Y'all seem to know what you're talking about with RV tires. So the question is; is replacing the spare now a great idea, a fair idea, or a waste of 300+ bucks?

Background: When I bought my 2002 MH in August, 2006, it had been used for 3+ years in West Texas. The tires on the ground showed signs of cracking so I changed all six of them at the time of purchase to new Michelin XRVs. But there was a spare carried underneath, hanging from the frame that I haven't ever changed. It also happens to be a Mich XRV.

The MH has been based in North Central Texas since Fall of 06, stored outdoors on a pad and driven about 25K miles all over the country. I'm considering changing out the mounted spare now on the chance that somehow the same UV that degrades the tires on the ground just might also reflect off the concrete pad and degrade the spare "up under there" on its frame carrier. I don't know much about that, or whether it matters.

Unlike the newer road tires, I cannot see a DOT information box on the exposed side of the spare which would have given me the date of manufacture. BUT there is ZERO, none, nada cracking or any other evidence of degradation on the spare's sidewall. And the tire appears to never have touched the ground, because the Michelin paper label is still stuck to the tread; the Workhorse chassis was mfd in late 2001. It appears to have held the pressure, more or less, that I put into it three years ago.

I expect to change the other six (currently with approx. 25K miles) in about 2.5 yrs or so [total age then will be 5.5+ years], and would definitely include a spare at that time.

How would y'all evaluate this spare tire situation, considering the spare is just that...a spare?

Best Regards,

I concur with Frank. Several years ago I had a conversation with Michelin, and they convinced me that tires would lose their strength over time, regardless whether they were on my MH or stored in my garage. While UV and surface cracking is frequently mentioned, a tire's worst enemy is ozone, and it's everywhere. When I replaced my tires the second time I had an unused spare, but was advised to replace it with the best of the replaced tires, because they were newer and had incurred less ozone deterioration. Most MH tires are replaced with lots of tread remaining, but "tread" isn't what prevents blowouts. Good luck. - Dave

Thanks for the ideas! I think I have a plan, now. I'll wait until the six on the ground are 5.5+ years old and then buy six new ones, then move the best one of the current six to be the spare. I'll ditch the current spare at that time...didn't know about the ozone damage before now. Good stuff from all you guys!

Best Regards,