Spare Tire + Run Flats

All:

I was surprised to learn that the Bolt doesn't come w/ a spare tire but instead relies on run flats to get me to a garage within 50 miles. Seems reasonable to me, especially given the space saved in the trunk.

So I have a couple of questions:

1) Am I the only one who didn't see the need for the styrofoam tire and jack holder (neither of which were provided)? I took mine out and increased trunk capacity by 25% or more.

2) What are your thoughts of run flats? I've never owned one and now I own 4. Just curious to hear others' thoughts on the pros and cons. It seems like a great idea to me. I heard about issues with them when they first came out, but assume some of the issues have since been resolved?

Love my Bolt! The car is amazing and so much fun to drive. This is the real zoom-zoom!

mecdatlanta said:

All:

I was surprised to learn that the Bolt doesn't come w/ a spare tire but instead relies on run flats to get me to a garage within 50 miles. Seems reasonable to me, especially given the space saved in the trunk.

So I have a couple of questions:

1) Am I the only one who didn't see the need for the styrofoam tire and jack holder (neither of which were provided)? I took mine out and increased trunk capacity by 25% or more.

2) What are your thoughts of run flats? I've never owned one and now I own 4. Just curious to hear others' thoughts on the pros and cons. It seems like a great idea to me. I heard about issues with them when they first came out, but assume some of the issues have since been resolved?

Love my Bolt! The car is amazing and so much fun to drive. This is the real zoom-zoom!

Click to expand...

Don't like run flats.

They came w/my BMW but, like many BMW drivers, I switched to performance tires and carry an emergency spare w/jack etc. The objection among BMW drivers to the run-flats is many performance. Run flats are too hard and give very poor traction. Can carry a spare because I've got a full trunk and don't need to use it for anything else.

As for the Bolt, don't like it either but it's not an issue for me in terms of performance. No room in the "trunk" to carry a spare. So, it's really not an option, although I believe some other Bolt owners say it can be done. Bought the inflation kit for emergency when I cannot get a tow to a repair shop.

It's not like they can't fit a spare in the car if they wanted to do so. My tiny MR2 carries an emergency spare. It's more a matter of cost and govt regulations. If a spare is not required, they are opting for run flats instead.

The Bolt's OEM tires are not run-flats. They are self-sealing tires, with the sealant goo already in the tire to seal punctures. It is possible that you may not even know that a puncture occurred if it successfully self-seals.

https://www.michelinman.com/US/en/why-michelin/michelin-selfseal-technology.html

If, when the OEM tires wear out, you decide that you want a different model of tire that is not self-sealing, you may want to add a spare tire or tire sealant kit. It appears that very few models of tires with self-sealing are available. Or, you can do as Tesla Model S drivers do, which is no spare, no run-flat tires, no self-sealing tires, no tire sealant kit (though available as an optional accessory).

mecdatlanta said:

Am I the only one who didn't see the need for the styrofoam tire and jack holder (neither of which were provided)? I took mine out and increased trunk capacity by 25% or more.

Click to expand...

On Premiere Bolts the Bose subwoofer is located in the bottom most well that holds the stryofoam insert, so you can't really use the space very effectively.

I've had enough flats in my life that are far enough off the beaten track (not all that hard to get to from Vancouver BC) that I'm not comfortable without a spare tire. And the OEM self-sealing tires don't do me much good when I have snow tires mounted on the car. So I've put an OEM wheel/tire in the lower cargo compartment below the "false floor". Combined with a tire wrench and a jack from a Chevy S10/Blazer (which fits the round mount points near the front wheels) I'm all set. And if Murphy behaves as expected, the fact that I'm prepared means I won't need it

1) Am I the only one who didn't see the need for the styrofoam tire and jack holder (neither of which were provided)? I took mine out and increased trunk capacity by 25% or more.

Click to expand...

No .. you are not the only one. Taking it out tripled the size of the area under the cargo floor. It's a very useful space now.

http://www.mychevybolt.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=6937&p=28225#p28225

AJ

:idea: Great minds think alike AJ.

SeanNelson said:

mecdatlanta said:

I've had enough flats in my life that are far enough off the beaten track (not all that hard to get to from Vancouver BC) that I'm not comfortable without a spare tire. So I've put an OEM wheel/tire in the lower cargo compartment below the "false floor". Combined with a tire wrench and a jack from a Chevy S10/Blazer (which fits the round mount points near the front wheels) I'm all set. And if Murphy behaves as expected, the fact that I'm prepared means I won't need it

Click to expand...

Click to expand...

I am curious which year S10/Blazer jack you used, from a first or second generation S10?

{I am assuming you meant this as the S10 and/or S10 Blazer since I believe they are twins. The question comes to mind because I know the original S10 style from 1982 ran until 1993, was restyled in 1994 (I think it was 1994) and don't know if they would've bothered to redesign the jack points. }

mchapmon said:

SeanNelson said:

...I've put an OEM wheel/tire in the lower cargo compartment below the "false floor". Combined with a tire wrench and a jack from a Chevy S10/Blazer (which fits the round mount points near the front wheels) I'm all set.

Click to expand...

I am curious which year S10/Blazer jack you used, from a first or second generation S10?

Click to expand...

I have absolutely no idea - it was just one dirty jack sitting among many at the auto wrecker. I recognized it by the ball protrusion on the face of the mating point.

Thanks, I'm looking for a jack & spare for my Bolt as well, so I had to ask.

I ordered a stock Michelin self-seal tire as a spare back in mid-February and it still hasn't arrived. The latest estimate is for it to show up in mid-April - that's a 2-month lead time. This has suddenly become more important to me because I just swapped my summer tires back onto the car, which means I no longer have the summer tire I was using for the spare. And the Michelin X-Ice XI3's don't seem to quite fit into the space under the false floor, so I'm without a spare for the moment.

Given the very long lead time to get replacement OEM tires (at least up here in Canada) I'd recommend buying one even if you don't intend to haul it around as a spare. If you get some unrepairable tire damage it's looking like it could take quite a while to get it replaced.