Hopefully the arguments have now stopped ........ What I am looking for, is advice (other sites seem to have ignored my questions). So here goes (for those over the pond, please forgive my proper English sayings ). Is it better to keep the run flat tyres or swap and buy a boot/trunk (I am from the UK) filler.
My experience with Beemers is limited, I had several Toyotas, the 3.0 Supra being my favourite. and a couple of the 2.0ltr Celicas, then after other marks, I bought a 325i SE which I had for a couple of years and loved it. Since then, I have had Mitsi 4x4s, both Shogun and Pajero, in fact several of them, my last one for 7 years has been a 3.2 DiD Shogun (Montero for you lot over the pond, 2003) but have now got myself an X5 2007 e70 3.0d that I am enjoying immensely..... anyway, I digress, so I will get to my point.
In July we take our annual pilgrimage to Ukraine, and the tyres are my concern....... do I get new run flats before my 5000 (UK) miles round trip or do I get normal tyres and fill the boot/trunk void with a spare ??????
Obviously, a tin of compressed foam and maintaining the extra storage (the hole under the floor) sounds nice, but the wife (I love her, but I still affectionately call her the dragon) doesn't like to drive the e70 (it's too big )..... I will get down to the bones, the Ukraine roads are pretty rough, OK, they are very rough and give no second chance for any mistake (this will be my 3rd drive, instead of flying). The temperatures reach 40C+ in the summer and the asphalt melts, lorries/trucks push the melted tarmac to the outer edge when going around corners, causing "sump ripping" edges to their roads...... that is why I need the ground clearance of a 4x4. Also on our route, because we drive across the fine roads of France, Belgium, Netherlands, Germany and Poland, I wanted the ability to travel at speeds that a normal 4x4 truck doesn't give. So after giving it a lot of thought, I bought my X5.
Now down to the nitty gritty..... do I get run flats all round, or do I get normal type tyres and a space saver to fill the void where I have now stowed other useful tools ?????
I am asking for advice from experienced long haul drivers, who don't have huge reserves in their back pockets