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Blowout


Guest Sue Bell

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Guest Sue Bell

So here's something trippy to share with you all... I had a screw in the rear passenger side tire, so a coworker put the spare on for me. I drove on it for 5 days, about 40-50 miles, replaced the tire and put the spare back in the compartment behind the seats.

About a week later, my daughter and I heard an explosion at around 5:00 PM. We looked outside, but couldn't find what it was. Sounded like a transformer down the road or something similar.

Next morning I opened my driver side door and there were chunks of black plastic strewn about. I looked behind the seat, and the whole area of the tire compartment behind the drivers seat was blown apart. I opened the lid (which no longer latches shut!) to find the tire had actually blown up, and there was a huge hole in it and metal cords sticking out. That was the noise we had heard the day before. It blew the wall of the compartment apart.

Funny thing... I just got home from work, off the highway, about a half hour before it blew. It could have happened on the road. Someone was looking out for me!

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Guest Lee_M

same thing happened to one of my mini-spares: i too found mysterious black shrapnel behind the seats, and a few that had made it to the front, from between the seats. i was perplexed. then i opened the storage compartment...

i had only used mine once, and had been months since it had been used.

the day i had first found evidence of it's demise, was an extremely hot sunny day, and the car was relegated to a shadeless golf course parking lot spot.

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Guest Jim_McNally

Glad you're OK -

I recently checked into what to do to replace the donut spares, as I was worried about using one as old as what's now on our cars. Turns out the industry has pretty much ignored this! Several tire places said that the donuts aren't designed to last longer than 10 years at the outside, but nobody carries them, because 1) people who would spend the money to replace them generally don't hold on to their cars that long, and 2) they are very expensive for retailers to get, since they are all purchased by the car manufacturers anyway. They would be happy to order one (or in my case two) but they cost more than a full size tire. I'm contemplating getting a full size spare on a stock wheel, which should (barely) fit in the round well in the trunk, and doing away with the donut entirely - maybe use the space as a small second trunk or as a huge glove compartment...

Jim

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Guest My TC Toy

Here's a stupid question. Would a standard size tire fit the space saver wheel or is it a complete bastard size. If it could I think it would seem to be a safer alternative and still fit in the compartment.

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Guest 89TCMaserati

I think Jim has the right idea. Install a subwoofer in the compartment now that there's plenty of room!

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Guest Lee_M

wow!

red subs! and maybe paint it two-tone, like that one TC i saw a year or two ago on ebay, and add a spoiler like the one in prospect, PA; and a huge over-sized hood scoop like one i saw listed from georgia. oh and a lift kit...

sorry i got carried away

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Guest 89TCMaserati

NO! My subwoofers are in the compartment with the amp. They are ported to the speaker holes behind the seat. Nothing is visible. Sounds great

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