re
2 guys fought for at least 20 minutes to get the spare
re-stowed. "

yeah....the probably were not smart enough to lower the van on the lift to
the floor and use a floor jack to raise the spare tire clam shell with too
large tire on it.

And that's not hard to figure out either.

I do consider it a hazard a little for there to be a lot of pressure on the
spare tire holder...
for a woman customer recently .....we knew that could be an issue for her..
either letting the spare down or putting it back up ..so we set her up with
a normal,  more slender spare tire.

Scott

----- Original Message -----
From: "Larry Plotkin" <zeplotkin@GMAIL.COM>
To: <vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM>
Sent: Saturday, December 17, 2011 7:21 PM
Subject: Re: 27 in tires in clamshell

> "Can 27in tires 27x8.5x14 be made to fit in the clamshell of a 2wd?"
>
>
> Maybe.  I've been doing that for years, in an 87 2WD that had OEM alloys
> and 205/70 14s.  There's a Goodrich TA KO in there now.  But ... I carry
> an electric air pump and a little hydraulic jack, like a 1 1/2 or 2 ton
> bottle style jack.  Let some air out of the tire so it's squishable and
> then push it up into position with the jack.  Worked fine for me last
> year when I blew out a new (General) tire and put a serious ding in the
> alloy about a hundred miles from a tow and probably 50 from a cell phone
> signal.  Get out in the dirt, get out the spare and get the pump going
> on it while I pull the wheel, back on the nasty road in a half hour.
>
> That said, somebody that knows more about tires than me may have
> something to say about how happy the tire is about that.  I do know the
> Discount Tire guys that replaced the blown one when I got home were not
> happy at all -- 2 guys fought for at least 20 minutes to get the spare
> re-stowed.  But for me with hydraulic help, 5 minutes.