Six to 7 months ago, I purchased a 2013 Chrysler Town and Country S. A couple weeks ago, I discovered a spare tire problem. I was in the hospital and my wife had a flat. She called AAA. Their guy showed up after about 45 minutes and was unhappy to see a Chrysler van with the spare tire stowed on the underside. He went to put spare on and asked if we’d ever had the tire on the ground. The answer is no. He said it couldn’t be done, that the bolt pattern doesn’t match. As it turns out, these donut tires are hard to find. But that isn’t the biggest puzzle.
The rim beneath the van is 16" The tire tag on the door jamb says the spare should be a T145/80D17. I contacted the dealer I purchased it from and he rounded up another donut - but it is also a 16" I’ve been looking at compatability charts and they say the size is 16x4. But the tires are 225 65 17. What do people do with these things? Salvage yards don’t have them. They are really expensive. Maybe Chrysler is partly to blame for making it had to put the spare away underneath the vanj? Where to look?
The spare is probably not original equipment. My guess is that somewhere along the line a seller noticed there wasn’t one and threw one in that he had sitting around. If you want a spare, you need to match the bolt pattern on your wheels. Measure it and then start looking for a replacement rim and tire.
The original spare on a 2013 T&C has a bolt pattern of 5 X 5 (5 bolt holes, 5" diameter). According to Tire Rack, you can use a 16" on the Touring but only 17" on the Limited which seems odd. The issue is the wheel diameter fitting over the brake calipers. If the dealer rounded up a 16" and says it will fit, I’d go with it.
This looks like the OEM part number part interchange from Mopar… and it seems to be a 17"…
You can call the dealer to confirm part number is correct and if so this should help…
I would guess it will help to find one since it fits a lot of vehicles…
Steel Wheel - Mopar (4726149AA)
2012-2020 Mopar - 4726149aa
VEHICLE FITMENT
| Year | Make | Model | Body & Trim | Engine & Transmission |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | Dodge | Grand Caravan | GT, SE, SE Plus, SXT | 3.6L V6 - Flex, 3.6L V6 - Gas |
| 2020 | Dodge | Journey | Crossroad | 2.4L L4 - Gas |
| 2019 | Dodge | Grand Caravan | GT, SE, SXT | 3.6L V6 - Flex, 3.6L V6 - Gas |
| 2019 | Dodge | Journey | Crossroad, GT, SE | 2.4L L4 - Gas, 3.6L V6 - Flex |
| 2018 | Dodge | Grand Caravan | GT, SE, SE Plus, SXT | 3.6L V6 - Flex, 3.6L V6 - Gas |
| 2018 | Dodge | Journey | Crossroad, GT, SE, SXT | 2.4L L4 - Gas, 3.6L V6 - Flex |
| 2017 | Dodge | Grand Caravan | GT, SE, SE Plus, SXT | 3.6L V6 - Flex, 3.6L V6 - Gas |
| 2017 | Dodge | Journey | Crossroad, GT, SE, SXT | 2.4L L4 - Gas, 3.6L V6 - Flex |
| 2016 | Chrysler | Town & Country | LX, Limited, Limited Platinum, S, Touring, Touring L | 3.6L V6 - Flex, 3.6L V6 - Gas |
| 2016 | Dodge | Grand Caravan | American Value Package, R/T, SE, SE Plus, SXT | 3.6L V6 - Flex, 3.6L V6 - Gas |
| 2016 | Dodge | Journey | Crossroad, R/T, SE, SXT | 2.4L L4 - Gas, 3.6L V6 - Flex |
| 2015 | Chrysler | Town & Country | LX, Limited, Limited Platinum, S, Touring, Touring L | 3.6L V6 - Flex, 3.6L V6 - Gas |
| 2015 | Dodge | Grand Caravan | American Value Package, R/T, SE, SXT | 3.6L V6 - Flex, 3.6L V6 - Gas |
| 2015 | Dodge | Journey | AVP, Crossroad, Limited, R/T, SE, SXT | 2.4L L4 - Gas, 3.6L V6 - Flex |
| 2015 | Ram | C/V | Tradesman | 3.6L V6 - Flex |
| 2014 | Chrysler | Town & Country | 30th Anniversary Edition, Limited, S, Touring, Touring L | 3.6L V6 - Flex, 3.6L V6 - Gas |
| 2014 | Dodge | Grand Caravan | American Value Package, R/T, SE, SE 30th Anniversary Edition, SXT, SXT 30th Anniversary Edition | 3.6L V6 - Flex, 3.6L V6 - Gas |
| 2014 | Dodge | Journey | Crossroad, Limited, R/T, SE, SXT | 2.4L L4 - Gas, 3.6L V6 - Flex |
| 2013 | Chrysler | Town & Country | Limited, S, Touring, Touring L | 3.6L V6 - Flex, 3.6L V6 - Gas |
| 2013 | Dodge | Grand Caravan | Crew, R/T, SE, SXT | 3.6L V6 - Flex, 3.6L V6 - Gas |
| 2013 | Dodge | Journey | AVP, Crew, R/T, SE, SXT | 2.4L L4 - Gas, 3.6L V6 - Flex |
| 2012 | Chrysler | Town & Country | Limited, Touring, Touring L | 3.6L V6 - Flex, 3.6L V6 - Gas |
| 2012 | Dodge | Grand Caravan | Crew, R/T, SE, SXT | 3.6L V6 - Flex, 3.6L V6 - Gas |
| 2012 | Dodge | Journey | AVP, Crew, R/T, SE, SXT | 2.4L L4 - Gas, 3.6L V6 - Flex |
| 2012 | Ram | C/V | Base | 3.6L V6 - Flex |
One never knows about a used vehicle. Someone has messed with this one; the cover that protects the steel rim and tire from the elements is missing. The AAA guy tried to put the 16" on but wouldn’t get the bolts lined up But it doesn’t want to clear the caliper, either. This is just a plain old “S” van. I concur that the Limited being able to take the 16 but not the Touring seems strange. I’ve had some Limited vans and they always have the bigger tires and wheels.
Ray’s most recent (11.2.23) newspaper column addresses a similar question. OP can read his recommended solutions by clicking on “Car Talk”, top left of this page.