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You may be missing a spare tire!

If it turns out you have a spare tire now, be prepared a future vehicle to lack one. Many vehicles manufactured in the last few years do not have spare tires. In fact, according to AAA, 36% of 2015 model-year vehicles were sold without a spare tire.

If a manufacturer decides to take away the spare tire from a vehicle, there are two roads that they can take to compensate. First there is an emergency tire inflation kit. These include a specially-designed can of compressed air with a liquid sealer. The way it works is easy.  When you get a flat, you connect the can’s inflation hose to your tire’s valve stem and both an internal sealant and compressed air are released into the tire. The sealant plugs up the leak and compressed air fills the tire.

spare-tire

If you elect to purchase your emergency tire inflation kit, there are many choices. Seek out products that claim to be water soluble, as they will be easier for the garage to clean up. Also look for ones that are safe for the tire pressure monitoring system (TPMS). For people who insist on a conservative approach, and there isn’t anything wrong with this, if you vehicle doesn’t have a spare tire, consider purchasing a “spare tire kit” from your local car dealership or a third-party supplier.  These kits typically come with a spare tire, a lug wrench and a vehicle jack.  These kits cost from $150 to $300 but, more importantly, a kit like this could relieve some anxiety if a tire goes out on you and you are away from home. Shoplynch.com advises that under ideal circumstances tire inflation kits work out great, especially on usual tread-based punctures (for example, from a nail) but if your tire was damaged on a sidewall, a tire inflation kit may not be of assistance, particularly if the damage is a “cut”, not a puncture. Whether your kit comes from the dealer or is your own, look at your storage directions, as some are high pressure and cannot tolerate the high temperatures inside a car during the summer.

Your second option is run-flat tires. Run-flat or zero-pressure tires can support a vehicle’s weight for a short time, providing the driver with around 100 miles of driving distance to find a repair shop.  The biggest complaint about run-flat tires is that ride pushes the driver to find a garage quickly so the tire can be fixed or replaced. Money is another issue. If a run-flat tire has to be replaced, it is typically expensive – particularly if you are away from home and absolutely have to get the tire replaced fast to get back on the road.

You may assume that not including a spare tire on a vehicle is a way for the auto manufacturers to save money but that isn’t the reason. The main reason is to cut down on the car’s weight.  By taking a full time spare from a vehicle, automakers can take nearly 30 lbs from a vehicle and in today’s mission for higher fuel economy, every pound counts.

Article Courtesy of: Lynch Dealerships

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