Has anyone else tried to put a spare tire under the hood?

A

An Infomaniac

New Member
I wanted a real spare tire (donut) but didn’t want to give up my entire trunk space.
This looked like it might work, and, well, it does!

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An Infomaniac said:
I wanted a real spare tire (donut) but didn’t want to give up my entire trunk space.
This looked like it might work, and, well, it does!
Click to expand...

Not a helpful subject line, two of your pictures appear the same, and you don't give us any idea of what we're looking at. :(
 
Greetings @An Infomaniac and welcome to the board. This is a very clever use for the empty space. This would be even better in snowy areas where the few extra pounds over the front wheels will help traction.

I think we were all wondering why Hyundai didn't make more of this space. There is room for a reasonably sized frunk, so it leaves me wondering if Hyundai left the space unoccupied as a pedestrian crash buffer.

@SkookumPete is correct, you need to be a bit more descriptive in your titles and careful with attachments. That vague title amounts to click bait.

Edit: Just noticed the blue coolant. Is this a 2020 model ? Also where did you get those rubber blocks?
 
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XtsKonaTrooper said:
I solved my spare tire issue.
I put this plastic card with CAA written on it, in my wallet.
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Yeah, that's not really helpful when you're in locations 2-3 hours from larger urban areas. I guess I could sign up for top tier CAA premier membership that allows for 300km towing but that's $150 a year, I think at least for me the spare tire is better insurance.

Anyways, my research seems to imply a 17 inch donut wheel is indicated because the large brake hardware in the back. 16 inch wheels will fit the front but not the rears. I guess if you only had the 16 inch donut and had a flat in the back you could move a good tire from front and put the 16 inch donut on the front.

Or alternatively Google seems to imply a 17 inch donut from a late model Hyundai Azera will have the correct overall tire height, centre bore, lug spacing etc.
 
Exactly, cell phone coverage is spotty in the wilds of NZ.
I'm glad to see some innovative ideas.
 
Sorry about the title, I thought the picture would post along with it.[emoji57](Couldn’t find a way to edit it after it was posted!)

It was a homemade project: 1 foot of 6mm rod, Aircraft locknuts, washers and rubber washers, 5ft of angle iron, pipe insulation padding, and wood retaining blocks.

It opens up a lot of space in the trunk that would otherwise be filled with the doughnut up at an angle.
The charging cable case took a bit of tweaking to fit in, but if you push the front corner down, it all fits nicely! And yes, I have no idea why Hyundai didn’t do this themselves!!!


Sent from my iPhone using Inside EVs
 
An Infomaniac said:
Sorry about the title, I thought the picture would post along with it.[emoji57](Couldn’t find a way to edit it after it was posted!)

It was a homemade project: 1 foot of 6mm rod, Aircraft locknuts, washers and rubber washers, 5ft of angle iron, pipe insulation padding, and wood retaining blocks.

It opens up a lot of space in the trunk that would otherwise be filled with the doughnut up at an angle.
The charging cable case took a bit of tweaking to fit in, but if you push the front corner down, it all fits nicely! And yes, I have no idea why Hyundai didn’t do this themselves!!!


Sent from my iPhone using Inside EVs
Click to expand...

Thanks for the additional info. Your posts have an edit button for a limited time. You should also be able to configure the Inside EVs app so it doesn't add that signature, because frankly no one cares. :p Welcome to the forum!
 
Is it *possible* to get 17" donut rims and tires to fit them at all? Everything I and
others have looked up seems to top out at 16". Which hits the rear caliper slide
pin housings.

_H*
 
This is a US 2019 Kona. I have yet to try the donut on and I got it from the dealer who said it would fit. I hope they are right (but now I think I had better try it out!).
I like to be self-reliant and the idea of this was to be able to get back on the road or get back home quickly without waiting hours for a tow. I was unaware of the “spare tire problem” with the brakes. What size donut tire should this be, and this “rubbing“ that people mentioned, will it damage the brakes for a few mile trip?
Thanks
 
Perhaps test it front and back and let us know.

It's unlikely a space saver will fit on the versions with the reversible-cycle heat pump because the HVAC pipework indicated sticks out.

IMG_0008.webp
 
KiwiME said:
Perhaps test it front and back and let us know.

It's unlikely a space saver will fit on the versions with the reversible-cycle heat pump because the HVAC pipework indicated sticks out.

View attachment 6822
Click to expand...
From what i have read using the donut for the front is a bad idea because of the diminished braking, road handling and braking not to mention these are the drive wheels and will affect control systems. If the donut won't fit on the back my feelings are it is virtually useless.
Maybe someone with tire shop repair experience can chime in -apu ?
https://insideevsforum.com/communit...e-in-the-colder-months.6574/page-4#post-84348
 
If not a donut then what? Call the road service and wait 3 hours for a tow truck, which takes you to a tire store that is closed for the day, so you then need to call someone to give you a lift?

That's probably close to the worst case (worst case would be a flat in an area with no cell service in the middle of winter).

My previous car had no spare either. They give you a can of glue an air pump and a jack. For some types of flats, you can "fix" it with the glue (ruining the rim). A sidewall blowout wouldn't be fixable even with the glue.
 
ericy said:
If not a donut then what? Call the road service and wait 3 hours for a tow truck, which takes you to a tire store that is closed for the day, so you then need to call someone to give you a lift?

That's probably close to the worst case (worst case would be a flat in an area with no cell service in the middle of winter).

My previous car had no spare either. They give you a can of glue an air pump and a jack. For some types of flats, you can "fix" it with the glue (ruining the rim). A sidewall blowout wouldn't be fixable even with the glue.
Click to expand...
If it fits on the back without rubbing on the caliper it should be ok as a temporary solution. If the flat/uninflatable tire is on the front then I would take the full sized good tire from the rear and install it on the front and use the donut for the back. Had to do this once with a Leaf. Again need confirmation.
Edit : can also do this:
https://www.amazon.ca/Slime-24010-T...ocphy=9001608&hvtargid=pla-569028714430&psc=1
and use the equipped 12V inflator without the glue. (easier)
 
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Those plug kits can certainly help with some classes of flats - like if you pick up a nail or something. For a really slow leak, I could use the pump to keep the pressure up and wait until I was at home to attempt this. I guess it would suck to have to try and use it in the winter, but it beats the alternative.

There are rare situations where the tire is so damaged that none of this helps. Certain types of road debris, or unusually large potholes (which can damage the rim). Then you are at the mercy of a tow truck showing up whenever they feel like it.

I guess I am cynical because years ago I had AAA, and I had a non-tire related issue one day. It was cool, but not cold. Nice sunny day, right in the city. Called AAA - took them 3 hours to show up. A police cruiser came by and they recommended that I call someone else, which was my first clue that they had a bad reputation. Apparently AAA doesn't pay the truck operators very much, so they tend to not place a high priority on calls that come in through AAA.

With the Kona, there is Hyundai roadside assistance that one can call. I haven't needed to call them, so I have no idea of how good the service actually is. They claim 24/7. Who knows.

If I had a spare, a tire issue would be a 10-minute nuisance. Apparently most people these days are incapable of changing their own tires - a general dumbing down of society, I guess. So they figure if most people call for roadside assistance, why bother supplying a spare. Now if you had a spare and called roadside assistance, they could change it for you. Without a spare, odds are you are looking at a tow (unless the towtruck operator uses a plug kit on the side of the road, but even then you have to wait for the guy to show up).
 
ericy said:
Those plug kits can certainly help with some classes of flats - like if you pick up a nail or something. For a really slow leak, I could use the pump to keep the pressure up and wait until I was at home to attempt this. I guess it would suck to have to try and use it in the winter, but it beats the alternative.

There are rare situations where the tire is so damaged that none of this helps. Certain types of road debris, or unusually large potholes (which can damage the rim). Then you are at the mercy of a tow truck showing up whenever they feel like it.

I guess I am cynical because years ago I had AAA, and I had a non-tire related issue one day. It was cool, but not cold. Nice sunny day, right in the city. Called AAA - took them 3 hours to show up. A police cruiser came by and they recommended that I call someone else, which was my first clue that they had a bad reputation. Apparently AAA doesn't pay the truck operators very much, so they tend to not place a high priority on calls that come in through AAA.

With the Kona, there is Hyundai roadside assistance that one can call. I haven't needed to call them, so I have no idea of how good the service actually is. They claim 24/7. Who knows.

If I had a spare, a tire issue would be a 10-minute nuisance. Apparently most people these days are incapable of changing their own tires - a general dumbing down of society, I guess. So they figure if most people call for roadside assistance, why bother supplying a spare. Now if you had a spare and called roadside assistance, they could change it for you. Without a spare, odds are you are looking at a tow (unless the towtruck operator uses a plug kit on the side of the road, but even then you have to wait for the guy to show up).
Click to expand...

Not necessarily, I have changed tires on my cars often. I also owned specialty race tire shop. I haven't had a flat tire in over 25 years. In fact I remember the last flat tire I had. I was coming into the corkscrew at Laguna Seca Race track when the car in front of me lost a tail pipe and and cut a large hole in my rear tire. limped it in the pits changed the tire and had a wonderful day at the track.

My point is cars don't get flats like they use to. I live in the country down a dirt road across a creek. Still don't worry about flats. If I do get a flat in the next 25 years I am ok with having no spare and waiting for a tow as long as its once in 25 years. (I expect it will be much longer). I have a spare in my 1993 F 250 4x4 that I off road in and I have never used it. I have donut spare in my 2006 Volvo s60, never used it either.
 
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