Ad on local Craigslist for Fiero items included 'Factory spare, never used' and it got me wondering if anyone has EVER used the factory spare at all. After all, the tires on those things must be the originals and are 30 years old, so they are probably pretty useless as a spare. I know (or at least have read on here) that the spare forms part of the front end crash protection and I have no problem with it being there for that but as a spare, is it actually any use these days. In fact, can you even get a tire for that thing now?
------------------ Anything I might say is probably worth what you paid for it, so treat it accordingly!
I used mine a couple of times- Once I cut a tire on a cover for a valve under the street that was not sitting properly- Actually got the city to pay for the ruined tire.
Since I have converted my Fiero to 88 brakes with 12" front discs, I had to convert to a larger wheel to clear the brakes...Found one from a Subaru in the JY....It's ....younger.....
Yes, you can still get new spare tires...But, since the tire is never exposed to sunlight, and is relatively protected in the tub, it should hold up for a long time...My old spare is still "Looking good"....I am never going to use it....but it doesn't look rotted or anything. Number one thing that you can do to make the spare hold up during use is to keep you speed under 55....Actually, they say they are rated for 50 only....oh, yeah, make sure it's aired up properly, too....They slowly lose air, so at least once a year pump it up!
I did use the spare tire in my Fiero a couple times, many years ago.
One car that I bought in 2011 had a bad spare tire. It looked like it had a massive blow-out or something. The local tire shop was able to replace it. That car had a 14" 'space saver' spare, which I think is about the same size as the Fiero.
The last time I used my spare was last year returning home from the Hot Rod Power Tour. Had a blow out south of Texarkana. Road on the spare from there to south of Lafayette, La. with no issues. I will admit however that my spare was relatively new (not 30 years old).
And here in Michigan, I swear people go the the junkyard and buy four rather than buy new tires.......
Hey, it worked. I saw them driving on I-75 north of Atlanta.
I used one on my first Fiero. Dropped the full size in the trunk after moving all my stuff to the front seat and floor. Had to leave the deck lid open, of course. If you're hard pressed for space and have a wing on a notchback, the tire on top of the deck lid won't go anywhere.
I have used one in an emergency on my 88 one time with no problems as it was close to home. My son has used his on his 87 GT multiple times as he had a few unfortunate instances, they worked fine for him and he put them in for the next time, as needed, it is still the original donut tire.. Curtis
They were old at ~10 years and most have "dry rot" rubber from Ozone and other air pollution stored in a car.
Nobody should use a 30+ year old tire or a spare. Any damage that expose the cord then junk them ASAP. Even small crack let in water and other crap then will "eat" the cord. Even if look ok on outside... most are filled w/ "shop air" containing oil water etc that can attack inside of the tire rim or both.
You can get a new mounted spare from tirerack and others. You can get just the tire but many places will not mount a spare. 1 reason is many spare rims have problem from rust etc and spares like Fiero uses need 60psi.
------------------ Dr. Ian Malcolm: Yeah, but your scientists were so preoccupied with whether or not they could, they didn't stop to think if they should. (Jurassic Park)
