IT'S called a spare, but for many an extra tire is an essential part of any new car.
Increasingly, though, the spare tire is on the road to extinction, to be replaced by a shoebox-sized tire inflator kit.
In the U.S., there's been an increase of 30 models that have inflator kits as standard instead of a spare tire, usually with the option of buying a spare tire for extra money. That adds up to 14 per cent of vehicles - cars like the Hyundai Elantra and several General Motors sedans or smaller cars.
Canadian automakers are taking a much more cautious approach and in many cases opting to keep the spare, but even here there is a trend towards inflator kits.
The change is largely in response to pressure to make cars more fuel efficient, prompting automakers to put their designs on a diet in the hopes of shedding any excess pounds. The spare tire was an easy fix that could also increase the trunk space, said Ron Montoya, consumer advice associate for the car website Edmunds.com.
"There's a lot of fuel economy requirements placed on automakers these days and in order for them to improve their fuel economy they need to reduce weight on the car," he said. "And everybody wants to advertise they have the biggest trunk."
The inflator kit consists of an air compressor and a bottle of thick sealant. In the event of a flat tire, the sealant can be injected into the tire to plug the hole and the tire re-inflated. Like a temporary spare tire, they can only be driven 90 kilometres per hour for a short distance, and in about 15 per cent of cases they won't work at all - if the tire falls off the rim or if the puncture is on the side of the tire, it's time to call the tow truck.
There are benefits, said Montoya - there's no grease, no grime, and no physical strength is required to use the jack and unbolt the tire.
The alternative most people are used to is the so-called "donut spare," a temporary tire, that comes on most cars. Those can replace almost any flat tire, as long as the driver has the know-how and strength to change it.
Trucks and sometimes larger SUVs might come with a fullsize spare, which can be driven at any speed, while some luxury or sport cars, especially BMW, have run-flat tires that allow drivers to make it to the gas station before changing.
While Hyundai chose to sell the Elantra sedan with a repair kit south of the border, their Canadian division stuck with a spare tire, and will continue to do so for at least the near future, said spokesman Chad Heard.
"From an environmental perspective we weren't sure about the colder climates in Canada . . . some of the tire inflation kits might not be able to perform as well as they do in some of the warmer climates in the U.S.," he said.
He said they're not actively studying the issue, but rather will keep an eye on new information and re-evaluate the decision over time.
The same is true for General Motors, which offers the inflator kit as an option on most cars in Canada, but kept the spare tire as standard. The exceptions are cars where the tire size is too big to fit a spare, such as the Camero SS, the Cadillac CTSV, and the Buick LaCrosse with eAssist, said Geof Bailey of GM.
"We just looked at our consumers and what our consumers want, and it comes down to it that the majority want a spare tire," he said. He also stressed that the GM warranty includes on-theroad assistance in the event of a flat.
But what concerns Montoya is that many people may not know what's in their trunk until they get home or, worse yet, when they find themselves stuck with a flat.
Dave Chapman, manager of BCAA road assist fleet operations, said that hasn't been a problem with that yet. More commonly, people who do have spare tires phone them without knowing they have it, he said. Either way, he recommended drivers practice what they will do with a flat tire, and familiarize themselves with the equipment beforehand. As well, he said regular checking of tire pressure can prevent a flat in the first place. "You don't want to be looking for that sort of thing when you're in a dark highway in the pouring rain and have to figure it out then when you can do it on the safety of your own driveway," he said.
He said it doesn't hurt to peek in the trunk next time you're buying a car.
