lennonlegend1 1 Posted January 25, 2013 Share Posted January 25, 2013 Hey guys, just bought my Spark a few days ago and I just realized that it comes with a tire sealant instead of a spare. I like pretty much everything about the car except for that fact. Just wanted to get some feedback on what other people have done about it. I am thinking about getting a donut and tire case and thowing it in the trunk with a jack and lug wrench. It would take some trunk space away but I feel like it might be worth it. Anyone else think of something better storage wise or just wingin it with the sealant? Michael Kowis 1 Link to post Share on other sites
WaltK 305 Posted January 25, 2013 Share Posted January 25, 2013 (edited) Good question, I'd just call roadside assistance, if the fix a flat doesn't seal it. This is what the owners manual recommends. I guess they would either bring a spare, or flatbed it to the dealer, where the tire would either be repaired or replaced. Just speculation on my part. Edited January 25, 2013 by WaltK Jlafnear 1 Link to post Share on other sites
Lazerface 24 Posted January 25, 2013 Share Posted January 25, 2013 How would you even fit a spare in the back? Im curious if one would even fit. Link to post Share on other sites
Greg_E 211 Posted January 25, 2013 Share Posted January 25, 2013 I'm pretty sure it will fit if you take out the foam that holds the compressor and tire goo. Michael Kowis 1 Link to post Share on other sites
Greg_E 211 Posted March 30, 2013 Share Posted March 30, 2013 A full size tire/wheel will not fit in the space provided, I tried to put one of my snow tires in there and it won't go. I did wedge the donut from my last car in, the breaker bar and socket to remove the wheel nuts, can of goo, air compressor, and stupid screwdriver into the space. need to find the hold down device or do something with the bolts sticking up and make a real cover to support any packages. I stuck my jack in the stupid non-functional cargo net thing to keep it from sliding around. Link to post Share on other sites
illinoiSpark 3 Posted April 1, 2013 Share Posted April 1, 2013 (edited) When my wife and I go on trips, we carry a full size spare in the back seat. I don't want to have a vacation ruined trying to use a can of fix-a-flat. Edited April 1, 2013 by illinoiSpark Link to post Share on other sites
Greg_E 211 Posted April 1, 2013 Share Posted April 1, 2013 Certainly can't blame you for that, thankfully I can toss a snow tire in the back if I need a full size. I did put a donut in the trunk this weekend, and then stuffed the compressor, can of goo, wrench, extra lug nuts, and stupid screw driver in around it. My jack had to go above the tire. Need to work on this stuff to make everything fit better, but for now it is all in there for normal commuting. Also need to make some kind of stiff cover to go over the top of everything and then throw the rubber cargo mat on top when it arrives. Link to post Share on other sites
austex04 48 Posted April 23, 2013 Share Posted April 23, 2013 With the spare, why even try to stuff the compresser and goo in there? It's no longer needed. I should have stole my spare out of my old car. Many automakers are ditching spares these days. A trip across west tx without a spare makes me nervous. Jopar_X 1 Link to post Share on other sites
Jopar_X 7 Posted July 24, 2013 Share Posted July 24, 2013 Whoa! Wish I knew about this before I traded in my old car. I just assumed it would come with a donut. Never dawned on me that the car may be too little for it to come equipped with one. :( Link to post Share on other sites
Greg_E 211 Posted July 24, 2013 Share Posted July 24, 2013 No, chevy is just too cheap to throw it in anymore. Not sure how a donut is more expensive than roadside service??? It is interesting that they chose a 14 inch donut, my 13 inch might be a little small to work so I might be carrying it for nothing. I know it clears the brake drum, and I know you are not supposed to use them on the front end of the car, and I know the tires in my old car were approximately the same diameter, so in theory I should be fine. Thankfully I haven't had to use it yet. Link to post Share on other sites
HappyMommy 4 Posted July 24, 2013 Share Posted July 24, 2013 I'm actually happy with the compressor and "fix-a-flat" provided vs. the spare. Now... I say this while heavily knocking on wood but... the only time I've ever had a 'flat' that's all I've ever needed anyway. Sure there's a chance something really bad happens and the tire completely comes apart and you just can't fix it that way but I suppose that's what some sort of roadside assistance is for (if you want to pay someone). Would it be nice to have the spare? Sure! Is my husband thrilled because he can use the space back there to put in a subwoofer and have it flush with the back and not take away my grocery space? Yup! LOL! David Rollins 1 Link to post Share on other sites
bensemailis 10 Posted July 25, 2013 Share Posted July 25, 2013 I just got a donut off criagslist and put it and a bottle jack in the back after removing the foam. I cut a piece of plywood to sit on top of it all to keep my amp and sub off the spare. Link to post Share on other sites
Classing 6 Posted July 26, 2013 Share Posted July 26, 2013 I keep a plug kit back there with the compressor. Link to post Share on other sites
brillo 4 Posted July 26, 2013 Share Posted July 26, 2013 Do any of the donut spares from other Chevy models (Cruze, Sonic etc) fit the Spark ? Link to post Share on other sites
Greg_E 211 Posted July 26, 2013 Share Posted July 26, 2013 Aveo does so Sonic might, not sure of any other models. 4x100mm is what you are looking for. Link to post Share on other sites
Lynnette Lipyanic 2 Posted July 31, 2013 Share Posted July 31, 2013 I didn't know about the lack of a spare until I really needed it. had a puncture in the sidewall of my tire and the stupid sealant crap doesn't work, even when its where the tread is at... I am going to buy a spare as soon as possible! and WHAT is the stupid screw driver for?!?! Link to post Share on other sites
Greg_E 211 Posted July 31, 2013 Share Posted July 31, 2013 Screwdriver is for changing the tail lights. Link to post Share on other sites
whoknew1985 5 Posted August 7, 2013 Share Posted August 7, 2013 I am old school as well. I need a spare tire to feel comfortable driving any car. I bought a 14 inch donut tire from a local junkyard, and even found a scissor jack that fits the area that you place the jack to lift the car. Everything fits in the provided area, after I removed the foam material that holds the compressor and tire goo. Even the four way sits on top of the spare and allows the plastic mat to lay level in the back of my car. I would rather shop for the best prices for replacing or repairing a tire, than settle for paying what a service company would charge to drive out to me and repair on the road. Link to post Share on other sites
bensemailis 10 Posted August 8, 2013 Share Posted August 8, 2013 I am old school as well. I need a spare tire to feel comfortable driving any car. I bought a 14 inch donut tire from a local junkyard, and even found a scissor jack that fits the area that you place the jack to lift the car. Everything fits in the provided area, after I removed the foam material that holds the compressor and tire goo. Even the four way sits on top of the spare and allows the plastic mat to lay level in the back of my car. I would rather shop for the best prices for replacing or repairing a tire, than settle for paying what a service company would charge to drive out to me and repair on the road. since its a 14" spare, make sure to only put it on the rear. Link to post Share on other sites
Greg_E 211 Posted August 8, 2013 Share Posted August 8, 2013 I'd like to see a picture of your spare compared to the stock tire just to see the size difference. Link to post Share on other sites
whoknew1985 5 Posted August 8, 2013 Share Posted August 8, 2013 I'd like to see a picture of your spare compared to the stock tire just to see the size difference. I will take a picture and post it here in a couple of weeks. I noticed it did lower the car at least two inches with the spare in place. I will definitately have to maintain a slower speed when using it. Link to post Share on other sites
Greg_E 211 Posted August 8, 2013 Share Posted August 8, 2013 I'm interested in seeing it leaning up against the stock tire, no need to actually mount it for a picture. Just want to compare it to the wheel I salvaged from my old car when I traded it, pretty sure it is a 13 inch donut, but it will clear the rear brakes just fine, but never clear the front brakes! The size difference is one reason why they say to mount it on a rear position only. Too worried about steering and breaking to allow them on the front Link to post Share on other sites
spark owner's mom 0 Posted August 22, 2013 Share Posted August 22, 2013 I would feel safer if my son had an actual spare tire also. do you have to ruin the foam to get it out or can it be saved? Link to post Share on other sites
Greg_E 211 Posted August 22, 2013 Share Posted August 22, 2013 The foam comes right out, not glued in or anything. Link to post Share on other sites
Dax Blues 0 Posted August 31, 2014 Share Posted August 31, 2014 My wife and I just bought a 2014 Chevy Spark, we love it. We didn't love the fact that it didn't have a spare tire. We were not happy at all with that bottle of goo and the tiny compressor that Chevy supplied with the Spark. So we talked with the parts man at the Chevy garage and we were told that Chevy does not offer a spare tire kit for the Spark. We were not happy. The parts man offered to give us a 14 inch donut spare that he had laying around in the parts room. The bolt pattern was right so we took it for free. The bolt pattern is 4 holes spaced 100mm apart diagionally. This donut spare was not from a Chevy, I don't remember what the parts man told me what car it was from. The next stop was to a auto junk yard. We asked about a 15 inch donut spare with our bolt pattern but there didn't seem to be such a tire. So we bought a jack that was never used for 5 dollars there. The next stop was to advance auto parts where we bought a four way tire wrench so my little wife would have some leverage if she ever had to change a tire by herself. The wrench was about 20 dollars. The stock Chevy chrome lug nuts seem to be a little under sized. If I remember right they take a 3/4 inch or 19 mm socket but no matter what socket we put on them it was a little sloppy. The four way tire wrench worked so we bought it after we tried it in front of the store. someone in this forum said that the stock chevy lug nuts would not work on a donut spare rim so we bought 4 old fashioned lug nut which were open ended which would fit the threads on the wheel. it turned out that we didn't need these lug nuts the stock Chevy chromed lug nuts tightened down just fine on our steel rim of the donut spare. the next thing to do was to try putting the spare on the back of the car. OOPS we had a problem. The hole in the center of the spare was too small by about 100 thousands. Luckily my neighbor has a small machine shop in his back yard. It took him about 20 minutes to set up his milling machine and remove the unwanted metal. After this the wheel fit right on the Spark with no problems of any kind. So we took the Spark for a short drive at about 40 miles an hour on our old country back road. The car handled fine. I expected it to lean or act a little funny since the spare was a 14 inch and the rest of the wheels were 15 inch but there was no noticable problem. So we took the spare off and tried to fit everything back into the Chevy Spark wheel well. Everything fit pretty good, even the goo and the compressor. We have the spare in there, the jack, the goo, the compressor, a rag and four extra lug nuts. we might have been able to fit the four way wrench in there too but I didn't want it to rattle so it was placed in the regular top cargo area. We kept the tire goo and the compressor that Chevy supplied because we plan to try it if we ever do get a flat but I have more faith in my spare then that goo and compressor. My wife, my son and myself had a fun afternoon doing the spare tire project on the Spark. Thanks to my friendly parts man and my friendly neighbor this project only cost me about 30 dollars. Oh I was told to never put an undersized donut spare on the front of the Spark. If you have a flat in the front take a good inflated tire from the back, put it on the front and put the undersized donut spare on the back. Larry Link to post Share on other sites
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