vanster

My guess is most of us have never used our spare tire.
I took mine out and it sits under my work bench, which I think is a perfect place for it when I have a flat 250 miles from home.
I don't think it has ever been used and I'm wondering if the thing is any good anyway. What's the life span of a spare tire?

G8RB8

I carry Fix-A-Flat, an air pump, and a AAA card.

jayc67

No way I would drive on mine, it's just a collectible now. I inflated it once years ago out of curiosity. By the way, to shrink it back down a ratchet tie down strap works. Pull the valve stem and crank away.

Cell phone and AAA for me.

F451

Mine worked fine a few years ago, got me home, a non-highway drive of 15 miles or so. Was glad I had it and the inflator, saved me a bunch of time, money, and hassle.

15 mins or so to inflate it, jack it up, swap out the tires, and I was on my way.

Andy Kay

Took mine out to make room for The Sharkwoofer by Hans!

dfrhodes

I've actually used mine 3 times over the past 16yrs. After the first incident i replaced the original with a new one that wasn't dry rotted. The air pump also needed replacing so I got a combo boost/pump unit.

I recommend keeping it. The ratchet strap trick to collapse it works well when done. Just get a decent air pump and jack. AAA takes forever to show up, especially if you get stuck in the boonies...and they may not send a flatbed even if requested.

danglerb

No spare, no jack, AAA premier card.

Rendergod

Thinking of taking mine out too. My Ferrari came with just a can of fix-a-flat in a nice leather case - no provision for a spare, and I haven't missed it in 13 years. I recently bought a can for the Porsche and have AAA as well so I'm not too worried. Not planning to take the S4 off pavement in the Sierra like I used to in my '79 928...

Ponty

I still have mine, along with a few original-looking parts tucked inside.

On my previous 928, I lived across from a petrol station so I wheeled it over one lazy Sunday to see if it would hold air. I inflated it for a while until it went BANG!!

It didn't bust, it simply made a really loud noise as it inflated from collapsible to nearly-normal. Frightened the pants of me at the time!

Alan

If you have never inflated one of these.... it is somewhere between interesting & wierd to watch them take shape... they sort of grow out sideways at first as the pleats unfold.... ratcheting them back all the way down takes some time too ...

Have used mine to get home exactly once - like to get a new replacement - it looked a little dry... anyone found these available? - A Vredestien dealer locally here said he'd never heard of the size and didn't seem at all interested in following up on it as a special order, next one I called acted the same way - no interest.
anyone get better response?, pricing?

Mounting a replacement would presumably be interesting to see also...

Alan

dprantl

If you take your spare out, keep in mind that Porsche assumed the wheel would be in its place in the event of a collision. In that space, a big round wheel should add a lot of structural integrity. The gas tank is also right next to it, so just something to think about.

Dan
'91 928GT S/C 475hp/460lb.ft

jayc67

I know that the Acura NSX uses a similar collapsible, when I had my NSX I thought about checking for fit on the 928 but never got around to it. Might be worth looking into.

KenRudd

I've inflated mine twice, actually mounted and used it once. Looks odd, works fine.

My trick to deflate involves pulling the valve stem and attaching vaccuum pump. I used the same pump I use for my A/C evacuation. Don't try using a Mity-Vac hand pump. Well, you can try, if you like hand cramps.

Tom in Austin

My car did not come from the PO with the spare, so I bought a 996 temporary spare on EBay and keep it in my garage. I figure if I flat anywhere in the area I can get home, get the spare and my floor jack and go put in on. Obviously, that wouldn't work on a trip, that's where I would pull out the AAA card ...

In the meantime, glad to not be lugging around the weight of a spare, pump and jack everywhere I go.

mickster

Some of the guys without girlfriends or wives won't cramp!