Any thoughts on getting a similar wheel from a scrapyard to use as a spare, to replace that stupid “space saver” tire?

I don’t think I can find the exact Jaguar wheels that I have on my XKR but it looks like older XJ’s, the Nissan Maxima, and several Audi’s and BMW’s use the same wheel and tire / tyre. It looks like there’s space in the trunk / boot for a full size spare and I don’t mind the extra weight in the back.

They won’t match on appearance of course but neither does the existing space saver donut thing!

Any downsides to this, or anything I should look for?

Here’s the why:

I have a 2006 XKR with a “space saver” spare that’s starting to disintegrate. My local Discount Tire won’t fix a slow leak in that I have in one of the full size wheels, and they don’t carry 245/45R18 tires in stock so they can’t attempt a repair unless there’s a functional spare.

 

If you purchase a 'spare-wheel', What size would you get?
8 X 18" (front) or 9 X 18" (rear)
What tire?

245/45 18 or 255/45 18?

 

Good point/question, thank you! I’m guessing the narrower front one 245/45 18? Will that fit on the back temporarily in the true sense of a spare tire that I would use to get to a place where I can fix the proper tire?

 

The rear wheels need to rotate at the same rate as the front ones OR SLOWER!

If the wheels rotate faster than the fronts, the traction control will 'kick-in' and try to remedy the situation.

You can put larger wheels/tires on the rear but not smaller rolling radius or circumference.

 

The spare is already smaller in diameter/radius/circumference than either the fronts or the rears. The space saver spare is 135/80r18 which has a diameter of 26.5inches. The front 245/55r18 have a diameter of 26.6 inch and the rear 255/55r18’s have 27.0 inch diameter.

So I guess for spare tire purposes the smaller tire would be OK, what would I be hurting if I put a 245/55r18 on the back to use as a spare? Would it foul the rear brakes or suspension or anything like that?

 

I would look for a different tire shop that doesn’t have the same corporate imposed restrictions.

that would be a lot easier than getting a full sized spare wheel & tire.

Z.

PS Unless you are planning to buy a set of run-flat tires, you might as well get the space saver tire replaced with a functional one anyway.

 

We have read of people on here purchased cars to find both the fronts on one side and the rears on the other so dont worry ..can you get a steel wheel rather than the more expensive alloy version?

 

Both of my cars have a matching full sized rim and tire as a spare. It's a spare, not had for a permanent runner. It's an easy solution to the aged factory spare.

 

I will get one from a scrap yard. $33 from the yard near me.

 

Thanks!! On your X100, is it a 245/55 or 255/55?

 

I have told this story before.................
Texas Mustang Sales in Dallas used to bring warranty work after they bought cars from auctions all over the country.
They brought a 4.0 XKR conv in because the TRACTION CONTROL would intermittently 'activate' when driving on the highway. (speeds greater than about 50)

The TRACTION CONTROL would flash on the display and the throttle would close causing 'jerking' and then allow you to accelerate back up to speed.
NO faults detected in the ABS/TC module so I looked for other problems with speed sensors etc.

I finally looked at the tire sizes and realized that the rear wheels/tires were on the front and the front wheels/tires were on the back.

I told the service writer to call Pete and tell him there was a 1/2 hour labor charge and to come get the car.
Pete 'balked' and said the car was under factory warranty and he would not pay the labor.

I told him that JAGUAR did NOT send the car to North America with the wheels WRONG.

He told us he had a shop do a 'rotate and balance' when they bought the car from the auction.
I told him to get that shop to pay me but the car was NOT LEAVING until someone paid me for wasting my TIME!!!!!!!!!!!!

The car was picked up and I was paid and I did NOT rotate the wheels tires. (I left it as I found it)

They NEVER brought cars in for anything except warranty work. They had another shop in Dallas that 'got all the gravy'.

 

+1

you can tell people this ‘till the cows come home, and you will still get people posting that it doesn’t matter which end the bigger or smaller wheels are on.

in other words, to use another livestock reference, you can lead a horse to water but you can’t make him drink.

Z

 

The other way to handle this is to wait until one of the front tyres is almost at the point of needing replacement and then use it as a spare fitting a new tyre to a new wheel or putting the tyre being replaced on the spare you got from the scrap man..its all about the $$$$.

You could of course buy a can of that tyre inflator /seal and squirt it into the mini spare IF you need it .

 

The spare is old enough to order its own beer in a pub… it’s also been in Texas it’s whole life. I’m more worried about it disintegrating than leaking.

 

Having tried it now, I cannot recommend it at all.

So here is the story of me with my list of cars that have 18” wheels and 245/55’s and my trip to the scrapyard.

I look at their price list online and 18” alloys are $37. I get to the scrapyard, there’s a $2 entry fee. No problem. They do warn me that there’s two 5-spoke hub patterns and recommend that I get a wheel from a Jag. They point me to a couple of S-types and off I go.

First problem: tires are separated from the rims. I was not expecting that. So I’m now going to have to add $25 for a scrap tire and then find a dodgy shop who will mount it for me, probably another $20. Oh well, I’m here now, I might as well continue.

The S-types are both on 17’s. Crap.

So I make my way off to the luxury SUV aisle. Most of the 18” wheels are already gone, apparently they’re quite popular.

Lo and behold there’s a solo 18” alloy wheel on the ground AND it still has a 245/55 tire on it AND the tire is only 2 years old so it will last another 10 years. Score! It’s a bit dirty and it’s missing it’s valve core but I’ll take that risk. I measure the hub pattern and it’s the same as mine. Perfect.

There’s an hour wait to check out. Great.

I get to the checkout, $37 for the wheel, $25 for the tire AND there’s a $20 core charge for the wheel if you’re not bringing one in. Oh yes, and a $7 warranty if I’d like to bring the wheel back for any reason. The tire is non-returnable.

So I’m now 2+ hours into this and close to $100 while a new spare would have been $114+fitting. But I’ve come this far so I do it.

I get home and buy a valve tool. No problem whatsoever, new valve in and it holds air overnight.

I proceed to clean the wheel and I find a small crack in the rim that I didn’t see at the yard. Crap. Oh well, it’s holding air, JB weld will be OK for a spare.

Now I figure I’ll put the wheel on the car to see if it’s dented or unbalanced.

IT DOESN’T FIT!!!

Despite having measured it in the scrapyard, the holes are off by about a quarter inch. Aargh…

To add insult to injury, I figured I’d just go to my regular tire shop to get the repair I needed done on the actual tire and I’ll throw the non-fitting spare in the trunk and hope they won’t notice. Well. I get to the tire shop they have a look, simple screw in the tread, no problem. Then they call me with a problem. The shoulder of both fronts is bald, despite having a good half inch of tread across 95% of the width. Apparently the last person who aligned it got the toe wrong. The rears are 12 years old and there’s a $150 discount for buying four. So now I’m out $1000… and $114 for the damn spare while I’m at it!!!

 

this is a photo of my sss once on my 2008 xk...my 2005 xk8 has a full size.
wj

 

You and I have been to the same college of hard knocks.

z