Were full-size spares an option on 1993-97 Corollas? Since we'll have a lot of long-distance driving ahead for our wagon, I'd like to get a fifth steel rim and a 185/65-14 tire to match the others on the car. That way, a flat won't mean being stuck with the temporary spare in the middle of nowhere.
But will a full-size wheel and tire fit in the well? I think it would, based on my memories of the space, but I wondered if anyone knew for sure. Again, I'd just check if I weren't on the other side of the world. I'm just curious and am procrastinating writing a paper at the moment... 
-Dave
You could test during your next tire rotation.
My 03 well can't hold the full size tire/rim.
Well, I could and I probably will test it first, but that won't be until late June. Right now, I'm in China and my car is in Pennsylvania. I was just curious...
-Dave
My 2003 fits the OEM 185/65/15 steel wheel/tire into the spare tire well just fine.
i have a 93 prizm and a spare steel and it will not fit in the well, its too tall.
185/65 14.
While doing my tire rotation a couple of weeks ago, I test-fitted one of my full-size wheel/tires into the spare compartment and it appeared to want to go. However, I didn't try to hold it down with the thumbscrew, so I can't say for sure that it is intended to be used with a full size spare. The diameter seems right, but I'm not too sure about the height -- the spare tire cover/trunk floor bottom piece may not fit correctly.
A full size spare does not fit in my 1993, 1994 or 1995 Corollas. I can put one in it, but the cover does not lie flat and wobbles on top of the tire. It is not that much bigger and I have put a full size tire in it occassionally. For your long trip you could probably do it.
Thanks, folks. If the fit is that close, the cover may lie flat with a 175-width tire (175/70-14). It would be slightly taller than the stock 185/65-14 (by less than a quarter inch) and would thus be a bit less than 1% off in circumference, but it'd be close enough for a spare--much closer than the temporary spare, anyway! If I had a really long way to go, I would be sure to put it on the rear to avoid damaging the differential.
I appreciate your advice!
-Dave
Thanks, folks. If the fit is that close, the cover may lie flat with a 175-width tire (175/70-14). It would be slightly taller than the stock 185/65-14 (by less than a quarter inch) and would thus be a bit less than 1% off in circumference, but it'd be close enough for a spare--much closer than the temporary spare, anyway! If I had a really long way to go, I would be sure to put it on the rear to avoid damaging the differential.I appreciate your advice!
-Dave
Dave, I don't think the problem would be the circumference of the full size tire. It would be the width of the rim itself. The midget spares have a narrower rim and also smaller tire, but there is space for a larger circumference (at least on my year cars). You can put a full size one in the spare compartment and put the wobbly cover over it with the carpet on top of that and still use the trunk area. Hope this helps.
P.S. To be sure what I say is true, I went to my 1994 in the garage and took a tire (P185/70-14) that I had in my yard and tried it in the trunk space. I still had the spare inside, but I put the tire on top of it to check the circumference and saw that it did have clearance. It was close, but it did fit.
Howard, thanks. Looks like we're helping one another out on different posts!
I wasn't concerned about the overall diameter of the tire, but I wondered if the interference with the trunk board was due to the width of the rim or the width of the tire. I know in my old BMW, I used to have one of the original (25-year-old!) 165R13 tires on the stock 13X4.5 rim as a spare. When I got too nervous to keep doing that, I had a "spare" used 185/70 tire mounted on the original rim. The tire is the same circumference as the stock size, but the extra width of the tire causes the trunk board to 'wobble' just a tad--it rests on the tire, not the original supports.
So, if the same thing were true in the Corolla, and since I'll probably be buying a new tire anyway, I could maybe have a reasonably-sized spare and have the trunk board fit flat by getting a 175-section tire, which should buy me an extra centimeter of clearance. Does that make sense? Just a thought.
-Dave
I have a 2000 Corolla and the full size steel rim and tire fits perfectly into the spare compartment. No problems at all.
Dave - the tire size would fit circumference wise, but the full size rim is wider than the temporary spare . Let me know what you end up doing and how it fits. I am keeping a full size spare wheel in my trunk and it is making the cover a little higher, but the carpet still goes over it and it doesn't lose much trunk space. How does the wagon differ than the sedan when it comes to spare location/size??
My '05 CE has original 185x65x15 Integrity with original Corolla wheel and fits great in the wheel well. I even made a different bolt and tried the wheel upside down which gave lots of room for extra stuff. The only problem with that was that the mat had no support under it.
My '05 CE has original 185x65x15 Integrity with original Corolla wheel and fits great in the wheel well. I even made a different bolt and tried the wheel upside down which gave lots of room for extra stuff. The only problem with that was that the mat had no support under it.
So you probably had to use a shorter bolt because the rim was upside down?? That would give you more space in that area, but you would have to cover the wheel with something, otherwise whatever you put there would rub on the tire and get dirty. I don't usually put anything in that area except the spare. It means lifting up the carpet and the cover to get to anything that is kept there. I do occassionally vaccuum it out, when I clean out my cars interior - just to be thorough.
