I've owned my XK for less than 2 months, so (thank the gods) no need yet to use the spare. But it never occurred to me - until this thread started - to think about removing it. And I've not changed my mind.

Having said that, this car is meant to be a weekend ride, not a daily driver. I avoid major highways (don't need the stone damage from trucks and assorted a**holes) and plan outings on country backroads whenever possible. So I don't expect to be stranded by a flat on the equivalent of the M25, but I definitely could be stranded where my AAA service would take quite a while to find me. So the hemorrhoid cushion stays put.

 

For more than twenty years I've travelled across France and Spain fast and with a fully laden vehicle through the night at least twice a year. Really don't feel comfortable with no spare (my current XK has the dreaded sealant kit).

Last year I took my Bentley Continental GT to Spain instead of using the XK. Fortunately the Bentley does have the space saver spare as I got a puncture on a mountain road late on a Saturday night.

I can always get recovery here in UK 24/7 in the event of a puncture but it's an entirely different situation touring in a foreign country where help can be a long way away. I was intending to source a spare for the XK but have postponed the search as Continental travel is a distant prospect with the pandemic.

Graham

 

I've been down in CeeJay's neck of the woods and the countryside is beautiful and he's spot on about how remote it gets in a hurry.

 

I'll give you a Yes for the survey, but the only time I needed it, was no better than a No.
Was driving home to work to pick up wife to go see a Bruins playoff game. Rear tire went flat several miles from my house, so I pulled into a parking lot and tried a quick change. Pulled out jack, raised car, removed tires, mounted spare only to find it was pretty flat. Enough air to get me to gas station close by to fill with air. Noticed that tire bead was not on rim and could not get air into it. Looked like a problem with the valve also. Decided to use my AAA free towing and have it carried home where I have slightly more air pressure. Never did make the playoff game, tried to sell tix last minute online, but no takers. I figure it cost me several hundred dollars.

If your gonna carry spare, make sure it is full of air and in good condition or it is not worth carrying.

 

Funny, any time anyone says Bruins on this side it's assumed it's UCLA.

 

Kazi, Noticed your location. I was actually a big Ice Dogs fan back in the day. Loved the logo so much we used it for our men's league uniforms. The bruins around here go by the nickname: B's. The other 4 major sports go by C's, Pats and Sox.

Do you see a lot of XK's out there on the left coast? Pretty rare to see one on the streets here.

Back to thoughts of shedding the spare. For the recreational drive my Jag is, the extra space and weight of the spare is negligible. I check tire pressure on all tires routinely, so as not to get caught with a flat spare. May throw a few new valves and valve tool in there to be safe also.

 

All this talk of spare tires made me realize I had not checked mine for air pressure since getting the car in September.

I just did, and fortunately, it's good. Pretty amazing for a 13+ year-old tire. Here's hoping I never have to see it in action. As they say, most good judgment comes from experience and most experience comes from bad judgment. Thanks, all, for helping me improve mine!

 

A spare tire is like a parachute. If you don't have it when you need it, you're in deep sh .. uh, trouble!

 

I almost needed the spare once. Luckily, I heard the tire hissing when I was hooking up the battery charger and was able to just drive it to the tire shop for repair. If you get out of town a little ways where I live, there is nothing, quite possibly not even cell signal, so I will never go without a spare.

 

Even if you don't have a spare tire, every car should have a 12 volt tire inflator in the trunk. Make sure that it plugs into the cigarette lighter and is designed specifically for automotive use, with a long power cord that'll reach all four wheels.

If you have a flat, you have three choices: (1) put on the spare, if you have one, and get dirty; (2) wait for the tow truck to get there, and get frustrated; or (3) try to reinflate that tire and drive to a shop to get it fixed.

My choice is (3), if possible. Otherwise, depending on the weather and other circumstances, (2) and then (1).

I still have and like this old tire pump. It's small but powerful (and LOUD!), and has a screw-on tire valve connector. I prefer that over the clip-on type, which can pop off. It's no longer available, and newer models have more features including automatic shutoff when the set pressure is reached. Search Amazon.

 

priorities, priorities. Don’t think I’d miss a Bruins playoff game for a flat tire.

 

AAA does not offer changing flat tire as part of their service. They will tow you to a repair garage though.
I found this out the hard way. Only Tow Truck available at 1:30 AM in the morning was a tow truck company contracted through California Highway Patrol. What was the final cost for my TOW JOB ONLY? $295.00!!! All other tow truck companies average a charge of $100. The tire still had to be repaired at the tire shop the next day and I had to pay $77 for taxi from home to shop. Moral to the story? Keep the spare tire and jack in your car. CHANGE IT YOURSELF!!!!

 

I use choice (3) combined with another (4) - carry a tyre plug kit:




No way would I ever use the sealant in the Jaguar kit but these plugs do work AND the puncture can have a permanent repair later provided it's not in the sidewall.

Graham

 

I'll keep my spare tire, thank you very much. It helps keep the rear planted as I lift the front wheels coming out of the turns!

 

I don't disagree @GGG . But if the decision is one of
1. fix a tire on the side of the road or
2. panini and an espresso, while watching the entertainment of someone else doing the job.
I know my answer.

 

Years ago, my wife and I rented a minivan from Enterprise to move our daughter's stuff from home to her college dorm in a nearby state about 4 hours away. I also threw my 12V tire inflator in the minivan, just in case. On our way back home that night, it began to rain and, in the middle of nowhere, we got a flat tire. I told my wife, "no problem, I'll just pump it back up and we'll make it home."

Unfortunately, the cigarette lighter socket was dead.

Fortunately, the minivan had a spare, jack, and the tools. Unfortunately the driver was very po'd. Fortunately, Enterprise gave me a full refund.

The best laid plans ...

 

I rented a Cadillac about twenty years ago to go fetch and then drop off my kids to/from their spawner's home, 1500 miles away because I didn't want to put miles on my new Continental at the time. Out in the desert 400 miles from home the Caddy blew the left-rear on the freeway. Course any tow job would have been miserably slow and inconvenient. The Caddy had a spare and in fifteen minutes I was on the road again. The tire was shredded so no refill foam or compressor would have done a danged thing worthwhile.
I never want to be without a spare.

 

i can honestly say i've never even looked to see if the spare is in there. but, i work from home and only take it around town. i think i've had it more than 15 minutes away from my favorite tire shop just two or three times this year.

 

I've been driving for 38yrs and the only time Ive had blowouts were

MGC in 1983 an exhaust part was left by the curb and took out two tyres on drivers side.

XK8 2008 mounted a (what turned out to be a metal) curb too hard and blew two tyreson passenger side. Will never buy Uniroyal tyres again (sound Like CJ?) as they were newly fitted and any other tyre would have taken it.

So in either case carrying a spare in those instances would have done me no good.

As opposed to carrying a spare or the oem goo I chose Holts tyreweld (well 2 cans) which can just be wiped out if a punctured tyre if it's repairable, I paid £15 delivered for 2

https://www.halfords.com/tools/garag...ml-122260.html

 

I owned a 2014 CTS that had no spare, and spent $350 to get one. Goodbye trunk space! Hello peace of mind! Took less than a year and some really incompetent Cadillac dealership work to trade that car in on my Audi.