Gents,
So after being taken back to kindergarten by the crayon smell after opening the trunk, I decided to check the condition of the spare tire. As predicted, it was flat. I attempted to fill this now 20 year old tire and it was leaking from the stem. The core had clearly separated from the rubber stem and even the valve core was leaking.
Having read the advice that spares typically have a useful life of 10 years, I should replace it with a new tire. Hopefully the big box stores have this odd size. But I was also thinking, "why even carry it?" After doing some research, fully 30% of new cars do not have a spare and either include some kind of tire slime-kit or have run flats as std tires. But also, I have AAA Auto Club towing service (100 miles) and have never been let down by their service. Not to mention, having worked at a CA company with one of the largest fleet of vehicles, they actively discourage the employees from ever changing tires on the road and esp. the freeways because of the high risk of getting wiped out by distracted and/or drunk drivers.
So floating this out there for opinions: Do you carry a spare or not? Right now I'm inclined not to.
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