Putting it on the roof sounds like it would cause you to lose a few mpg, sort of defeating the purpose of getting the hybrid. Then again if you're only gonna have it there for an occasional road trip, maybe that would work.

 

I was thinking the same. But I'm not going to put a spare on the roof either. Kind of stuck I guess, no pun intended.

 

I really don't like not having a spare and I've thought about buying a donut spare (like the one available for the regular gas model) to have just in case....

If I were to get a flat from a nail I can use the kit that came with the car but if I get a blowout I might as well forget about where I was going because now the car needs to be towed. If a blowout does ever happen I hope it's during regular business hours so that I can be towed someplace that is open and can put the new tire on. If a blowout were to happen far from home in the middle of the night I'd have to sleep in my car with the flat tire until morning or hopefully find a hotel/motel close to the tire store that my car was towed to.

I think I just talked myself into getting that donut spare!!!

 

I really don't like not having a spare and I've thought about buying a donut spare (like the one available for the regular gas model) to have just in case....

If I were to get a flat from a nail I can use the kit that came with the car but if I get a blowout I might as well forget about where I was going because now the car needs to be towed. If a blowout does ever happen I hope it's during regular business hours so that I can be towed someplace that is open and can put the new tire on. If a blowout were to happen far from home in the middle of the night I'd have to sleep in my car with the flat tire until morning or hopefully find a hotel/motel close to the tire store that my car was towed to.

I think I just talked myself into getting that donut spare!!!

I'd recommend a spare of some sort; I'll never own a car without one. A friend of mine owns a smart car and she called me to help her out when she had a flat. It was a puncture flat, nothing too out of the ordinary. However, the kit in her car was useless. I followed the directions and used it properly, but the tire failed to inflate and a tow was still needed where a simple spare would have taken all the trouble out of the situation - flat tire excepted.

 

...spare me...

 

A bunch of us in Australia have a matching full size spare tyre. I got mine thru another XVForum member, Sandi. She kindly helped arranged everything. If you're wanting photos to see how the tyre fits in the tyre well, look in Scooby's build thread. I think he took a few photos.

 

Not sure about the boot floor in the hybrid. Scooby is in Australia and has petrol version, so boots in other countries and versions may be different. The petrol non hybrid in Australia comes with a skinny spare under the boot floor. The space fits a full size spare.
The fear of blowout or complete destruction is real. I had destroyed a tyre which went flat very quickly and the car handles the same with a flat, I had no idea until it was destroyed. Other members here have had the same experience. So even a skinny spare would get you out of trouble and would take much boot space.

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my smart car didn't have a spare either but it had different wheels front n back. you could put a front on the rear but not the other way around. I just carried a spare front behind the passenger seat. there was still plenty of room for the passenger but the smart is a dedicated two seater.

 

Yeah, I think that unless a vehicle is used only for short commutes on familiar, well-traveled roads, it's pretty foolish to have a car without a spare. Especially in my part of the world, where I'm often out of cell range and many miles from roadside assistance or a even a gas station.

 

I'm looking around for a spare from a wrecked XV. I haven't needed a spare in many years but I would not want to go to some remote area without one. Just to have one to throw in the cargo bay or on the roof if I think it advisable.

 

I also have a smart (and our new XV Hybrid) and have a spare front wheel/tire setup for the smart. The refill kit it comes with is useless except for the compressor. I haven't checked the Suby yet , but the "goop" in the smart's kit has limited life span of 5 years.....The Suby may be similar. Time to get a donut tire for it and stick it in the back in a Kurgo tire tote.

 

Renault is going to mount the spare on the roof. Doesn't look too bad up there.
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Or you could go Australian Army style, and mount the spare on the front.

 

I almost didn't purchase my hybrid because of the NO SPARE. Smarter minds prevailed. I asked the parts department for a price on getting a fifth wheel and tire, it was $475. PASS!!! I'm keeping an eye out for someone selling theirs. I'm also thinking about picking up a set of cheap winter wheels and snow tires that could also double as a spare. Just toss in the trunk for far away trips or mount it up top. After all, it is a Subaru.

 

I'm very interested in getting a Hybrid XV when the 2015 model arrives. However, the lack of even a "donut" may well turn out to be a deal breaker; I'm a fanatical fisherman and travel in the wee hours to some very isolated areas and "goo"
just doesn't do it for my peace of mind! I was thinking of some kind of setup with a donut carried UPRIGHT behind the (upright) back seat so it wouldn't take up too much horizontal cargo space and yet fit under the roll-out cargo cover. I'd be willing to pay a reasonable amount for such a rig and, since I live in a small apartment with no storage area, I'd keep the spare in the car at all times. . Anybody ever hear of such a thing or am I just hallucinating again?

 

Id like to see some creative solution for tire storage as well...I don't go to too many remote places but Im sure Ill have a nagging worry about not having a spare tire, whenever I go on a trip now. Would like to just keep a donut in the back but not just floating around.

 

Has anyone here ever used a plug kit? I've never not had one in my glove compartment. 'I have never had to even remove a tire to repair it. The only other thing that is useful is to have a pair of vice grips or even a pair of pliers. to grab a nail, screw, glass etc. if it is still stuck in the tire. Of course there are situations that a plug kit will not address but 95%of the time it is a good and permanent fix for most flats. I have fixedmany flats for friends and family and have not had any plugs start leaking to my knowledge. They will usually last the life tire.

 

Was considering the Hybrid, but the gas mileage is very disappointing and not liking the idea of my woe driving out in the hills of West NJ without a spare.

 

I have a hybrid (non-subaru) with no spare, but bought a matching tire at a junkyard for trips. Only concern is that the spare does not become a projectile in a crash. I do not own an XV (yet). Fortunately I can use tie downs to several cargo points in my current car, so if I lay the tire flat, I can secure it. I also carry a plug kit, however that would be my last resort since I read mixed things about tire shops touching a tire plugged with an off the shelf kit (and I don't want that to be the excuse to throw away an otherwise fixable tire). For XV hybrid folks who have a doughnut or full size spare, how do you secure it (or plan to)?

 

I just plug the tire with a kit from Autozone. The emergency repair kit under the driver's seat is for an emergency. I have a spare for off-reading that I secure to the roof.


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Resurrecting an old thread to ask a "dumb" question. I get that the circumference tolerance is low on the car, so the spare should be pretty close to the same size as the other wheels. But it's only the diameter that matters, right? I bought sparco wheels with slightly larger offroading tires, so my stock spare is probably more than 1/4" smaller diameter than the other four wheels. Couldn't I just put a slightly taller tire on the spare wheel so that it's close in circumference to the other four? You don't necessarily need a "full size" spare, right? Just a "same-diameter" spare?

 

You are correct. You want a spare wheel/tire combo that is as close to the diameter as the wheel/tire it is replacing. It does not have to be the same wheel/tire combination. The spare is only to get you out of your current situation and be serviceable until the original tire is replaced.

 

Well, I keep an air compressor with me. If I ever blow out one of the main tires, I'll probably just air-down the other 3 and put the standard spare on at full air. I would imagine that'll be close enough diameter to limp me along.

This thread has made me unusually paranoid about the spare situation...

 

An emergency kit and a compressor comes with a lot of cars that don't have a spare. Those that have the goop you insert into the valve stem are junk and that sealant will ruin the inside of the tyre and you'll have to replace it. Ditch that crud and get a plug kit. A tire with a plug can be repaired. I have used Dynaplug kits with great results but there are several.

 

Since we travel long distances a lot, I have since installed a full-size spare tire on the roof-rack. 17" Motegi MR119, 48 offiset with Geolandar 225/55 rubber. Fix-a-flat stuff can't fix a complete blow-out and a donut for long-distance is just a no-no. Plus it's just a complete pain putting a donut on if you have a blow-out up front. Cause then, you have to take a good wheel from the back and move it up front and put the small donut on the back. Happened to me in my old Volvo on the highway going over a pot hole the size of grand canyon; cracked and busted the rim pretty good too. Luckily, when I move on to Geolandar ATS, I can just drive over those grand canyon sized pot holes.

 

I love the setup kitcloudkicker but now I'm wondering about a hitch mounted spare that wouldn't block rear vision. i was thinking I'd get a Thule box but that basket is sweet.

 

It did bother me but I just decided to upgrade to some Bridgestone run flats after a year. I was surprised I could get them in the 55 series and how reasonable the price was so it was a no brainer for me.

 

Gotta admit, the lack of spare tire was almost a deal breaker for me on the hybrid. For $12 a year I've added the roadside assistance/trip interruption to my auto insurance. While waiting for a tow/fix/getting a rental vehicle certainly isn't as nice as simply throwing on a donut for a little bit, as long as I'm not looking at all sorts of expenses at a bad time, I can live with it.

I have two big trips coming up, and might look to arrange a spare tire for those. Unfortunately the Impreza my girlfriend drives has wheels 1" smaller than mine, or I'd just take her spare.

 

I did a test fit with a low pressure full size in my 13. It would fit, but you would have to lift the deck. Once I got my bigger tires, then there was no way in heck I could make it fit in the wheel well, even if I removed plastic from just below the hatch.

However on the hybrid, there isn't even a well for the donut is there?

I'm looking to throw mine on the roof as I am fed up of no load space, and right now I'd rather spend $300 on a basket and $100 for the wheel mount than the $600 for the Wilco swing away that would go on the hitch receiver I am planning to remove.

 

I don't carry my spare. Just a pressure can of flat tire goop, no tire pressure sensors in Canada, and a repair kit of plugs in case I get a puncture out of town. And of course a mini-compressor. On longer trips I put the spare up on the basket. Of course with a new Sube there is the road-side service number for 3 years.