ksg5000
Oregon
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Joined: 06/30/2008
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I carry a spare but given the weight of the tire and the fact that the spare is hard to get to I would only consider changing a tire if I was stuck in the boonies with no way out. Sometimes paying money for something is worth every penny.
I think carrying a spare is essential - if your stuck somewhere its far easier to find an outfit who has the ability to change a tire than finding an outfit that happens to have your sized tire.
Kevin
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funtogo
Amory,Ms.38821
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If you change your own,it helps to have a longer "cheater" pipe that fits over the lug wrench to loosen those lug nuts that are on there so tight!
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Fleetwood E4
Tinley Park IL
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Thanks everyone for all the great information. You folks have been a great help
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tenbear
Northern Vermont, USA
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A good reason to tow a toad. Like a lifeboat.
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hotbyte
Barnesville GA
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Joined: 08/31/2004
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tenbear wrote:A good reason to tow a toad. Like a lifeboat.
We tow a boat...doubt it would be very useful if MH broke down though 
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ASPENMAN
New Mexico
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Get a "Roadside Service Plan" If you carry all the equipment pnichols suggested there won't be room for you and your wife and your rig will be overloaded.
You would need professional equipment NOT YOUR AVERAGE JACK - jacking up a motorhome is not a smart thing for the average person to do.
Some things just should not be "DIY" - BIG MISTAKE - IMHO
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4x4van
California
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Amazing to me that so many have no knowledge or desire to do something as basic as change a flat tire. For those of you advocating not even carrying the equipment; what happens when you can't get cell coverage? You don't have to be out in the boonies for that to happen. There are cellular dead spots everywhere.
I assume that you do at least carry a spare, otherwise you're stuck paying whatever the local place decides to charge for a tire, that likely isn't a good match, or a good price.
And as for not having room for the equipment? Seriously? A good 10-12 ton bottle jack is about 8"x8"x12' high, and a good lug wrench takes up no room, likewise a couple of short 2x6's. You can't find the room for that?
What about the time aspect; how long is it going to take for a tow truck to actually show up to change that tire for you? 30 minutes? 2 hours? More? Why would anybody want to wait that long for something as simple as a tire change?
Even selling a vehicle without a spare, jack, and lug wrench should be illegal, IMO, although it is becoming the norm for new cars in order to save weight. Many now come with a can of tire sealant and a small air compressor instead!
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winnietrey
seattle
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Joined: 03/26/2005
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I carry a bottle jack and a spare tire. Don't believe changing a front tire would be a big deal. Duals would be harder of course. But it is my understanding you can run on one dual at low speed for limited distance, to get to a service place
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ASPENMAN
New Mexico
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Can't get cell coverage - I'd jump in my Honda Fit toad and find a phone. I'd call my emergency roadside service - tell them what I needed (the one I subscribe to has your tire information on record) so they would already know what to bring. I consider a jack and spare tire to be extra baggage - that's why they nave road side service programs - towing - etc etc. However no one approach is right or wrong - whatever works for each person and to each their own way.
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pnichols
Santa Cruz Mountains
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Joined: 04/26/2005
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Quote:If you carry all the equipment pnichols suggested there won't be room for you and your wife and your rig will be overloaded.
We have only a 24 foot no-slide Itasca Class C on the Ford E450 chassis so we do have over 2000 lbs. of extra weight-carrying capacity. We purchased our MH with that in mind for broad flexibility in our RV adventures. We carry all the tire changing equipment mentioned in my post and a whole lot more camping equipment - the bulk of it in the stock outside storage cabinets that Winnebago included in it's design. The bottle jack we carry is 12 ton rated and is a hard to find double-cylinder model with an extra long extension length, just in case. We carry multiple wood leveling blocks that can be used to put under the base of this jack if on soft surfaces or can alternately be used in a rut to get unstuck on a soft surfaces.
The Ford E450 chassis spare tire location is up between the frame frames rails in the rear just ahead of the towing assembly. Fairly easy to get at, but you must lay down on your back a few moments to lossen the retaining nut, drup the tire down, and pull it out.
We camp in all kinds of full hookup and drycamp areas - sometimes in Walmart parking lots, sometimes in KOA and other private campgrounds, sometimes in state and federal campgrounds, forests, reserves, deserts, etc. ... off-times out in the middle of nowhere rockhounding and exploring.
We have traveled 5-6 miles (VERY SLOWLY) on one rear tire of the dual set on the driver's side. Obviously way overloading the one remaining tire and the rig felt quite "squirrelly". The lone Michelin tire on that side was inflated to it's maximum pressure and it did hold up, amazingly. I don't recommended doing it unless on smooth hard road surfaces, traveling very slowly, and not for many miles. The Michelin tire we drastically overloaded while doing this performed faithfully for another 2 years after that with no problems.
Phil, 2005 E450 Itasca 324V Spirit
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