<VV> Space Saver Spares

[Sethracer at aol.com]

This all works out to be pretty simple, folks. If you have the same  
diameter tire at all four positions on your Corvair, you can utilize a  
high-pressure spare (or an inflatable one, if you retain a source for air  pressure - 
can or pump.) The closer to the diameter of the installed tires, the  
better. If you have different front and rear diameter tire sizes, like huge  on 
the back? Go back to sleep, any dedicated replacement spare is not your  
friend. If you do go with either replacement type - and have a flat - put the  
spare on a front position, swapping a front to the rear to maintain driveline  
parity (don't forget to adjust the pressure in the tire moving to the 
rear.)  That is what every tire manufacturer recommends - on FWD match the tires 
on the  front.  Then drive carefully and get a feel for the difference the 
smaller  contact patch will provide until you replace it with a real tire. 
 
If you decide to run four of these on an economy run, good luck! And please 
 let us know, so we can be somewhere else when you hobble by.
 
Seth Emerson
 
(Drives vehicles, some have spares, some don't. All have AAA and cell  
phones!)
 
 
 
 
In a message dated 10/8/2014 9:10:14 A.M. Pacific Daylight Time,  
virtualvairs at corvair.org writes:

To add a  little kindling where none is needed.....

Any car, especially rear  engine cars, with poor traction on one rear tire, 
under hard braking, may  easily lose traction on that end of the car 
(rear). 
The uneven traction  may cause the car to spin.  The severity of the 
problem 
increases  from front to mid to rear engine. Unequal tire size, different 
amount of  tread, grip, and different load (weight) on one rear tire than 
the 
other  rear tire, etc. all contribute as do, BTW, unequal braking forces  
(shoes/pads, etc).

Obviously unequal tires on front pose a probem  as well under some  
conditions.