Spare Tire?

AggieDad · 06-23-2014, 12:29 PM

I am constantly learning new things about our recently purchased 2006 Voyage V33.

The other day while crawling around underneath, I discovered a spare tire! I really did not expect to find this. It appears to never have been used, and its manufacture date tells me it is as old as the coach, but of course no UV damage -- just age.

My questions:

Which wheel(s) would this fit? There are at least 2 different rims on the coach.
Is a spare really of any value? I am certainly not going to change the tire myself. Could (or would) a road service guy even get it down from its mounting?

I am thinking I can save some weight by just eliminating it.

Your thoughts?

RickO · 06-23-2014, 12:54 PM

This is discussed frequently here and you can use our search feature to find previous debates on the topic.

Many folks feel that the security of having a spare (mounted or not) is worth the space and weight they consume. This avoids two problems: they won't be stuck on the side of the road while road service searches for a matching tire... and, they won't be exposed to being "gouged" on the price of a new tire.

Others (myself included) feel that having a good roadside service will be enough protection. I did have to use it once and didn't have any trouble finding the 22.5" tire I needed but did have to pay about $400 for it... which was probably a bit higher than I could have found under other circumstance but I was in no position to shop around.

Very few folks plan to change their own flat tires on a large coach but having the tire available can make things happen more quickly.

In addition to the downsides of space and weight, carrying a spare requires that the age of the tire be at least monitored. I think few people replace spares at the same time they replace the other tires but it can be pretty risky to just leave a spare under the coach and forget about until it's needed. UV rays or not, age can take a toll and running on a very old tire can be a risk.

If I were traveling to say, Alaska or Mexico I would probably feel differently about this.

Good luck

Rick

vsheetz · 06-23-2014, 02:22 PM

Which chassis do you have? likely all the rims are the same.

I am in the camp of having a spare tire, preferably mounted but uncounted is ok, with me. A road service will get it out from under the coach and change it for you, it's what they do.

If you don't have an ERS, recommended to get one. Good Sam and Coach-Net are popular.

AggieDad · 06-23-2014, 08:40 PM

RickO Thanks for your thoughts. I am tempted to rely on my ERS (AAA), but I am considering Coach-Net.

vsheetz I have a Workhorse chassis & 19.5" rims. The tire is rim-mounted and nested flat under the rear between the farm rails.

Skip426 · 06-23-2014, 08:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AggieDad

I have a Workhorse chassis & 19.5" rims. The tire is rim-mounted and nested flat under the rear between the farm rails.

I'm sure someone will correct me here ; but I thought all Workhorse chassis came with 22.5" tires . B-in-L's 2005 did.

FIRE UP · 06-23-2014, 09:15 PM

Don,
The carrying of a spare tire, whether mounted on a rim or not, is to many, at least an assurance that, if and when a tire should blow, that the comfort of having one for immediate replacement important. As for weight, it's a non-issue. I mean, and don't get me wrong here but, in all reality, you're not going to get 1/100th of a mpg better 'cause you don't have a 40-50 lb. spare tire with you.

And, as has been stated, if your wheels are 19.5", and you the spare you have is a 19.5", then it will fit all of them. I know of no motor homes, new, used or otherwise, that are running more than one size tire/wheel combo. As for changing a tire on the road, well, that's been discussed since the beginning of time. I've changed flat tires on my older class C that had 16" tires and wheels, a couple of times.

I've also changed them on my last coach, a '99 Bounder 34V that had 19" tires and wheels. One time is was in a campground and while leveling, I noticed one was seriously low. The other time it was on I-5, just south of Bakersfield CA and it was going to take the ERS about, 2.5 hours to get there. I told the wife "Bull Sh.." and, I hit the jacks, lifted the coach, changed the tire and was back on the road, in less than 45 minutes.

There are some Diesel drivers out there that will and have changed them on their rigs with 22.5" tires and wheels. Now, that's quite a feet, if I must say so myself. Handling a 165 lb. steel wheeled, 255x80R 22.5 tire and wheel, is not for the faint of heart. I do it at home but, with the use of a nice tire/wheel dolly which makes it very easy to handle that kind of cumbersome weight. Some of the diesel drivers carry a spare tire, un mounted.
The do it for various reasons. They've maybe had an issue in the past where it took the ERS a long time to get to them and, when arrived, they (the ERS) had the wrong sized/type tire. Or, it just makes them happy to have one ready for the ERS to mount, when they in fact, get there.

Carrying a spare, no matter what size it is, and, dedicating a space for it, on the back, in a compartment, under a bed, on the back (above or, in parallel with the receiver) or, in your case, underneath the coach is OK by some, and not important to others. A call to the ERS is all they want to do, if and when the time arises. That's ok, no one's forcing anyone to carry a spare. It's a preference thing.

But, if I chose to carry one for our present rig, an '04 Itasca Horizon, 36GD with the 330 C7 CAT, and it was going to be on the outside of the coach, I'd protect it from the elements, no matter where it was mounted. Good luck with your new coach.
Scott

Arch Hoagland · 06-23-2014, 09:45 PM

Is there any air in the spare?

NeilV · 06-24-2014, 03:20 AM

2006 RV probably has a 2005 date on the original spare so it is almost 4 years past its end of life regardless of the amount of tread left on it.

AggieDad · 06-24-2014, 07:28 AM

Skip426 - Nope. These are 19.5

Arch Hoagland - I doubt if there is air in it, although I have not yet checked.

FIRE UP - I'm not thinking of gas mileage when I think of the extra weight. I'm just thinking about not lugging along the unnecessary as we already take a lot more junk with us than we should. I just thought I would get other ideas on carrying a spare as I know I am not going to do any tire changing myself.

NeilV - The age issue is one of the reasons I opened this discussion. You are correct - the tire does have a 2005 manufacture date. Given that it is not trustworthy, my thoughts run to whether it is worthwhile replacing.

Thanks for the responses and thoughts. I suspect it will just stay there, bothering no one and being of little purpose.

Clay L · 06-24-2014, 08:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Skip426

I'm sure someone will correct me here ; but I thought all Workhorse chassis came with 22.5" tires . B-in-L's 2005 did.

W20s had 19.5 tires. W22s and W44s had 22.5 tires
The W20 had a 20700 GVWR and the 19.5 inch tires could handle that okay.

NeilV · 06-24-2014, 11:15 AM

After being caught twice needing a tire it is really nice to have a spare. The time we had a tire failure with a forest fire bearing down on us it made the difference between getting out with the rig and our belongings and just getting a ride out with the clothes on our backs.

njs42 · 06-24-2014, 12:11 PM

I do not have a spare on my 03 Dolphin and do not intend to carry one: however if I found one on my MH originally mounted out of the way I would keep it for sure. You would be wise to get a new tire mounted or at least a newer one for the spare.

adonh · 06-24-2014, 12:29 PM

Here is an outside rear mounted spare tire carrier that can handle 22.5" RV tires.

Simpson Tire Mount - Carry a spare without a care.

RTegarini · 06-24-2014, 12:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AggieDad

[*]Which wheel(s) would this fit? There are at least 2 different rims on the coach.[*]Is a spare really of any value? I am certainly not going to change the tire myself. Could (or would) a road service guy even get it down from its mounting?

Maybe I'm not following your question correctly: with your first question, are you asking what rim the tire would actually mount onto, or is this new-found tire already mounted on a rim and you're asking where it could be physically installed if you had a flat? If it's already mounted, most of the time it can be used on the front or back axle, inside or out side dual.

As far as carrying a spare on a motorhome, I've never had a flat and if I did, would most likely call a mobile tire repair, but I would NEVER not carry a spare. At the very least, I would carry a spare tire that the mobil repair could mount on the rim with the flat.

njs42 · 06-24-2014, 02:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by adonh

Here is an outside rear mounted spare tire carrier that can handle 22.5" RV tires.

Simpson Tire Mount - Carry a spare without a care.

I looked at that thing and liked it but it would cover my license plate and light for the license. It cost quite a bit so I took a pass. But I agree it is a great idea.

AggieDad · 06-24-2014, 02:31 PM

Quote:

Maybe I'm not following your question correctly: with your first question, are you asking what rim the tire would actually mount onto, or is this new-found tire already mounted on a rim and you're asking where it could be physically installed if you had a flat? If it's already mounted, most of the time it can be used on the front or back axle, inside or out side dual.

I thought the front and rear rims are different -- they look different with the rear being concave at the hub and the front being convex at the hub. Perhaps one is just mounted in reverse.

Tom-NC · 06-24-2014, 02:46 PM

AggieDad
I would leave the spare where it is and check the air pressure, if needed put air in it.

Number one if you didn't have the spare and get a flat tire it will cost you dearly to have the tow operator to find you an exact match of tire that you have plus he will charge you to unmount the flat and remount the new tire. After having RVed since 1989 I feel I know what I'm talking about. We were in the Yukon when I got a flat and was lucky enough to have a spare for Coach Net (after waiting 3 hours) to remove flat tire and replace with spare. When I went to find another Michelin tire found out there was none to be had. I had to wait until i got back to the lower 48 to purchase a new tire.
As far as age, I would not replace a tire due to age like most tire companies say(because they want to make money. I check for cracks and if no cracks I keep the same tires until they wear out. I know a lot of people will disagree with me but I;'ll be damned if I will spend over $2000.00 for tires every 5 years just to make a tire dealer and manufacturer happy. I check my tires for correct air pressure, wear and if there are cracks in the sidewall.
Another thing to do with tires is to make sure when it is parked for a long time to put wood under all 6 tires and cover the with Tyre Guard covers. I also spray mine with a tire spray.
My first coach I got 90,000 miles out of the original set of Michelin tires.
The above are my views and I'm sure a lot of folk will disagree with me but you do as you see fit.

Brockx · 06-24-2014, 02:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AggieDad

I thought the front and rear rims are different -- they look different with the rear being concave at the hub and the front being convex at the hub. Perhaps one is just mounted in reverse.

Yes, also your inside dual is mounted in the same orientation as your front tires.

I'm old school, or just old, but I have a spare for the Coach, Dolly, Toad. I have driven well over 2 million miles and have never needed a spare on the road, but I will always have one if physically possible.

NeilV · 06-24-2014, 11:28 PM

Location makes a lot of difference and if you plan on traveling the interstates in Florida for example you are best off replacing all your tires every 5 years.

Attourney Newsome has evidence warehouses full of rolled vehicles with 5 year an older tires that blew out or had tread seperations that killed numerous people here in Florida. The problem is so bad that they are considering legislation that will take to task tire shops and vehicle dealerships that sell tires that are over 5 years old even if they have been sitting on a shelf the entire time.

I one time broke the 5 year rule and tried to push it to 6 on my Adventurer here in Florida and ended up with the tread seperation on the day a forest fire was coming my way. That was with new looking Goodyear G670's with plenty of tread left on them and no visible cracking that were verified properly inflated moments before driving off (about 20 minutes before it blew at 60 mph).

The body damage even if you don't have a rollover can well exceed the cost of the tires. I was fortunate that the tread when it seperated was on a the outside read dual so it did not damage the brake or fuel lines, did not hit a motorcyclist near me or any other vehicles and body damage was contained mostly to the mud guards inside the wheel wells. The steel portions were folded up into accordian pleats with the rear one partially wrapped around the front of and then under the propane tank. The steel cords had started cutting through the insulated floor material above the propane tank into the bin above it where they flapped around the steel plate the mud flap was mounted on.

CJBROWN · 06-30-2014, 04:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AggieDad

Skip426 - Nope. These are 19.5

Arch Hoagland - I doubt if there is air in it, although I have not yet checked.

FIRE UP - I'm not thinking of gas mileage when I think of the extra weight. I'm just thinking about not lugging along the unnecessary as we already take a lot more junk with us than we should. I just thought I would get other ideas on carrying a spare as I know I am not going to do any tire changing myself.

NeilV - The age issue is one of the reasons I opened this discussion. You are correct - the tire does have a 2005 manufacture date. Given that it is not trustworthy, my thoughts run to whether it is worthwhile replacing.

Thanks for the responses and thoughts. I suspect it will just stay there, bothering no one and being of little purpose.

Yes, the W20 had 19.5 wheels - that's what I have. Worth noting, the 10 lugnuts are torqued to 475ft lbs. Which may not mean a lot to someone that doesn't turn wrenches, but if you do you know that's a LOT of torque! It takes a 4' breaker bar to break them loose.

IMO you should carry a spare even if you cannot change it yourself. If you get help they could mount your spare for you. And yes, it will fit front or rear, all locations, they are steel wheels with wheel covers. It does not matter if it's 10 years old, unless it's severely weather cracked it will carry you out as a spare without issue. If it is cracked then replace it when you get new tires - just use one of the old ones that is in the best shape.

Mine stores and carries in a compartment in the bedroom slide - it's acutally under the bed with an opening to the outside. They do weigh about 100 to 124lbs, so it's a chore to get out and around and mounted. The good news is mine stays protected and still looks like new after ten years, so it was actually installed with some other new ones to update the rubber on the ground. BTW, if it's a Michelin, they warrant them for 10 years for weather cracking, so given or useful life is at least 10 years. I don't really wish to debate the tire life issue here but suffice to say some tend to want to change prematurely which is fine too.

I will also say that it's not unusual for us to be so far off the beaten path that we could not get emergency road service even if we wanted it so I don't bother carrying a service. If I got a flat I have the tools and jack to change the tire myself and have done so at home but never had to out on the road.

For my travels I wouldn't think of not having a spare, as well as spare oil, coolant, water, an air compressor, tools, etc. If it breaks I have to fix it. The worst field repair I've had was a water pump and burnt distributor - but not on the workhorse chassis.