As seen in some Porshce and Lexus cars, the collapsible spare tire seems to be a feasable alternative to the factory runflats. Does anyone know if they're available for the MINI? What's the smallest rim for MINI that might work with a the collapsible tire?

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At the risk of sounding stupid....what the heck is a collapsible spare? My last car was a Lexus....just a regular rim/tire...


I'm just picturing pulling a spare out of my wallet and unfolding it......

 

yeah, I would like to know what that is myself.

I was thinking if I went with regular tires I would buy a compact tire and rim and maybe leave it deflated until it was needed. Carry a small compressor to inflate it in an emergengy.

Okay, now I understand what it is. I found that the golf's have them.

 

How much bigger is an inflated tire than a flat one?and you run the risk of not getting a seal to the rim with what will be slow inflation out on the road.better to have a spare with air

 

>>what the heck is a collapsible spare? My last car was a Lexus....just a regular rim/tire...

The size is acually quite compact when collaped against the wheel, making it about the size of the rim in diameter, which is most likely 14". When needed, the tires can be inflated with a portable air compressor. I believe the Lexus SC convertible is equiped with it, same as the 911 turbo I once owned.

 

>>>>what the heck is a collapsible spare? My last car was a Lexus....just a regular rim/tire...
>>
>>The size is acually quite compact when collaped against the wheel, making it about the size of the rim in diameter, which is most likely 14". When needed, the tires can be inflated with a portable air compressor. I believe the Lexus SC convertible is equiped with it, same as the 911 turbo I once owned.

I think that is actually a cool idea! Combine that with a lightweight rim, and you have a spare I'd carry on my runflat-less MCS. Right now for long trips I'll be using an MC space-saver, but I'd rather go lighter and smaller.

 

I saw two of them on e-bay. Now, if they only came in 4x100 with the correct offset.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eB...spagename=WDVW

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eB...spagename=WDVW

 

>>I saw two of them on e-bay. Now, if they only came in 4x100 with the correct offset.

I wonder if the collapsible tire can be fitted onto a 15" wheel with 4x100.

 

>>How much bigger is an inflated tire than a flat one?and you run the risk of not getting a seal to the rim with what will be slow inflation out on the road.better to have a spare with air

You can leave some air so that it has a seal on the bead. I am guess that with a soft sideside a savings of two to three inches might be achievable with a 15 inch rim.

This is all in theory of course. I haven't tried it because our car just hit production yesterday!

 

That's a very good question. If we can figure out who makes the tires then we can fire off an e-mail to see what rims are required. I remember my old 280zx had one of those collapsible tires too.

An article from CD about spare tires.

http://www.caranddriver.com/article....rticle_id=6582