how many spare tires is enough?

[kiwi_outdoors]

how many spare tires is enough? (or, how lucky do I feel).

Wife and I will be taking Jeep Liberty 2008 to the Arizona strip and tootling around backroads to Whitmore Point, Tuweap, Kanab Pt , top of Lava, Snake Gulch etc. City tires on 16" rims. Jeep has part time 4WD and traction control. It climbs Jeep trails better than you would expect on city tires , due to the traction control. Spare tire is a brand new LT on a 16" rim.

I will take 2 cans of fix-a-flat.

I will take a spare LT tire on a 15"rim (it fits) - on a modified bicycle carrier in the rear hitch.

Should I also take the silly donut spare that came with the Jeep?

I have never ad a flat tire on back roads in 11 years. I have driven the Hole in the Rock Road and Toroweap Pt road a few times. On gravel and dirt roads I do tend to run in 4WD more then needed to even out the tire-road forces at work.

Reason I ask is that I just watched a YouTube video- and these two dudes in a Suburban went down the Toroweap Pt road and got TWO flats in 60 miles!!

[Scott P]

I would only take one to those places (at least if you have 10-ply tires), but of course travel at your own risk. If you are going out towards Kelley Point or something, I'd take two spares. The roads you are planning aren't that rough. 4wd is recommended, but they still aren't nearly as bad as others in the area.

[Bootboy]

The type of tire is important.

If you have a good mt/at tire with a three ply sidewall you'll be ok if you're careful. Street/all season tires could be a different story.

Not a lot of people spend much time in that area without getting a flat.
Sharp limestone and lava rock don't mess around.

[2065toyota]

You can fix a of tires with plug kits. We've repaired sidewall gashes with over 30 plugs in one hole and drove out of places on them

[kiwi_outdoors]

Rope type plugs?

[Sandstone Addiction]

Rope type plugs are the ones to use.

The biggest problem is getting it aired back up.

Bootboy has the best method. If you have serious off road tires, your spare should stay on the holder where it belongs.

[kiwi_outdoors]

Like I said - city tires are on the car, both spares are A/T. We shall see how it goes. I have never had a flat in the backcountry, I am in my 16th year of going outdoors in a Jeep Cherokee, now a Liberty. I plan to take fix afloat and rope tire repair and two compressors.

[rich67]

I carry one full sized spare, a tire inflation pump, a rope type plug kit and some bailing wire. Worst case scenario, the spare is used and ends up getting a sidewall tear, you can limp it out by stitching it with the bailing wire and the self-vulcanizing plugs, enough to where you can limp it out. I would NOT recommend using the small donut, as it will most likely be destroyed easily with sharp rocks and then you will be really SOL. Find a full size rim and tire at a pick-a-part or on Craigslist and use that. Ditch the small spare. Air down a tad as well to aid with protection against sharp rocks. But don't air down TOO much where you will pop a bead. It's good to carry a ratchet strap to aid with re-seating a bead if you need to ... but you shouldn't be running that low a PSI.

[kiwi_outdoors]

I carry one full sized spare, a tire inflation pump, a rope type plug kit and some bailing wire. Worst case scenario, the spare is used and ends up getting a sidewall tear, you can limp it out by stitching it with the bailing wire and the self-vulcanizing plugs, enough to where you can limp it out. I would NOT recommend using the small donut, as it will most likely be destroyed easily with sharp rocks and then you will be really SOL. Find a full size rim and tire at a pick-a-part or on Craigslist and use that. Ditch the small spare. Air down a tad as well to aid with protection against sharp rocks. But don't air down TOO much where you will pop a bead. It's good to carry a ratchet strap to aid with re-seating a bead if you need to ... but you shouldn't be running that low a PSI.

just asking - if you had a torn stitched tire to limp out on - won't you constantly have to stop and air it back up again - meaning that a qality air compressor is needed - not a Walmart unit?

BTW - both my spares are full size on full size rims :-)

[2065toyota]

I've had pretty good luck with the Slime units from Walmart. Small and compact and have filled 37" tires with them. A compressor, plugs, tow strap and jumper cables are a must have in any vehicle traveling anywhere

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[Doc Foster]

When going places like that (I have been to the Arizona Strip 3 times over the years) I carry something like this - http://www.amazon.com/Safety-Seal-String-Repair-Storage/dp/B001DIECCK/ref=zg_bs_15706711_2- , a compressor and a full size spare. Make sure your existing tires are in good shape to begin with; drive sensibly.

[Old Jeeper]

One spare, compressor and Safety Seal plug kit is all I take. And I'll plug it before using the spare.

[kiwi_outdoors]

We drove to Toroweap Overlook, Kanab Pt (simply stunning), Whitmore Overlook, to a sneak entry to Snake Gulch, and out a gnarly sand road to South Fork Indian Caynon (pictographs), down to The Notch, Little Black Mntn, Ft Pearce, and had no flat tires. I drove carefully as needed, used 4WD a lot to even out tire traction stress, moved some rocks and dug one out, and let out 5 psi. Wifey did some of this driving.

[rich67]

just asking - if you had a torn stitched tire to limp out on - won't you constantly have to stop and air it back up again - meaning that a qality air compressor is needed - not a Walmart unit?

BTW - both my spares are full size on full size rims :-)
Eventually I plan on going with an on board ARB unit, but for right now, the one I have has suited me well. It fills all 4 tires from 12 psi to 35 without overheating and going into shutdown mode, and has been trusty for quite a few years.

[rich67]

I've had pretty good luck with the Slime units from Walmart. Small and compact and have filled 37" tires with them. A compressor, plugs, tow strap and jumper cables are a must have in any vehicle traveling anywhere

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk
That's what I use. Say what you want about the Slime pump, this thing is great. I had a problem with the gauge, and their customer service was completely awesome. They sent me a whole new hose and gauge setup for nothing. I keep the extra hose as a backup.