Spare Tire Question

[2020PW]

Who sells a “truck” with a temporary spare? Better yet, if you have a temporary spare, you don’t have a truck.

If all 8 trucks I have owned I have never had a different run size or different tire than came with it stock. 1/2 ton or HD.

 

[brian42]

Who sells a “truck” with a temporary spare? Better yet, if you have a temporary spare, you don’t have a truck.

If all 8 trucks I have owned I have never had a different run size or different tire than came with it stock. 1/2 ton or HD.

Then make sure you get the ORG on a 5th gen 1500 otherwise it won't be a truck.

 

[mikeru]

Who sells a “truck” with a temporary spare? Better yet, if you have a temporary spare, you don’t have a truck.

If all 8 trucks I have owned I have never had a different run size or different tire than came with it stock. 1/2 ton or HD.

Everyone seems to have their own definition of what a truck is. While I agree that no pick up should come with a temporary spare, I don't agree that the spare tire that comes with it defines whether or not it's a truck LOL. It's easy enough to replace the spare with the tire/wheel of your choice.

 

[Lance1985]

You may want to start your research on this topic by crawling under your truck and capturing some of the most important data.

I have a full-sized spare on my '21 Classic and IIRC, it's a 245/75/17 that has a working pressure of 55 psi.

Also, this quote is from a DS pdf user's manual;

Full-Size Spare — If Equipped- The full-size spare is for temporary emergency use only. This tire may look like the originally equipped tire on the front or rear axle of your vehicle, but it is not. This spare tire may have limited tread life. When the tread is worn to the tread wear indicators, the temporary use full-size spare tire needs to be replaced. Since it is not the same as your original equipment tire, replace (or repair) the original equipment tire and reinstall on the vehicle at the first opportunity.

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OK, I did as you suggested. I crawled under my truck and low and behold there is a spare tire with the following words in large caps "TEMPORARY USE ONLY" and with minimal tread amount and depth,

Now my question is; When I replace the four tires should I have them replace the "Temporary Spare" with the best of the original tires?

Is this not a great informative site?

 

[RamDiver]

OK, I did as you suggested. I crawled under my truck and low and behold there is a spare tire with the following words in large caps, "TEMPORARY USE ONLY". I noted the minimal depth and amount of tread.
Is this not a great informative site?

Excellent!

Now that you solved that mystery, you can decide whether or not, you want to upgrade that spare to a real full-sized tire.

AFAIK, a full-sized that matches the oem tire size will fit under the box but if you choose to buy anything larger, it may require to be deflated first.

Of course, this will only apply to an oem sized rim, I'd confirm that too before exploring an upgrade. AFAIK, the spare on my '21 Classic has a standard-sized 17" rim.

Now my question is; When I replace the four tires should I have them replace the "Temporary Spare" with the best of the original tires?

If one of your original tires is in decent condition and the rim size of the spare matches your other rims, I'd go that route, unless you want to buy 5 new tires.

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[Dean2]

OK, I did as you suggested. I crawled under my truck and low and behold there is a spare tire with the following words in large caps, "TEMPORARY USE ONLY". I noted the minimal depth and amount of tread.
Is this not a great informative site?

I have always owned 2500 or 3500 pickups so I have never seen "Temp" spares. I know for sure my brothers 1500 has a regular spare, but his truck is 5 years old now.

Just out of curiosity, is the temp spare the same diameter as the other tires. I would sell that temp spare and put a proper rim and the best takeoff tire under there as the spare when you replace the tires. Even if it doesn't match your new tires by brand, as long as it is the same diameter you are fine. If I went to larger diameter tires, I would buy a good used one of the same diameter off the tire shop and use that as the spare. The idea of running a different diameter tire on a 4x4 is not appealing to me. I also would not be comfortable hauling a lot of weight or a trailer with a Temporary spare.

Be interested to know which way you go.

 

[mikeru]

OK, I did as you suggested. I crawled under my truck and low and behold there is a spare tire with the following words in large caps "TEMPORARY USE ONLY" and with minimal tread amount and depth,

Now my question is; When I replace the four tires should I have them replace the "Temporary Spare" with the best of the original tires?

Is this not a great informative site?

I would do this only if you have another wheel. The wheel the spare is mounted on is too narrow for one of the stock tires. From what I've read you can fit at least up to a 33 inch tire where the spare mounts.

 

[Lance1985]

Excellent!

Now that you solved that mystery, you can decide whether or not, you want to upgrade that spare to a real full-sized tire.

AFAIK, a full-sized that matches the oem tire size will fit but if you choose to buy anything larger, it may require to be deflated first.

Of course, this will only apply to an oem sized rim, I'd confirm that too before exploring an upgrade. AFAIK, the spare on my '21 has a standard 17" rim.




If one of your original tires is in decent condition and the rim size of the spare matches your other rims, I'd go that route, unless you want to buy 5 new tires.

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You mentioned above "upgrade that spare to a real full-sized tire" It sure looks like it's as large as the regular tires. (275/65 R18) I am in Phoenix and it's hot in the garage and I am too lazy to take it down and check what you propose. I will wait until I get to the tire dealer and let them do it and with what I learn there and your suggestions, I will make a decision. Thanks for your and others input.

 

[GRKN]

Facebook Marketplace is your friend. You can get a full set of 4 wheels with decent tires for probably $200 (I got 4 wheels with good tires for $150 recently), take the best one and store or sell the rest.

 

[RamDiver]

You mentioned above "upgrade that spare to a real full-sized tire" It sure looks like it's as large as the regular tires. (275/65 R18) I am in Phoenix and it's hot in the garage and I am too lazy to take it down and check what you propose. I will wait until I get to the tire dealer and let them do it and with what I learn there and your suggestions, I will make a decision. Thanks for your and others input.

You're most welcome.

I'd advise using caution when trusting someone in sales to determine what fits and what doesn't. Or better yet, don't ever trust a salesman unless you know him personally and he knows what he's talking about.

As mikeru mentioned above, the rim may be an undersized faux-styled rim that may not properly fit a full-size tire and not interchangeable with your other wheels.

Well, not interchangeable and useful for towing or highway speeds.

What size are the tires on your truck, are they the same as your spare?

Now I'm curious again and may drop my spare tomorrow if it's cooler in the AM and the bugs are tolerable. The forecast says it will be hot again though, maybe another day.

My spare won't have any bearing on yours anyway, mine's a gen 4 and 17".

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[brian42]

You can fit an OEM-sized wheel/tire under there. Mine came with the same brand/model tire that was on the ground on a steel 18x8 wheel (265/75-18 sized tire). There is a heat shield around the spare location due to the dual exhaust so that limits the size you can tuck under if you don't want to modify the location. With my spare there was a little room for a larger tire (but not much).

I'm not sure if @RamDiver has a Classic or if it's a Great White North thing, but an 18" wheel is the smallest that fits on the 5th gen due to the brake calipers. With my 18" OEM rims there was very little clearance (1/8" or just a bit more). All my balancing weights were on the inside of the rim as I thought they would rub on the caliper.

 

[RamDiver]

You can fit an OEM-sized wheel/tire under there. Mine came with the same brand/model tire that was on the ground on a steel 18x8 wheel (265/75-18 sized tire). There is a heat shield around the spare location due to the dual exhaust so that limits the size you can tuck under if you don't want to modify the location. With my spare there was a little room for a larger tire (but not much).

I'm not sure if @RamDiver has a Classic or if it's a Great White North thing, but an 18" wheel is the smallest that fits on the 5th gen due to the brake calipers. With my 18" OEM rims there was very little clearance (1/8" or just a bit more). All my balancing weights were on the inside of the rim as I thought they would rub on the caliper.

Thanks, I tweaked one of my other posts to clarify that I have a Classic with 17" rims, and different from a 5th gen 18".

AFAIK, the same spare sizing limitations apply to 4th gen. A standard 17" rim with a slightly larger than oem sized tire will fit under the box but not much larger.

In future, I'll try to be more mindful when posting in the 5 gen area. If I make any reference to my truck, I'll be sure to include Classic or 4th gen in the reference, so as to not cause any confusion.


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[brian42]

Not trying to stir the pot.

I've seen many posts about aftermarket wheels (including downsizing for larger off-road tires for a taller sidewall and cheaper - usually the smaller the wheel size the cheaper the tire) and many 18" wheels don't fit so don't want anyone to get the wrong idea thinking a 17" spare will fit on a 5th gen.

 

[Tulecreeper]

Not trying to stir the pot.

I've seen many posts about aftermarket wheels (including downsizing for larger off-road tires for a taller sidewall and cheaper - usually the smaller the wheel size the cheaper the tire) and many 18" wheels don't fit so don't want anyone to get the wrong idea thinking a 17" spare will fit on a 5th gen.

Are you talking about a specific model? I have a 2023 2500 that came with 17" wheels.

 

[Scooter123456]

I also have a 5th gen power wagon with 17" wheels. I just put 35x12.5 x17 Pro Comp mud terrains with no problems.

 

[RamDiver]

Not trying to stir the pot.

I've seen many posts about aftermarket wheels (including downsizing for larger off-road tires for a taller sidewall and cheaper - usually the smaller the wheel size the cheaper the tire) and many 18" wheels don't fit so don't want anyone to get the wrong idea thinking a 17" spare will fit on a 5th gen.

Don't the 5th gen trucks have 6 bolt hubs and 4th gen have 5 bolt?

Kinda tough to mix those up.

.

 

[Farmer Fran]

Aren't the 5th gen, 6 bolt and 4th gen are 5 bolt hubs?

Kinda tough to mix those up.

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Yes and yes. LOL!

 

[Farmer Fran]

I am a big fan of 5 tire rotation, especially with the new tire costs today. My cars tires will be $2K (right now) every "30K miles" 5 tire would be about 40K miles.

My 2020 Limited had that goofy ass "FULL SIZE SPARE" same diameter and such but if I got in a pinch towing that would not have worked. Full size spare from a decent company on a decent tire can last you a long ass time on a 5 tire rotation with a 55K to 65K life lasting well into the 80K range.

EDIT!!! This will depend on miles not years, years are a different story - plastics wear out over time, and while I agree with some post saying I never had a problem in XXXX years I do not trust the material these days.

 

[crash68]

Are you talking about a specific model? I have a 2023 2500 that came with 17" wheels.

It's the Gen5 1500s that use a minimum of 18" rims.

I also have a 5th gen power wagon with 17" wheels. I just put 35x12.5 x17 Pro Comp mud terrains with no problems.

The +19 model HD trucks are still mostly based off the Gen4 design and hasn't fully switched to same Gen5 body the 1500 uses.

 

[RamDiver]

I am a big fan of 5 tire rotation, especially with the new tire costs today. My cars tires will be $2K (right now) every "30K miles" 5 tire would be about 40K miles.

My 2020 Limited had that goofy ass "FULL SIZE SPARE" same diameter and such but if I got in a pinch towing that would not have worked. Full size spare from a decent company on a decent tire can last you a long ass time on a 5 tire rotation with a 55K to 65K life lasting well into the 80K range.

EDIT!!! This will depend on miles not years, years are a different story - plastics wear out over time, and while I agree with some post saying I never had a problem in XXXX years I do not trust the material these days.

Was that goofy full-sized spare on a proper full-sized rim, so you only had to replace the tire, and then it became a useful replacement?

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