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congerz83
10-25-2011, 11:03 AM
Does anyone have any knowledge about where to find a full size spare for our cars? It would remove one of the millions of worries I have when driving this car.

stevedmc
10-25-2011, 11:07 AM
I believe this is the rim I am using:

1984 Plymouth Laser 15" x 6" Alloy Wheel
http://www.automotix.net/keystone/1984-plymouth-laser-wheels_rims-aly01391u10.html

I'll have to check this evening and see what size tire I have mounted on it.


I got mine from a salvage yard I found on www.car-part.com for about $65 shipped. Just do a search on their site and call a few of the salvage yards they list until you find one with a decent price. Be sure the wheel you get is for the 4 bolt pattern.

DMCVegas
10-25-2011, 06:13 PM
Does anyone have any knowledge about where to find a full size spare for our cars? It would remove one of the millions of worries I have when driving this car.

Outside of trying to track down replacement rubber for the existing spare, what does size matter? I've drove around on the spare for about almost 2 weeks at one point while I had to save the cash for a new set of tires and had no problems. It wasn't smart due to the age of the rubber, no. But just don't exceed the speeds and everything is fine.

stevedmc
10-25-2011, 07:16 PM
Outside of trying to track down replacement rubber for the existing spare, what does size matter? I've drove around on the spare for about almost 2 weeks at one point while I had to save the cash for a new set of tires and had no problems. It wasn't smart due to the age of the rubber, no. But just don't exceed the speeds and everything is fine.

Are you kidding me? Some people drive no father than 5 miles from home for their entire life but I am not one of those people. I drive a minimum of 75 miles a day on bumpy state highways.

I'd hate to think what would have happened if I would have been driving to/from Seans house on my 1,278 mile journey and had to rely on that sucky little spare at 2am.

stevedmc
10-25-2011, 07:23 PM
As promised, here is the tire size and a picture of my spare.

195/50 R15

TTait
10-26-2011, 12:44 AM
The only spare I carry is a AAA card. 100 mile towing covers me 99.999% of the time, and it works for any issue I might have.

I know its not what you were asking for, but its a very viable option.

DMCVegas
10-26-2011, 08:59 AM
The only spare I carry is a AAA card. 100 mile towing covers me 99.999% of the time, and it works for any issue I might have.

I know its not what you were asking for, but its a very viable option.

As someone who once took a shortcut and got stuck for 5 hours between two housing projects at night when I broke the Pivot Bolt on the Shift Linkage because my insurance company's call center kept forgetting about me, I'll never rely on a tow truck as a primary solution to getting me home in a timely manner.


I'd hate to think what would have happened if I would have been driving to/from Seans house on my 1,278 mile journey and had to rely on that sucky little spare at 2am.

As I said it's not a wise idea to run on 30 year old rubber, but I've put a couple hundred miles on mine and everything was just fine.

stevedmc
10-26-2011, 09:04 AM
The only spare I carry is a AAA card. 100 mile towing covers me 99.999% of the time, and it works for any issue I might have.

I know its not what you were asking for, but its a very viable option.

It's a lot faster to put a spare tire on the car than to wait an hour for some guy to show up at 10pm just to make BTTF jokes and say he won't tow the car because he is afraid he might mess something up.

I know this because I had it happen to me when I called for roadside assistance.

My reason for calling roadside was to get a jump start because it wouldn't start. I ended up push starting the car myself since he wouldn't tow me home.

I still have roadside assistance but I've learned it's easier just to take care of the problem myself. Shoot, I think I'm going to go ahead and cancel my roadside coverage when my insurance policy renews.

congerz83
10-26-2011, 09:24 AM
It appears that some Mazda wheels and tires have that size and bolt pattern. Also Acura Integra, which means Honda Civic wheels will fit. My father has a Mazda Protoge. I'll take off one of his wheels and check for fit.

stevedmc
11-02-2011, 08:28 AM
Did you ever get to try the Mazda wheel?

congerz83
11-02-2011, 03:23 PM
Did you ever get to try the Mazda wheel?

I'm afraid not. I was in Pittsburgh for the weekend and came home to a demolished county. I've been so busy at work (power company) I haven't gotten the chance yet. But I will. And then I'll post results.