Spare Wheel Doesn't Fit

[Bill Grissom]

Anybody run into this? 2002 Town & Country 3.8L AWD, 16" wheels, towing package. Had a flat on front right tire and found the spare wheel wouldn't quite fit. It bumps into the caliper. It seems just the thickness of a few washers would make it clear. I gave up and called our insurance for a tow truck and the guy answering said he has the same problem on his truck. He can only use the mini-spare on the rear wheels. So, I did that, which was a pain with a single jack, taking an hour to orchestrate the move using the bad tire for temporary support.

BTW, our tire (Yokohama) didn't just go flat, it exploded at 55 mph on Hwy 99 . We heard a subtle sound just before. It came and went with the road, so I thought maybe just the pavement. As it got slightly louder, I immediately told my wife to lift off the throttle and move to the right lane. Before she even got there, boom and a rough ride. Interestingly, we saw the same thing 2 days earlier on I-605. A GM van to my left was making a slight whine and then their front right tire exploded. I slowed to let him move to the side, but saw both tires skidding as he fell behind. I was yelling "don't jam the brakes, idiot!". Fortunately he didn't roll over. I saw 6 lanes of traffic stopped in my rearview mirror as he came to a complete stop in the center lane. Perhaps that incident rubbed off on my wife as she said "not pushing the brakes" before I even asked.