5 new wheels or 4?

[Hootbro]

This is one of those topics that seem to make two camps and if somebody else is not like you, they are wrong when it should not be that way.

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[Mr._Bill]

I'm surprised there are not more technical arguments against it, considering all the posts about how bad it is to have tires of different heights. Once the first rotation is done, after the new install, none of them are the same height again. There is always one sitting out causing the wear to be uneven, until the next new set is put on.

 

[XraytecH]

I keep this laminated in my glove box.

Basically the inverted pattern of that...

And to answer the original question, 5 matching wheels and tires.

 

[GladiatorPilot23]

I wouldn't mind doing this but as someone mentioned, If I bash the spare off-roading. I would not want to see it for 4 rotations but at the same time it would even out the wear on the spare which is good.

 

[Volt0]

I have a fully treaded spare that’s going to waste ( that’s the way that I look at it ) . I paid for it, and it’s just sitting there. I’ll likely get a matching rim, and do a 5 tire rotation until the point where it’s mostly used up, then go to a 4 tire rotation from there. I also like the idea of knowing that my ability to drop the spair still works as intended.

 

[fireproof69]

This is one of those topics that seem to make two camps and if somebody else is not like you, they are wrong when it should not be that way.

Agree. It should just be 2 camps with different preferences.

5 tire/wheel combo costs 20% more and gives 20% longer mileage between tire changes. Not a money savings, just a rotation/replacement frequency. This would work best for those who plan on changing wheel/tire size/type at each replacement.

4 tire/wheel combo with a "plain" spare (matching tire diameter, but not width/tread). Cheaper initial purchase. Standard mileage rotation/replacement. Good option for those who do not plan on changing tire height between replacements, and will only put the spare on for an emergency use to get back to a tire shop to repair/replace a flat/damaged tire.

Myself I am on the 4-tire plan. I run 35x12.5 tire and that full size under the back of my Gladiator hangs much lower than I want the spare to do. And I do not plan on going bigger on tires in the future. So I still need to purchase a 35" tall spare in narrower width for the spare. And possibly a different offset steel wheel for clearance with the Mopar lift.

YMMV

 

[Zachanadandy]

On a JL I'm in on 5 tire rotations. a
A truck with a spare that is never seen and a pain to get out from under the truck, absolutely not. As far as aging out, a tire is good for anywhere from 6-10 years depending on who you believe. My truck would be aged out by then with 200-300k miles on it. The time savings alone in 200k miles worth of rotations would pay for that last set of tires and a new spare.

 

[Sweetums]

OK, so assuming I buy new wheels, and I am pretty sure I am. I have a different question from the topic of my other thread. When I purchased new tires, I bought 5. I am not sure if I need to do that with wheels. All 5 tires are 34s. However, if I buy new wheels, they will 17x9. The spare is the factory 17x7.5. I know the tires won’t be the same size mounted to the different size wheels. Will it be enough to make my Gladiator angry, and I should get 5 new wheels, or will it be safe to keep the stock wheel for the spare and just get 4 new wheels. Thanks!

I always go with 5 so I can do a 5-tire rotation. More importantly, many aftermarket wheels need different lug nuts. I was on a multi-day trip outside of Moab when a guy in a Taco with aftermarket wheels ripped a sidewall out. The problem is his spare was the stock model and he didn't have the stock lugnuts anymore to put it on. We had to rob some lugnuts from other vehicles so two trucks were running with 4 out of 5 lugnuts on some wheels.

It's just always better to have everything matching.

 

[sharpsicle]

This is one of those topics that seem to make two camps and if somebody else is not like you, they are wrong when it should not be that way.

Agreed. It's truly a preference thing, nothing else. The problems always crop up when people make weird claims about their preferred method that just aren't true, like cost savings on 5 or time savings on 4.

Stick to the facts, and do what you prefer. No real advantage or disadvantage either way.

 

[drewcnit]

When I was on 35's I was all in on the 5 tire rotations...
When I moved to 37's w/Beadlock's it went down to a 4 tire rotation, because those are heavy and I'm lazy.... At least I'm honest about it... So the full-size spare tire and wheel was a waste, it was never touched (still to this day).
Now that I'm on 40's - went 4 tires, deleted the spare..
Moving to a new lug pattern at the end of the year, only bought 4 new wheels.

Do I recommend this approach to everyone? NO.
I don't have a daily drive, I work from home. I go run a few errands around town and I go on wheeling trips. I always carry a plug and patch kit. My lifestyle is not typical and neither are my driving patterns.
I'm also surrounded by a wide network of Jeep friends I could call in for some help if I ever had a catastrophic failure that a patch or plug couldn't fix.

In short - it's all dependent on your use case and how comfortable you are dealing with the consequences of your own decisions. What's best is going to be individual, as much as our Jeep's are individual.

 

[LouisvEarlleJT]

I’ve never been worried about a matching size(or wheel) spare, but I’ve also never been one to run a spare for any longer than necessary to get to home or the tire shop. I do lower/raise it once a year once winter is gone and spray everything out real good, double duty of keeping rust at bay and exercising the mechanism.

 

[RudeJeepin]

More importantly, many aftermarket wheels need different lug nuts. I was on a multi-day trip outside of Moab when a guy in a Taco with aftermarket wheels ripped a sidewall out. The problem is his spare was the stock model and he didn't have the stock lugnuts anymore to put it on. We had to rob some lugnuts from other vehicles so two trucks were running with 4 out of 5 lugnuts on some wheels.

This is the best argument I've seen for doing a 5 wheel combo.

That being said, I bought 4 wheels and don't intend to do a 5 wheel rotation, never have.

The whole argument about the spare being odd sized on a 4 tire rotation is garbage.
Back in my Toyota day, I ran TrueTrac diffs. I got a flat more than once. Spare was almost never the same size. I drove miles with it in 4wd with three 34x9.50s and one 33x12.50 to get out. Then drove 25+ miles to town to get the 34 fixed. Did this on more than one occasion. I also drove it for with three 33s and one 29 for several miles to get back to town. Once I wore out my first set of 33s, I used the best one for a spare.

Right now I have a 285/70r17 spare and I'm running 315/70r17s. Can't say I'm worried and good chance I won't bother getting a bigger spare until these wear out. Then I'll use the best one, but I might switch to 37s then.

 

[NortonJTSS]

If you're going to keep the spare as a spare... You'll be fine buying 5 tires 4 rims. However, if you plan on doing 5 tire rotation, could be a different story.

Will they not do a 5 tire rotation without 5 matching rims? Certainly more of a pain in the ass but I figured they'd do it

 

[DiehardTory]

Total Troll post.. Do you know the number of new vehicles that do not have a SPARE Tire? They are out there and how about the mini donut spare; lets do a 5 rotate with that..

 

[Zachanadandy]

Will they not do a 5 tire rotation without 5 matching rims? Certainly more of a pain in the ass but I figured they'd do it

Are you going to drive around with a mismatched wheel or are you paying them to dismount/remount/ balance at least 2 tires so you can get your 5 tire rotation? Rotations are cheap or often free where you buy your tires as it's literally some lug nuts and moving mounted tires around, what you're describing is far from that and should cost you at least $100 every time. 8-10 rotations per set of tires and you just spent the cost of a matching wheel and tire on nothing. There goes the "saving" 20% idea.

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