Spare wheel size

[rk06382]

I think it's kind of funny. I have another year left on my roadside assistance. Great if you remain around town. Not so good for us rural folks.
A lot of the time when I'm on the road, I don't have cell service and I'm more than 35 miles from a Ford dealer.
On the road I carry a hydraulic jack, tire repair kit, wheel chocks and my compressor/battery jumper

I would never call FORD!

I have FRVA Roadside Rescue®. It covers my motorhome & all my other vehicles.

Cell coverage is a side issue. Ask me, I live in Alaska. I have a Garmin InReach Mini, Lightweight and Compact Satellite Communicator, that I have never used.

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[Cancunbadlands]

You'll be alright

 

[Glen Baker LLC]

I would never call FORD!

I have FRVA Roadside Rescue®. It covers my motorhome & all my other vehicles.

Cell coverage is a side issue. Ask me, I live in Alaska. I have a Garmin InReach Mini, Lightweight and Compact Satellite Communicator, that I have never used.

I apologize.

I have a 1990 Ranger that still has the OEM full size spare under the truck. I took it off one time when it was new. I have over 130K on it it & never used the spare in the last 35 years. (or had a flat)

I have road side assistance/towing on my 2025 Maverick. If I get a flat, I am calling for help. I have had some slow leakers on other vehicles but not a flat in the last 35 years. I always buy four tires at a time.

I didn't realize from your post above, that you were talking about a different roadside assistance other than Ford.

 

[dochawk]

I have over 130K on it it & never used the spare in the last 35 years. (or had a flat)

Don't tempt your DMV/DOT like that!

not long after I bought a pristine Eldorado Touring Coupe, I was on the freeway and bump-bump-THUMP!

They had cut about six inch wide ridges a few inches deep across the lane, and went home for the day!

And a similar issue during extreme rainfall near Kettleman City CA, on I-5, where Caltrans had left notches that killed a tire. As the hydraulic jack I'd bought for the E-150 after jacking half way up with the wimpy jack that came with it had been taken out to use on something else, I needed roadside. As it turned out, it took two trucks to get me going--after a second one from the company saw the first and pulled over, they had to use one jack under the tow assembly to lift enough that they could use the other jack!

(California Casualty, my insurer at the time, impressed the hell out of me by telling me to hire whoever I could find and send them the bill, as they didn't have a contractor there. And then paid them by email while I was still on the side of the road! Driver asked for the cash payment due, and I told him to check his email. He was, well, surprised! $270, iirc)

 

[rk06382]

I apologize.

I didn't realize from your post above, that you were talking about a different roadside assistance other than Ford.

Thanks,
I have had roadside assistance for almost 30 years. I like having a plan B.

 

[afreeman]

Original Continental ProContact TX 225/65R17 102H tires are just at the wear bars at 27,800mi. Costco $80 rebate on 4 Michelins starts Nov 17 and that's the day I'm replacing them. If all pricing was the same, I would have replaced them a month ago. I drive in piedmont NC mixed driving (city/highway). Mine appear to be wearing a little quicker than most, but not too far out of range of what I typically hear for factory tires.

 

[afreeman]

I got my new tires today from Costco and they (for $19) put the best of the original Continental's on a spare rim (Amazon: Allied 83B FWD Black Mod 17x7" 5x108 & 5x4.35, 35mm Offset = $74). Now I have two spare tires; a 225/65R17 on the aforementioned rim and the other, the OEM 215/60R17 that came on the steelie under the truck. Despite what my turbonerd spreadsheet above tells us, the larger tire measures almost 2" higher diameter than the smaller one once in the real world, mounted and aired up. To my credit, somewhere above I did indicate, despite what theory tells us, you can't be sure until you try it yourself.

The new spare mounted and lifted easily into place under the truck, and felt like it tucked into place nicely with no room to spare. Despite phase 1 success, I wanted to remove it to make sure. Yep, it was wedged tightly and wouldn't budge. The words of caution from Glen Baker LLC above, " Trying to wiggle it down passed the tire poppers at 70+ years old while on the side of the road" were gold. Boy was I glad I was doing this in my spare time, in my garage with good weather while in old clothes with my son helping me. I had to take all the air out of it to then pry it from the grips of the receiver hitch and tire poppers while my son lowered the cable. So, in conclusion, my dream of a stowed away true full size spare is kaput.

In my 34 years of driving, I've experienced more flat tires than I can remember. I've been fortunate enough that all but 2 of them occurred in my driveway (or were slow leaks that after inflating, made it home just fine). If this trend continues, the overwhelming majority of my next flat tires will be replaced in my driveway with my truly full sized spare that I'll keep at home. The other 1 out of 10 will get the factory supplied 215/60R17 that fits nicely under the truck.

Thanks to everyone above that contributed.

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