Wheels COTY {spolier}

[itsnotagsr]

having to modify the car kinda defeats the purpose of buying a new (or near new) car.

I have a beach buggy for Biggles style driving... :p

It was the only way I could drive Dad's Healey 3000 until the new seats wore in a bit more

Must be accompanied by a tweed hat though!

[Caffeine]

I'm 6'6 and I fit in my 2001 model perfectly, admittedly it has sagged a bit over time.

That said, the NC, brand new, felt as roomy as my car with 140000km and 3.5 years on it...

[browney]

I'm glad they made it look more masculine. I have allways thought that it is a little slow for a performance car of that price (building a great handling car that is slow in a straight line is no different than building a car with good straight line speed but can't turn a corner). No doubt it'd be a great fund drive though.

[Cal]

I have allways thought that it is a little slow for a performance car of that price (building a great handling car that is slow in a straight line is no different than building a car with good straight line speed but can't turn a corner)

Easier to make an MX5 go hard than make other said turd handle.

Cal.

[Matty]

NC (ie new) MX-5 has lower seats so better for tall people. plus the sun visors are really thin now, don't block the view

got to drive on in September as part of the press launch (the priveliges of being an MX-5 CLub President )

[Captiva Fan]

What manufacturer makes the Spolier?

[smellytofu]

I'd say a good deserving winner.. then the stupid SMH puts out this BS... and the comment about NRMA & RACV having to change tyres x hundred times... have you ever seen a girl change their own tyres even though they have full size spares??? They'd rather wait an hour than to get their hands dirty even if they knew how to do it.

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Drivers at risk as spare tyres vanish
By Joshua Dowling Motoring Editor
January 25, 2006

MOTORIST associations say drivers risk being left stranded by the growing number of cars being sold without full-size spare tyres - with the winner of the Wheels car of the year award among vehicles on the market with only a puncture repair kit.

Temporary spare tyres or puncture repair kits were the most hotly debated topic during judging of last year's award, said the editor of Wheels, Ged Bulmer. Despite this, the Mazda MX-5 "won comfortably" in the 2005 judging, although Bulmer would not disclose how many of the 10 judges voted for the car.

"Temporary space-saver tyres or tyre repair kits (which the MX-5 has) are not entirely satisfactory for Australian conditions," Bulmer said.

"There is absolutely no doubt that, given our vast distances and the limited availability of certain tyres, it is a concern."

The MX-5 won because it was fun to drive and better suited to daily use than its predecessor, he said. It was the car's second win in 16 years, ahead of three other finalists - the Lexus IS250, the Ford Focus and the Mercedes-Benz M Class four-wheel-drive.

Ernest Litera, a vehicle engineer with the Royal Automobile Club of Victoria, said the trend towards temporary spares and puncture kits was risky for drivers.

"The potential to be stranded is too great, in our opinion," he said. "We regularly hear from motorists who have had to stay somewhere overnight because their car did not have a spare."

He said Australia's infrastructure to supply and fit tyres was not as good as those in Europe, the US and Japan, and road conditions were more demanding.

RACV road service crews changed about 130 tyres a day in metro Melbourne, he said; the NRMA said it changed more than 260 tyres a day across NSW.

George Chalazia, the manager at Bob Jane T-Marts in Granville, said customers should be cautious about buying a car with a space-saver spare or a puncture repair kit.

"Not all tyre technicians are trained to fit them and not all tyre outlets have the equipment - especially in country towns." .

Of greater concern, though, was the number of motorists who continued to drive on a temporary spare tyre.

"We see some people … they've been driving with a space-saver for two to three weeks," he said.

"It's dangerous … You're not supposed to drive far on them."

[Cal]

Meh I keep a can in mine. Even space savers are too heavy.

Cal.

[Matty]

meh, i don't even keep a can in mine.

had one flat in 8 years, and that one got driven on for about 50 km with no dramas...

[rowdytoot]

yeah seriously, I haven't had a flat in 14 years that wasn't caused by something entirely more damaging to the car than just random objects on the road.

Almost no one I know has had one in the last 4 years that I can remember either..

fro had one in my rally car, but that was after a rally, on the way to the workshop so no big deal either..

I think it's a rare thing provided you look after your tyres and buy good quality ones.

Rowds

[lumpy]

Space saver or repair kit makes no difference to most new cars. Surely most come with a year or two of 24 hr breakdown support anyway? I had a flat tyre in the company falcon and was debating about replacing it with the spare or calling the ford roadside assistance. In the end I decided to change the wheel myself to save the embarrassment of having another bloke do it for me I'm sure I'd have felt like less of a man if I'd called roadside assist!!!

That said, if in full suit going somewhere important there's no way I'd get it dirty by changing a tyre myself - I've only got the one nice suit!!

Most women drive for miles on a flat/half flat tyre anyway, so not having a spare makes no difference!! /sexist and misogynist generalisation

[St00ge]

George Chalazia, the manager at Bob Jane T-Marts in Granville, said customers should be cautious about buying a car with a space-saver spare or a puncture repair kit.

"Not all tyre technicians are trained to fit them and not all tyre outlets have the equipment - especially in country towns." .

Not trained to fit what ??? a space saver??? I don't get what they need to be trained for or special equipment is needed?

the only time I have had a flat is when I was hugging the kerb a bit to much doing a little spirited driving and then just passed the apex the kerb had been run over by a truck and half the kerb was sticking out at right angles to its normal direction. So busted rim and busted tyre. I just drove home with the flat as it was couldn't do any worse damage to the rim or tyre haha

[MickyD]

RACV road service crews changed about 130 tyres a day in metro Melbourne, he said; the NRMA said it changed more than 260 tyres a day across NSW.

out of how many people on the roads?

when I put new tyres on the mini I didn't get runflats again (got Michelin Pilot Precedas, coincidentally the same tyres as the MX5 comes with), I just carry goop and compressor, but as other people have said, in 12 years of driving I've had one flat, and that was from cutting a corner too close and clobbering a pothole.

[Caffeine]

I've had about 6 flats in the last 5 years, and only once needed the space saver (at wakefield, piced up a bit of debris in the left rear, made it flat very fast and made for a very interesting lap!)

[Banzai]

I remember reading a report from the NRMA years ago about the average driver only experiences a flat tyre once in 10 years. Last time I had a real flat that needed to be changed was from a running through a very big pot hole about 20 years ago.

Plenty of slow leak punctures from nails and screws in that time but nothing a tyre pump couldn't handle until I could get the tyre repaired or replaced.

I'm happy to have nothing more than tyre goop in the boot. Anyway, you can't even fit a spacesaver in my car.