Drivers At Risk As Spare Tyres Vanish

Sydney Morning Herald

Wednesday January 25, 2006

Joshua Dowling Motoring Editor

MOTORIST associations say drivers risk being left stranded by the growing number of cars being sold without full-size spare tyres - with the winner of the Wheels car of the year award among vehicles on the market with only a puncture repair kit.

Temporary spare tyres or puncture repair kits were the most hotly debated topic during judging of last year's award, said the editor of Wheels, Ged Bulmer. Despite this, the Mazda MX-5 "won comfortably" in the 2005 judging, although Bulmer would not disclose how many of the 10 judges voted for the car.

"Temporary space-saver tyres or tyre repair kits (which the MX-5 has) are not entirely satisfactory for Australian conditions," Bulmer said.

"There is absolutely no doubt that, given our vast distances and the limited availability of certain tyres, it is a concern."

The MX-5 won because it was fun to drive and better suited to daily use than its predecessor, he said. It was the car's second win in 16 years, ahead of three other finalists - the Lexus IS250, the Ford Focus and the Mercedes-Benz M Class four-wheel-drive.

Ernest Litera, a vehicle engineer with the Royal Automobile Club of Victoria, said the trend towards temporary spares and puncture kits was risky for drivers.

"The potential to be stranded is too great, in our opinion," he said. "We regularly hear from motorists who have had to stay somewhere overnight because their car did not have a spare."

He said Australia's infrastructure to supply and fit tyres was not as good as those in Europe, the US and Japan, and road conditions were more demanding.

RACV road service crews changed about 130 tyres a day in metro Melbourne, he said; the NRMA said it changed more than 260 tyres a day across NSW.

George Chalazia, the manager at Bob Jane T-Marts in Granville, said customers should be cautious about buying a car with a space-saver spare or a puncture repair kit.

"Not all tyre technicians are trained to fit them and not all tyre outlets have the equipment - especially in country towns." .

Of greater concern, though, was the number of motorists who continued to drive on a temporary spare tyre.

"We see some people ... they've been driving with a space-saver for two to three weeks," he said.

"It's dangerous ... You're not supposed to drive far on them."

© 2006 Sydney Morning Herald

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