Spare Tire Carrier Question

Joesplace · 09-14-2016, 08:58 PM

I'm upgrading to 15" tires and want to know if a 15" tire will fit in the spare tire carrier on a 2005 2720SL. Anybody know for sure?

Thanks . . . .

klpauba · 09-14-2016, 09:43 PM

I also have a 2005 2720SL and I replaced the tires with 15" Maxxis tires. The spare tire is riding in the carrier. It's a bit tight but it's been riding there for two seasons.

tentcamper · 09-14-2016, 09:46 PM

I heard it will not fit. I know my 2003 it will not work. You need to lower the bracket with the pins by about 1 inch. Bill has a post how to add a 1" U-channel, which effectively lowers it.

But I'm like you, need to know for sure. I would suggest you look up the specs for the inflated width of your current and future tire. Calculate the plus difference. I think you will find it's about 3/4". Then do your own test; lower the current spare and then put it back in place and see if you think it will work?.

You could simulate the 15" tire. Cut some 1"X2" boards that are 3/4 inch thick after being planed when finished, Place them between the tire and mounting bracket tubes and see if you can put it up?

I know my 14" spare is very hard to put it up. I lower the psi to 40 and inflate to 50 after the spare is up. When I update my tires to 15 I need to make a mod for the spare.

**Bill** · 09-15-2016, 07:59 AM

As Tentcamper mentioned, when I changed to 15" tires, the spare would not fit into the carrier. Not even close - not even with a pry bar to lift it. There was a lot of discussion in the thread he referenced

http://www.trailmanorowners.com/foru...ead.php?t=5828

including a good solution by Eric Larson which seems to have disappeared. At any rate, the rack extension should be enough to lift the tire snug against the underside of the TM, but not so tight that you can't get it in.

A simpler solution - one that I used in the short term until I modified the rack - is simply to keep the best of your 14-inch tires as a spare. Obviously it will fit in the rack, and for a relatively short journey to a tire store, it will work fine even though the tire on the other side is a 15-inch unit. You would have to transport the blown 15" tire somewhere else, but that is OK for a short journey. I carried a giant garbage bag which I could slip over the blown tire to keep everything else clean.

Bill