stevesparky 20 Posted October 5, 2013 Share Posted October 5, 2013 Black Steel 15 inch Rim 6 inches wide. $55 shipped. Site says it will fit the Sparks. http://www.discounttiredirect.com/direct/findWheelDetail.do?bp=4-100&fl=&yr=2013&pc=72515&counter=2&wd=15&rw=6&vid=023664 Any other IDEAS ??? Thanks. Link to post Share on other sites
Greg_E 211 Posted October 5, 2013 Share Posted October 5, 2013 They fit and cost me $51 at Tire rack last fall, I have four of them in 14x5.5 for my snows. They are lug centered which would be fine for a spare. What I don't like about them is the paint chips while you are putting wheel weights on, so see if the place you get the tire installed will use adhesive style weights when they balance it. Link to post Share on other sites
zogburr 3 Posted October 6, 2013 Share Posted October 6, 2013 Black Steel 15 inch Rim 6 inches wide. $55 shipped. Site says it will fit the Sparks. http://www.discounttiredirect.com/direct/findWheelDetail.do?bp=4-100&fl=&yr=2013&pc=72515&counter=2&wd=15&rw=6&vid=023664 Any other IDEAS ??? Thanks. Why do you want a 15 inch spare? It most likely will not fit in the tire well in the trunk area. A 14 inch rim with a 115-70-14 donut tire will have a diameter of about 20.34 inches and fit nicely at the bottom of the trunk well. Just a thought as I am not an expert in this. Link to post Share on other sites
Greg_E 211 Posted October 6, 2013 Share Posted October 6, 2013 Hmmm... I might need to track down a tire that size, I have a 13 inch donut now and would like the larger size. Link to post Share on other sites
Greg_E 211 Posted October 6, 2013 Share Posted October 6, 2013 (edited) This sounds better since it is CHEAP! http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Kumho&tireModel=Spare+Tire+T121&partnum=07D4KH But it needs a 4 inch wide wheel. Edited October 6, 2013 by Greg_E Link to post Share on other sites
stevesparky 20 Posted October 7, 2013 Author Share Posted October 7, 2013 (edited) I measure the Hole, where the spare tire would fit. Looks like the stock tire w/ 23" OD will fit. Has anyone actually taken off one of their tires and placed in the spare tire hole? Here is what I am thinking of doing... Buying a 14 inch rim..http://www.discounttiredirect.com/direct/wheels/unique/product/submitProductSize.do?pc=73342&tmn=83&typ=Car%2FMinivan $51 shipped. Buying a 175/65R14 Goodyear Viva Tire from Walmart..$55 shipped. Pick up in store. So.... what do you think of my idea? The OD of this spare would be the same as the stock tire or 23 inches OD. Total price... about, 51 rim + 55 tire + 11 mounting/ stem/ balance @ W/M = $117 total Edited October 7, 2013 by stevesparky Link to post Share on other sites
zogburr 3 Posted October 7, 2013 Share Posted October 7, 2013 I measure the Hole, where the spare tire would fit. Looks like the stock tire w/ 23" OD will fit. Has anyone actually taken off one of their tires and placed in the spare tire hole? Here is what I am thinking of doing... Buying a 14 inch rim..http://www.discounttiredirect.com/direct/wheels/unique/product/submitProductSize.do?pc=73342&tmn=83&typ=Car%2FMinivan $51 shipped. Buying a 175/65R14 Goodyear Viva Tire from Walmart..$55 shipped. Pick up in store. So.... what do you think of my idea? The OD of this spare would be the same as the stock tire or 23 inches OD. Total price... about, 51 rim + 55 tire + 11 mounting/ stem/ balance @ W/M = $117 total The stock tire doesn't even begin to fit. I tried it. Your purchase will have a diameter of about 23 inches which will jut upward quite a ways because the tire well is somewhat conical and gets smaller at the bottom. Your tire may go about 1/3 of the way down. Look, I went thru all this. If you want something that fits nicely, you will need a 14 inch rim with an appropriate donut tire; what many call a space saver tire. If GM ever comes out with a spare tire kit, it will be 14 inches with a donut tire. It is the only thing that will fit. I picked up a 2004 Saturn Ion space saver tire from eBay for $59 with free shipping. It is less than 21 inches in diameter and fits nicely on the car and in the tire well. It has a 57.1mm ( spark has 56.6) center bore, so no worry there as the lugs will center the tire on the smaller Spark center hub. Most 4 by 100 bolt patterns are on smaller cars and have a smaller center bore that the Spark, so that is how I ended up with the Saturn spare; one of the only ones I could find with a larger bore. Link to post Share on other sites
stevesparky 20 Posted October 7, 2013 Author Share Posted October 7, 2013 (edited) Thanks... I appreciate that you have done all this. No sence in me repeating. I will look for a spacesaver tire instead. I see the Saturn space saver tires on ebay. About the same price you paid. So any 4 HOLE will Fit? And I will have to ground out the center HOLE? What are you doing for a JACK? Edited October 7, 2013 by stevesparky Link to post Share on other sites
zogburr 3 Posted October 7, 2013 Share Posted October 7, 2013 (edited) Thanks... I appreciate that you have done all this. No sence in me repeating. I will look for a spacesaver tire instead. I see the Saturn space saver tires on ebay. About the same price you paid. So any 4 HOLE will Fit? And I will have to ground out the center HOLE? What are you doing for a JACK? Yes, it will fit the Spark without doing anything. Like I say, mine is a Saturn Ion from 2004. If I remember correctly, Ions 03 and up have a center bore of 57.1 so it will fit the Spark. Everything else is also compatible In including the four hole bolt pattern. Getting a scissor jack is another thing. You can't use a jack with a flat top as the Spark has a slight downward ridge on the seam. I bought a jack online at Harbor Freight. Do a search on "scissor jacks." The one you want, with the notch on top, will came up first on the results page. I think that it was about $18. Also, the Ion space saver tire weighs about 19 lbs compared to the 40 lbs of a full sized tire. If you go this route, you shouldn't use your 14 inch spare on the front wheels. If you get a flat on a front tire, you will have to do a double change. Exchange the spare with a good back tire and take that former back tire and put on the front. to replace the flat. I'm not sure of this, but it is what I've heard. Edited October 7, 2013 by zogburr Link to post Share on other sites
Greg_E 211 Posted October 7, 2013 Share Posted October 7, 2013 Flat jacks work fine if you get a nice thick chunk of rubber to use as a jack pad, ask a tire place if they can cut a chunk out of a blow out for you. I bought a rubber tire block to keep the car from rolling and it had a nice thick section in the back that didn't really do anything so I cut it out and now have the jack pad and the wedge. Link to post Share on other sites
NoSprak 17 Posted October 17, 2013 Share Posted October 17, 2013 (edited) I didn't know you could buy new donuts! Also - when did they start coming with tread? I have never seen a donut with actual tread before! What about going to a junkyard and buying an old donut wheel, then getting a new tire? I'm not sure how I would trust a 14 year old Donut. Edited October 17, 2013 by NoSprak Link to post Share on other sites
stevesparky 20 Posted October 17, 2013 Author Share Posted October 17, 2013 Just for Grins... , I took one of my stock tires off. And it fit just fine where the spare tire is suppose to go. As long as you get a tire and rim with a OD no more than 23 inches and not too wide. Thats the route I am going to go. Link to post Share on other sites
Greg_E 211 Posted October 17, 2013 Share Posted October 17, 2013 I tried my snow tires and they will not fit, they must be just barely to large to fit. Have to try the stock tires when I make the swap to snows and make sure it fits because I thought I tried this last winter it they didn't go. Link to post Share on other sites
stevesparky 20 Posted October 17, 2013 Author Share Posted October 17, 2013 Max Diameter is 23 inches. If what ever you have is about that Dia or less, should fit. I took a pic. of my stock tire in "hole". Busy. But will post sometime. Link to post Share on other sites
sparkfanatic 70 Posted November 30, 2013 Share Posted November 30, 2013 I tried my stock size spare in the hole and it wasn't close to fitting.I ended up putting it in on an angle .I now have no additional space to put packages ect ,only my emergency stuff .Its definitely not the right way to do it but better than leaving the spare in the backseat out in the open . Link to post Share on other sites
Greg_E 211 Posted November 30, 2013 Share Posted November 30, 2013 No amount of pushing would allow my stock wheels to fit in the space, I would say we need something that is 1.5 to 2 inches in diameter smaller to fit properly. Link to post Share on other sites
sparkfanatic 70 Posted November 30, 2013 Share Posted November 30, 2013 I agree , it didn't come close to fitting . The rear seat backs limit the space also , even with the seats flat I don't think it could fit in the hole . I guess I'm happy that at least I wedged it in hatch area but it's a Mickey Mouse setup . Still better than someone breaking in the car to steal my new spare in back seat . Link to post Share on other sites
gitsum 16 Posted December 9, 2014 Share Posted December 9, 2014 (edited) Yes, the stock 15" rim with a stock 185/55 tire will fit in the spare tire location. Lay your seat backs flat and the tire fits by dropping in the back first and then the front. It might be the front first, I've had one in there with a tire iron and a bottle jack for over six months. It only drops in there one way, but it's not too hard to figure out how to fit the stock rim and tire size into the spare tire well. By the way, I replaced my stock rims and worn tires with 14" rims and 185/60 H rated tires. It rides way smoother and handles better than the rock hard "fuel economy" stock tires. My average fuel consumption dropped from 42 mpg to 41 mpg. $30 for the four used 14" x 5.5" steel rims, $20 for wheel covers, $225 for tires. From now on it's $225 out the door for new rubber from any tire store in any town, the best price I could find for the weirdo stock size was $430. Tire circumference is 1.1% smaller, you can feel a little more pick up in first and second gear, but overall the gearing change feels pretty much the same. My son just put 195/50's on his stock rims for $264 (four tires). Both of our cars have snorkel mods (air resonator removal with stock downpipe), throttle body half shaft mods, and rear muffler delete (straight pipe replacement). Edited December 9, 2014 by gitsum Link to post Share on other sites
Deputy Dawg 0 Posted December 15, 2014 Share Posted December 15, 2014 I just called the local Chevy dealer. The parts man looked it up, and quoted $645 for a new aluminum 15" rim. He didn't sound like he knew what he was talking about. More research now, as I'm not looking to break the bank, and from the above posts, know the 15" rim just won't fit my 2014 Spark. Link to post Share on other sites
jibb3r 29 Posted December 16, 2014 Share Posted December 16, 2014 My stepdad was actually looking for a spare for my Spark today. I've just accepted that I don't have one and wasn't worried about it, but since I drove 700 miles from Ohio to Maine to see them, he decided to find me one while I was here. The dealer quoted him $600 for an OEM factory rim with no tire. Most junkyards won't even look for a match, when they see the Spark doesn't come with a spare. We ended up stopping at a junk yard, and got a brand new scissor jack, lug wrench, and new donut tire/rim for $60 total. I'm not complaining. Link to post Share on other sites
bluer101 241 Posted December 16, 2014 Share Posted December 16, 2014 My stepdad was actually looking for a spare for my Spark today. I've just accepted that I don't have one and wasn't worried about it, but since I drove 700 miles from Ohio to Maine to see them, he decided to find me one while I was here. The dealer quoted him $600 for an OEM factory rim with no tire. Most junkyards won't even look for a match, when they see the Spark doesn't come with a spare. We ended up stopping at a junk yard, and got a brand new scissor jack, lug wrench, and new donut tire/rim for $60 total. I'm not complaining. Yep, cheaper way to go. Link to post Share on other sites
WaltK 305 Posted December 16, 2014 Share Posted December 16, 2014 (edited) I just called the local Chevy dealer. The parts man looked it up, and quoted $645 for a new aluminum 15" rim. He didn't sound like he knew what he was talking about. More research now, as I'm not looking to break the bank, and from the above posts, know the 15" rim just won't fit my 2014 Spark. That price is insane, hell, you can get a nice set of four for that money... Edited December 16, 2014 by WaltK Link to post Share on other sites
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