is 11 y/o original spare still a spare?

11 year old spare is most likely only good for an anchor.

HOW WAS IT STORED AND MAINTAINED

11-YOA is no good. Probably worse unused for the 11 then put on the road, than if it'd been run some.

I've only bought new tires twice, in both cases bought seven, and rotated the spare with the two fronts. That way I get some use out of the spare, possibly even up the tire wear, and don't have issues around the custom valve stems on the rears.

Ford doesn't recommend rotation of the rear duals.

EDIT: Oh, the spare I recently replaced had never seen pavement. 12-YOA and still had mold marks on the tread.

My truck spare is 15 years old. I would not hesitate to use it to get to a tire store in a pinch.

I replaced my trailer spare twice as the tires on the road were all defective.
If these MAXXIS age out with no issue I plan to keep the spare indefinitely.

it has never come off its rear wall bracket. it has a white vinyl cover and looks like new. but i know it is a different story internally.

i have 6 new michelins.

In 2010 my 98 Gulf Stream 22' blew a tire outside of Joplin Mo. Used the original spare to drive the 170 miles to my sisters in Ozark Ak. Then replaced the tire. If a spare is used just in a pinch I don't see the problem. I definitely would not use a 12 year old tire in normal service. It was a covered spare on the back bumper with no signs of cracks.

JNorton wrote:
In 2010 my 98 Gulf Stream 22' blew a tire outside of Joplin Mo. Used the original spare to drive the 170 miles to my sisters in Ozark Ak. Then replaced the tire. If a spare is used just in a pinch I don't see the problem. I definitely would not use a 12 year old tire in normal service. It was a covered spare on the back bumper with no signs of cracks.

My feelings as well. A spare is a spare. Some people don't even have a spare!

If it wasn't exposed to the elements for those 11 years, I would continue to use it as a spare.

-Michael

If you are going on a cross country venture I would definitely replace. Call it peace of mind. If you are staying local I (me) would roll the dice. But that's just me

all good answers.

we mostly stay close to home. new 6 michelin are LT225/75/R16 LTX M/S2 115R RBL

i am kinda leaning to replace it as a matter of peace of mind and convenience.

convenience wise, after roadside puts spare on, i need to have it taken back off and replace w/ new or patched flat (can they even do that on these hi pressure tires?) but if i had a spare that matches other 6 michelins, i only need to take flat tire in our car to be made into new spare, and then bolt it onto rear of RV.

Well, your spare tire is probably not as bad as "The Old Man's" spare tires in The Christmas Story movie. "My old man's spare tires were only tires in the academic sense. They were round, they had once been made of rubber."
https://youtu.be/JwF4qieecEM?t=37