Before you buy a car spare tyre, check which of three setups your car has: a full-size matching spare, a narrow space-saver limited to about 80 km/h, or no spare at all and just a sealant and inflator kit. The right purchase depends on that, on whether your existing spare rim is usable, and on how old the rubber already in your boot is. In the UAE, a spare that has never touched the road can still be unsafe, because years of 60°C boot heat or sun on a rear carrier harden it. We quote the spare on WhatsApp, deliver it anywhere in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Sharjah or nearby Ajman, and mount it on the rim or fit it to the car.
Full-size, space-saver or no spare: what your car has
A full-size matching spare is the same size, and ideally the same model, as the four tyres on the road, so it can replace any of them with no speed limit. Most SUVs and pickups in the UAE, such as the Land Cruiser, Prado, Patrol, Pajero and Hilux, come with one.
A space-saver, often called a T-type spare, is a narrow tyre on a light steel rim, usually marked with a yellow or orange label. It is only meant to get you to a tyre shop or home: around 80 km/h at most, a short distance, and a high pressure of about 60 psi. Many sedans like the Corolla, Elantra and Altima carry one.
Many newer cars have no spare at all. BMWs and Minis on run-flat tyres skip it, and a large share of EVs and recent hatchbacks only carry a sealant bottle and a 12 V inflator, which cannot fix a sidewall cut or a blowout.
Tyre only, or a complete wheel and tyre
If your car already has a spare rim in good shape, buying just the tyre is the cheaper route: the price is the same as any road tyre of that size, plus fitting from AED 100. For a Camry's 215/55 R17, that means about AED 260–350 for a value brand like Sailun or Giti, or AED 350–480 for a mid-range brand like Hankook or Yokohama.
Buy a complete wheel and tyre when the car came with only a sealant kit, when the old spare rim is bent or corroded, or when you want a full-size spare in place of a space-saver. Check first that it fits in the spare well, as a full-size wheel often will not fit in a sedan boot designed for a T-type, and may need to ride strapped in the boot instead. Wheels are quoted on WhatsApp because rim prices vary widely by bolt pattern and offset.
How to check the spare you already have
Check two numbers before deciding whether to buy a car spare tyre: the DOT date code and the pressure. The date is the last four digits of the DOT code on the sidewall, so 1919 means week 19 of 2019. In this climate, a spare around five years old should be replaced even if the tread looks new.
Pressure is the other surprise. Spares lose air slowly and nobody checks them, so we routinely find them 10 psi or more below the figure on the door sticker, and a space-saver that should be at 60 psi is sometimes down near 35. Our technicians check the spare on every visit if you ask.
- DOT date: replace at about 5 years old regardless of tread
- Cracks: look closely at the sidewall and between the tread blocks
- Pressure: compare with the door sticker or the label on the space-saver
- Rim: check for rust, dents and a working valve
- Tools: confirm the jack, wheel brace and locking nut key are in the car
A spare for desert trips and 4x4 use
For dune driving in Al Faqa, Liwa or the sands near Sweihan, carry a full-size spare in exactly the same size as the other four. Sharp rocks and wadi edges cut sidewalls far more often than the tread, and a space-saver is useless at 15–18 psi on soft sand.
On a Prado, Hilux, Fortuner or Pajero running 265/65 R17, a matching spare costs about AED 350–450 in a value brand and AED 480–650 in a mid-range brand. Matching the brand and model of the other tyres matters on full-time 4x4s, because a different rolling diameter can strain the centre differential.
We deliver the spare and fit it
Send a photo of the spare's sidewall, or of a road tyre if you have no spare, and say whether you want the tyre only or a complete wheel. We reply with options and prices, deliver to your home or office, mount the new tyre on your spare rim with a fresh valve, inflate it to the right pressure and secure it in the well or carrier. Payment is by card, cash, Tabby or Tamara.
