sarah

All 4 of my tires are 17" Goodyear V-rated tires. They have about 15000 miles on them.

My full size spare tire is a Bridgestone, but it's the identical size and rating(V-rated) and on the identical wheel as the other 4 tires/wheels. It has never been driven on the road before. I always make sure that it's properly inflated(but usually add 5 extra PSI just in case)

If I'm on a roadtrip from NY to CO and one of the tires goes flat, will it be safe to continue for several hundred miles on that spare tire? I know the handling/braking/ may feel off, because it's different than the other 3 tires.

Mr645

Should be fine, in fact you probably will never notice. Lots of people will change brands or model tires when changing 2 tires. Many cars have different size front and rear tires and if the car is a few years old, the tires used may not even be made anymore.

mitsuguy

iTrader: (2)

Absolutely correct.

The things to watch for with spares is age. Look at the DOT number on the sidewall of the tire. The last 4 are the date of manufacture in a week/year format - 0514 would be 5th week of 2014, for instance. A tire that reaches 6 years can be questionable though probably alright if kept out of the sun. Once a tire reaches 10 years of age, it is recommended it be replaced no matter how good it looks.

fankegoe

Many cars have different size front and rear tires and if the car is a few years old, the tires used may not even be made anymore