<VV> Full Size Spare WAS Early, now geography

[Shelrockbored at aol.com]

Bill:
 
My replies are in green.  I don't feel that living  in New York or Oregon 
is any different when it comes to this sort of  thing.  I have driven cross 
country several times with just a donut and  just a full size spare.  Never 
both and never more than one and I have had  tire trouble west of the 
Mississippi.  In fact, west of the Yellowstone and  Pecos.
 
 
In a message dated 2/22/2012 3:44:50 P.M. Eastern Standard Time,  
lechevrier at q.com writes:

What's it say on the  mini-spare, 50 mph for 50 miles?
 
Here is an excerpt from an Owner's Manual for  a 2005 Honda Civic and I 
quote:
 
Follow these precautions:
 
[among other things]
- Never exceed 50 MPH.
 
End quote.
 
The manual makes no reference as to  distance.  It  merely states to have 
the bad tire  repaired/replaced as soon as possible.  One can go a 
considerable distance  at 50 MPH.  Even if you had a full size spare you would 
probably do the  same thing and get it replaced ASAP.
 


So, since you live on  Long Island, your geographic perspective may be 
different than mine -- I  live in western Oregon, but often travel to the 
east side of the Cascade  Range, where it is not unusual to be 50 miles 
from the nearest quick stop  w/ fuel, let alone a tire shop (maybe 
100-150 miles).  Or say one is  driving their Corvair to Convention, 
which this year is about 3500 miles  away (and 3500 miles back, without 
any scenic detours) -- dig out that map  book and take a look at the long 
stretches between the Oregon Coast and  Ohio where there ain't nothing 
but road, plains, fences, a few beef cows,  and maybe some corn. 
I am familiar with the region having driven there many  times - and I drove 
there from New York - I did not fly there and rent a  car.  I routinely 
drive considerable distances from New York to some very  remote areas (don't 
kid yourself, they DO exist in the northeast - complete with  no cell 
service).  I've driven in 45 states and five Canadian provinces and  the UK (more 
than once).  The region is not as desolate as all  that.  In 1987 I drove 
cross country in a '85 Plymouth Reliant with a donut  spare tire and I did have 
tire trouble.  I did not even use the  spare, I just had the tire fixed at 
the next town.  This was on US 180  between Silver City, New Mexico and 
Holbrook, Arizona.  Somewhere  between New York and New Mexico (it was probably 
between Kansas and New Mexico)  my right rear picked up a piece of barbed 
wire causing a slow  leak.  A tire manufactured in an earlier era using less 
advanced  technology would probably have gone flat immediately.  Of course  
there is no way to prove this.   

We 
regularly go fish'n  in a little hole about 70 miles from Baker City, the 
nearest civilization,  and they just finished paving the road - used to 
be gravel - I don't  recommend driving gravel roads without a "real" 
spare (or two).  And  our driveway is gravel, also.
Many driveways around here are too.  In fact I'm  working on a Corvair 
tomorrow which is parked in a gravel driveway 50 miles from  my home.  Eastern 
Long Island is quite rural.  


I regularly drive a  forty-five mile stretch of road that has one (count 
it, one) corner, and  that is about a whole twenty degrees worth -- and 
one closed gas  stop.  Also a closed dinosaur farm converted into a 
big-rig chrome  accessories shop -- no tire stores -- no cell service.  
Trips to the Catskill Mountains from Long Island  are longer than 70 miles. 
 There are places with no cell service and a  considerable distance to the 
"next town."    Many former service  stations are now either closed or 
converted to convenience stores.  You  probably know more about cars than the 
attendant in one of these.
 


Okay, maybe there are  two such corners, but if it wasn't so darn 
straight, you might not notice  the slight curve in the road.  Somewhat 
like going west out of Salt  Lake City to Wendover, then on to Winnemucca 
...

Never did that one.  But I did do Bishop, Ca. to  Ely, Nv. and then on to 
Price, Ut. between 3 and 11 PM.
...and Dodge City, Ks to El Paso, Tx. as well as many  others.  My point is 
you can never predict exactly what kind of trouble you  will have.  By all 
means carry extra parts if you want to but Murphy's Law  dictates that the 
thing that fails will catch you unawares.  As far as  Corvairs are concerned, 
naturally one would carry spares of something known to  be weak.
 


Sort of like bringing  50's era British cars to this country -- they 
didn't have to be terribly  reliable, because in England, you couldn't 
drive very far before one ran  into coast line, thus Luca electrics 
worked for that  application.
While on the subject of driving in the UK try driving  the A939 in Scotland 
while shifting with your left hand.  I've never  seen a road like it in 
North America.  The road is so hilly there are  some places I would not dare 
change a tire.  I would not ride this road  with an unreliable car.  One could 
not ride this road with an  unreliable car.
 

But maybe I want to  drive my Corvair to 
Dallas (TX) and I only have two days to get there -- I  think I'll carry 
a spare thing or two.

Bill  Strickland





It's funny (in the ironic sense) that you live in Oregon.   I lost a tire 
in your neck of the woods in '06 in my '01 Doge  Durango.  The Durango did 
not come with a donut so I can't  verify your theory.  The bad tire was 
replaced in Corvallis.  
It  is up to the individual and it is certainly not foolhardy to carry 
extra  parts and a full size spare tire.  I merely said that (in addition to  
carrying a full size spare is unnecessary) if I was maintaining my wheel  
bearings, it is a bit of an overkill to carry a spare axle.  This is a far  cry 
from carrying, "a spare thing or two" on a trip from Oregon to  Texas.   
I was making reference to advancing technology and would warrant that a 
donut tire would last until you had a  chance to replace it even in Oregon.  If 
 however you feel uncomfortable and would rather have a full size spare, by 
all  means carry one (or two).  To me a full size spare with today's  
advanced tire technology takes up space, is heavier, and is a considerable  and 
unnecessary expense.  If it can take the heat of being stowed in  the engine 
compartment I plan on using one in my  Corvair.  
Steve  Sassi 
Long  Island Corvair (LICA) 
PS See  you at the convention.  This is the first one in five years that is 
under  1000 miles from my house. 
SVS