RS5- no donuts??

[Gbrent]

Looking at a new s5 coupe, thought I would drive a RS-5 for due diligence. OMG. Sound of the V8 is amazing, looks are killer, awesome handling. I'm ready to sign papers for it! I thought I would check out engine, trunk, etc. Let's looks at the spare tire (donut like on the S5?) There is NO SPARE? Inflate-a-flat?? I have had 2 blow outs while driving in last 8 years- neither would have been remotely fixed by inflate a flat. So a 20 min flat tire change would turn into a tow truck. And if you aren't near an Audi dealer I'm sure they would need to order a tire. If you are on a trip that would be at least one night in a hotel (2 or 3 nights if you hit a weekend just right). Am I nuts not to consider a car that doesn't have a spare OR run flats??

[O2ShootTheJ]

Not what I expected when I opened this thread lol.

[jpenneck]

The car has a can of fix-a-flat plus a pump. I haven't had a flat tire in years and it never bothered me when I had my RS4 which was the same way. Some of the other RS4 guys would keep another wheel in the trunk when they went on road trips but that takes up a ton of trunk space.

[Tracee]

Thread title made me think of my B6 A4

[FuchsB]

Looking at a new s5 coupe, thought I would drive a RS-5 for due diligence. OMG. Sound of the V8 is amazing, looks are killer, awesome handling. I'm ready to sign papers for it! I thought I would check out engine, trunk, etc. Let's looks at the spare tire (donut like on the S5?) There is NO SPARE? Inflate-a-flat?? I have had 2 blow outs while driving in last 8 years- neither would have been remotely fixed by inflate a flat. So a 20 min flat tire change would turn into a tow truck. And if you aren't near an Audi dealer I'm sure they would need to order a tire. If you are on a trip that would be at least one night in a hotel (2 or 3 nights if you hit a weekend just right). Am I nuts not to consider a car that doesn't have a spare OR run flats??

Its called roadside and if you can afford the RS5 Im sure you can catch a night or today at a Holiday Inn for a night if your truely stranded IMO.

[DinB]

Its called roadside and if you can afford the RS5 Im sure you can catch a night or today at a Holiday Inn for a night if your truely stranded IMO.

Wouldn't the hotel be covered anyway?

[FuchsB]

Wouldn't the hotel be covered anyway?

Of course Audi would reimburse. Still taken back that no spare would be a deal breaker on a car and the possibilty of being stranded.

[Gbrent]

I'm sure roadside would cover (nights) in a hotel. The point is that a 20 minute tire change with a spare donut would make that unnecessary. The cost of a hotel isn't so much the issue- it's the (potential) cost of a few days twiddling your thumbs in Bum$@#% anywhere waiting for a tire to arrive.

[FuchsB]

I'm sure roadside would cover (nights) in a hotel. The point is that a 20 minute tire change with a spare donut would make that unnecessary. The cost of a hotel isn't so much the issue- it's the (potential) cost of a few days twiddling your thumbs in Bum$@#% anywhere waiting for a tire to arrive.

Im pretty sure there is a Costco or a Discount Tire pretty much nearby everywhere. Worst case Tire Rack or Discount direct could overnight you something. Theres no place in the US where you would need to wait a few days for a tire and be stranded. Worst case buy a wheel and tire from the general store and get it to an Audi dealer.

[audisarecool]

You would think some of you work for Audi with some of these responses..

No spare is a major annoyance compared to having one.. to some its a deal breaker and to others it isn't, but to try and justify it as being no worse than having one, is just silly.

Living in NY I've had almost 4 flats in the last year and a half of ownership and not having a spare would have proven to be very difficult during those instances.

[superswiss]

Yes, no spare is the one thing that concerns me about the RS5. Unfortunately, that's where things are going. The M3 doesn't have a spare, either and BMW puts run-flat on the non-M cars only.

I do average about 2 "flats" per year, but over the last 8 years I needed the spare only three times. The other times were punctured tires with the air sipping out slowly and I only noticed it when the tire pressure warning came on. I could just drive to the tire place and get it fixed. Knock on wood, I never had a flat on a road trip so far.

[bittondb]

My opinion is if you plan on traveling away from civilization, pack a spare. Otherwise, roadside. I'm on my second w/o a spare.

[jpenneck]

As I can't go check for myself, is the RS5 battery in the trunk like the RS4 used to be ?

[Mops@Nemesis]

I always pull my spare. Could care less. If I were concerned I would carry one when needed.

[Tracee]

Audi Roadside Assistance and USAA

[CoJoe]

Not what I expected when I opened this thread lol.

this.

[BASARAB]

Not what I expected when I opened this thread lol.

I know, right

[dan]

realistically how would you expect anything but a full sized spare would fit on the car? Its hard enough to find current "normal" wheels for winter that will actually clear the front brakes without spacers and your somehow expecting a donut sized spare would work? C'mon, if it's that important too you order an extra wheel for ~$1000 and replace the fix-a-flat and pump etc with the wheel. Writing off an entire car because it doesn't have a spare is ridiculous.

[Tifosi]

To not want the car because of the lack of spare or RFT's is IMO, a little extrem. This practice of not having a spare in the car is not new, Ferrari and Lamborghini has been doing it for almost 20 years now and they are hardly along in this. If the spare is that important to you, considering that the RS5 shares the same V8 layout as the B8 S5, you should be able to fit a B8-S5 compact spare tire kit in the trunk where the battery is. However, you may want to see if it can accomandate both a spare for 19" setup and 20" setup should you decide to go with 20" rims all around.

[PaperishPlastic]

Im pretty sure there is a Costco or a Discount Tire pretty much nearby everywhere. Worst case Tire Rack or Discount direct could overnight you something. Theres no place in the US where you would need to wait a few days for a tire and be stranded. Worst case buy a wheel and tire from the general store and get it to an Audi dealer.

My friend hit a pothole in Yosimitee national park during a holiday weekend. Yosmetee is a huge and the only tire shop in the valley couldn't work on run flats, he had to wait 3 days till Monday and drive the car to the nearest tires shop outside of Yosimitee, which was about 2 1/2 hours away. He had to stop every couple of minutes to pump air in the tires with a portable pump we had taken from my Q7. It was he'll and could have all been avoided with a spare tire.

[superswiss]

My friend hit a pothole in Yosimitee national park during a holiday weekend. Yosmetee is a huge and the only tire shop in the valley couldn't work on run flats, he had to wait 3 days till Monday and drive the car to the nearest tires shop outside of Yosimitee, which was about 2 1/2 hours away. He had to stop every couple of minutes to pump air in the tires with a portable pump we had taken from my Q7. It was he'll and could have all been avoided with a spare tire.

I'm not disagreeing that a spare would have made things easier, but are you saying that Roadside or AAA refuse to come to Yosemite to tow a stranded car?

[Gbrent]

Thanks for all the input!! I think I'm going to look into a donut for long trips as long as it will fit- it will eat up a lot of trunk space but I think it will be worth the peace of mind.

[Marshall_Placid]

My stock RS5 tires were P-Zero run-flats, so that should be good.

I think it depends on your location and/or dealership for what tires they come with.

[PaperishPlastic]

I'm not disagreeing that a spare would have made things easier, but are you saying that Roadside or AAA refuse to come to Yosemite to tow a stranded car?

No this happened during the beginning of the vacation and the nearest dealer was hundreds of miles away. That would have completely ruined the vacation.

[jpenneck]

My stock RS5 tires were P-Zero run-flats, so that should be good.

I think it depends on your location and/or dealership for what tires they come with.

This is the first I have heard of an RS5 coming with run-flats... My car came with P-Zeros so how can I tell if they are run-flats ? Is there some indicator on the side wall ?

[bittondb]

As I can't go check for myself, is the RS5 battery in the trunk like the RS4 used to be ?

Yes.

[bittondb]

My stock RS5 tires were P-Zero run-flats, so that should be good.

I think it depends on your location and/or dealership for what tires they come with.

The p-zeroes are runflats?

[MGuruX]

Exactly!

Not what I expected when I opened this thread lol.

[Tifosi]

This is the first I have heard of an RS5 coming with run-flats... My car came with P-Zeros so how can I tell if they are run-flats ? Is there some indicator on the side wall ?

The p-zeroes are runflats?

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires....+Zero+Run+Flat

[superswiss]

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires....+Zero+Run+Flat

That's in interesting. According to TireRack that's not an original equipment tire.

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/TireSe...&filterType=oe

[jpenneck]

I just went and took a look at my p-zeros tires and they are definitely NOT marked as run flats. They are as follows: 275/30ZR20. Note the "Z". From what I can tell on the Pirelli website, the run flats are just 275/30/R20.

[Tifosi]

That's in interesting. According to TireRack that's not an original equipment tire.

Note that member Marshall-Placid is not in the US but in Alberta, Canada. And just like he stated in his post, "OEM" equipment may vary depending on country of destination. But either way, HP RFT such as P-Zeros are indeed available.

[superswiss]

Note that member Marshall-Placid is not in the US but in Alberta, Canada. And just like he stated in his post, "OEM" equipment may vary depending on country of destination. But either way, HP RFT such as P-Zeros are indeed available.

Wondering if Canada gets a different suspension tuning to compensate for the stiffer tires.

[Marshall_Placid]

Wondering if Canada gets a different suspension tuning to compensate for the stiffer tires.

That is a great question.

I'll ask my dealer.

[tj@roc-euro]

I can feel for the op here, had a blowout in my r8 last year, on a weekend. 15 minutes from an Audi dealership and probably 30 minutes from my home. I called, the r8 emergency hotline and Audi sent 3 tow trucks and not a single one was able to handle the car, or was just afraid to.

Ended up having to abandon the car overnight in a parking lot in the middle of nowhere behind a red robin. The blowout was so bad that the car was riding on rim, so i could not limp the car home or to the audi dealership.

I realize that having a spare in an r8 is another story, and that an rs5 would probably be able to be handled by a tow truck company that audi is affiliated with. But it is not always that easy. And you cannot discredit not including a spare in a car that could (some say should) have one. I for one was not happy leaving an Audi R8 in the middle of an empty parking lot. I checked on her multiple times that night haha

[superswiss]

I can feel for the op here, had a blowout in my r8 last year, on a weekend. 15 minutes from an Audi dealership and probably 30 minutes from my home. I called, the r8 emergency hotline and Audi sent 3 tow trucks and not a single one was able to handle the car, or was just afraid to.

Ended up having to abandon the car overnight in a parking lot in the middle of nowhere behind a red robin. The blowout was so bad that the car was riding on rim, so i could not limp the car home or to the audi dealership.

I realize that having a spare in an r8 is another story, and that an rs5 would probably be able to be handled by a tow truck company that audi is affiliated with. But it is not always that easy. And you cannot discredit not including a spare in a car that could (some say should) have one. I for one was not happy leaving an Audi R8 in the middle of an empty parking lot. I checked on her multiple times that night haha

That certainly sucks. However, what this story confirms mostly is that an R8 as a DD is a pretty bad idea and that you better have a plan B for when you get stranded in an R8. When it comes to towing an RS5, we are talking A5 with a slightly wider track.

[tj@roc-euro]

I agree, and I knew that point was going to be made. But god forbid you lower your rs5, well then Audi roadside may or may not be enough depending on the tow network your around. Juts offering *yet another* example of the legitimacy of Gbrent's concern.

[superswiss]

I agree, and I knew that point was going to be made. But god forbid you lower your rs5, well then Audi roadside may or may not be enough depending on the tow network your around. Juts offering *yet another* example of the legitimacy of Gbrent's concern.

Yes, modding your car is at your own risk and you better be prepared to deal with the consequences.

[essfour]

If you take the time to learn how to plug your tire and stash a tire plug kit in your car along with some fix-a-flat and an air compressor you should be good to go for 90% of flat tire issues...

[superswiss]

I'll probably get me one of these.

http://www.stopngo.com/tire-mobility-kit-for-cars/