Spare tire

Groover wrote:

720Deere wrote:
For what it is worth, Ford trucks with 20" wheels only come with an 18" spare. If I remember correctly, there is just over a 1" difference in the height of the tires. My truck was equipped with 20" Michelin tires and I think the 18" spare is a Continental. These days the spare is just a spare and they give you whatever is cheapest for them.

I have to agree with what you said but I wish that they would offer a matching spare as an option so that you could do a 5-tire rotation and get some use out of the tire before replacing it just due to age.

I recently bought a 6 year old trailer and the spare had never been on the ground so I decided to go ahead and use it. The tire only lasted about 300 miles and came apart. The other 4 tires were all factory and still in one piece. It seems that not using a tire can be rougher on one than using it. That re-enforced to me the importance of replacing spares even if they still have a lot of tread on them.

Rotate the spare with one on the vehicle every so often.

You are correct, non use is a killer.

A tire needs messaging regularly to stay in shape.

720Deere wrote:
For what it is worth, Ford trucks with 20" wheels only come with an 18" spare. If I remember correctly, there is just over a 1" difference in the height of the tires. My truck was equipped with 20" Michelin tires and I think the 18" spare is a Continental. These days the spare is just a spare and they give you whatever is cheapest for them.

I have to agree with what you said but I wish that they would offer a matching spare as an option so that you could do a 5-tire rotation and get some use out of the tire before replacing it just due to age.

I recently bought a 6 year old trailer and the spare had never been on the ground so I decided to go ahead and use it. The tire only lasted about 300 miles and came apart. The other 4 tires were all factory and still in one piece. It seems that not using a tire can be rougher on one than using it. That re-enforced to me the importance of replacing spares even if they still have a lot of tread on them.

For what it is worth, Ford trucks with 20" wheels only come with an 18" spare. If I remember correctly, there is just over a 1" difference in the height of the tires. My truck was equipped with 20" Michelin tires and I think the 18" spare is a Continental. These days the spare is just a spare and they give you whatever is cheapest for them.

The tire was the same size as the original tires. I would guess they were original since the truck was a dealer-to-dealer trade and had 137 miles on it when I bought it, having traveled from the dealer in Colorado to here in Lander, Wy. I put it on and went fishing yesterday, traveled about 75 miles there and back. Other than a small "shimmy" at lower speeds, didn't feel any difference. Did get it changed out yesterday and talked to the dealer and he said, whatever the factory sends is what I get so, I guess I won't be getting a new Michelin spare.

like he said:

Are all the tires original? If not, somebody probably bought four tires and switched brands. I had a 2004 Chevy Silverado, and I'd never put the spare on the ground. Last year, I was putting new tires on it when the tire dealer suggested I take the best used tire and substitute it for the spare. The argument was that the spare was original equipment and was eight years old. Even though it had never been on the ground, they considered it past it's useful life.
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I will be replacing the Michelins (load range E) on my 2005 dodge diesel 2500 in the next year, I will replace the 2005 never used, spare tire with the best tire off the ground.

spare tires, just like trailer tires, show to be in great condition, but can be dry rotted and can blow under heavy, hot, service, not worth the chance to me.

I once had 3 trailer valve stems go bad on one camping trip, tires were fine, but the cheap china made valve stems were bad, so at the campground I took all the trailer tires off and had new valve stems installed for the drive home.

in the past, I have had one valve stem go bad on my 3/4 ton truck, lucky tire when down in my drive way, after I got it fixed, I had the rest of the valve stems replace.

tire dealer said a large lot of poor quality china made valve stems got into the system and were about all gone, but like normal I got a set.

I always ask for us made valve stems with metal inserts (high pressure valve stems for my truck and trailer).

Mine has never seen the pavement either. Same size same rating it will due as a spare meaning until I get to a tire shop. Yes it's 7 years old but it's still worthy of a few miles. OBTW it's still at 65 PSI and it's lost very little air over the years. Crappy OEM tire though, the other six didn't last 35k miles.

Are all the tires original? If not, somebody probably bought four tires and switched brands. I had a 2004 Chevy Silverado, and I'd never put the spare on the ground. Last year, I was putting new tires on it when the tire dealer suggested I take the best used tire and substitute it for the spare. The argument was that the spare was original equipment and was eight years old. Even though it had never been on the ground, they considered it past it's useful life.

People get way too excited about spare tires. On cars, the donut spare is not even close to the same size usually let alone the same brand/tread type. On an unladen truck, I would try to keep it as close to the same size as possible. On a loaded truck, I would want the exact same size tire if at all possible. If you truck is equipped with a limited slip differential or even traction control these days, I wouldn't run a different size spare unless absolutely necessary. The best practice is to put the spare on the front and move a matched tire to the rear for rear flats.

Basically, the manufacturer has provided you with that spare tire and it is what they expect you to use. They are the ones standing behind the drivetrain warranty and they know better than I do what is acceptable.