How far can you drive on a spare tire?

“Refer to your owner’s manual. That’s where you’ll find the answer. You might be able to go up to 80 km/hr for 80 km, or it might even be in miles if your car was built in the U.S. People will drive on spares longer than you’re supposed to. The spare is only designed to get you somewhere, like the service station in the next town. If you can’t find your manual, most tires will be stamped on the outside to tell you how far and how fast you can go. Your owner’s manual will also tell you how to get your spare tire out of its stowaway spot. It’s a good exercise to know ahead of time. I had a flat once; I had to open the owner’s manual to figure out where the spare tire was. And I’m a mechanic.”—Dave Vollmer, a mechanic and a professor of transportation technology at Fanshawe College, London, Ont.

This piece was originally published the Winter 2020 issue of Cottage Life.

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