Which "SUVs" have spares not mounted underneath?

[OVERKILL]

Originally Posted By: babyivan
It's not just the mechanism that rusts, it's the rim as well.

So for the OP it may not even matter how often he drops it to check pressure and lubes the cable.

My girlfriend's Caravan has a spare and EVERYTHING is rusted, the rim, the mechanism, the control arms, the brake lines, etc....


Getting them sprayed with something like Krown or Rust Check greatly reduces this. The spare on our Expedition (it is underneath) is in reasonably good shape considering how long it has been under there and the mechanism works fine.

 

[Doog]

One good spraying of the rim and cable mechanism every 2 years with Boeshield T9 will eliminate the rust issue. I have had a couple of those under vehicle spare tires and all you need to do is maintain it occasionally.

http://www.amazon.com/Boeshield-Corrosion-Protection-Waterproof-Lubrication/dp/B001447PEK

 

[dlundblad]

My grand cherokee has it under the cargo area in the back. I prefer it on the inside. I live on a dirt road so it's nice to keep all that stuff clean.

 

[Doog]

Originally Posted By: JHZR2
Not sure why you'd want a spare mounted on the back or inside... I remember seeing a study once where the damage resulting from a rear-mounted spare tends to be much higher.

If its in the back, repairs/damage get $$$ and it gets a LOT of UV.

If its in the trunk it takes space.


They get no UV if they are covered like the older RAV4 and CRV. My daughter was in a CRV that took a 45-50mph read ender from a full size Oldsmobile. The car was totaled but the spare tire took most of the impact as it was embedded in the grille of the Olds. So, I like the idea of the spare on the back. Besides if you get hit form behind...the other guy is paying.

 

[PF52]

Originally Posted By: Doog
My daughter was in a CRV that took a 45-50mph read ender from a full size Oldsmobile. The car was totaled but the spare tire took most of the impact as it was embedded in the grille of the Olds. So, I like the idea of the spare on the back. Besides if you get hit form behind...the other guy is paying.


Some vehicles, though, seem to crush like an egg with the slightest impact to the spare tire. Isuzu Rodeo and Trooper and Suzuki Grand Vitara come to mind but there are probably others. I've seen people back into something like a little sign in a parking lot and do serious damage to the vehicle.

 

[hypervish]

My RX300 has it in the trunk under a mat. Great place to put it, easy to access and check air in it occasionally.

 

[supton]

I'm undecided if I like it under the vehicle or not. Obviously it is no fun to crawl under the vehicle. At the same time unloading the vehicle to get to the spare might be no fun either. What does Mr Murphy say about the odds of needing the spare when the car is loaded to the gills vs not? and on vacation?

I think it best to just carry a can of fix-a-flat, flares, a tire pump and a floor jack. That way you will never ever have a flat tire.

 

[babyivan]

Originally Posted By: hypervish
My RX300 has it in the trunk under a mat. Great place to put it, easy to access and check air in it occasionally.

Sure... provided your trunk is empty, of course.
It would take me 15 minutes to get to my spare thanks to all the cr&p I have in the trunk!

 

[babyivan]

Originally Posted By: supton

I think it best to just carry a can of fix-a-flat....

That stuff is a major pain the &ss when you get the tire properly repaired, it's a very messy situation.

 

[hypervish]

Originally Posted By: supton
I'm undecided if I like it under the vehicle or not. Obviously it is no fun to crawl under the vehicle. At the same time unloading the vehicle to get to the spare might be no fun either. What does Mr Murphy say about the odds of needing the spare when the car is loaded to the gills vs not? and on vacation?

I think it best to just carry a can of fix-a-flat, flares, a tire pump and a floor jack. That way you will never ever have a flat tire.


That's the thing, even if the tire is mounted underneath many times you have to empty the trunk anyways in order to bring the spare down.

 

[supton]

Originally Posted By: babyivan
Originally Posted By: supton

I think it best to just carry a can of fix-a-flat....

That stuff is a major pain the &ss when you get the tire properly repaired, it's a very messy situation.


I think I've read that tire shops will refuse to work with the stuff; or that it can be explosive to use a tire reamer to install a plug, etc. I've avoided the stuff altogether, as most "fix in a can" or "fix in a pill" is generally anything but a proper fix.

The post was pretty much just tongue in cheek. Truth is an secured floor jack would kill you in the event of an accident anyhow, which, in the spirit of my post, would render health insurance as necessary as a spare tire.

 

[strat81]

Buy what you like. If it's an underbody spare, coat the appropriate surfaces with silicone grease and/or spray. Re-apply semi-annually.

My 2001 CR-V has a spare mounted on the tailgate.


Modern Fix-A-Flat is not explosive or flammable once it has been used. It's a mess, yes. However, keeping a can around is good in the event you are unable to safely install your spare. You might also be able to save the day for another motorist who has a bum spare.

 

[kb01]

In regards to fix-a-flat...

I've actually had pretty good luck just keeping a compressor in my car. Leaks from a nail or screw have been slow enough that just topping the tire off has been good enough to get to a tire store for a patch & plug.

 

[TiredTrucker]

When I bought my 2013 Siverado, after just a couple of months, summer months at that, I took the spare out from underneath and put it in the bed with a tire cover over it for UV protection. I live on gravel roads. In that short time, I had to take out a pressure washer to get the built up mud, gravel, etc off of the rim after I lowered it. Would have been a real pain if I had actually needed that spare before I removed it from the underside. Can only imagine what it, and the cable, would have been like after 6 or more months under there. I realize for the more hard pavement crowd this is not an issue, but anyone who has to operate on less than idealistic conditions, the under chassis spare idea isn't so hot. Like the OP, if I was looking for an SUV, one of the first criteria is that it doesn't have the spare mounted under the chassis.

 

[SwampSurvivor]

Originally Posted By: kb01
In regards to fix-a-flat...

I've actually had pretty good luck just keeping a compressor in my car. Leaks from a nail or screw have been slow enough that just topping the tire off has been good enough to get to a tire store for a patch & plug.


I keep a EXCELLENT little compressor with me when I am travelling - my vehicles or someone else'. Before I got my HF mini-compressor, I would carry a power inverter and campbell-hausfeld compressor. Took up a lot of space, but useful.

In the event I do have a flat tire, I am prepared to limp along the side of the road with my 4 ways on and destroy the tire - then change it someplace safe.

$20 for a junkyard wheel and $80 for a new tire seems like a better deal than getting hit while trying to change / inflate a tire on the side of the road.

 

[kkreit01]

2011-current Grand Cherokees have them inside the cargo area floor. Full-size is optional, and it's not "exactly" full sized. It's the same height/diameter, but a different brand/size than the other 4.

 

[nfafan]

Thanks all for the replies and input!

 

[Doog]

Originally Posted By: supton
At the same time unloading the vehicle to get to the spare might be no fun either. What does Mr Murphy say about the odds of needing the spare when the car is loaded to the gills vs not? and on vacation?

I think it best to just carry a can of fix-a-flat, flares, a tire pump and a floor jack. That way you will never ever have a flat tire.


+1 I ran over an allen wrench with my YukonXL on the 7 mile bridge headed to Key West with the wife and all 3 kids with the truck loaded to the gills. Lucky for me I had one of those tire plug kits from Walmart and I was able to plug the hole before I lost all of the air. I was able to make it to our condo and then to Sears auto for a real fix that evening.

 

[NHHEMI]

I would much rather have to empty the truck/cargo area than crawl around trying to get the spare off from an underneath mounting system. Especially at night and especially in bad weather.

 

[datech]

Originally Posted By: Miller88
Originally Posted By: kb01
In regards to fix-a-flat...

I've actually had pretty good luck just keeping a compressor in my car. Leaks from a nail or screw have been slow enough that just topping the tire off has been good enough to get to a tire store for a patch & plug.


I keep a EXCELLENT little compressor with me when I am travelling - my vehicles or someone else'. Before I got my HF mini-compressor, I would carry a power inverter and campbell-hausfeld compressor. Took up a lot of space, but useful.

In the event I do have a flat tire, I am prepared to limp along the side of the road with my 4 ways on and destroy the tire - then change it someplace safe.

$20 for a junkyard wheel and $80 for a new tire seems like a better deal than getting hit while trying to change / inflate a tire on the side of the road.


Saturn VUE and Chevy Equinox have the spare under the floor.

I am a big believer in the 12 v tire pumps. Good for adjusting air pressure when the seasons change or whenever a tire is low, as well as sometimes the quickest way to get underway from a flat.

I also carry the junkyard rim with new tire for spare, and on long trips I'm tempted to take two along. With my VUE I can put a full size spare under the floor by flipping it over (from the way the space saver spare is stowed).

Maybe one space saver and one full size spare would be enough. What would the chances of having two flats?