How would the salesperson know? If he lifted the floor panel in the cargo area you would have both seen the compact spare tire. He was probably reading the features listed on the used car label, those are computer generated from the VIN and trim level.
New car, donât have the sheet, oh well, better than no spare at all like some new cars.
Is the spare stamped 225/65R17 or T165/80R17?
Since it says âInflate to 60 psiâ on the side, itâs a compact spare.
my 2019 rav 4 spare needs 60psi, and it is monitored by the TPMS. It was low a week after we bought it, lol
you also have to remove the spare to check/add air. the valve stem is on the bottom (Inside) of the wheel as it sits in the truck area.
The T type spare in my Lincoln also has a spec of 60 PSI. Not a bad idea to check it now and then rather than find out during an emergency that itâs down to 20âŠ
I fill my compact spare to 65 PSI. If itâs still high when I actually need it, I can easily let out the extra air when putting the tire on.
The reason I am reviving this âancientâ post is because, after reading the orig. post and all the comments, I have determined that the answer as to what kind of spare tire this is is documented all over the vehicle (on the door pillar, in the manual, and on the spare itself).
Looking at the documentation quoted from the owners manual:
It states clearly a different tire size for one of the tires. And hence, a different cold pressure setting. That info alone should imply that it is for a spare/(âTâ)emp-use tire. (Hence the âTâ)
Hundreds, if not thousands, of âWhat pressure should my (daily or spare) tires beâ-type forum inquiries could be answered if people took the time to open their driversâ door, hood, fuel or charging port lid, trunk lid, or owners manual for the information.
I donât mean to come off as an âeducated, elitist s n o bâ, but manufacturers of cars, motorcycles, light and commercial trucks, motor coaches, and so forth, have provided tire pressure documentation in at least one or two locations on their products, or in accompanying literature, for at least 70 years.
Itâs only since the 1990s that such documentation: placards, manual literature, and tire sidewalls, has become legislated and more or less standardized in form and wording.
Before jumping in and driving off in oneâs dream machine, one should take just 3-6 minutes examining door frame, hood, or gas lid placards, for the correct cold tire pressures.
Imagine the space saved on forum servers by how many fewer âwhat is my tire pressureâ posts there would be?
If the vehicle owner adds a full-size spare tire, should the door placard be revised?
The placard will only show how the vehicle was originally equipped, and the ownerâs manual can show both: compact spare, full size spare also âIf equippedâ (no spare).
Of course, the information is on the tire, but someone can look directly at narrow tire with shallow tread labeled âTemporary Spare Tireâ and believe it is a standard use tire.
BTW; the OPâs issue was not with the spare tire, it was the warning light.
Imagine the space saved if someone didnât grumble about tire pressure every day.
It is perhaps one of the most, if not the most, misunderstood and thus neglected concepts of vehicle maintenance out there.
According to you. Why do you keep wasting your time dragging up old threads just to rant about tire pressure ?
The answer? Itâs in the comment you just responded to.
Itâs obviously an obsession.
You missed the part indicating that the salesman likely lied. Why lie about something like that I can not guess. Likely the window sticker listing standard feature and options would have been clear it was not a full size spare. Though Barkydog said it did not have a window sticker, I thought that was required. Barkydog never came back to tell us what the service department found as the problem.
The general anwer is dint rely on anything the sales person says. When I asked if the old Acura power steering fluid was ok for the new one, he did not know the new one was electric. No likely to know about the spare.
Sometimes their lies are simply the result of ignorance, or perhaps the inability to understand science. The long-term forum members may recall the following incident, involving my brother and SIL, sometime back in the '90s:
They were shopping for a new car, and at one showroom, the specimen on the showroom floor had the fairly-new Traction Control feature. My brother decided to âtestâ the salesman by trying to act naive, and by asking âWhat happens when I push the traction control button?â. The salesmanâs answer was, âOh, that automatically makes the car heavierâ.
And that it is why they work in sales!
One day they are selling refrigerators, next day they are selling cars.
I used to show u0 car salesman helping mom shop, but to be fair Iâd been studying the specs and features looking for the trim with what she really needed and wanted. One guy didnât know the car had telescoping steering wheel.
The salesman who put both feet in his mouth while remaining upright asked a valid question but it came across to both of us as âcanât you make up your mind woman?â I stood 10ft back and let her deal with him. Obviously we werenât buying a car from him.
Ditto in the case of the salesman who my brother and SIL dealt with. My brother was able to restrain his laughter after hearing how that car was apparently able to defy the laws of physics, but my SIL couldnât stop giggling, so they decided that it was best to leave.