Spare tire that fits!

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Most of this thread talks about a donut spare for an Infinity like the one shown in post # 1. The lug nuts for the Infinity spare and the centering piece are discussed in post # 65. I don't know about the Acura spare but some people who purchased the one you mentioned on Ebay claim to get a tire inflation warning with that spare installed. The Infinity spare I purchased gives no such warning and the tire appears to be about 1/4 larger than the Clarity tire and inflated to the recommended pressure of 65 pounds, it appears to turn at the same rate as the Clarity tire.
 
KentuckyKen said:
OK, y’all talked me into buying the spare to take on out of town trips. I bought the one from eBay linked above that was listed specifically for the Clarity and is an Acura doughnut spare.
Do I use the OEM lug nuts or do I need different ones?
And is this one hub centric or do I need a spacer?
Thanks for helping me out on this one.
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I looked at the ad and saw no specs. So, the only way for you to know about the hub and lugs is to remove a wheel and try it. Sorry. When you mount the spare wheel may sure it fits tightly on the hub and make sure the lug nuts you have fit the shape of the seating areas in the wheel.
 
The Gadgeteer said:
Due to the battery the Clarity is a much heavier car than most passenger cars it’s size. I am concerned any donut spare I get that isn’t endorsed by Honda may not be safe.
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I figure if I don't push the car the donut spare I ordered will be fine. I won't go over 60mph on the freeway, and will head directly to a tire shop. I don't expect to have a donut spare on the car for more than 24 hours and max about 50 miles. We are taking an 1,100 mile trip in June on which I will put the spare and jack in the trunk.
 
If it is an Acrua, I'm betting that the hub was the same as Honda. If you want to measure it, the diameter should be 64.1mm. The Honda lugs are radial or ball (means the bottom is a semicircular shape), not conical (straight line at angle) or mag type (straight inserted into hole with washer). Here is a link that might help. I have bought two full size Nissan Maxima wheels for spares for my and my father-in-law's car. Both needed hub centric spacers. I was surprised that one had radial lugs and one had mag type (of course both are different to the Honda radial).

https://www.autoserviceprofessional...g-the-nuts-and-bolts-of-wheel-clamping?Page=3
 
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Hi Sandroad (and others), sorry to be another person harping on lugnuts but I have a question about your recommendation in post #65.

I joined the club using the Infinity G37 alloy spare- got it from ebay, and holy cow it's pretty (who'da thought a spare could be beautiful)? But when I looked at the link for the lugnuts you recommended in post #65, a detail caught my eye. You correctly note the need for "acorn-style" lugs for the Infinity wheel, but I've found most shopping sights recommend 12mm x 1.5 as the thread size for the Clarity, not the 12mm x 1.25 you suggest. Who's right and who's wrong, or am I just mortally confused? And does anybody have any comments on length of the lug, or open vs closed design ? Lots of choices there nowadays.

By the way, I've just spent the winter with fake-stock Infinity 18 inch wheels and the original tire size (Bridgestone Blizzaks). The Clarity was better in the snow than any of the several small SUV's I've had, probably due to the weight and balance, and the only issue I ever ran into was clearance. I stuck with the original size wheels (rather than drop to 17 inch) so I could use one from the remaining set as a spare, but after a recent long trip I decided $100 was worth it to gain back a little room in the trunk.

For those debating the importance of the hub-centric spacer, I drove my Clarity with and (briefly) without said spacers, and while you might not notice the difference in the first 10 minutes (if you were careful centering the wheel and torquing the lugs evenly), they quickly make a world of difference- even with the proper acorn-style lugs, when torqued to spec the wheels can shift, settle or move a bit when hitting bumps. When I put the spacers in the world was smooth again. I'll also note I have some notable tire "hum" at some speeds, probably because there's no anti-resonance devices in these "FakeFinity" wheels, but at $700 less than a Honda set, I'll live with the hum in winter.

And in case you've read so far, you might have an obvious question. The answer is no, I don't actually know the size of the lugs I use on my winter wheels, they came with the wheels, unlabelled, and fit when I put them on, so I didn't question things. But now that winter is over I know they're cheap, the plating and even one of the end knobs breaking off. When I figure the correct size out I'll be replacing the whole set for both winter wheels and spare.
 
ralfalfa said:
Hi Sandroad (and others), sorry to be another person harping on lugnuts but I have a question about your recommendation in post #65.

I joined the club using the Infinity G37 alloy spare- got it from ebay, and holy cow it's pretty (who'da thought a spare could be beautiful)? But when I looked at the link for the lugnuts you recommended in post #65, a detail caught my eye. You correctly note the need for "acorn-style" lugs for the Infinity wheel, but I've found most shopping sights recommend 12mm x 1.5 as the thread size for the Clarity, not the 12mm x 1.25 you suggest. Who's right and who's wrong, or am I just mortally confused? And does anybody have any comments on length of the lug, or open vs closed design ? Lots of choices there nowadays.

By the way, I've just spent the winter with fake-stock Infinity 18 inch wheels and the original tire size (Bridgestone Blizzaks). The Clarity was better in the snow than any of the several small SUV's I've had, probably due to the weight and balance, and the only issue I ever ran into was clearance. I stuck with the original size wheels (rather than drop to 17 inch) so I could use one from the remaining set as a spare, but after a recent long trip I decided $100 was worth it to gain back a little room in the trunk.

For those debating the importance of the hub-centric spacer, I drove my Clarity with and (briefly) without said spacers, and while you might not notice the difference in the first 10 minutes (if you were careful centering the wheel and torquing the lugs evenly), they quickly make a world of difference- even with the proper acorn-style lugs, when torqued to spec the wheels can shift, settle or move a bit when hitting bumps. When I put the spacers in the world was smooth again. I'll also note I have some notable tire "hum" at some speeds, probably because there's no anti-resonance devices in these "FakeFinity" wheels, but at $700 less than a Honda set, I'll live with the hum in winter.

And in case you've read so far, you might have an obvious question. The answer is no, I don't actually know the size of the lugs I use on my winter wheels, they came with the wheels, unlabelled, and fit when I put them on, so I didn't question things. But now that winter is over I know they're cheap, the plating and even one of the end knobs breaking off. When I figure the correct size out I'll be replacing the whole set for both winter wheels and spare.
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I’ll double check the lug info and post back.

Edit: This bugged me so much I went right out to my garage at 10:00P and tried the lugnuts I linked to in post #65 and they did not fit! Thanks so much for flagging this. I used incorrect info from another post when ordering the lugnuts and forgot the basic rule of Internet info: always try it yourself. I appreciate your helpful post. Good work. I'll ask the moderator @Domenick to delete my post post 65 in this thread, or at least delete the lugnut link.
 
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It looks like I may be the source of this mess. Looks like I posted the link to an incorrect ebay auction for the lug nuts. I sincerely apologize. I am not sure how this happened as I bought the 12mm x 1.5 and can't believe I pointed to an auction other than those I bought (they are even black and I bought silver). It would really be nice to clean this up. The lugs should be 12mm x 1.5. Maybe @Domenick can delete the faulty links...

Edited to add:
Ok. I figured out how I caused this mess. I posted the link to the auction for the 20 quantity 12x1.5 acorn silver lug nuts I bought. If you find it and copy the link into the buffer it shows:

".ebay./itm/20-12x1-5-Lug-Nuts-for-Chevy-S10-Buick-LaCrosse-Skylark-Avenue-Cadillac-Wheels/311374437719?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649"

I deleted the "www" start to keep the link from compressing into a clickable link here so I could show it in full form. That auction expired and passed time keeps it from being viewable now. Instead of an error saying auction is no longer available to view, the link now goes to the black 12x1.25 lug nuts. What a pain, but I guess I learned that links may not always go to the same place in the future, especially for ebay... In my ebay history this same auction shows the picture of silver 20 12x1.5 lug nuts I bought, not these black 12x1.25 with a key.
 
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We received a donut spare, jack, and wrench today. Purchased used on eBay. The tire is almost exactly the diameter of the tires on the car so not much of a donut. It is however narrower. Everything seems to be in good shape. When the weather improves I'll jack the car up and swap the spare onto one of the wheels as a fit test.

I can't imagine the vacation interruption that would come from not having a spare. We've had two flats in the past five years. Honda would pay for a tow but only to the nearest Honda dealer. That could easily be 50 miles away, and possibly in the wrong direction. It could also happen during hours when the Honda dealer wouldn't be open so we'd be forced to find somewhere to sleep - without a car to take us to a hotel.

My plan is to keep the spare in the garage while we remain near to home 90% of the time. Then toss it in the trunk when we take trips out of town. It does have some weight but we can leave the repair kit home which would reduce the weight a little. If we have to use it we can drive slowly, locating a tire store or hotel, get it replaced or fixed, and be on our way. I'm so disappointed manufacturers are using this cheap trick to reduce weight and improve their EPA mpg numbers.
 
There is another facet to this issue and that is the age of the tires, especially those bought used. (The age of the tire can be determined from the 4 digit DOT code stamped on the tire which indicates the week of manufacture. The first two digits are the week of the year, the last two digits are the year.) Tires are subject to degradation when subjected to sunlight and the atmosphere. There is a compound added to the rubber by the manufacturer which combats this. It is released by the heat in the tire generated when in use. That compound is not released as readily in a spare in your trunk/garage which does not get used/hot. RV tires are routinely replaced at 5-7 years, regardless of tread wear, due to age as they often sit for long periods of time without being used. Donut spares have the same problem, perhaps more so as they don't have the internal steel belts that everyday driving tires do. I asked at Discount Tire and was told donut spares have a 10 year life. That seems about right to me. Any other opinions?
 
Coastie68 said:
RV tires are routinely replaced at 5-7 years, regardless of tread wear, due to age as they often sit for long periods of time without being used. Donut spares have the same problem, perhaps more so as they don't have the internal steel belts that everyday driving tires do. I asked at Discount Tire and was told donut spares have a 10 year life. That seems about right to me. Any other opinions?
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Donut spares do not have the same problem since they sit unloaded, they won't take a set and get out of round. Even longer than 10 years might be ok for them..
 
@Mowcowbell, there is a seller on Ebay that has 4 of the Maxima spares with 145/80/17 tires on them for $71 plus tax. These are essentially the same diameter/circumference as the stock tires...
https://www.ebay.com/sch/m.html?_od...ompact+Spare+Fits+04-14+16-18+MAXIMA&_sacat=0
I used the Nissan Maxima full size wheel for my spare. You just need a 66.1 to 64.1 mm hub adapter and acorn (radial) type lugs (or for a few wheels mag type). You will be able to tell what lugs you need once you get the wheel. Here's a tire comparison tool for checking to the stock tires...
https://tiresize.com/comparison/
I like the diameter/circumference to be within 1% so that you don't have to worry any if you put the spare on the front. One or two of the tires listed by the ebay seller are 2010 to 2012 so they will be newer, but as @David Towle said, these things don't age in the trunk very much. I've never seen one of them with cracking from age. I think that if you stay 2010 or later, you should have no trouble with age of the tire and having to replace the tire. Also, I ordered one of these for my father-in-law last night. He wanted a smaller spare to have more available room in the trunk (he been carrying a full size just like I do). When I get it in a couple of days, I don't mind letting anyone know for sure that the spare works if you aren't in a hurry to buy....
 
My previous post listed a Maxima steel spare with 145/80/17 tires.
I don't know if this has been mentioned yet or not, but there are also some Infiniti spoked aluminum wheels that are 18" and 145/70/18 tires that seem acceptable as spares. These are 1.1% smaller than the OEM tires. I know that the Infiniti spoked aluminum 17" wheels with 145/80/17 tires have been discussed on this thread and are also good options. These are a little closer in size to the OEM tires at 0.8% smaller than the OEM.
Here's one of the 18" aluminum spoked infiniti spares:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/2007-2013-...-RIM-TIRE-DONUT-T145-70D18-34798/273816907542
These seem to have the mag type lugs.
Here is one of the 17" aluminum spoked spares:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/2007-2013-...RE-TIRE-WHEEL-T145-80D17-PERFECT/323794235303
Also note if buying that some of the 17" aluminum spoked spares have 165/80/17 tires which are about 4% larger than the OEM tires, so you would probably want to run these on the back. But I would like to hear from experts as to the effect of different sizes on the front. I have always tried to stay within about 1% on the drive axle due to differential heating, but I have also read that up to 2.5% is probably ok. I don't know if the Clarity would even have this as a limitation with the hybrid electric drive. Maybe someone who knows more than I could weigh in... Again, any of these wheels will require a different set of lugs than the radial ones that came on the Clarity (either acorn or mag-type depending on the wheel) and will require a 66.1 mm to 64.1 mm hub centric adapter.
 
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Robert_Alabama said:
I have always tried to stay within about 1% on the drive axle due to differential heating, but I have also read that up to 2.5% is probably ok.
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How do these non-Honda spares compare with the steel 17" Honda spare on ebay? Do you know how the diameter/circumference of this option compares with the OEM wheels? The non-Honda mag spares are certainly lighter, but does that offset the need for the non-Honda lug nuts and the hub adapter?
 
The picture for the 17" Honda spare on ebay shows a 155/70/17, but I think I saw a post from someone who bought one that it had a 145/80/17 tire. Regardless the 155/70/17 is 3.1% smaller than the OEM, the 145/80/17 is 0.8% smaller than the OEM. I would make sure that the hub size really is 64.1mm and that it has semicircular holes (radial) and not acorn when I got it. I don't inherently trust Ebay sellers to know what they are selling and the photo certainly looks like it is acorn. So until I had the Ebay spare in my hands, I can't answer your question.
 
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@Robert_Alabama: Thank you for posting the Ebay link for the Infinity G35 T145-80D17 spare; I pulled the trigger and purchased it. Once I receive the spare I'll get the other required parts (i.e., hub ring adapter, correct wheel nuts, jack, and tools). And my heartfelt thanks to everyone else (especially the OP, peekay) for finding this spare tire solution. Our EV range anxiety was resolved with the purchase of our Clarity, and now our "flat tire" anxiety can be resolved too! :) (I'm not sure why I typed "our" -- the Clarity is my wife's car and I rarely get to drive it!) :(
 
vicw said:
I like your idea of a donut spare, but is there an advantage of the flat repair kit over the pump/kit that comes with the Clarity? I'm not challenging the idea, I just really don't know the answer. I just bought an extra pump since I'm apprehensive about using the Clarity one for just pumping air, rather than adding the sealant.
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I got a flat unfortunately, the compressor worked absolutely fine on the non-sealant mode. I had heard again and again that using the foam sealant makes the tire really difficult to work on at the shop afterwards, to the point of sometimes needing a whole new tire. So we bought a plug kit, and my friend plugged the puncture. Did it with the wheel still on the car, and the compressor running. Was on a road trip, no problems once we plugged it, once I got home the dealership did the full proper repair. I now carry a plug kit, pliers, and a exacto knife along with the compressor.
 
has anyone confirmed if the honda spare tire rim is ok to use for the clarity? meaning the hub size is same and we can use the clarity lugs
 
vicw said:
Well I'll be.... Didn't know that was possible. That will be one fewer expensive repair events - presumably no battery involved, and easier recalibration after tire rotation or replacement . I wonder how low the tire pressure has to be to trigger the warning. My old Odyssey would give an error at about 28 psi.
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The Clarity doesn't monitor tire pressure. It tracks the rotation of the tires and if one is not rotating at the expected speed it lights up an icon on the dash.

"Direct TPMS uses a sensor mounted in the wheel to measure air pressure in each tire. ... Indirect TPMS works with your car's Antilock Braking System's (ABS) wheel speed sensors. If a tire's pressure is low, it will roll at a different wheel speed than the other tires."

There is no indication of which tire. When I received the notice the second day I had mine the tire pressure was the same in all tires.

Because of the poor method used by Honda I bought one of these. It plugs into the lighter at the back of the console and I have two sided tape holding to the back of the interior of the console. If the TPMS icon comes on I lift the console lid and check all four tires.

https://smile.amazon.com/Spurtar-Pr...1&s=gateway&sprefix=solar+tpms,aps,193&sr=8-5
 
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