I would rather stick those sticky worms in to my tyre then use that crappy sealant fluid. I was going to suggest a skinny in the boot for day to day driving and a full sizes spare in the caravan when towing. There must be a convenient place for one in there somewhere. Just be sure its inflated properly prior to the journey! Win-Win!

My Superb came with 18" wheels and I absolutely insist on a full sized, same as the other wheels spare. I have driven on a space saver before and it was terrifying. Also, that gunk that you can pour in to the tyre that they supply not only ruins the tyre, but if you manage to get a rip in the tyre or the tyre comes away from the rim, no amount of gunk will fix that. Unfortunately, it seems that the hole in the boot for the spare wheel is not big enough to take the spare wheel, so I have had to lash it down in the boot with some bungee cables. Ironically, if the superb (in my case, the SE-L executive) had come with 16" wheels, I would have happily accepted those and the wheel would probably have fitted in the boot even if the boot floor covering was raised.

Mind you, it could be worse - just take a look at what Jaguar did with their XF estate... they put air suspension on the rear and the mechanism that controls it, goes through the spare wheel well...

 

On ‎08‎/‎06‎/‎2017 at 11:04, Albourneboy said:

Mine is a 4x4 and I sure do not want a messed-up diff! It was a fault with the 4x4 system that caused 2 major (and very expensive!) breakdowns in 2014 in our previous car, a Hyundai Santa Fe.

 

The more I think about it, the more I think I'll stick with the gunge and pump. I owned that Santa Fe for 4 years and the spare (full size!) never once saw the light of day. Prior to that, I had a LandRover Discovery for 7 years and that car's spare got used once in all that time. Perhaps I've been lucky but does one puncture in 11, going on 12 years justify spending £100+ on a space-saver spare that (touch wood) will never be used?

The average car covers 93,000 miles between punctures apparently.

I'd forgotten I'd posted that . My luck ran out in July this year .

 

My front right tyre suffered a slow puncture on our way home from the Ardeche, France, towing our caravan. 2 cans of sealant gunk got us to Cambridge on a Sunday where I managed to get the tyre replaced. A week later, when my car was in for a service, I ordered a full-size (19 inch) spare + tyre. It took until early September to arrive but the peace-of-mind it affords was worth the wait and expense. It was supplied complete with the gubbins needed to secure it in the boot + jack, wheel nut wrench and polystyrene storage for the tools. Although it is about 20 mm wider than the boot recess is deep, you wouldn't know once the boot floor and liner are in. The dealers did have to cut away some of the plastic trim at the back of the boot to get the wheel in though.

I'm thinking of the Superb Hybrid as my next car when it is released next year, but, I know that it will not have anywhere to stow a spare.

The battery sits where the fuel tank normally is and they have moved the fuel tank to the spare wheel space!

I really do not like travelling without a spare as I am a clumsy driver and have a very good record of hitting kerbs and splitting tyres, I usually do one a year on average!

Have looked at spare wheel carriers that sit on the tow bar and there are some available but they are not very pretty, I think there is an opportunity here for someone to come up with somehting practical and good looking.

I guess I have the choice of no spare or carrying one inside the car which will take up valuable stock space, or getting another 280!

Picked up a rear puncture on the way to Yorkshire last Saturday. Fully laden with 4 bikes, kids, dog etc. Have never been so glad we specified a spare wheel (space saver, but better than nothing) as it got us moving and on our way. Apparently the tyre size (235/40/19 W) is 'really unusual mate' and it took probably 20 phone calls to find somewhere with them in stock, thankfully on the way in Sheffield. Crept there at 50mph with TP warning and no cruise control - very frustrating, but at least we were moving.

 

So, moral: deffo get a spare. You'll be glad of it when you are on the side of the motorway looking at a wrecked tyre that no magic foam would fix...

 

 

While on the subject, somebody made a great suggestion to me....

 

Buy a super cheap part worn tyre and stow it in the boot cavity (if it fits) on those long hauls abroad. This way you'll have a spare tyre for recovery service to chuck on and get you home. I'll be doing this in the future for sure.

22 hours ago, JKD said:

While on the subject, somebody made a great suggestion to me....

 

Buy a super cheap part worn tyre and stow it in the boot cavity (if it fits) on those long hauls abroad. This way you'll have a spare tyre for recovery service to chuck on and get you home. I'll be doing this in the future for sure.

 

I wouldn't buy a part worn tyre.   You don't know what you are getting. 

Also, do recovery services carry the necessary gear to change a tyre. Swapping a wheel over is one thing, actually changing a tyre is a bit more involved!

Both very valid points  

@IJWS15 if the part worn is just to limp home for a few hours, then I reckon it's a reasonable bet. It goes without saying that you'd buy from a reputable dealer who does checks on them 

 

@Albourneboy I doubt it! But our recovery service in Belgium took us to a tyre place just down the road. If I had a part worn in my car, they could have put it on for me. 

Keep your one of own when you change.  

 

I suspect most change tyres at least as a pair and if you have +2mm and you know the history and it will get you somewhere else if there is a fitter that can work it seems like a reasonable solution.  

 

Could you get the goo/pump and a spare tyre in the space?

@Bud even better haha. I'm due a change pretty soon! Like you say, as long as they're legal. 

 

I'm not sure if I can fit a tyre in my boot yet, not even taken out the foam compartment before.