2 spare tires?

[Kiriesh]

Hey guys, I recently traded in my ‘15 Tacoma for a ‘21 Colorado ZR2 Bison and I’m sitting down to consider the “important” versus “nice to have” components.

I’ve done a few big trips in the Tacoma, heading up the west coast hitting forestry roads along the way (I’m from SF Bay Area) as well as some light trails in Moab/Colorado (Rim Rocker, Imogene Pass).

I don’t do big enough or frequent enough trips to want crazy stuff like roof top tents or really even a winch (although it’s awesome the bison is winch ready), however any of my trail riding beyond dirt roads was either local or with other vehicles. I’d like to start doing trips on my own more and it’s got me thinking differently for gear.

The biggest hang up I have is a second spare tire, what’s everyone’s opinion on the necessity? I’d love to explore Southern California (Death Valley, Joshua tree, Mojave) as I am yet to do so and I’ve heard people get unlucky with punctures. If I were to drive out into those remote places, is a second spare worth it or am I overthinking?

 

[DaveInDenver]

I've had more than one flat on a trip but my $0.02 is two spares are important when walking to get or summoning help is not possible. In my case I was able to plug the second flat and limp to a tire store. Inconvenient, yup. Life threatening. Nope. This was before the proliferation of cell phones and satellite SOS, too.

 

[ExpoMike]

So far in 15 years of offroading, I have not had a flat and only carry one spare. I do carry plug/tire repair kit and some form of air compressor. I also make sure my tires are in good shape.

The biggest thing I have seen in my travels (which is all southwestern US areas) is with other people. Almost all of the flat I have come across with others are people who will/would not air their tires down. Offroading with tires at street pressures will make you much more likely to get a flat then airing down. I ran across one guy at Saline Valley who manged to get a fist sized rock inside the tire. It punched all the way through. He was at full street pressure when it happened.

One good spare, a good tire plug/repair kit and a decent air compressor is all you are likely to need if traveling in the US. Cannot stress enough about airing your tires down. Vehicle will ride better, less likely to get stuck and allows tires to flex over rocks and such, versus puncturing them.

 

[pith helmet]

I like one spare, but good tires, plug kit and a way to inflate. I did have two sidewall tears at once, both rear tires sitting on the rims. It was a pretty good but very remote forest road in Gila NF but I was going way too fast with tires not deflated. Pre-cellular world when I was 20 or so, learned some lessons!

 

[Joe917]

We carry two spares but we tend to go to some extremely remote places. For most people, especially in the US, one spare with a compressor should be enough. If you get a puncture, that's it, turn around and get back to asphalt.

 

[krick3tt]

Many find that carrying two spares excessive or unnecessary, but sometimes two is good. One thing to keep in mind to save weight, depending on your particular tire size is that you probably don't need the second one mounted on a rim. It is also a great place to carry items that can stand exposure and are taking up space inside. Put them in the casing and strap or secure it on your roof rack, perhaps your recovery stuff.

 

[lugueto]

IMO, you're overthinking, although you're headed in the right direction.

If you're not doing trips that justify a winch as a solo method forself recovery, then justifying the weight of a second spare isn't possible.

However I do think its a good idea not relying only on one spare. Having a plug kit and an air compressor is a good, tiny, light way of having the same peace of mind that second spare will give you.

 

[alanymarce]

...two spares are important when walking to get or summoning help is not possible. ...

Hmm - I have to say that this breaks rule #1 of "overlanding" - NEVER leave the vehicle, except obviously for walks, fishing, whatever; however if stuck somewhere - leaving the vehicle ends tragically too many times.

...One good spare, a good tire plug/repair kit and a decent air compressor is all you are likely to need if traveling in the US. Cannot stress enough about airing your tires down. Vehicle will ride better, less likely to get stuck and allows tires to flex over rocks and such, versus puncturing them.

...Having a plug kit and an air compressor is a good, tiny, light way of having the same peace of mind that second spare will give you.

I thought I'd add some more experience to help; On this type of trip our experience is three "big trips" and lots of shorter trips (anything from a weekend to a few weeks - Botswana, RSA, Zimbabwe, North Africa, Central Africa, North, Central, and South America, Asia, Europe). On the shorter trips we've had one puncture in the last three decades (deep Sahara on very sharp "heat-treated" shards of rock), and have never taken or needed a second spare.

On our 11 months around South America we had 5 punctures - two were sharp rocks on an unsurfaced "road" in Bolivia (the second 13 Km after the first - we repaired the first, the second tyre was destroyed), the others were due to sharp metal debris on the highways. The main highways are often littered with nails, bolts, and other debris.We took only one spare, and the only time we ended up having to travel with none (the second puncture in Bolivia) we had to travel a couple of hundred Km on the same "road" - I agree that this was a bit worrying, however had we experienced another unrepairable puncture we'd still have been able to deal with it by hitching a ride to the nearest town etc., Although there was very little traffic (a vehicle every 50 Km or so) we could have sorted it out in a couple of days. We had no further punctures prior to replacing the spare.

On our last "big trip" in Africa we had zero punctures in 45,000 Km (Nairobi to Cape Town and back, with a lot of travel in remote areas). We carried two spares and needed none at all. We did have trouble with punctures in a vehicle we rented in Uganda for a week when we were having our own vehicle serviced - the tyres were in poor shape, however on our own vehicle, with good tyres, we had no punctures at all.

On our most recent "big trip" (Australia, including GRR, Simpson, a lot of gravel and sand) we had one puncture in 45,000 Km, on a rough gravel road. We carried a second spare for part of the trip (WA government advice for the GRR) and never needed it.

So, our view now is that carrying a second spare uses up space, adds more weight and lifts the CoG (or puts the weight at the rear of the vehicle adding to polar moment of inertia and leverage on the rear suspension), and is really unnecessary. We've never actually had to use a second spare in the last 40 years. On a risk-weighted basis the chances of two punctures both of which destroy a tyre are so low as to be negligible.

As long as your tyres are appropriate and in good condition, you carry a repair kit (and know how to use it) and a compressor, I believe you'll be fine with one spare.

 

[DCGibbs]

I carry 2 spares, esp in the spring, early summer. I've blown two tires on the same road, going to a flyfishing hole, and returning. I was very happy to have the 2nd wheel & tire. It would have been a several 100 mile tow bill, not covered by AAA. We are considering a 2nd spare for the Tacoma after our last road trip. Highway 93 from Hoover Dam and Kingman is a tire slayer... David

 

[Ramdough]

Hmm - I have to say that this breaks rule #1 of "overlanding" - NEVER leave the vehicle, except obviously for walks, fishing, whatever; however if stuck somewhere - leaving the vehicle ends tragically too many times.



I thought I'd add some more experience to help; On this type of trip our experience is three "big trips" and lots of shorter trips (anything from a weekend to a few weeks - Botswana, RSA, Zimbabwe, North Africa, Central Africa, North, Central, and South America, Asia, Europe). On the shorter trips we've had one puncture in the last three decades (deep Sahara on very sharp "heat-treated" shards of rock), and have never taken or needed a second spare.

On our 11 months around South America we had 5 punctures - two were sharp rocks on an unsurfaced "road" in Bolivia (the second 13 Km after the first - we repaired the first, the second tyre was destroyed), the others were due to sharp metal debris on the highways. The main highways are often littered with nails, bolts, and other debris.We took only one spare, and the only time we ended up having to travel with none (the second puncture in Bolivia) we had to travel a couple of hundred Km on the same "road" - I agree that this was a bit worrying, however had we experienced another unrepairable puncture we'd still have been able to deal with it by hitching a ride to the nearest town etc., Although there was very little traffic (a vehicle every 50 Km or so) we could have sorted it out in a couple of days. We had no further punctures prior to replacing the spare.

On our last "big trip" in Africa we had zero punctures in 45,000 Km (Nairobi to Cape Town and back, with a lot of travel in remote areas). We carried two spares and needed none at all. We did have trouble with punctures in a vehicle we rented in Uganda for a week when we were having our own vehicle serviced - the tyres were in poor shape, however on our own vehicle, with good tyres, we had no punctures at all.

On our most recent "big trip" (Australia, including GRR, Simpson, a lot of gravel and sand) we had one puncture in 45,000 Km, on a rough gravel road. We carried a second spare for part of the trip (WA government advice for the GRR) and never needed it.

So, our view now is that carrying a second spare uses up space, adds more weight and lifts the CoG (or puts the weight at the rear of the vehicle adding to polar moment of inertia and leverage on the rear suspension), and is really unnecessary. We've never actually had to use a second spare in the last 40 years. On a risk-weighted basis the chances of two punctures both of which destroy a tyre are so low as to be negligible.

As long as your tyres are appropriate and in good condition, you carry a repair kit (and know how to use it) and a compressor, I believe you'll be fine with one spare.

See…. If you carry two spares, you don’t get any flats! Murpheys law.

But seriously, I once wished I had two spares, but a compressor and plugs would have kept us going. I now carry two spares, a compressor, and a plug kit.

I think your distance from civilization is key. We had two flats and begged every car that passed with a compressor to fill us up until we made it to a tire shop. The journey started up in remote mountains in Mexico until we got down to a city. One tire was totaled, the other was patched.

My current rig has a rare tire size, so now…. I have everything on the truck.

Good luck.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[billiebob]

Hey guys, I recently traded in my ‘15 Tacoma for a ‘21 Colorado ZR2 Bison and I’m sitting down to consider the “important” versus “nice to have” components.

I’ve done a few big trips in the Tacoma, heading up the west coast hitting forestry roads along the way (I’m from SF Bay Area) as well as some light trails in Moab/Colorado (Rim Rocker, Imogene Pass).

I don’t do big enough or frequent enough trips to want crazy stuff like roof top tents or really even a winch (although it’s awesome the bison is winch ready), however any of my trail riding beyond dirt roads was either local or with other vehicles. I’d like to start doing trips on my own more and it’s got me thinking differently for gear.

The biggest hang up I have is a second spare tire, what’s everyone’s opinion on the necessity? I’d love to explore Southern California (Death Valley, Joshua tree, Mojave) as I am yet to do so and I’ve heard people get unlucky with punctures. If I were to drive out into those remote places, is a second spare worth it or am I overthinking?

not worth it, I've had 4 flats in 40 years, only 1 off road on a power line trail, 2 on the highway, 1 on a forestry road. But once you use that spare,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, adjust your driving style and objectives, If you are in rough blast rock and you get a flat and don't turn back.... you might need a tire shop before the day is over.

If 1 is not enough, 3 might not be enough either.

 

[ExpoMike]

@DCGibbs where you at street pressure or did you air down, when you got those two flats?

I will add to my comment, if you are traveling outside of the US or your rig is using a very uncommon sized tire that is not likely to find any (not just like brand/model) in stock at a tire store, there is more likely a need to two spares.

 

[alanymarce]

@DCGibbs where you at street pressure or did you air down, when you got those two flats?

I will add to my comment, if you are traveling outside of the US or your rig is using a very uncommon sized tire that is not likely to find any (not just like brand/model) in stock at a tire store, there is more likely a need to two spares.

Which is a very good reason to use tyres (and rims sizes) which are available.

 

[charlieaarons]

Which is a very good reason to use tyres (and rims sizes) which are available.

Yes; I’ll go ahead and put my rig on 11R22.5s; dually in rear, almost overloaded singles in front. Of course my exceedingly useful CTIS will be useless.
Pray tell what should I be using, instead of the stock size?
Please forgive sarcasm.

 

[DaveInDenver]

Hmm - I have to say that this breaks rule #1 of "overlanding" - NEVER leave the vehicle, except obviously for walks, fishing, whatever; however if stuck somewhere - leaving the vehicle ends tragically too many times.

Got it, bad Overlander®. So am I to wait for road side assistance? Never thought my life would be in peril walking a couple of miles to find 4 bars of cell signal. But then again I forget, we're thinking about being stuck in Botswana with a sat phone at hand not about driving trails in southern California.