Puncture repair tyre sealent kits - any good?

[BigJakk]

Hello all, at present i currently have a 17" Spider Alloy (a little bit scuffed) complete with very nearly worn full size tyre on it, as my spare. Obviously this means im carrying quite a few kilo's of weight in the boot, considerably heavier than the space saver i had on my last car.

As luck would have it i have recently been given an unused Continental Puncture Repair Sealant kit. As i understand it, these pump some sort of glue into the tyre, allowing you to limp home at 50mph. Although im aware this leaves the tyre unrepairable, im not the sort of person who would ever repair a dodgy tyre, id just get a new one fitted. In addition to that, the sealant kit weights considerably less than my current spare wheel, which im sure would help with fuel economy.

With that said, ive never actually used one of these Sealant kits before and was wondering what the general consensus was? Are they any good in the event of a puncture, or would i be better off sticking off with the old fashiones solution?

Cheers guys and gals

[gadgetman]

It's fine for just a straight puncture, but any tyre damage and you're stranded at the roadside. Breakdown won't take you if your car came with a spare but you took it away without charging you.

It's whether your happy with that risk.

[vwcabriolet1971]

Some garages will refuse to repair punctured tyres that have been previously been treated with a puncture repair aerosol. The garages say they can't clean away the residue of the aerosol to guarantee a good conventional repair.

[Raf_]

It's fine for just a straight puncture, but any tyre damage and you're stranded at the roadside. Breakdown won't take you if your car came with a spare but you took it away without charging you.

It's whether your happy with that risk.

I read somewhere that aslong as you have a tyre pump and sealent breakdown services will rescue you.

[Aspman]

I don't think the weight saving would make so much of a difference to your mpg. Not enough to be worth going without a spare.

I used to have two huge 50l barrels of the stuff in my garage. the Father-in-law bought it thinking of starting a franchise doing tyres for business users but his other business took off and it fell by the wayside. I should really stick it on ebay for him.

[Robjon]

I cannot remember the last time I had a puncture, but I have pot-holed two tyres during the last five years (Birmingham's roads and 16" wheels). A goo kit would not have repaired sidewall damage, so I was pleased I had specified a spare.

[r200ti]

I never carry a spare tyre Its a lot of weight and usually positioned rearward of the rear axle. And so rely on the goo stuff.

Never had to use it fortunatly,

Although tbh, unless your after better handling Id keep the spare, as said the impact on mpg will be negligible. On a road car under normal use aerodynamic drag is a much larger factor to mpg, the impact of 10-15kg on engine loading is tiny.

J

[BigJakk]

Cheers guys, looks like the spare is here to stay then!