Why Don't EVs Come With Spare Tires?

[Steve A.]

Spares are a lot less popular now that cell phones and coverage is nearly ubiquitous for most of the driving that people will do. Additionally, with as big as wheels and tires have gotten, they take up a lot of room that a lot of people would prefer to have as cargo or passenger space. Cost is also a factor. It's nice that the R1T has a place for a spare though.

Less popular due to manufacturers cutting costs not due to lack of customer demand.

There's plenty of room on the outside of the tailgate which is one reason why Scout Traveler is a better design which has 35" tires; I'll take the extra weight for the peace of mind.

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[beatle]

Less popular due to manufacturers cutting costs not due to lack of customer demand.

There's plenty of room on the outside of the tailgate which is one reason why Scout Traveler is a better design which has 35" tires; I'll take the extra weight for the peace of mind.

Even if spares were free, there is a tradeoff in having to store a spare that's over 30" in diameter somewhere, and in many vehicles, that space has to come from valuable cargo or the passenger compartment. A lot of people aren't willing to give that up and will instead keep their phone charged and their AAA membership current. In my Model S I just carried a compressor and a can of tire slime since there was no place to store a spare. Spare storage on the tailgate is iconic on vehicles like Jeeps, but it's otherwise an eyesore and it cuts into rearward visibility and tailgate usability.

I took the included spare out of my Miata 25 years ago since I needed the cargo space in the rear glove box, but I added a full size spare to my R1T so I could do 5 tire rotations, and I may need a spare if I decide to take the truck on harsher trails than I've been on so far. Otherwise I probably would have just kept using the trunk for other things since it's pretty big. There isn't an objectively correct answer as to whether a spare should be included on every vehicle.

 

[HaveBlue]

Decades of 4wheeling I can't remember using my full size spare. I just put a plug or plugs in. One tire lasted years until the tread was done with a plug in the side wall. Tires have gotten good. In addition to a plug kit, I have a sidewall repair kit as well as a spare. I won't grow out of the phobia. Usually I traveled with all Toyota's. There were plenty of spares around that all fit each other. Even an old 15" Toyota wheel could be swapped to the rear on a modern Toyota and not have brake clearance issues.

 

[Steve A.]

Even if spares were free, there is a tradeoff in having to store a spare that's over 30" in diameter somewhere, and in many vehicles, that space has to come from valuable cargo or the passenger compartment. A lot of people aren't willing to give that up and will instead keep their phone charged and their AAA membership current. In my Model S I just carried a compressor and a can of tire slime since there was no place to store a spare. Spare storage on the tailgate is iconic on vehicles like Jeeps, but it's otherwise an eyesore and it cuts into rearward visibility and tailgate usability.

If Scout, Jeep, and MANY other SUVs can put a full-size spare on a tailgate swing arm, then so can Rivian. Eyesore is in the eye of the beholder. Function> form. Visibility isn't a big deal with all the cameras and sensors.

Objectively, not offering the *option* makes Rivian deficient.

At least my Audi Q7 has a non-OEM runflat option.

 

[Steve A.]

Decades of 4wheeling I can't remember using my full size spare.

We'll decades of on-road driving I've changed plenty of flat tires on the side of the road (Excursion, Navigator, Expedition, F-150) and a full size spare was ALWAYS preferred over the donut tires on my cars.

 

[COdogman]

@COdogman

It only took 6 posts for a completely unrelated thread to get a CP complaint. What's the current record?

After consulting the archives, I show the fastest mention of CarPlay in an unrelated thread was actually .000125 posts on 7/9/24 in the thread titled “Should I buy these off brand tires for $25 each?”

 

[babock]

On my last F-150 I used the spare once in 70K miles. Our Honda Element has used the spare at least 4 times in 220K miles. In all the cases that I used the spare...VERY glad I had it.

 

[HaveBlue]

You guys are picking up all the nails for me. Keep up the good work.

 

[jeeden]

I remember the same argument happening when I bought my 2015 Mustang and people were losing their minds about no spare tire and just a compressor and sealant kit. This is also somewhat current for me because my daughter got her full license YESTERDAY and we just had a talk about how I never want her to attempt to change a tire (she isn't driving the rivian yet, she is in a 2016 Ford escape and I am calling AAA for membership we had allowed to lapse today)


Of course, this is not just electric vehicles as mentioned. You firmly have two groups:

1. Those who feel anxiety about not having a spare tire and are the modern-day equivalent of the old man in A Christmas Story who has flat tires dozens of times

2. Those who don't really care anyway and see the spare tire as something going the way of the oil change and "topping up the radiator" with water.

I'm in the second group. I think a lot of the points have been hit here already, but to restate mine:

1. If you really need a full size spare for offroading, the trailer hitch arm seems to be the way to go anyway. Even if you have a full size spare, a lot of people are going to put oversized tires on and then need to store them externally anyway. There is a major weight and space savings to this. I really got addicted to the extra space of the tire well before our spare showed up. When it showed up I was a little bummed about loosing the space, but then realized I could leave the tray out that goes over the top and it will still let me store a plug kit, the portable charger, the first aid kit, etc around the tire.

2. The compact spare is certainly adequate for a tire change or to get you to a service area, it's nice that they give you the option of the extra coin for it

3. Cell phones (and soon, satellite phones) are everywhere and you have Rivian roadside or AAA to get you out of situations and change the tire with the compact spare, or tow you to a tire shop.

4. I don't want anyone I love and care about changing a tire on the side of the road. This isn't the old man's 37 Oldsmobile. Today's vehicles are harder to jack up, heavier, the lugs are torqued from the tire shop, and difficult for many to break loose (or you need to carry an impact drill which is something else to keep charged, etc). .............. It is ridiculously dangerous to do it even if the above issues are not a problem for you. Think of all the cops on the side of the road with big cruisers with flashing lights that get hit every year. People are distracted, going very fast, doing crazy things, wandering off lanes, road rage, etc. A lot of people are killed doing it every year and even more are injured.

IMO, you either are an off-road enthusiast (or maybe live truly hundreds of miles from any civilization) and want to do your own thing with a hitch mount full spare or you are in a situation where you can put the sealant in, connect the inflator and wait on the other side of the guardrail, or you are in a situation where you can call roadside assistance while you wait on the other side of the guardrail or in the car in the belts.

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