[Timbo64]

E-mail my wife sent to Subaru:

My husband and I love our new 2010 Forester Premium. However, there is one big, or should I say small problem. No full size spare tire. I was horrified to find out what was required to change a flat tire because of the AWD system. As a woman, I am scared to death about having a flat at 3AM. I know that I can call Subaru road side assistance, but it will take time for them to get to me. Why does Subaru not off a full sized spare tire in the US market? Most of the world gets one when they purchase a Subaru. If I have a flat on the front, I have to take a tire off of the rear, put the space saver spare on the rear, then take the flat tire off of the front and put the good tire that was on the rear, on the front.After all that, I have to disable the AWD system! That will be very unsafe to do. If I had a full sized spare, those steps could be avoided. Also, the owners manual goes into great detail about using tires of different sizes. So why does Subaru give me a small spare tire that goes directly in the face of that advice? Will Subaru sell me a full sized spare (tire and wheel) at cost to replace the space saver spare? Subaru has built a great reputation the world over on the safety and performance of its AWD vehicles. Providing a space saver spare tire goes against everything that Subaru stands for.

Subaru e-mail response:

Thank you for your recent e-mail to Subaru of America, Inc. We appreciate you taking the time to contact us. We are happy to hear that you love your new Forester...for the most part.
The precautions you mentioned (as also mentioned in the owner's manual) are the proper procedures for spare tire usage. Please review the temporary spare tire section of your owner's manual beginning on page 9-2. The temporary spare tire is to be used for emergency use only and should be replaced as soon as possible.
While we do not offer a full size spare tire for our vehicles, we appreciate your comments. Your concerns are important to us and will be noted in our Customer/Dealer Services database. We use such information to continually track, review and consider the performance of our products, always with the intentions of improving upon them. In the past, input from our customers has been helpful in initiating changes to our newer models. We hope to continually improve our products and appreciate your feedback.
If you have any additional questions, please do not hesitate to contact us again. Thank you for the opportunity to be of service and we wish you many safe happy miles in your Forester.

 

[mundane]

i saw some posters replacing their 'small' spare tire with a full one and they were able to fit it perfectly with the cover on it.
im sure doing a search will yield the thread/s. this particular change is in my to-do list come summertime.

 

[Lovesubaru]

Subaru Roadside Assistance 800.261.2155 is provided by the vehicle manufacturers as a service to customers wtih vehicles still under warranty.

flat tire change
out of gas assistance
dead battery jump start

Within 3/36, I wouldn't worry about the tire...

 

[stevemac829]

Now that I'm running winter and summer tires, I'm thinking I might as well put one of the off-season tires in the well instead of the donut. They are all the same nominal size (215-65-16). But the OP makes an interesting point: much of Subaru world gets a full size spare....what is the reason the USA does not? Any theories, ideas, info? JaredN? Anyone? Perhaps we are victims of our relatively affluent lifestyle...if we get a flat, we call AAA. A nail in the tire? We let the tire shop sell us a new one instead of plugging it. In much of the world that flat tire would be repaired and re-used. Hell, when was the last time most folks in the States actually checked the air pressure of their donut spare? Supposed to hold 60psi, I'll bet most of them are down around 30psi. (I'm not talking about members of this forum, ahem.) There must be something about us North Americans that makes Subaru believe (correctly!) that we will accept the donut spare w/out a fight. But what is it?
Just wonderin'
Steve
09 2.5X AT

 

[gdawrx]

no, it's because we americans are cheap bastards. We'd rather save a few bucks and not get auto window down, HIDs, and full sized spares. Or for that matter, a pocket instead of a fuse cover.

Maybe you and I steve, we'd pay for that, but most people would rather get a slightly cheaper car.

That's why we don't get the Forester STI either, because why would anyone pay 40k for a forester when a base forester is only half that? Why pay 40k for a forester, when you can get a G35 for less than that? (I'm being sarcastic)

 

[john16v]

I have never tried it but in our SG (06-08) if we remove the tray we can put a full size spare 215-60-16 in there?

 

[Blue Fox]

^^ My 04 has the full size 215/60-16 spare, and if I remember correctly, the spare tire compartment is exactly the same from 03-08 model years. I'm sure you'll have no problems.

 

[Timbo64]

I'm trying to decide on a 16" steel wheel and a P215/65R16 tire, like many here have, or getting another 17" alloy and doing a five tire rotation.

Even if I call roadside assistance and they come out and change my tire, I don't like the idea of driving 25 or 50 miles in the rain with that POS tiny spare and my AWD turned off.
I wish that Subaru offered a full size spare, like on the 2009 RAV4 (17" spare tire with matching rim) we traded in on the Forester (one day before the recall sh-t hit the fan) as an option for people who want and are willing to pay for one.

BTW, the RAV4 was a great vehicle and we never had one problem with it. We were just bored with it and fell in love with the Forester.

 

[crewzer]

Timbo,

I purchased a full-size spare for my '09 Forester from Tire Rack, and it was shipped to my door. This full-size spare discussion, along with some of the embedded links to related discussions, may be helpful to you.

And, just to add fuel to the fire :mob:, check this link to the Australian Subaru Forester XS Premium: The exterior features include a "full size spare wheel".

I also checked the specs for the Forester sold in Germany. The specs include a "Reserverad, vollwertig in Fahrbereifung", which translated into English means, "Spare wheel, equal to road tires".

:yell:

HTH,
Jim / crewzer

 

[vintage42]

... Subaru e-mail response:
While we do not offer a full size spare tire for our vehicles, we appreciate your comments...

Subaru does not offer a full size spare in the US market, but provides it in every other market in the world. I changed to a full size spare, with a new wheel and tire from eBay and a floor support bucket from the dealer, for $200 including mounting.

 

[vintage42]

^^ My 04 has the full size 215/60-16 spare, and if I remember correctly, the spare tire compartment is exactly the same from 03-08 model years. I'm sure you'll have no problems.

Subaru uses the same Forester body throughout the world, and does not stamp reduced size spare tire well just for the US.

 

[stevemac829]

Subaru does not offer a full size spare in the US market, but provides it in every other market in the world. I changed to a full size spare, with a new wheel and tire from eBay and a floor support bucket from the dealer, for $200 including mounting.

That's a neat set-up. I'm thinking a lot of us donut haulers will end up doing something similar. But I'm still left wondering: WHY does Subaru single out the U.S. market for the donut spare, and give everyone else a real spare????Any Subaru employees care to share insight on this?
Steve
09 2.5X AT

 

[vintage42]

... WHY does Subaru single out the U.S. market for the donut spare, and give everyone else a real spare?...

Subaru probably made a market decision that the donut spare was best for the US market. The donut spare reduces cost and weight, and provides room for the retractable cargo cover and big knick-knack tray to fit over the tire. Most vehicles use donut spares, and most owners probably prefer them and the extra storage they allow.
My 1990 Mazda truck, 2003 Buick LeSabre, 2006 Scion xB, and 2008 Forester all came with donut spares.

Edit: Take my wife. She does not care a thing about spare tires because she would not change a tire no matter what car she was in, but she can appreciate the storage tray and a way to carry the cargo cover.

 

[adc]

.After all that, I have to disable the AWD system! That will be very unsafe to do. If I had a full sized spare, those steps could be avoided. Also, the owners manual goes into great detail about using tires of different sizes.

Assuming you would not rotate the spare....You will still need to to disable the AWD system, (Takes about a minute from opening to closing the hood) the spare will still be outside of the 1/4" circumference. I just bought a new steel wheel and a used tire. And driving with the AWD system is no more "Dangerous" than FWD. As soon as I got the spare. , IO used it with AWD disabled for around 100 miles. Worked fine. In normal driving you won't notice the difference.

 

[vicali]

Could have been worse, your wife could drive a mini S with no spare at all.

our 08 came with a full size spare (Yayy Canada!) but we would still have to do the tire swap and fuse pull routine as per the manual :biggrin:
not a biggie. drive it like it's an suv wannnabe until you get it fixed.

 

[rusty jake 11]

Could have been worse, your wife could drive a mini S with no spare at all.

our 08 came with a full size spare (Yayy Canada!) but we would still have to do the tire swap and fuse pull routine as per the manual :biggrin:
not a biggie. drive it like it's an suv wannnabe until you get it fixed.

My 2010 has a donut spare. Must be the new generation Forester. My 2001 Outback had a donut spare as well:shrug:.

 

[stevemac829]

Listen, if Fuji appoints me as director of Subaru's North American division, I'll make sure that the only "donuts" they give us are Dunkins, Tim Hortons, or Krispy Kreme :biggrin:
Steve
09 2.5X AT

 

[LochSTi]

My Forester STi has a space saver spare also, perhaps it's 'normal' in Japan as well these days :shrug:

 

[JBX]

The OEM 17" alloy rim and Geolander 225/55HR17.0 tire will fit the spare well with no problems, other than not having a handy place to stow the retractable cargo cover when not in use. As I plan to rotate all five tires regularly, there will be no need to do the FWD fuse shuffle if I have a flat.

As long as you don't fit directional tires or go much wider than stock with your wheel and tire setup, you should be good to go.

 

[dpm]

Yup. You lose the underfloor storage with the full-size spare. Plus, there's a chance the rear crash ratings alter slightly- perhaps the US requires a slightly "softer" crumple zone?