[Lindenwood]

Got impatient and ordered a cheap steel wheel and 215/85R16 economy road tire. Cost me $140 with tax from Walmart.com, and I estimate around $15 or so to mount and balance with a new valve stem.

I am not going to bother with a TPMS sensor since it is still just a temporary spare, but at least this will give me a lot more flexibility than a donut. For example, if I have a flat during a busy work week I could reasonably wait until the weekend to have it fixed. Or, more importantly, if I am on a road trip or traveling late at night, I'll have more options than stopping at the nearest hole-in-the-wall shop. And, probably the biggest reason is if I get a flat offroad, I won't be trying to ride a donut through Moab .

It is worth mentioning that for folks looking at taller 16" tires, it might be worth considering this 215/85R16 size because it should allow for a true full-sized matching spare and true 5-wheel tire rotation. Of note, all the ATs I can find in this size are E-rated tires, which means about a 15% weight increase and probably 2mpg less. Of course, that also means super heavy-duty construction so you'd probably never get a flat at all.

 

[Blogson]

Don't know whether the OEM spare in 5th generation RAV4s has a TPMS sensor but if it does, omitting it will cause the TPMS light on the instrument panel to illuminate with your temporary spare.

 

[Lindenwood]

Don't know whether the OEM spare in 5th generation RAV4s has a TPMS sensor but if it does, omitting it will cause the TPMS light on the instrument panel to illuminate with your temporary spare.

I doubt it does, but it is worth checking out. If it does, I'll have it swapped.

But, I fully expect to have a TPMS light without a sensor in the spare. Again, though, I only intend it to be a moderately more robust temporary option, that would likely only see maybe a few days of use at most.

 

[Lindenwood]

I doubt it does, but it is worth checking out. If it does, I'll have it swapped.

But, I fully expect to have a TPMS light without a sensor in the spare. Again, though, I only intend it to be a moderately more robust temporary option, that would likely only see maybe a few days of use at most.

I am already eyeballing E-rated ATs (and MTs....), so I may end up with a complete 5-tire setup anyways lol.

 

[Lindenwood]

I guess you can call this providence. Had the 2nd flat of my life today. Nail in the tire, possibly too close to the edge to repair. If they cant repair it, I am buying a matching 5th wheel and 5 E-rated tires.

 

[mrtaxi]

Toyota just lost a sale...for now. I just got off the phone with Toyota corporate (800-331-4331) who told me that the wheel well won't fit a full size spare. Wazzupwiddat? To make matters worse they market the RAV4 as "designed to meet most off-road driving requirements." See brochure Footnote 13. Maybe the geniuses at Toyota believe doughnuts are tough enough. Right!!! And of course the brochures/manuals say nothing. But I'm sure dealers will inform potential buyers. Right again!!! If enough people find out about it and complain maybe Toyota will find the room to fix this stupidity. The CSR said mgmt reviews all the customer call comments which, in my case, were duly noted. Hopefully, Toyota hears/reads these comments and takes action. If they don't I think they will get a big black eye. Buyer beware......unless you have faith in your doughnut. :surprise

I have the hybrid top model and a full size alloy spare wheel, it fits well and was standard equipment

 

[Quickdtoo]

I have the hybrid top model and a full size alloy spare wheel, it fits well and was standard equipment

You're also in New Zealand, not an option in North America. The 4th gen also had a full size spare tire in other parts of the world, but it didn't fit under the deck without raising the deck board with a riser which reduced cargo capacity.

 

[Lindenwood]

Just ordered 5x 215/85R16 Goodyear Duratracs!

 

[Lindenwood]

And ordered 5x new 16x6.5 wheels because my 16x7.5s would be too wide for a 215 (at least, too wide to safely air down). At least I'll now have a full set to sell!

 

[Lindenwood]

I can now confirm a full-sized 215-width spare wheel and tire will fit in the stock location. It is a 215/85R16 mounted on an aftermarket 16x6.5 wheel.

Caveat: I have probably the largest tires of anyone on here with a 5th gen (30.5" for these), so it just baaaaarely fits. I kinda have to shove the tire into the spare location, but I was able to pull it back out. Also, because the spare tire location is not completely flat, the tire height causes it to sit ever so slightly higher than a standard-diameter tire would; it seems like the removable cargo floor actually sits partially on the sidewall, and if I put some weight on the center of the cargo floor, the edge behind the seat will slightly lift at the corners. Still, that is very minor to me relative to the benefits of a full-sized spare, and a less aggressive tire or more normal size should fit with no issues anywhere.

 

[Lindenwood]

I wanted to add, I could not found any all-terrain tires in a 215 width except for this relatively tall 215/85R16 truck size. So, if you want a full-sized matching spare for off-road performance, you will have to accept this taller size and maybe a small amount of very light trimming behind at the front of the front wheel wells (I still havent trimmed mine yet, and have very low-offset wheels, so you might not need to at all). Of note, you will need a maximum wheel width of 7"--I went with 6.5".

The only other option to get a full-sized matching spare is going 215/75R16, which is 28.7" (roughly the same size as stock LE / XLE tires), which provides a smallish selection of all-season tires.

 

[dnoonie]

I might have a better chance of fitting a 225 tire in the spare tire well, 2/3" less wide than a 235 might just fit. My plan was to use a snow tire as a spare in the summer and a summer tire as a spare in the winter.

That being said since 1985 I've carried a 12v tire pump in the car and only once have I had to put on the spare when I had a piece of scrap metal put a monster gash in a sidewall. In the last 5 years I've had about 5 nails in my tires and each time I simply pumped up the tire every day or every other day till I was able to get the tire patched or replaced. If the full sized doesn't fit I'll likely not do anything about it unless I'm doing a cross country trip, then the hitch tire carrier will be considered.

Thanks everyone!
Cheers,

 

[Lindenwood]

I might have a better chance of fitting a 225 tire in the spare tire well, 2/3" less wide than a 235 might just fit. My plan was to use a snow tire as a spare in the summer and a summer tire as a spare in the winter.

That being said since 1985 I've carried a 12v tire pump in the car and only once have I had to put on the spare when I had a piece of scrap metal put a monster gash in a sidewall. In the last 5 years I've had about 5 nails in my tires and each time I simply pumped up the tire every day or every other day till I was able to get the tire patched or replaced. If the full sized doesn't fit I'll likely not do anything about it unless I'm doing a cross country trip, then the hitch tire carrier will be considered.

Thanks everyone!
Cheers,

Just be aware that the longer you drive with the nail in the tire, the more that nail will have a tendency to wallow out the hole. At best, this simply means it will start leaking faster over time--needing air every 3 days turns into every day which turns into twice a day. After a while, it could damage the cords enough that the tire cannot be safely repaired. Finally, at worst, it could damage the cords enough that a hard hit (say, an unexpected pothole) could cause a blowout.

 

[jethaden]

I just received my 2019 RAV4 XLE Hybrid with Firestone Destination LE2 225/65R17 tires (Canada build). I put one of my wheels/tires into spare area, and it fit with about 1/8 inch to spare vertically after removing the little black rubber square supporting the front of the spare tire. With the wheel outside side down, the spokes cleared the steel bottom of the well by about 1/4 inch. On top, the clearance to the deck top was about 1/8 inch, or perhaps at bit less. The black foam jack support fits inside the upside down wheel. Width of this tire is spec'ed at 9" at Tirerack. Since I do not intend to oversize replacement tires, all is good for me. I will probably go with Pirelli Scorpion All Terrain Plus tires in stock Hybrid XLE size, also listed at 9" section width.

 

[Lowcountry Rav]

So I finally got around to taking off one of my 235/55R19 and putting it in the trunk. Note this is a XLE Premium. I presume all ICE powered units are the same however.

This in theory is a 29.2 inch diameter tire with 9.3 inch width. Here it is, with the Styrofoam and little black block removed. The cover is definitely resting on the tire, but it holds it up maybe 1/8 and inch at best. I don't think its lifted enough to cause me any issues, however if your looking for no cover lift at all, stay below 9 inch width and it shouldn't' be an issue.

 

[RAVDoug]

Review showing how full size spare fits

 

[KuddlKat]

Review showing how full size spare fits

When I saw this conversation pop up, I was going to post this same video. I saw it shortly after it came out, and the RAV4 his show bought is the same model/packages/color as mine.

 

[CFike]

The dismounted 235/55R19 tire will fit, but it's a little too tall at the front for the deck board to fit flush, rear of the deck board fits flush as it normally would, I'd expect an inflated tire to at least raise the front of the board a big higher even if the black rubber block was removed. Note the spray-on sound deadener in the well.

Seems that could be made to work - is there enough diameter for a mounted and inflated tire? If it's snug as pictured, inflated might be a problem...

 

[CFike]

Don't know whether the OEM spare in 5th generation RAV4s has a TPMS sensor but if it does, omitting it will cause the TPMS light on the instrument panel to illuminate with your temporary spare.

it doesn't. Does not show up in the Carista OBDII TPMS display, just the 4 mounted wheels.

 

[Lowcountry Rav]

So I finally got around to doing this. Its a 2012 Rav4 16x16.5 with 45mm offset, steel wheel - well actually a Chinese knock off from the company road ready, and a 225/75R16 tire. With the Styrofoam and little rubber block removed it fits under the top cover with about 1/4 inch to spare. On the front there is no rubbing full lock. Looks really close to the original tire clearance or even a bit more.

My factory 19's are a 29.2 x 9.3 inch tire, and these are a 29.3 x 8.9 inch tire - all theoretical. I installed it on the front and took it for a short spin - no handling or pulling problems - although if I had to go a great distance I would most likely still install it on the back. I now need to figure out exactly what to do with the jack - it fits, but the Styrofoam carrier doesn't.