Mystery of missing tyres

October sees the return of TyreSafe’s annual Tyre Safety month and independent motoring consumer website, honestjohn.co.uk, is drawing attention to what it believes is an important tyre-related issue: the replacement of spare tyres with ‘tyre foam kits’ on an increasing number of new  cars.

A survey of visitors to the Honestjohn.co.uk website has revealed that nearly 30% said they do not have a spare tyre in their vehicle, instead having a tyre foam kit.  However, an overwhelming 91% of respondents said they would prefer to have a spare tyre and  almost the same number (86%) said that they would rather have a spare tyre than their vehicle having lower CO2 emissions.

In recent years, pressure from environmental groups and government alike to reduce emissions has led some car manufacturers to replace heavy spare tyres and jacks with ‘tyre foam kits’. Removing spare tyres is a quick and cheap way for manufacturers to bring emissions down. These kits provide a short-term solution to allow motorists to get to the nearest garage. However it appears that the weight and subsequent CO2 reduction comes at a cost – the majority of motorists appear to feel safer in the knowledge they have a spare tyre in the boot.

Daniel Harrison, Editor of honestjohn.co.uk comments, “Unsurprisingly, nearly 90% of those we questioned had at some point replaced a tyre themselves when they had a flat, showing the reliance drivers place on having a tyre in the boot in case of emergency. Whilst tyre foam kits can get a car to the nearest garage, our survey seems to suggest that being stuck with a flat in the middle of nowhere with just a can of foam is a situation most motorists would like to avoid.

“A tyre foam kit undoubtedly reduces the overall weight of a vehicle and therefore its emissions, meaning there is surely a place for them in some vehicles. But it doesn’t appear at the moment to be the case that motorists feel this is sufficient benefit to warrant losing the spare tyre.  Whilst it is understandable that manufacturers are trying many different methods to reduce CO2 emissions, the findings of our survey reveal that 95% of motorists believe they should at least be given the choice.”