Still looking for a spare tire

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'74 Sport

'74 Sport

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We still haven't been able to find a wheel/tire combination to fit down into the spare tire well of Aaron's Dart Sport. We have the fiberboard tire cover and trunk mat, and want them to lie flat.

He has 235-60 R15 in back and 205-60 R15 in front. By my calculations, the back is 26.10" tall and the front is 24.69". The spare needs to have close to the same overall height, a thinner profile to fit into the shallow well, and have 5 on 4.5" LBP.

Any ideas?
Jerry
 
If your diff is posi, you'll need to have a spare that is an exact size. If you're just going for looks with a spare, just match to OEM sizing. I just use fix-a-flat, a 255/50r17 won't fit in the trunk for me.
 
Original tire? Not exactly sure. I have to trust the original owner replaced (if ever) them with the same size. The ones we pulled off were 195-70 (I think) R14, on plain ol' Dart / Duster slant six - nothing special - 7-1/4" rear - drum brake car. I think the original tire designation was E70-14. Not sure what the rim width was.

I don't care about looks. A painted steelie is just fine, it will be covered up. Heck, I'd go for one of those donut spares, if it would fit. I just want a spare in my son's trunk, before he gets stranded somewhere and I have to go get him. The kicker is that we want it covered with the trunk mat, leaving a flat floor for coolers, lawn chairs, etc. when we go to car shows, and has a clean finished look.

As far as fix-a-flat, I'm not a big fan. I have every flat fixed by patching the inside, rather than plugging, etc. More just for peace of mind. Plugs can blow back out, if not properly installed. And the fix-a-flat leaves a mess inside, not conducive for patching.

Jerry
 
FYI... fix-a-flat also ruins the inside fo the tire, if you ever wanted to have it properly patched again (from the inside) the solvents make it hard to get a patch to adhere
 
I was trying to finish the trunk in my '67 Convertible Barracuda. I was unhappy with the same "hump" problem. I asked a friend with a '68 GTS Dart what his trunk looked like. He laughed and showed me his "hump". He said that's the way they came.
 
with all the tire combinations out there.. you would think that there is a fix for that.. id have to look into it but ill let you know what i find.. as for depth of spare tire housing.. are all cars the same? if i measure my 66, will it be the same as your 74??

so i know what to work with?

Also is your spare tire cover flat or raised a bit??

how wide can it be and do you have a posi?
 
No posi, simple 2.76 vanilla 7-1/4". The fiberboard cover is perfectly flat.
I like the idea of the space saver spare. Maybe I can check the few salvage yards for one of those. As long as it fits the 5 on 4-1/2" LBP. I think the depth is only 6". I'll check tonight and let you know.

Jerry
 
i found this it might help you find a rim that you can use
first off Older Full size Ford & Chrysler Products used it and


5 on 4-1/2 (114.3 mm)
AMC Gremlin, Hornet, Pacer, Javelin, Matator, AMX
AMC - most models (exc. Jeep) '40-'89
Chrysler/DeSoto - all full size RWD cars (exc. Imperial) '37-'89
Datsun/Nissan - 1600-2000 '65-'73
- 300ZX, 200SX V6 (some) to '89
Dodge van
Dodge 1/2 ton P.U.
Dodge - all full size cars & P.U.'s '37-'89
- Dart, Demon, Swinger '73-'80
Ford 1/2 ton van
Ford Granada, Monarch
Ford - All full size cars '49-'72; '79-'85
- Fairlane '62-'79
- T-Bird '55-'71; '77-'79
- Mustang 5-bolt '65-'73
- Maverick 5-bolt all
- Mustang SVO '85-'86
- Ranchero '68-'84
- Aerostar, Probe, Bronco II/Ranger to '89
Hudson - all '48-'56
Lincoln - all '70-'72; '80-'89
Mazda - RX7 Turbo, 626, 929, MX6 '86-'89
Mercury - all full size cars '52-'54; '61-'72; '79-'85
- Cougar '67-'79
Mopar '73-up "A" body
Plymouth - all full size cars '37-'89
- Barracuda '70-'74
- Duster, Valiant, Volare '73-'80
Pontiac - Tempest, LeMans '61-'63
Studebaker - all '51-'66
Toyota Crown, Hilux P.U.
Toyota - 2WD P.U. '69-'89
- Supra Turbo '86-'89
Volvo 122, 1800


Now its just finding one thats narrow enough
 
I had the original spare in my '67 dart gt conv with the cardboard and mat. It was raised just like you are talking about, I think around an inch. I believe they shipped them like that.
 
Just get a really skinny tire for a spare! should fit down in the spare tire well.I have a fuel cell in one of mine but the other does not have a spare yet.I will see what I can get to fit in my 69.

Bobby Dodson
 
I'm pretty sure the one in my 72 Duster was peasonably flat. Maybe small hump,but we're talking little tires by todays standard. D78-14's (195) on 5.5" rims.
 
I just measured my space saver spare. It is 25 inches tall and 5 1/2 inches wide. I have a fuel cell in my car with a carpeted box over it. The spare is mounted on top of the box.

fuelcellboxwtire.jpg
 
And that's from a '96 Cherokee? Now, that's what I believe might work. It's a shame your tire well is covered, or you could tell us how well it fits. Know anyone else close by with an A-body?????

Jerry
 
The man that I bought the car from was going to make a bracket racer out of it. He had already cut out the spare tire well and removed the gas tank. I bought the fuel cell along with a lot of other parts from him.
 
The spare is from a 96 Jeep Cherokee. I paid $25.00 for it at a local wrecking yard. It has a 5 x 4 1/2 bolt pattern and fits perfict on my 73 Dart Sport.
 
185/75d14 should work.
D, not R.

D78 14 if you can find one;
or a C78x14. LOL.
 
OKTire, I see you own a shop, tire. I guess we can take your info to the bank huh? LOL ha ha ha. By the way, welcome aboard, good job.
I guess you'll be answering a bunch of those, "Will it fit" and "Whats the equal size but fatter" questions alot.
It will be a valued and hhuge help around here. :thumbup:
 
Yesterday, I think I saw another possible answer to my problem.
At a local tire shop, we tried a 16" donut spare with a 145/80-16 tire. It fits the spare well just fine, but the wheel's bolt pattern was some type of multi-lug pattern and nothing close to our LBP. So, did Chrysler use 16" wheels with the 5x4-1/2" bolt pattern on any of their cars?

Thanks,
Jerry
 
And it fits down below the trunk floor surface, so the mat lies perfectly flat? If the tire height is 25"-26", I'm in luck. That is the answer I've been looking for.

Thanks, I'll start looking for one,
Jerry
 
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