Spare Tire Setup

GrayHawk51

GrayHawk51

Senior Member
Joined
Oct 11, 2014
Posts
464
Location
Surprise, Arizona
Being a newbe to Motorhomes and not having a spare tire come with my GrayHawk, I want to setup a spare. So that being said.. I want to buy a spare rim and tire and have it as backup.

Question: Are the front and rear rims the same size on the Class C Grayhawks? Or different because of the rear rims being duel tires ? :eek:
 
Same. In case of a flat on the front you take one from the rear to limp into a tire store with. In most cases your not going to be able to change a flat by your self on that big rig no matter what, so most just call road side assistance and purchase new tire then.
Bottom line...unless your going on the Alaska hwy you don't need a spare.
 
Hi GrayHawk51, and welcome!


It's a VERY GOOD IDEA to carry a spare. It can be a very long wait for an auto club, or roadside service to find you a spare, and when they do, it may not be a good quality brand. Additionally, you will NOT be happy with what they charge.


One of our friends had a blowout in the mountains of the western side of Virginia around 7:00 PM... over two hours for the truck to get to them, and they weren't able find a appropriate spare 'till the next morning. The total charge for getting a spare and mounting it... just under 400.00. It was a crappy brand, so they got a new Michelin as soon as they could, and use the "crappy" tire as a spare.


They now carry a mounted spare in their rear storage area.


It's great piece of mind, as tires usually blow in isolated places, and it's often on a dark and rainy night. I thin it must be some kind of a rule! LOL
 
Should all be 16x6, eight lug, four hole steel rims (hopefully all painted white for when you ditch the useless (and dangerous) aluminum wheel covers). I picked up a spare rim at a Ford wrecker locally for $50.

Very smart to carry a mounted spare. At the very least carry an unmounted spare tire so that you are not relying on anyone else to find you a tire that works for you (correct size and a brand that you're happy with) while on the side of the road.

Oh and for many (most I'd say if someone showed them how to do it properly) changing a tire on our Greyhawks isn't a huge challenge. The lug nuts are only put on at 140 ft/lbs which with a long enough extension or breaker bar isn't a lot to break loose.
 
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I carry a spare in the rear compartment. Mine are the same, front and rear. I would probably never attempt to change it, and do not carry jacks and tools to change it. That's what Good Sam is for, but I feel better at least having a spare with me.
 
I carry my spare in front on a front mounted receiver hitch. This so I can carry 5 bikes on the back. I bought the rim and tire from Ford. It was the quickest way to get what I needed, Rim and new LTX/MS2 was a little over $400.
 
I carry my spare in one of the rear storage compartments. Bought my rim for my 2014 E-450 Redhawk off line then a matching tire at the local truck center who does my motorhome maintenance. I also would use Good Sam service to change the tire if needed. We are Good Sam life time members and recommend it to everyone.
 
A little bit off to the left of this main topic, if you follow the sprinter / skinny winnie forum over on Yahoo there was recently a discussion about this area in marking the jack points on your coach. I thought to myself that certainly is a good idea. Not necessarily being able to count on someone who shows up for roadside service having the requisite knowledge of where specific jack points are on our motorhomes. Does anyone have any idea where we can identify for the Greyhawk series the proper jack points?

Incidentally while we don't own a Winnebago, following that form over on Yahoo is probably one of the most informative discussions to be had on the Internet. They certainly are a close group and I know I value and of learned quite a few things along the way. We came close to buying a motorhome like that but are way more satisfied with our Jayco Greyhawk.
 
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WDW, If you intend to lift the wheels off the ground, one would think you need to be under the axles. YOu would have to jack the frame a ways in the air before the tire lifted.
 
Rick can you physically lift one of those tires off the ground to install? Many of us cannot and have to wait for road service anyway.. it is one of the reasons they stopped putting spares on rigs your size.. Best bet is to have a good road side ERS and let them deal with it.. just think about the costs of the extra tire and rim, the weight penalty and the space they take up... Tires like you have on that rig don't often go flat as long as you care for them and inspect on a regular basis.
 
Seann, like you I am fighting father time!

Not that long ago l could lift a 40 gal water heater by myself. The other day the WH went out and I went to Homies Depot and as best I tried... couldn't do it ! :eek:( . Had to call one of the store's help.... bummer.

This is why I posted this topic...The feed back.

My only concern is not having a spare tire and getting "screwed" and paying double for a tire. But I agree with you. Tough enough changing a TT tire (which I did last year on the Airstream).

The other day one of the guys posted the response ..If you want to change your tire yourself where to put the jacks without damage to the carriage. I don't know if I'm willing to take the risk of screwing up my frame to save a few dollars (which in the end could cost even more!)

Like you I have Coach-Net and AAA... You pay for the service.. Use the service!

S/
Rick :computer time:
 
I think the owner should still know where to jack the rig. My experience with road service people is most of them don't know either.

If the owner does know,he can be quality control for the tire changer.
 
TX_Arvee said:
I carry my spare in front on a front mounted receiver hitch. This so I can carry 5 bikes on the back. I bought the rim and tire from Ford. It was the quickest way to get what I needed, Rim and new LTX/MS2 was a little over $400.
Click to expand...


TX - how did you install (or have installed the front mounted hitch)? It looks kind of difficult. If you had it installed, what did parts and labor run?
 
When we had our MH I welded a welded a tire rack under the rear just past the axle. (It was out of sight out of mind) BTW before I was deployed my wife and I own a small fleet of OTR trucks. We carried a used but good mounted tire because road side assistance will try to put anything over on you because they know you have got to have it, then try to over charge you. When the trucks got home I had a new tire put on.
 
I had the same problem on my Redhawk, and elected to just go to Costco and buy a spare identical to the one on my rv, and then to store the unmounted tire in a compartment. An unmounted tire takes less space, and weighs less, and the road service people are set up to mount the tire anyway. Now I do not have to worry what tire they bring, or what they decide to charge for it. We are planning a trip to Alaska, and I am thinking of traveling with a second tire, just in case, so I would carry 2 unmounted spares.

Chuck / Winter Park, FL
 
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