PSA: Check your spare
Posted: Sat Oct 11, 2025 11:44 am
I went to check the air in the spare yesterday and.... lolwut?
Sometime over the summer, the spare just ripped itself apart. A Firestone tire self-destructing - who knew? It was made in week 36 of 2002, never been driven on though I did install it a few times to help with rotations. Somehow it still had 30 PSI in it. I have no idea what happened here, friggin' weird.
Whatever the cause, I'm thankful it happened in the spare tire well rather than on the road.
Now I have to source a T125/70r16 tire, but so far the only one that looks readily available is a rather pricey Continental. At $114, Discount Tire seems to have the best price thus far. Does anyone know of an alternate option?
I suppose the moral of this story is that tires do indeed have a finite lifespan.
- spare1.jpg (700.81 KiB) Viewed 52 times
Sometime over the summer, the spare just ripped itself apart. A Firestone tire self-destructing - who knew? It was made in week 36 of 2002, never been driven on though I did install it a few times to help with rotations. Somehow it still had 30 PSI in it. I have no idea what happened here, friggin' weird.
Whatever the cause, I'm thankful it happened in the spare tire well rather than on the road.- spare2.jpg (405.74 KiB) Viewed 52 times
- spare3.jpg (332.91 KiB) Viewed 52 times
Now I have to source a T125/70r16 tire, but so far the only one that looks readily available is a rather pricey Continental. At $114, Discount Tire seems to have the best price thus far. Does anyone know of an alternate option?
I suppose the moral of this story is that tires do indeed have a finite lifespan.
If that isn't a wake up call on this topic, then I don't know what is! Will have to inspect the spare in my 2004 Vibe GT (which I'm sure is original) and get it replaced as a precaution. Possibly have the 2009 Vibe GT spare replaced also. Interesting though that my wife's newer 2024 Corrolla Cross Hybrid does NOT have a spare due to the rear electric motor wiring running through the trunk/hatch area where a spare (available on non-hybrid models) is located. Thanks for sharing this vital info. Also thanks for sticking around all these years and keep contributing content here where possible