|
I've had many flats in my relatively short driving history; perhaps a dozen. 2 of the flats have required a spare due to tearing the tire from the rim (rolled a VW bug sideways on a gravel road, and hit a curb sideways in a Subaru). All of the others were punctures that could be permanently fixed using a plug and inflating the tire back to full pressure.
Since I'm older and spend a lot less of my time driving my vehicles perpendicular to the direction of travel, chances are my flats will be a simple puncture. For this reason, I have removed the spare from the Acura and now carry a plug and inflator. The Prius plug-in came with this equipment and no spare. I assume manufacturers will increasingly adopt this strategy along with a roadside assistance warranty for new car buyers as a way to save cost and marginally improve performance.
|