate for the lack of spare tires on modern cars?

My guess as to the logic of no longer putting spares on new cars is that it saves weight and therefore improves fuel mileage. So probably fair to say the EPA fuel mileage regulations are mostly at fault for the lack of a spare tire. Also tires are a lot more reliable than they used to be so spares are needed less often.

[JohnH]

Spare tires mean more weight and a worse fuel economy rating.

I have a collection of full size spares. If embarking on a long trip I pit 1 or 2 in and a set of tools

[Ken]

Spare tires mean more weight and a worse fuel economy rating.

I have a collection of full size spares. If embarking on a long trip I pit 1 or 2 in and a set of tools

We have an older Toyota Highlander AWD that we use for winter and snow driving. I also have a complete extra set of snow tires that I swap every year. So even though the car came with a donut spare, I toss a snow tire in the car for long distance driving over remote terrain here in the west just to have another backup. For people who live in snow zones and have snow tires those are always a ready option for extra spares.

The Prius came with nothing except a tiny little goo kit with a cigarette lighter inflator. Useless.

Since we have cheap electricity here I'm strongly considering replacing the Prius with a new Model 3 which is cheaper than any other option at the moment and they now have a very respectable 370 mile range. It will mostly be my wife's car and she liked the Model 3 best of all the cars we have looked at and test drove so far. But it also has no spare tire or even jack. So I'll have to buy that stuff on the side.

[JohnH]

yep… got 2 sets of snow tires here… one is almost bald and I just replaced 2 of them. I also have a full extra set of all seasons on rims

It’s handy if your cars are the same size, I have 3 that are.

[mike]

I didn't realize this was an issue with newer cars. I've always been annoyed at the cars that have a very tight dedicated space for a spare tire, but only for a donut. That's infuriating enough.

[Ken]

I didn't realize this was an issue with newer cars. I've always been annoyed at the cars that have a very tight dedicated space for a spare tire, but only for a donut. That's infuriating enough.

If one only drives in nearby metro areas it is probably no big deal. But we often drive pretty long distances in remote country out here in the west. Yesterday I was forced to put 700 miles on the spare with no other options if I wanted to continue the trip. I think WSU in Pullman WA is the most isolated or remote major university in the country. Literally in the middle of nowhere with the nearest freeway at lest 80 miles away in Spokane.

Much of this area has spotty or no cell coverage and good luck finding a tire shop open on weekends which is when we usually do road trips. If you can't be self-sufficient you are taking a risk. Especially in winter.

[ohio jones]

It’s handy if your cars are the same size, I have 3 that are.

Even handier if the tires on those same size cars are the same size.

[Wesleyb]

My guess as to the logic of no longer putting spares on new cars is that it saves weight and therefore improves fuel mileage. So probably fair to say the EPA fuel mileage regulations are mostly at fault for the lack of a spare tire. Also tires are a lot more reliable than they used to be so spares are needed less often.

Several more reasons: Cost savings - not a huge percentage of the cost of the car, but every bit counts. Space savings, potential buyers notice the additional cubic inches of cargo space when comparing to a competitor with a spare. And possibly with the ubiquity of mobile phones now people aren't quite as paranoid about getting stranded by the roadside as they once were.

[ken_sylvania]

I didn't realize this was an issue with newer cars. I've always been annoyed at the cars that have a very tight dedicated space for a spare tire, but only for a donut. That's infuriating enough.

If one only drives in nearby metro areas it is probably no big deal. But we often drive pretty long distances in remote country out here in the west. Yesterday I was forced to put 700 miles on the spare with no other options if I wanted to continue the trip. I think WSU in Pullman WA is the most isolated or remote major university in the country. Literally in the middle of nowhere with the nearest freeway at lest 80 miles away in Spokane.

Much of this area has spotty or no cell coverage and good luck finding a tire shop open on weekends which is when we usually do road trips. If you can't be self-sufficient you are taking a risk. Especially in winter.

Sounds like an excellent place to run around with a Tesla.