Third gen spare tire/wheel

I'm sitting on the fence here too about my spare. I went from 16" OR wheels to 17" 4Runner Pro wheels so I still have the stock 16" wheel and tire in spare spot. So I'm considering another 17" 4Runner wheel, another TPMS and another tire and doing a 5 tire rotation.

 

Just so ya know the truck can’t hold 5 sensors. Unless every rotation you reprogrammed it to hold the 4 that are on it

 

So it won't read the one that's in the spare when I rotate it from the spare spot to one of the corners?

 

No. As far as I know the computer can only hold 4 tpms codes.

 

Well that sux.

 

Yeah, a 5th Sensor would be a waste.

 

Go through Discount Tire if available. They might damage one while installing. They'll order another to replace the slightly damaged one and give you the damaged one. Slap it on the mismatched spare rubber. Spare is Firestone Destination.... four on the road is Toyo... Not my plan but how it worked out.

 

Imagine my truck recognizing that civic over there. And I will not let my truck RECOGNIZE THE SENSORS of a civic while it’s lives slightly underneath and to the side of THIS ROOF

 

If it recognized a Civic it would probably bust out laughing!

 

I dont think it would

 

Goal: Get a matching spare wheel/tire to include in the rotation. Avoid annoying caution advisory lights and indicators.

Why: I hate wasting good rubber under the truck. I also prefer to have a spare with similar tread depth as the tires on the truck, especially if they're mud or all-terrain tires with deep tread.

Lazy guy workaround:
1. Bought a matching 5th TRD OR wheel from fleaBay.
2. At the first rotation had the dealer swap the factory matching spare rubber to the new TRD OR wheel with NO sensor. (Cost $20 for mount/balance)
3. I Have the dealer do a 5-wheel cross rotation every 5k miles. (They don't charge any extra.)
4. The spare gets mounted face up under the bed. (Haven't noticed any damage yet at 25,000 miles with 5 rotations completed. I'd guess 1,000-1,500 of those miles were spent off-road in mud/sand/gravel/rocks and another 1,500-2,000 miles on crushed lava rock sand covered snowy/icy roads.)

PROS
1. I have a matching wheel, tire, and tread depth if I get a flat.
2. I’m not letting the spare wheel/tire or spare hoist rust, corrode, or rot under the truck. (It's getting serviced/inspected every rotation.)
3. There's still an 80% chance I’ll get a flat on a tire that has a sensor. (Much better odds than disabling the system.)

CONS
1. The spare obviously isn't monitored by the tire pressure system, so, if I’m unlucky and that tire catches the flat I'll just have to watch for the signs like they did back in the stone ages. (After 5 rotations there's an 80% chance the flat will occur on a wheel/tire that HAS a TPMS, better than Vegas odds!)
2. The original 4 wheels with TPMS will not be in the same location the caution advisory panel indicates. One of which is actually under the truck in the spare position. (Every 5th rotation it's back to normal.)
3. The tire under the truck will have less psi indicated than the other three tires because it doesn't have the weight of the truck on it. Two options to solve this:
A. If you have OCD: Add some extra air to the one under the truck so it matches the three on the ground. (If you get a flat just let a couple psi out after you swap it for the flat one.)
B. If you DON'T have OCD: Then don't worry about it. (Its a quick way to know which one is the current spare looking at the information center.)

 

I like this plan for all the same goals. Do you get any TPMS warnings when the 'spare' is in the rotation? Will you always show air pressure in 4 tires even if one with the TPMS is in the spare position?

 

I run a full size 265/70/17 Ko2 spare on a scs wheel and rotate it in. Fits fine under there and no it doesn’t read or throw any warnings.

 

I have not had any codes or advisory lights durning any of the 5 rotations that I’ve completed.

However, the typical sensor monitoring limits are still active. If the tire under the truck has a sensor and the pressure is low enough to activate the warning system then it will throw on a Caution Advisory Light. You can reduce the possibility by putting a couple extra PSI in that tire before you put it on the spare tire hoist.

 

Awesome. I'm going to try it. Thanks man.

 

Fried, you were able to fit a 285/70r17 under there without ANY issues?

 

Yup 3rd gen it fits with zero issue and the two clamps still work. Exhaust is 1” away but its right where heat shield is already. I chose to chop mine just to make it more off road friendly. 2nd gen was where mods had to happen. I feel much better with full size tire under there

 

Good to know. Thanks for the info. I have s spare wheel and didn’t think the 285/70r17 would fit under there just looking at it.

 

pic's?

 

Really hard to get a pic without it being on lift. After careful inspection anything more that a 285/70 will not fit its a tight squeze on left of tire but its solid up there doesnt budge.