Thread: Will 16in spare wheel suit 18 inch vehicle?

It depends on the size and profile of the tyres, they need to be about the same outside diameter. The stud pattern, offset and centre hole also need to match the hubs on the vehicle.

Check the outside diameter of the wheel/tyre combination. If they are very much different, give the idea away completely.

If they are similar, think about it for a while, and then give the idea away completely.

You could probably use it for a spare in an emergency , but only as a "get me to the nearest service point, and buy a new one." substitute.

Not a good idea at all.

Mounting holes may appear that way best to check by trying to fit it.

Jillib make a model with 2 wheels of different dia what would happen??

If you fitted this to the front end expect radical steering, breaking and handling.

Fitted to the rear end roll over can occur

If it is a different rolling diameter it will fault out your ABS and cruise control, then if one of these has active stability control it will probably fault this out as well. Not a good idea.

JillB, only in real emergency situations over short distances and at low speed. Other than that I would not do it.

Many thanks for these comments, everyone. Based on the above, I was considering not using this tyre for a spare, under any conditions - not worth the risks.

A bit of background would be useful. I have had a 2006 Mitsubishi LS Outlander for years, and when going out of town used to take a full sized spare 16 inch wheel 215/70R16 99H (with the correct offset) in the cargo area, instead of mucking about with the skinny " space saver" wheel. Gee I hate that "space saver".

I have recently upgraded to a 2nd hand 2010 XLS , and 18in alloy wheels 225/55R18 97H, but still with the skinny damn "space saver". Hence the question - is the full sized 16inch spare I used with the 2006 LS suitable for the 2010 XLS version of the same vehicle.

I got a wheel alignment today at Beaurepairs in Ipswich Qld before heading back to NQ ( road flooding permitting, esp near Bowen), and after checking on their computer, they advise the difference in wheel diameters is only 2.7mm, nothing to worry about. They said the offset in the 2006 and 2010 Mitsubishi Outlander had not changed.

With the 18 inch alloys, I thought I was getting a 2inch increase in ground clearance over the 16inch, but am advised that the 18 in trye has a much lower profile than the 16in tyre, so they end up about the same overall diameter.

Another day, another lesson learnt !

Any Mitsi queries these folk have a lot to offer.

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thanks Cristopha, will check them out