Replacement Space Saver Spare Tire
#16
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The spare (space saver) tire doesn't age like the regular tires which get heat cycled and in normal circumstances the spare/space saver tire sees very little use.
If you are worried about the space saver tire it is easy enough to "test". Remove the space saver tire from the car and inflate it to its working pressure and let it sit. If it holds pressure over say 24 hours it is good.
"Test" the air pump that comes with the tire to make sure it works. Be advised if you use this pump my experience is the engine should be running.
The spare tire that came with my 2002 Boxster still holds air and is fine. With the tire fitted I think speed is limited to 50mph and I'm ok with that.
I haven't bothered to check my 2003 Turbo's space saver tire but I have no concerns that in the event of a flat tire the space saver would prove not up to the job.
However, I have a premium car club membership just in case.
If you are worried about the space saver tire it is easy enough to "test". Remove the space saver tire from the car and inflate it to its working pressure and let it sit. If it holds pressure over say 24 hours it is good.
"Test" the air pump that comes with the tire to make sure it works. Be advised if you use this pump my experience is the engine should be running.
The spare tire that came with my 2002 Boxster still holds air and is fine. With the tire fitted I think speed is limited to 50mph and I'm ok with that.
I haven't bothered to check my 2003 Turbo's space saver tire but I have no concerns that in the event of a flat tire the space saver would prove not up to the job.
However, I have a premium car club membership just in case.
I have 5 other cars and not a single one of them came with a spare tire, although I did a retrofit on my Golf R so that it now has one (common mod on the VW R forums). I am now used to the idea that cars no longer are assumed to have spare tires, and the majority of time I do drive without benefit of a spare on board. Like you, I have a premium auto club membership, which gives 100 mile tows for free, additional mileage is nominally charged. I do occasionally go hiking in remote areas where a spare would be essential, and in those cases I would either take my Golf R, or a BMW for which I have snow tires and could take one of them with me in the trunk for emergency use. I would never take the 996 Turbo on a trip like that, for a multitude of reasons including ground clearance.
What do you think of the idea of just ditching the spare and using the added Frunk space for cargo?
Thanks in advance!
ken
#17
Rennlist Member
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Thanks very much for your response; I do appreciate it.
I have 5 other cars and not a single one of them came with a spare tire, although I did a retrofit on my Golf R so that it now has one (common mod on the VW R forums). I am now used to the idea that cars no longer are assumed to have spare tires, and the majority of time I do drive without benefit of a spare on board. Like you, I have a premium auto club membership, which gives 100 mile tows for free, additional mileage is nominally charged. I do occasionally go hiking in remote areas where a spare would be essential, and in those cases I would either take my Golf R, or a BMW for which I have snow tires and could take one of them with me in the trunk for emergency use. I would never take the 996 Turbo on a trip like that, for a multitude of reasons including ground clearance.
What do you think of the idea of just ditching the spare and using the added Frunk space for cargo?
Thanks in advance!
ken
I have 5 other cars and not a single one of them came with a spare tire, although I did a retrofit on my Golf R so that it now has one (common mod on the VW R forums). I am now used to the idea that cars no longer are assumed to have spare tires, and the majority of time I do drive without benefit of a spare on board. Like you, I have a premium auto club membership, which gives 100 mile tows for free, additional mileage is nominally charged. I do occasionally go hiking in remote areas where a spare would be essential, and in those cases I would either take my Golf R, or a BMW for which I have snow tires and could take one of them with me in the trunk for emergency use. I would never take the 996 Turbo on a trip like that, for a multitude of reasons including ground clearance.
What do you think of the idea of just ditching the spare and using the added Frunk space for cargo?
Thanks in advance!
ken
I test my spares every 5 or so years; inspect and pressurize. The original in my 96 993 still holds air. The spare in my 38 year old 911 SC still holds air.
As a minimum carry an air pump. I've found that the two times I've had tires go down, it wasn't a complete failure and all I had to do was inflate to the maximum allowable pressure and stop every 10 or so miles to recheck. This allowed me to get where I needed to go.
It's better than my M5 options; they gave me a 800 number and bottle of goop.
#18
Rennlist Member
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Thanks very much for your response; I do appreciate it.
I have 5 other cars and not a single one of them came with a spare tire, although I did a retrofit on my Golf R so that it now has one (common mod on the VW R forums). I am now used to the idea that cars no longer are assumed to have spare tires, and the majority of time I do drive without benefit of a spare on board. Like you, I have a premium auto club membership, which gives 100 mile tows for free, additional mileage is nominally charged. I do occasionally go hiking in remote areas where a spare would be essential, and in those cases I would either take my Golf R, or a BMW for which I have snow tires and could take one of them with me in the trunk for emergency use. I would never take the 996 Turbo on a trip like that, for a multitude of reasons including ground clearance.
What do you think of the idea of just ditching the spare and using the added Frunk space for cargo?
Thanks in advance!
ken
I have 5 other cars and not a single one of them came with a spare tire, although I did a retrofit on my Golf R so that it now has one (common mod on the VW R forums). I am now used to the idea that cars no longer are assumed to have spare tires, and the majority of time I do drive without benefit of a spare on board. Like you, I have a premium auto club membership, which gives 100 mile tows for free, additional mileage is nominally charged. I do occasionally go hiking in remote areas where a spare would be essential, and in those cases I would either take my Golf R, or a BMW for which I have snow tires and could take one of them with me in the trunk for emergency use. I would never take the 996 Turbo on a trip like that, for a multitude of reasons including ground clearance.
What do you think of the idea of just ditching the spare and using the added Frunk space for cargo?
Thanks in advance!
ken
I test my spares every 5 or so years; inspect and pressurize. The original in my 96 993 still holds air. The spare in my 38 year old 911 SC still holds air.
As a minimum carry an air pump. I've found that the two times I've had tires go down, it wasn't a complete failure and all I had to do was inflate to the maximum allowable pressure and stop every 10 or so miles to recheck. I never used the spare. This allowed me to get where I needed to go.
It's better than my M5 options; they gave me a 800 number and bottle of goop.
#19
Rennlist Member
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Oh, no, no, no, no, NO! I wanna hear more from Orphan. Dude lays down pics of him with the royals, plus alludes to his driving experiences in Monte Carlo and you want to shut him down? Do you return your Christmas presents also?
Reader's Digest Condensed version answer to your original question - "Don't worry about it - the spare will last longer than the rest of the car. The rest of the car will devolve into dust around a still-perfectly-functioning mini-spare."
Now, back to Orphan . . . as you were saying, you were driving around Monte Carlo with Prince Rainier riding shotgun when you suddenly noticed an imbalance in the front to rear weight distribution, and then . . .
(And please supplement with additional pics![popcorn](https://rennlist.com/forums/images/smilies/popcorn.gif)
![popcorn](https://rennlist.com/forums/images/smilies/popcorn.gif)
)
Reader's Digest Condensed version answer to your original question - "Don't worry about it - the spare will last longer than the rest of the car. The rest of the car will devolve into dust around a still-perfectly-functioning mini-spare."
Now, back to Orphan . . . as you were saying, you were driving around Monte Carlo with Prince Rainier riding shotgun when you suddenly noticed an imbalance in the front to rear weight distribution, and then . . .
(And please supplement with additional pics
![popcorn](https://rennlist.com/forums/images/smilies/popcorn.gif)
![popcorn](https://rennlist.com/forums/images/smilies/popcorn.gif)
![popcorn](https://rennlist.com/forums/images/smilies/popcorn.gif)
#20
Drifting
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Now, back to Orphan . . . as you were saying, you were driving around Monte Carlo with Prince Rainier riding shotgun when you suddenly noticed an imbalance in the front to rear weight distribution, and then . . .
+1
+1
![popcorn](https://rennlist.com/forums/images/smilies/popcorn.gif)
#21
Pro
Thread Starter
#22
RL Community Team
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Well, that's funny, being as I did a lot of google and other searching on this issue and did not come up with anything answering the specific questions I posed, ergo my post here on this thread.
While I am very delighted to hear your comments on this issue, and about your prior experiences in Monte Carlo, I would like to open up the floor for comments from some of the other thousands of participants on the Rennlist forum . . . .
While I am very delighted to hear your comments on this issue, and about your prior experiences in Monte Carlo, I would like to open up the floor for comments from some of the other thousands of participants on the Rennlist forum . . . .
#23
Race Director
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I stop at convenience stores every few miles and purchase a jug of water to put in the trunk, to compensate for the weight change as fuel is used. If I don't, the front end gets all bouncy.
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flyau98 (03-16-2022)
#24
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#25
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#27
Race Director
#28
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Spare tire with tools is about 39 lbs. Taking that out won't make a difference, unless you're chasing weight for track. Come on people...
You can barely feel any difference when the car is empty on fuel and that alone will make a far greater difference than the 39 lbs of spare tire and tools.
You can barely feel any difference when the car is empty on fuel and that alone will make a far greater difference than the 39 lbs of spare tire and tools.
#29
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Meh, there are plenty of drivers who can feel a 40 lb. difference, especially hanging off one end of the car.
#30
Pro
Thread Starter
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Spare tire with tools is about 39 lbs. Taking that out won't make a difference, unless you're chasing weight for track. Come on people...
You can barely feel any difference when the car is empty on fuel and that alone will make a far greater difference than the 39 lbs of spare tire and tools.
You can barely feel any difference when the car is empty on fuel and that alone will make a far greater difference than the 39 lbs of spare tire and tools.
Stuff really should have to pass the "sniff test," before it gets repeated ad infinitum on these forum threads, as if it were fact.