WHY?

The thing sits sheltered from UV and elements in it's compartment.

have never replaced one to date, and they worked fine when needed.

air it up once a year to the correct psi and you're good.

 

When you have a spare tire for your original spare tire, THEN it's the time to switch them.
Like 2010.2017.ody said, I also have never replaced any spare tires. Chances are you'll replace the cars before the spare tires.

 

Most likely it will last the life of the car so protected down in that vault. I've actually never seen the one in our Odyssey but thanks for reminding me that I have to dig it out and air it up. Your regular tires will eventually get cracks from ozone/ultraviolet that will make them unsuitable for use, but the spare is very well protected from all that. You could check it yearly, and if you do ever spot cracking, then you know to replace it.

 

Yeah, never replaced a spare in any of my vehicles.

 

I have, but generally for good reason... Like on my 4Runner where it is stored outside and under the vehicle and I changed the rolling diameter of the spare to match the new up-sized tires I had installed. Also, with a full-sized spare (same size wheel and tire as on the vehicle), sometimes it is reasonable to take the best out of a recently worn-out set to install on the spare - but that would be after something like 20 years. As everyone has said, temporary spares last a LONG time tucked away safely in a vehicle. Keep it aired up for emergency use.

-Charlie

 

The only times I replace the tinker-toy spare in my cars was with my '86 Mazda could hold a full size in the trunk, and when I put a full size behind my driver seat in my '02 Ody. And yes, check the pressure. I found that a low pressure donut was as bad as not having a spare in my '99.

 

I’ve never replaced a donut tire, but I wouldn’t criticize the OP for doing so. If he cuts a tire, he’ll be in better shape than me if he’s 50 miles from a tire shop on a Sunday.
Portable air machines are nice and can prevent you from even having the need to put the donut on if you just got a leak.

 

My 89 CRX has original spare. Still works great. Love how the car tilts with one tiny tire.

 

I have 213K on my 12 EX and I've never even seen my spare tire. I'm advocating that as a good practice. I'll make a note to see if it still has air in it.

 

Mine had 7.5 psi in it after checking it for the first time in 13 years.

The valve stem faces down so I also purchased an elbow nozzle and a flexible extension so I can check and add air without having to remove it.

 

Well...DOT mandates that passenger vehicle tires be replaced after 6 years regardless of use and/or tread depth. Most tire shops won't work on tires older than 6 years...I found that out the hard way when I got good tires from a salvage yard only to find out no reputable shop would mount and balance them because of the date of manufacture.

Regardless...I'm with the consensus....I wouldn't replace a spare tire either. However, can't blame anyone for being proactive and cautious.

 

In all these years, only once a Discount Tire recommended a spare tire change when I went to them to top it off. They did fill it but said I should order and replace it. I never did anything and still go there and at other discount tire or Costco locations and top up without any problems.

 

As @Buddur said, 6 years seems to be the consensus on rubber needing to be changed. UV has a lot to do with rubber degradation, but despite being covered/inside the car it is still exposed to all sorts of thermal cycles and ambient humidity, etc. So, yes the tire rubber is still degrading even if it still "looks good." I say this while using non-road tires that are 14 years old and seemingly are ok. They're visibly cracked on the treads, but it's for low speed application that can be easily swapped out. NOT highway use.

@DaveStone I have considered doing this to one of my former vehicles which had the full size spare mounted below the bed. As I was considering it, I ended up selling the vehicle but it was on my radar to do given I had to use that spare several times over the 8 years of owning the truck.

The worst time to figure out you need to get a new spare is when you need to use your spare. A quick internets search yields a unitedtire website saying stored rubber is good for 6-10 years. Apparently oxygen, ozone, UV, and heat are the primary drivers of tire degradation. If you wanted to put your new spare in an "airtight" bag, this may help the oils from evaporating as well. Who knew?

 

They loose all air pressure after a few months. Completely normal for a tire not being used. Sometimes I fill ours up just before a long road trip.....just in case.

Any DIY'er should have (or get) an air compressor.

Mine is an older version of this:

 

I have the exact same one.

 

If I was on constant road trips that lead me to the middle of nowhere, I might consider replacing it. If you are always in town, etc., the compact tire is meant for "temporary use only" at speeds up to about 40-50 (can't remember exactly with the Odyssey spare). Check the air pressure a couple of times a year, and immediately drive it directly to a tire shop if you have to put it on.

 

@gasman4u said:

@DaveStone
The worst time to figure out you need to get a new spare is when you need to use your spare. A quick internets search yields a unitedtire website saying stored rubber is good for 6-10 years. Apparently oxygen, ozone, UV, and heat are the primary drivers of tire degradation. If you wanted to put your new spare in an "airtight" bag, this may help the oils from evaporating as well. Who knew?

That was my line of thinking. Thanks for sharing that. Before I had kids I never worried about things like this and I would drive a car until it literally fell a part and had to be towed to the shop. Although the van with 223,000 miles has been relegated to the second vehicle and there will no longer be any trips from Indiana to Florida, there will be times we need to travel an hour or so from home on a Sunday, perhaps, and I don't care how slow you are going, a blowout on a mini spare is not guaranteed to be safe, especially if you leave your lane.

 

Spare tires are not safe in general.......even when new. Always proceed with caution. They just allow you to limp to safety.

My mind is blown every time I see one operating on the freeway (though I am guilty of the same).

 

When to replace a spare tire - never...... driving 40 years and never used one to date so the odds of needing to use one and it actually having an issue are less than me getting struck by lightning.

 

Guess I've been struck multiple times! In my '86 Mazda replaced the donut with a full size. Had a Christmas visit and some construction debris left me with a flat. Didn't have to worry about fixing the tire until after I returned home 900 miles later.
On my '96 it was a hassle pulling out my spare from the packed van, and stowing the flat. Fortunately we were parked under a gas station roof with the rain storm that night.
Low air in the spare of my '02 and I ruined it. Just needed a ride home to pick up my spare spare that I pulled from my Dad's wreck.
Got 'nailed' on the way to work. Put on the full size wheel I was carrying wedged behind the driver seat. Was carrying the full size wheel since my tires were iffy and my budget couldn't afford a new set.
Never had a reason to replace an old spare. But it's very important to check the pressure at least once or twice a year!

 

Keeping it from UV exposure goes a long way to prolonging its life, but holding pressure is not the same as performing safely at speed and under load. Along these lines I finally convinced my father to replace his truck's spare tire, which was 90% worn out when he acquired it secondhand, and that was before I was born. (I'm 32.) He replaced it with something only about 7 years old, so I guess I'll declare that a victory.

 

We replaced ours on our 2015. It'd been used a time or two and was showing age at 10 years out from mgf. We got same tire from Amazon for about $140. And we had dealer install it. I actually called two tire places and they didn't want to mount a 'donut' spare. Donuts are temperamental, says them (NTB and Mr Tire) and not something they do. Dealer had not a problem for $10.

I've had five Odysseys. They all have gotten more flats than any other vehicle I've ever owned (had maybe 40 cars), which I attribute largely to weight. Regardless, don't want a surprise with wife on side of road without a spare. It's a small bit of insurance. And yes, despite idea it 'should' be good, there's nothing wrong with making sure it is.

 

dup

 

I have a 2001 Odyssey, that we bought new.
I have never replaced the spare. I've either checked the pressure myself every year or so, or it's been checked when I've taken it in for service (to an independent mechanic).
It's only been used once, and has maybe 6 or 7 miles on it. I have no plans to ever replace it (that is, without replacing the whole vehicle).

 

I have a 2008 Odyssey.... I hada flat on the highway once and used the donut spare. Was a unsettling experience. The van is not very stable. After that I went to tire rack and ordered a full sized spare tire and put it in the cargo area. So yes I replaced my spare tire. The full size spare is about 10 yrs old and I do not see any dry rubber cracking etc. and looks as good as new. Note tire rack sent the tire with a polyester type wrapping (not transparent) which I guess prevents any UV degradation and also interior of the van should have very minimal rubber degradation.

 

Interestingly, and I have changed thousands of tires, I have never personally changed a spare tire. Very rarely someone would ask about it but nobody moved forward with it since they’re almost the same price as a normal tire. I’ve worked in a “normal” shop and a shop that served really low income folks. I’ve seen people use the spare as a stand in for their damaged normal tire or wheel and it lasted thousands of miles, not even concerning the owner.

My first van had a line in the owners manual that said the temporary spare could be used to complete the trip (presumably even if you were 1800 miles or more across country).

So, when my Odyssey had a flat and I put the spare on I told my wife she could drive normally for several days until the replacement came in. She didn’t trust that but I leaned on my many years of experience. Wouldn’t you know it, after about 1 whole mile of driving, the tread separated and she limped it home complaining of a noise and shaking. We replaced the tire. :/ I assume a manufacturing defect rather than age though.

Van is a 2013 and this was in May 2021. I check and adjust pressure at least once a year and it was approximately 50 psi when it was ran and no potholes were hit.

 

The tire was 8 years old. Why would you assume it was a manufacturing defect. I am not an industry guru so please don't take offence to my asking but based on your experience how many times have you seen, heard, or read about a tire defect causing a blowout on a relatively new tire.

 

I too doubt it was a manufacturing defect at that age. Again, the worst time to figure out your spare is sh*t is when you are staring at a wheel effectively contacting the ground.

You will have to determine what sort of comfort level you have regarding risk mitigation. You may have to NEVER use your spare. Or you could be like me and have to use a spare on several cars spread across several years. Make a call, be good with it, and move on.

 

Out of 10 cars, I used spare tires 3 times (3 cars). Out of 10 cars, 0 spare tires were bad or defective. One of the car, for which I had to use a spare tire, was driven about 4-5K miles per month.