A Spare Tire That Fits Under the Load Floor

[bandit81]

This is a spare I got from EZ Spare Wheels. Since it doesn't fit in the well sufficiently to allow the cover to close flush, I just strapped it down. I guess it's the lazy way out, but it works.

Does that work with the factory lugnuts or does it come with it's own?

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[elh0102]

Does that work with the factory lugnuts or does it come with it's own?

Both. It works with the OE nuts, but they also ship a set. I don't like the ones the send, because they work with a big torx driver socket, and the head is not 22mm, so it's two more thing to keep up with. I didn't actually check the angle of the wheel surface for a perfect match, but i mounted it on front and went for a short drive.

 

[bpebler]

Definitely the best looking lol

 

[s219]

This is a spare I got from EZ Spare Wheels. Since it doesn't fit in the well sufficiently to allow the cover to close flush, I just strapped it down. I guess it's the lazy way out, but it works.

Do you remember the cost? I am curious because I went with the Honda CTR FK8 kit that came with the jack and all the tools for $220, then spent another $125 for the tire, so all in for about $345. It also doesn't fit under the floor, so I just strapped it into the cargo area for now.

 

[elh0102]

You're better off in total cost. My tire and wheel from EZ Spare was $345 with tax and shipping. I had a compact jack kit from a previous BMW, so that was already spent. I'm sure that I have over $500 in the whole thing. But IOM (it's only money).

 

[jpooah1]

Special thanks to kjechel. Thanks for putting the writeup for this together. Followed all the steps, ordered all the parts. All in it’s less than $300 and fits in the rear flat. Much appreciated! My only observations and advice was that for the drill I followed the instructions and torqued the wheel down to 60,70,80,95 each time I just used the 9/16 step drill bit taped off to mark how deep and really just hit the hole for like 3 seconds the hole was already fine but I wanted that extra clearance. Literally just fine little metal shavings came off the hole it wasn’t hard.

And the tire shop mounted it for $25 included valve stem. When working on the trunk just put your rear seats down to fold the cover flap backward over the back seats and that gives you room to work.
I just used the styrofoam padding that came with my wheel from
ecs and cut it into a pad shape about 7 inch by 2 inch by 2 inch and it fit to make the wheel sit flat. Everything fit great thanks!

 

[elh0102]

Both. It works with the OE nuts, but they also ship a set. I don't like the ones the send, because they work with a big torx driver socket, and the head is not 22mm, so it's two more thing to keep up with. I didn't actually check the angle of the wheel surface for a perfect match, but i mounted it on front and went for a short drive.

I need to correct this previous post of mine. The EZ Spare wheel is NOT designed to work with the OE lug nuts. The OE lugnut is a ball seat design, and this wheel uses a conical taper, which is properly addressed in the EZ Spare lugnuts which they provide. The tight spacing is accommodated by these lugnuts also. They are extended, and the torx head key fits inside the nut, so no additional external space is needed. Although it requires a couple of additional pieces in your emergency kit, it seems to be a good design. Attempting to use the OE lugnuts will risk a connection that may not maintain its torque value.

 

[bandit81]

I know I originally suggested the Dorman 611246 / 611246.1 lug nuts, I am not 100% confident with them as the studs on our wheels do not come out far enough to utilize all of the threads of the Dorman nuts. This spare with the BMW wheel is a "use at your own risk" approach, meant to be a very temporary solution.

If I was acquiring a spare today, I would go with the EZ Spare Wheel, buy a tire cover for it and only keep it in the back seat or trunk on longer road trips. Driving around town I am comfortable with using the kit that comes with the car. At home I now have a set of 18" wheels with all season tires for winter driving - which is literally a full set of spare wheels and tires.

FIY I store a scissor jack and an extendable "telescoping " lug nut wrench along with the original air compressor under the trunk area. Jack wise, I got the Torin AST10202SB, the base has a rotating piece at the bottom that when folded in is about 3.5" thick which fits under the spare tire area perfectly.

 

[s219]

For the money, it's hard to beat the Honda spare tire kit for the FK8 since it comes with the jack and tools. With tire, looking at around $300-350.

 

[west]

Necroposting here (I'm new to the forum and reading all I can about the ITS before maybe buying one), but you can use VHB tape to secure, say, the Mounting Plate for the tire.

AI says there is a newer VHB called VHB Max that has a dynamic pull strength of 25 pounds per square feet (edit: square inch).

I would do VHB myself (if there's enough surface area on the plate and also the floor of the trunk) vs. drilling holes in a car myself. VHB is crazy strong.

 

[Frenzal]

Necroposting here (I'm new to the forum and reading all I can about the ITS before maybe buying one), but you can use VHB tape to secure, say, the Mounting Plate for the tire.

AI says there is a newer VHB called VHB Max that has a dynamic pull strength of 25 pounds per square feet (edit: square inch).

I would do VHB myself (if there's enough surface area on the plate and also the floor of the trunk) vs. drilling holes in a car myself. VHB is crazy strong.

Look at the other spare tire thread what I did in mine... Used structural glue to glue a spare tire holder in my trunk. Hasn't bulge since almost 3 years!

 

[west]

Look at the other spare tire thread what I did in mine... Used structural glue to glue a spare tire holder in my trunk. Hasn't bulge since almost 3 years!

Yeah, modern adhesives are pretty nuts. The original Lotus Elise chassis in the '90s was put together using just extruded aluminum, adhesives, and rivets. Adhesive tech has only improved since the '90s, and I have never heard of the S1 Elises failing because of adhesive failure, and they've been on the road for... 30+ years???



I just have liked VHB because it's easy to deal with than loose adhesive / less messy, and I think it is easier to undo 100% if you want to revert things later?

Thanks for typing up all you have typed up about spares, by the way. I have been reading your thread (the RL spare option) and this thread (the BMW spare option) more than I care to admit this afternoon. I'm debating which route is the best if I do swap my RS for an ITS.

On the one hand, the RL route is a lot simpler and I believe should be cheaper. On the other hand, I do like that the BMW spare route keeps the cargo floor at its stock level, and I'm no stranger to precisely modifying metal things with drills and other machining bits. I'm just not sure I'm wrapping my head around all of the modifications needed to the BMW spare yet, or how its recommended to do the modifications. (I am still reading, and re-reading., and I see no summary post that says "Here are the precise steps you need to take, and what you need to buy", but just scattered thoughts throughout this thread....)

 

[bandit81]

I have had my Type-S for over 2 years now and have only had one tire issue and that was within the first 3 months of ownership - the tire did not blow just had a slow leak. I now have a 2nd set of wheels/tires for winter. They are 18" wheels with all season M+S Pilot Sport tires, same size found on the Aspec, an easy to find tire size. The 18" wheels require different lug nuts. On a long road trip I put one of the 4 wheels that I am not driving with in the back as a spare tire. The tire is covered with a tire cover, I can either put the tire in the backseat or in the trunk. This is not space saving but I know I can drive home safer than with the donut. By bringing an 18"wheel/tire if the front tire is the issue I do not have to do a dance swapping the front/rear wheels.

Having no spare tire from the factory is frustrating. I would say that the BMW donut is the best space saving option. Don't want to worry about lug nuts then get the CTR FK8 kit. Want something off the shelf ready to go get the EZ Spare. If you want the cheapest route get a normal 18" or larger wheel that will work at all four corners, this is the least amount of hassle and you can drive with it close to normal. The ultimate spare is a literal one, you could always pickup a 5th factory 19" wheel and rotate that in/out like how cars did before the 90's. Remember anything aftermarket you will still need to pack 5 additional lug nuts and the socket it requires.

No matter how you slice this it is a PITA.

 

[west]

No matter how you slice this it is a PITA.

I agree, but I'm thinking about switching to an ITS from my Focus RS because their engines can randomly grenade when driving! Slightly bit more of a pain in the butt than dealing with a spare tire.

For me the full sized spare in the back wouldn't work just because when I'm doing long road trips I generally have a bike or other things in the back of whatever my "hauler" car is. I've rented an A Spec before and stuffed a mountain bike in the back and there was basically no room for anything else! The RS has quite a bit more space (and AWD for the mountains), but that's about where it's "pros" vs. the ITS end.

If you are bored, here is a thread on focusrs.org showing just some of the common problems with the Focus RS. There's also regular posts about "My engine blew up" or "I need a replacement transmission", which do not inspire my confidence in the thing! https://www.focusrs.org/threads/common-problems-list.129010/

 

[elh0102]

Just a thought on the ITS compact spare issue. I believe the only spare you might find that will fit totally below the trunk floor will be one that does not clear the front brakes. This is a personal decision, and none of my business, but from experience, I urge caution before taking this path. It's easy to say that, in the event of a front flat tire, just jack up one side, put the OE rear on front and the spare on the back. And it is easy enough, with the car sitting in your driveway. But, on the side of the road or anywhere near traffic or with less than perfect ground or pavement, it is not so easy, and it can be very dangerous, especially at night. The spare needs to be mounted as quickly and safely as possible, and the extra step of switching front/rear wheels adds a lot of time and risk. As they say, be careful out there.

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