Spare Tire Thread; all spare tire posts here

[GRA]

Put the spare back, or at least make it an option. A CUV without a spare is ridiculous. You can always take the spare off to save weight when in urban areas, but the RAV4 has enough range to be useful for shorter trips (and would be even more suitable with QC), and is likely to be used on less-traveled, rougher roads or with chains which require a full-size tire.

 

[toasty]

whats under the trunk? (the battery?)

 

[TonyWilliams]

whats under the trunk? (the battery?)

Nothing, but no room for a spare. I got a flat last night. Maybe the first on a new Rav4?

 

[Lloyd]

Insistent on a spare, go to a wrecking yard and get the parts for the rear door mount spare. Should be a weekend job with a nice result.

 

[reeler]

Insistent on a spare, go to a wrecking yard and get the parts for the rear door mount spare. Should be a weekend job with a nice result.

I bet a junkyard would sell you the ICE version rear door with a spare. Paint it to match.

 

[reeler]

A good compromise would be a mount in the back of car that could mount the tire standing up. It wouldn't take up much cargo room and could be removed on big hauling days. My '04 Sienna had a $1200 kit because the car came standard with run flats.

 

[jspearman]

Insistent on a spare, go to a wrecking yard and get the parts for the rear door mount spare. Should be a weekend job with a nice result.

I bet a junkyard would sell you the ICE version rear door with a spare. Paint it to match.

I looked into this. Found rear door with spare at junkyard near LA, I think. It was the cheapest one at $400. Would be worth a look if you lived nearby. I didn't call them because I want to physically have the car in my garage before ordering parts, ha.

 

[TonyWilliams]

Insistent on a spare, go to a wrecking yard and get the parts for the rear door mount spare. Should be a weekend job with a nice result.

I bet a junkyard would sell you the ICE version rear door with a spare. Paint it to match.

I looked into this. Found rear door with spare at junkyard near LA, I think. It was the cheapest one at $400. Would be worth a look if you lived nearby. I didn't call them because I want to physically have the car in my garage before ordering parts, ha.

It should be easy to find the door with the right color, just plug and play.

 

[BSki]

I was thinking about getting a donut spare and putting it in the basement storage of the Rav 4 EV. The compartment under the back deck. Wonder if a donut from a totaled rav 4 would work.

But, I don't think we have a jack either. Is that right? I don't see anything in the manual for a jack location in the car. Does this not have a jack and tire iron?

 

[TonyWilliams]

It does not have any of those things. I doubt the spare from another Rav4 will fit in the spot you have planned.

The wheel bolt hole pattern is 5 x 4.5" (114.3mm) which is used by a LOT of cars and even trailers. Good luck.

 

[alon]

Good dissucion..

 

[Khoa]

Edit: Wow apparently somehow I missed the sticky on this thread. Even with a forum search... anywho I will read up on it

old post:
Sorry if this has been posted before... I did a forum search for "spare" and received no results.
Has Toyota ever given us a reason why they didn't include the rear door with attached spare tire?
I know we get free Toyota Care which includes towing to the nearest dealership in case of a flat... but that only lasts for 3 years. Afterwards I guess our only option is to Tow it to a tire center?

I'm curious if we can simply add the Tire Mounts to our door or better yet find a junked door from the ICE version and replace it completely.
I guess the roof is another option to place a spare but that's an awful big waste of space and you have to get a rack.

Any other ideas for spare tire placement (or alternative) once our 3 years are up?

 

[klaus]

What about something like this?
http://www.amazon.com/Curt-Manufacturing-31006-Spare-Mount/dp/B0009YIE1O/

Of course you'd have to first install the trailer hitch using Tony's great write-up.

There might be a problem with opening the hatch, so you could try one not angled so much:
http://www.amazon.com/Draw-Tite-6715-Spare-Tire-Carrier/dp/B001E8U714/

Or perhaps this would give it the space it needs?
http://www.amazon.com/CURT-Manufacturing-45791-Receiver-Extender/dp/B000BROATE/

The advantages to mounting a spare on the receiver hitch include:
- cheaper, easier than finding a wrecked Rav4 the same color to get the door with mounted spare
- easy to remove/leave off when not going on long trips to save weight and improve efficiency
- keeps dirty tire out of your vehicle, and keeps it from being a projectile in an accident

 

[BSki]

The real problem is there is no safe way to jack the car up without a floor jack. The battery is too close to the frame to allow access to jack points.

This is in the manual and the reason there is no jack provided with the vehicle (unlike the Prius Plugin in that has no spare, but does have a jack as that can be lifted with a standard jack)

Manual specifically states to only use a lift, or a floor jack.

 

[klaus]

You should be able to jack right underneath the lower control arms, or you could install a rear trailer hitch and use that to lift the whole rear of the Rav off the ground

 

[BSki]

From the manual

 

[klaus]

You should be able to jack right underneath the lower control arms, or you could install a rear trailer hitch and use that to lift the whole rear of the Rav off the ground

Right, I know the manual says that. If the above statement doesn't make sense than I would recommend you just forget trying to change a tire yourself and leave it to the pros.

 

[hendry98]

anyone thinking of installing a run flat tire instead of regular tire?

 

[fusiondynamics]

How about keeping a cheap Hydraulic bottle jack?

http://www.amazon.com/Torin-T90403-...8?ie=UTF8&qid=1385879898&sr=8-8&keywords=jack

 

[jimbo69ny]

anyone thinking of installing a run flat tire instead of regular tire?

I know run flats weigh and cost a lot more than non run flat tires. Im not sure by how much though. Has anyone swapped to run flats on their Rav?