Spare tire for Alaska trip ?

We've been up 6 times and have had one flat (not a blowout). We were in Glennallen at the time and Coach Net had to contact a road service guy in Palmer who had to go to southern Anchorage to find a tire. About 220 miles just to get us the tire. Although not a Michelin, it worked fine, but the whole effort took 2 3/4 days by the time we were ready to roll again. I later checked with Coach Net and they said the road service call was about $700, not counting the $600+ I had to pay for the tire. Since then we carry an unmounted spare in the toad. Some roads in AK are notorious for flats such as the run from Chitina to McCarthy and perhaps the Dalton to Prudhoe Bay. If you're not going to go to some of the outlying areas, things will probably be fine, but....??

Dick_B wrote:
The obvious answer to your question is NO.
But I carry two spares no matter where we go and incorporate them into the tire rotation every two years. Refer to www.michelinrvtires.com

Rotation doesn't generally happen on a MH with alloy rims because the outside dual rims are reversed from the front rims and are likely scratched by the hub. Plus the inside dual rim is often steel. Therefore rotation would involve dismounting and balancing, just not going to happen.

Plus the tires often age out before they wear out.

djgarcia wrote:

USMC46 wrote:
I have one year old Michelin tires on my coach ? Do I really need to take a spare on a trip to Alaska ?

How long will it take for an Emergency Roadside service facility to get to your location? How long will it take to order and receive your specific tire from a tire shop?????

It really depends upon how much you want to pay for shipping, Over night will cost you.

Road side service is never over a day away. and they bring power tools. :)

Trucks use the highway, they don't carry spares. The highway is paved all the way. The only road hazards are the frost heaves, slow down when crossing them, you be OK. The 22" or the 22.5" tires you will not change anyway. so why carry one? can you you pull 550 foot pounds of torque on a lug nut? not many folks carry a torque multiplyer to do this. Before you commit to changing a large truck type tire on the side of the road, go to your tire dealer and get a lesson on how to do this. this is not safe for the novice.
I'd rather buy the road side service, it's probably cheaper in the long run.

USMC46 wrote:
I have one year old Michelin tires on my coach ? Do I really need to take a spare on a trip to Alaska ?

How long will it take for an Emergency Roadside service facility to get to your location? How long will it take to order and receive your specific tire from a tire shop?????

If you can pack a 22" tire up on the roof, must a different ladder to what I have.????

USMC46 wrote:
I have one year old Michelin tires on my coach ? Do I really need to take a spare on a trip to Alaska ?

Look at your RV route in Alaska. How many cities or small towns will you be going by/through??? This should give you idea of long it would take to get towed & find a tire replacement. Just for grins, you might want to call/email a few of the tire shops along your route and ask them if they have your specific tire in stock and/or how long would it take to order one.

I question the safety of having a Spare Tire laying on the Roof?

BTW Have decent toad tires as you're much more likely to go off of paved roads with it...

While your tires are probably not going to fall apart due to old age, tire-puncturing sharp objects on the road tend not to discriminate much by tire age.

Do you need to bring a spare tire? Things to factor into your decision are how flexible is your trip schedule--can you afford to wait for several days to get a suitable replacement tire should you need one? While getting a replacement Michelin tire in Edmonton or Anchorage should not be much of a problem, it could very well end up being an issue in some of the smaller towns in between.