Hydrogen cars will likely use run-flat tires so a spare tire will not be needed

(Note: To learn more about hydrogen fuel cell vehicles and their potential to solve the oil crisis, please read the series of articles titled “Twelve Hydrogen Facts” which is part of the Hydrogen Manhattan Project.)

One concern with the Toyota FCHV hydrogen fuel cell vehicle might be that there is not enough room for a spare tire due to the hydrogen tanks below the trunk.  This can be seen below in the YouTube video of the Toyota FCHV.

However, the solution to this problem is to simply use run-flat tires.

For example, the Toyota Sienna uses run-flat tires to get more trunk space.  To be fair, there was a class-action lawsuit against Toyota and tire-maker Dunlop back in the fall of 2005 about the tires not lasting long enough.

However, Consumer Reports bought a 2007 Toyota Sienna with run-flat tires and has been testing them.  Here are the results as of late March:

“Now, at just over 30,000 miles, (30,247 miles to be exact, as shown) we’re impressed with the wear performance of the tires, which are projected to wear out at no less than 54,000 miles-comparable or better than conventional all-season tires.”

I should mention that the article notes that:

“To be fair to the tires, we have been checking inflation pressures religiously; checking alignment, rotating the tires, and measuring the average tread depth in tread grooves (four grooves) across the tire’s tread width and at four places around the tire for a total of sixteen test points.  In the course of the 30,000 mile test we measured tread depth of the new tires, and then eleven times throughout the test, most at 2,000-mile intervals.

Some readers/subscribers have griped that nobody checks tires as often as we did and most certainly do not check alignments that often.  To that end, we checked the tire’s inflation pressure just about every month, just like you should do.  As for wheel alignment, we did check it routinely but never had to readjust the wheel alignment settings at all.  And then there were our drivers, a sorted bunch of car enthusiasts, office administrators, and maintenance staff who drove the minivan all those miles.”

Clearly, the run-flat tires have improved since the class-action lawsuit three years ago.  And the better you take care of your tires, the longer they will last.

If right now the run-flat tires can last as long as regular tires if people take care of them, then there should be no concern with not having a spare tire in a hydrogen car due to the hydrogen tanks.

Furthermore, run-flat tires will improve even more before hydrogen cars are mass produced.  And changing a tire at a retail store (and being able to drive long enough on the tire to even wait a couple of days to take your vehicle there) is a lot better than doing it on the side of the road.