[john.wigley]

Recent discussion concerning wheels in another thread made me think.

My present V70 and both of our Saabs are equipped with spare wheels of the 'spacesaver' variety; our previous cars having spares that matched the wheels fitted on the car.

Some friends who run a '13 Ford Fiesta have only a repair kit to fall back on in the event of a puncture. Twice recently they have been temporarily stranded when a tyre sustained damage beyond the scope of the kit provided to repair. On each occasion they had little alternative but to call on the AA. The responding patrols took them to a local tyre shop in order to buy a new tyre, returned to their car and refitted their wheel to allow them to continue their journey. Presumably if the wheel had also been damaged they would have needed to buy a new one of those as well!

Even today, when out cycling I routinely carry a puncture repair outfit and am happy to assist anyone who may not have one. If touring, one may even have carried a spare inner-tube or two. For the same reason, those on 'sprints' always had a spare 'tub' strapped behind their saddles.

But in a car?! Surely a serviceable spare wheel is a basic component in any tool-kit? A spare was offered at one time as extra equipment on Reliant three-wheelers, as without one they could meet the weight criteria for a lower taxation class. Are modern cars supplied without one in order to save weight and / cost? Either way, it seems a retrograde step to me!

So, spare wheel or puncture repair kit - what do you have and does it bother you?

Regards, John.