space saver spare wheels

[Vic Evans]

Mme's 'new' car comes with the 'tire repair kit' which apparently is there to reduce vehicle weight Yeah! nothing to do with the bean counters then.
I can't see Mme using one of these things, which in any case are only OK for small punctures, so I'm searching for a 'proper' spare wheel & jack kit.
Trouble is that whilst there's plenty of depth in the spare wheel well to accommodate a full size wheel & tyre there don't seem to be any available as a set with only space saver type being sold which I don't want as these things are speed & time restricted unlike a 'proper' matching wheel & tyre which can be left on whilst the damaged tyre is repaired or replaced.
Wheels must be available in case of damage to an existing one & jacks etc can't be that hard to find, so Mme's off to our local Citroen garage to see what they can offer.

[mickthemaverick]

Can you post a picture of the wheels Vic, with size info, so that we can see what is needed and maybe someone will have one available?

[Vic Evans]

Mme's out with car & this is only pic I've got.
The tyre is 205/55 R16 with 4 holes at 108 pcd.
I think the usual spec for car is alloy wheels but it appears that car hire companies buy them with steel wheels & trims as it's cheaper & less hassle to replace trims on curbed wheels. Mme doesn't mind as that's her speciality

[PaulC5]

I have been happy with space savers as spare wheels as they allow you to continue a journey until a puncture can be repaired. Yes you have to drive only up to 50 mph (80 km/h) but for the very few times it happens it is not something to be greatly bothered about. I have bought them from the dealers along with the jack/brace/tool tray/tool to remove the wheel nut covers.

If you buy a used old spare check the date on the tyre as you do not want to fit it and then it to fail due to being old and perishing. You can measure your existing wheels and the wheel well to see if a full size wheel will fit in but it might not be deep enough.

Last puncture we had was on the Peugeot 308 and a piece of metal made a slit a few cm wide through the tread as it went in to the tyre so a sealant would not have worked. The space saver saved the day, we finished our outing and being limited to 50 mph in the 70 mph roads improved the fuel economy from around 50 to 70 mpg. I have a foot pump in the car and if the spare is needed can pump it up once fitted as its pressure is rarely checked.

[Must be Mad]

Its a worrying trend and electric vehicles remove any form of spare wheel or space saver. nit seen any EV with spare wheel, as pointed out only a minority of punctures can be fixed with the repair goo, this a serious oversight and safety risk

[PaulC5]

EV wheels tend to be larger than most. I read a topic where somebody carried a spare wheel in the boot of their EV and it took up most of it. When they went away on holiday they had to leave it behind so there was enough room for luggage. It would disrupt the holiday if they had a puncture.

A relative had a puncture but no spare wheel on a Sunday afternoon 50 miles from their home. I went there with the aim of taking it to a local tyre place for a new tyre or repair but there was nowhere open. Pumping it up it kept going down so they called the AA after finding out the car had AA cover. Found a large nail through the tread but used sealant and it held pressure so the AA followed them back for quite a bit in case it needed pumping up again. It stopped their afternoon outing though and instead became just getting back home. Only good thing, it went down in Morrisons car park so not on a main road but it was around 2 hours before they got going.

[Must be Mad]

Yes some have silly size wheels no idea why the. lower spec models with smaller wheels are more efficient getting better range, really is a case of style over substance.

[Vic Evans]

I've looked online with not a lot of confidence I'll get what I want so bit the bullet & ordered a proper size Citroen wheel with car matching tyre & fitting kit from our local agency.
Probably (definitely according to quote) gonna cost more than one I might find online, especially the saver type, but it should be the correct thing with decent tyre & I can check it'll fit in spare wheel recess etc before I take it home.
Garage owner says it's gonna be OK & he's not been wrong yet.