Spare tire options or solutions

A good towing service like AAA is your best bet. I inflated my factory spare and the thing was "HUGE". In the front it would rub and in the rear I was told it would cause problems with the ZF being different diameter than a stock tire.

I'm sure more will speak up on this.
I was told NEVER to use that spare.

George

Doug

In lieu of a spare tire I keep the following contents in my trunk:

(1)flat aluminum jack (formerly sold by Hall Pantera)
(2)ratchet, extension & socket for jack
(3)breaker bar, extension & socket for lug nuts
(4)vise grips for removing sharp objects from tire
(5)tire plugging kit
(6)dc powered air compressor
(7)tire pressure gage

I suggest 3/4" breaker bar, extension & socket for the lug nuts because 1/2" extensions twist too easily and make it harder to break lug nuts loose.

-G

quote:

Originally posted by PanteraDoug:
BESIDES just using a full size tire on a Pantera or generic rim, what other options have others here used?

I always carry a tire plug kit, small compressor and cell phone. That will get you going for most situations where you pick up a nail puncture. Have used the plugs many times and they all have lasted the life of the tire.

I have always carried a couple of cans of tire seal/inflate. I've never had to use them and hope I never do. That said, I was part of a 15+ car Pantera run through the mountains over eight days last fall. We covered a collective 20,000 miles and nobody got a flat. I don't think any of us had a spare tire onboard (although we did have a rather well-equipped transporter shadowing us). Pick a compact solution that will get you 50-100 miles because that is probably more than you'll ever need (along with a bit of luck ).

Mark

Three choices: One either carries a spare, or a tow service and a good cell-phone to call them. If you opt for a spare, a collapsible makes sense. You will have trouble carrying a full sized tire in any Pantera, and if you have a flat and there's a spare aboard, be sure you also have a bungee cord, 'cause even a deflated 225-50 x 15 on a 7" Campy will not fit in some trunks with the lid fully closed. Anything bigger is even less able to fit; your wife or girlfriend may not immediately understand why she must share 'her' seat with a dirty, $1000, 50-lb 10" x 15" Campy wheel & flat tire... The bungee stretches from latch to the bumper so you need not leave the flat behind. GR-4s at LeMans carried their mandatory full-sized 10" x 15" spare strapped directly to the ZF with no trunk insert.
A stock 40-yr-old collapsible is not a good idea due to age, but many modern cars come with newer collapsibles in our size (215-70x 14 on a steel Ford wheel) to clear stock brakes. It will not clear most altered brakes. Used on the back, it can indeed destroy the posi-clutches in the LSD if you drive over 50 miles. Less distance = less likely to damage anything. The collapsibles, being basically 3-ply inner tubes, are recommended only for 50 mph max for 50 miles max. Mine is mounted on a super-light drag-race wheel, since it's use is so restricted. Also note- ANY tire store in the country can mount a collapsible tire on a rim, or dismount it. If they care to do try. I've had them done at corner gas stations by a skillful operator. He will not be able to simply put the parts in position and punch a button on a compuerized mounter, keeping his hands nice 'n clean.
Next- if you have big brakes, you'll need a larger rim for your collapsible, and a big rim with a larger collapsible likely will not fit the stock cutout in the trunk insert. The rim might also need its own lug nuts if they're different than a stock Pantera.
Finally, there are two different inflator cans available for collapsibles: one has inert gasses to inflate a tire while the other uses PROPANE! These last have 'cooked off' in hot Pantera and Mangusta trunks, causing explosion damage. Look at the can's label: if it says 'DANGER- EXTREMELY FLAMMABLE, put it down gently and leave the area- fast! It is a bomb.
A seldom-mentioned third possibility is a small section high-pressure spare. This looks like a motorcycle tire on an 18" dia, 4" wide forged-aluminum rim. Porky mid-'80s Thunderbirds carried them stock, but the bolt pattern is wrong for a Pantera. It is a marginal fit in a front trunk but fits the rear OK. I have one altered to fit a Pantera bolt pattern front or rear, even with with giant brakes. You will need to check its pressure occasionally as they must have 45-60 psi to work effectively. And you don't won't get that from a can. An on-board compressor will work, but slowly. Choices....

quote:

Originally posted by Cowboy from Hell:
I suggest 3/4" breaker bar, extension & socket for the lug nuts because 1/2" extensions twist too easily and make it harder to break lug nuts loose.

Holy crap George, what lb/ft do you torque your lug nuts up to?

In addition to the tire plug kit, I also carry a can of tire sealent. Careful where you store it though, I had a can in the front trunk right behind the radiator during one Vegas Fun Rally until I heard a loud pop.... that stuff makes a friggin nasty sticky mess!

I always thought a comnpact spare would be a good idea; they are only designed for 50 miles distance at max 50 mph speed. The Pantera front/rear diameters are only 1" to 1.5" difference in height so pick one about 25" diameter. The ZF should not have a problem, by design one side of the diff rotates faster than the other every time you corner!

Julian

Thank you gentlemen. I knew this was the right group to ask.

Bosswrench. My tire guy has is Mallory-Kotzen. They have all the latest equipment and do exotics regularly. They say, collapsables and compacts ARE ONLY serviced as a pre-mounted unit purchased from FORD. Now in my research so far Porschy 911 have come up as a collapsable spare and compacts as only available from Dunlop,

I'm going to inquite with Tire Racj today and see what they say. My first preference would be a fresh collapsable on a Campy. That steel wheel is freakin' heavy. The drag wheel is a good idea too.

Need one of these units for my shelbys too. They both came with full size spares in the trunk. Like the Pantera, that kills what ever trunk there was to begin with and they are tough to get out and not bang up the paint and throw out your back in adverse conditions.

I am formulating a plan. Keep talking everyone.

You guys who drove through the Canadian Rockies...aren't concerned with Grizzly Bears out there? Geeze, you need a 50 cal for those guys. Shotguns will just make a mess and make them splatter. They might die later after they tear your limbs off and eat them. Maybe not.

Doug, the fumes emitted from our cars pretty much killed off everything miles before we saw it.

I was completely amazed at the lack of roadkill anywhere out west. I see more roadkill on my way to work EVERY DAY in the summer than I saw in eight days out west, and I only have a 10 mile drive each way to the office. We did see a few bears and moose at a distance and a ground squirrel trying to break into the Banff Springs Hotel...

Mark (who's cans of tire inflate have never (yet) exploded in his front trunk)