OPINION: Do you carry your spare tire everywhere?

Lima Tango

Lima Tango

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Joined
Dec 4, 2011
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242
Just curious if y'all leave the spare bolted under the rear of the truck full-time. I hate that I can see it from the rear; with the general consensus that the resonator is an eyesore and should be removed I was wondering if anyone took the same approach to the spare for appearance sake, performance gains, or ground clearance.

Cheers,

LT
 
My spare wont fit underneath...
 
When the weather warms a lil and I get my lowering kit on, off the spare and into the hatch. I'll have to cut it off cuz it's stuck
 
GM's recommendation is to use the Jack to push it up until you hear a click then lower it. It worked for me but is stuck again. Details are in the owners manual.

Sent from my Android using Tapatalk.
 
Not a lifted 360 and so I wouldn't need to hamstring myself by operating with out a spare. Plus you can't use fix-a-flat if your car is a 2006 or later with the TPMS. Funny thing is that I believe the spares come 17" even though the 9-7 rims are at a minimum 18". Never quite understood that.
 
Jkust said:
Plus you can't use fix-a-flat if your car is a 2006 or later with the TPMS.
Click to expand...

Technically you can... you just have to use the correct type. In fact my 2011 Malibu was originally ordered with the GM Jar-o-Goop and worthless pocket inflator. It has TPMS and 18in rims.

But correct the Fix-A-Flat brand pressurized goop will cause damage to the TPMS sensor. However I do keep a bottle on my motorcycle at all times.

For myself I have and will always run with a spare. That was why when I found out the Mailbu came with the GM Jar-o-GOOP and Worthless pocket inflator, I made the dealer switch it out for the optional spare.

All it takes in one time being stranded in the middle of no-where while driving through North Dakota or Iowa and you will always carry a spare. Spotty cell coverage and AAA takes to long to get to you.
 
"Dont leave home without it" But then it's still underneath, stock 16" spare. I do take it down at tire rotations to check it's air, and overall condition.
 
I've only ever needed it once, but I was glad I had it. So, yes, I carry it. Even when I get larger tires I'll still haul it with me as a "donut" spare - better to have a 3 inch shorter tire on a front wheel and be able to make it home or to the tire shop IMO.
 
I don't carry it around town because I can easily call ten different people to grab it for me. But going outta town, yes I wouldn't go without it.
 
Some extreme expeditions such as Death Valley with >120 mile off-pavement legs I carry two. :yes: Neither one in the stock location.
 
for the most part, mine stays off, even though it is covered by my bumper... i do put it on for long trips, say to a meet thats outta state or something like that...

but since i go for weight reduction when i race.. it stays off
 
Mine doesn't fit under anymore, spends it's days strapped to the roof rack until I get a rear mount/ bumper with mount.
 
the roadie said:
Some extreme expeditions such as Death Valley with >120 mile off-pavement legs I carry two. :yes: Neither one in the stock location.
Click to expand...

You seem like the kind of guy who would trigger the metal detector at the airport and the subsequent body cavity search would produce a pickle fork, spare tire, full set of the correct ac delco plugs, end link or two, at least one bilstein hd shock...
 
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jbones said:
"Dont leave home without it" But then it's still underneath, stock 16" spare. I do take it down at tire rotations to check it's air, and overall condition.
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:iagree: You never know when you'll need it and then you'll be sorry. Unless I can find someone here to Install a carrier on the rear hatch it's gonna stay under. Putting it on the roof is another option but get ready for some serious exercise lol:no:
 
Mine is shoehorned up into there. If I still had the resonator I don't think it would work out so well. I end up with enough spur of the moment trips to mountain tops that I don't want to be stranded without a spare either.
 
walterc4553 said:
Technically you can... you just have to use the correct type.
Click to expand...

Good to know. I will have to look into that. The one time I needed fix-a-flat on my older minivan, the can was frozen solid. So much for that. Have needed spare tires for the trailer however several times towing the boat. One second over the white line into the shoulder and you never know what you are going to pick up.
 
I know as soon as I start leaving it home, I'll need it.

It's just easier to keep it under the truck.
 
I just keep it under the truck, I have needed it too many times.
 
Stock spare is under the truck 24/7. Picked up too many nails in the past.
 
Haven't needed it, hope to never need it, but it stays under 24/7 because Murphy will get me if I take it out.
 
As some here recall there was a time that I ran without a spare tire. :no: I had a blow out on the side of the interstate that slowed 3 other trucks down and became a huge inconvenience to a bunch of people. Now that I am lifted, the spare will no longer fit underneath, but it stays on the back all the time.
 
Regulator said:
As some here recall there was a time that I ran without a spare tire. :no: I had a blow out on the side of the interstate that slowed 3 other trucks down and became a huge inconvenience to a bunch of people. Now that I am lifted, the spare will no longer fit underneath, but it stays on the back all the time.
Click to expand...

We got er done though.

I did not go with a spare for anything under 50 miles awy for a long time, but have realized I really need a spare, so its on the back of the truck now.
 
Ever since my spare mechanism rusted to a crisp, I haven't had a spare. I took one along for the Carlisle trip, but not anywhere here in Canada. I do want another spare mechanism to carry it around. You just never know when you might need it. Even though I have roadside assistance, there's no need to wait for 2-3 hours for a 15 minute tire change
 
ieatglue said:
...Even though I have roadside assistance, there's no need to wait for 2-3 hours for a 15 minute tire change
Click to expand...
Around here, perhaps it's a nationwide AAA policy, if you don't have a working, properly inflated spare, all they will do is tow you. They won't take your flat off and repair it by the side of the road or take just the spare someplace to get it fixed, then return to you and put it on. You might check your roadside assistance contract provisions.

Also, do you always drive where there's cell coverage? :wink: :eek:
 
I forgot about that cell coverage. All those damn tall concrete buildings and 3 million people with cells too cause shitty reception :biggrin:

It's a road side assistance program with the visa company. I keep a 12v compressor and tire plug kit in the little cubbyhole though, as well as a blanket, a flash light, hazard flashers and a little utility knife :thumbsup:
 
Always keep mine on just cause you never know. Think ive only needed mine once in almost 30 years of driving and it was flat :no: so i also make sure its good to go every 3-4 months.
 
v7guy, how much mpgs did you lose when you threw the tire up there? I'm deciding whether or not I want to do a hitch tire mount or just put it up in the basket when I get it. Im already down to 14mpg city so I want to reduce the loss as much as possible.
 
Short answer: YES

When my TB leaves the garage, it rarely is staying close to home. I often jump in it and go hundreds, sometimes a thousand miles away from home so I don't risk being w/o a spare.

I take it off when I put the TB up on jackstands for it's annual spring undercarriage powerwashing. I also lower it 1-2 more times in a year to check the pressure. I just dropped it over the weekend to check the pressure.
 
wootown22 said:
v7guy, how much mpgs did you lose when you threw the tire up there?
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I'm getting about 12-12.5 mpg WITHOUT my spare :redface: I do have the EXT though in an nice onyx black, so haters can watch my slowly drive by :biggrin:
 
wootown22 said:
v7guy, how much mpgs did you lose when you threw the tire up there? I'm deciding whether or not I want to do a hitch tire mount or just put it up in the basket when I get it. Im already down to 14mpg city so I want to reduce the loss as much as possible.
Click to expand...

You need to get with Scarab for a tune to fix that mileage.
 
I do carry mine everywhere because I go to school ~100 miles away from home and I drive it almost every weekend. I want to get a rack for the back but my camera and sensors are back there and I think it would be in the way...:undecided:
 
wootown22 said:
v7guy, how much mpgs did you lose when you threw the tire up there? I'm deciding whether or not I want to do a hitch tire mount or just put it up in the basket when I get it. Im already down to 14mpg city so I want to reduce the loss as much as possible.
Click to expand...

I've found I've lost around 1mpg, maybe a bit less. It's been pretty negligible to be honest. The biggest hassle has been I don't fit in a lot of parking garages.
 
I would agree. 1 mpg is about the loss from my basket and having the tire in there really does not make a difference. I cant fit in the work garage unless I only leve the factory rails up top.
 
Just drove 1000miles across the east coast of Canada, PEI to Belleville Ontario, and went to check the spare tire before I left. Needless to say it ended up going in a roof top carrier on the stock sport racks with a few other things. After driving through Montreal ( ROUGH ROADS / VERY BUMPY CITY DRIVING) I noticed some give / undo strain on the stock racks. The carrier itself is very light made of some sort of ABS plastic or whatever. (not the heavy fiberglass ones) but the combined weight must have been too much.
Well....made to where I needed to so generally things were good. I visited a local welder( small town so cost will be low ) to see what he could come up with as I don't want to take the risk for the drive home of damaging the stack racks. We are going with a rear carrier out of the trailer hitch. I'll modify it when I get home but I don't need the hitch for this trip so....easy and cheap is the best fix for right now. In a couple of days I'll go back and see what the cost is but I know it will be around $40 or $50. That will free up a lot of space in the carrier for light stuff like clothes and sleeping bags etc that we brought with us.
Only once in my life have I ever required a spare tire but it was good to have it. I have roadside assistance too. Obviously on a trip like this ( 1000 miles one way and a month of driving in a different province) you want to have the spare with you so a trip to a local welding shop will fix this.

Anyone have any pics of their carriers - would love to see them for ideas as I will be welding one up when I get home. I am considering the roof top / safari basket type thing but don't know if they attach to the roof rack slots or are a special mount that needs to be added.
Any links / ideas are welcome as always.

I'll post pics of the mount I get made and give the cost so you can see what I will be working with.
 
I keep the spare with me at all times, when I get bigger tires I am going to build a rear swing out carrier. I never use it if I can help it. I carry a slime plug kit and air compressor at all times and find it's way quicker to plug it than put the spare tire on.:twocents:
 
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