My girlfried is considering purchacing a FEH. One questing we have is can a Full Size spare fit in the standard spot? I did see the discussion under the "first flat tire" thread ... But has anyone actually tried it? We have asked numerous dealers and they don't know. One was going to try for us, but we have not heard back from them.

I was told, by the service advisor at my dealer, that a full size spare would fit without any problems ... but there are no inexpensive tires available to use as a spare.

mm

Really? I was told just the opposite. The Regular Escape can have a full size spare, the FEH, not, due to lower ground clearance due to the HV battery pack.

I'm 99% sure a full size spare, while perhaps possible, will hang down below the rear bumper and show from the rear. The small spare is invisible.

A full size spare is NOT a factory / dealer option. I know that much.

I think John's right that it does/probably/maybe (pick your preferred term) fit, but that it does so in a less-than-ideal way -- secure, but visible and/or a tight fit.

I checked Mercury Mariner Hybrid on Google and it looks like it only has the option of the small/temporary spare tire, just like the Ford Escape Hybrid.

I didn't check the non-hybrid Escape, but during my search the non-hybrid Mercury Mariner came up and it does have the option of a full-size spare ($105 extra in '06 model), so that seems to lend credence to the "because of the hybrid components" (whether that's the battery, coolant lines for the battery's A/C system, or what, I don't know), a full-size spare mounting is sub-optimal in some way.

I'd checked out my spare on Easter but did not go to the trouble of removing a perfectly good stock/factory tire from my vehicle to test fit a full-size "spare" where the small/temporary spare lives. I just cranked my spare down while familiarizing myself with its location, ease of access, etc.

Like I said in another forum, I drove 14 years in my Corolla and the one and only time I needed my full-size spare (or any spare) tire, I found my spare tire was flat and still had to call roadside assistance. Murphy's Law...

- Shannon (Geeky, Wild Texan)

Yes, the full size spare is an option on the non-Hybrid Mariner, but not on the Hybrid. The last thing I want is to flat in the middle of west Texas on my way to or from Colorado with no FSS. Secure and safe are all I'm looking at. Its OK to loose a little ground clearance.

Another note, is we have not found a AWD model around Austin. None of our dealers order any. I just saw the note on the forum that the '06 builds are done ... so maybe this will change for the '07 models since we will have to special order to get what we want anyway. Mark

ID say if you are making a trip like that, throw a spare int he back of the truck, and hit the road


For everyday driving rely on the donut

The only question I need to ask would be "Is the temp spare the same height as the regular tires?" I've heard that you shouldn't have a temp tire on your drive axile since most temp tires are smaller than the regular tires.
The last vehicle I had was equipped with a full sized spare and my wife's last vehicle and present vehicle were also equipped with a full sized spare.
Since my FEH is an AWD model, I guess having to use the temp tire on my vehicle is somewhat troubling to me... Guess I'll be cranking my temp tire down to check the tire height against one of the regular tires.

Hi,

before I took delivery of my FEH 06, I had them put a full size spare in place of the donut. You cannot see it hanging from under the car and my mileage is no different than the averages posted on this site. I check my tire pressures regularly and have the guy check the spare at the same time. I drive alone and a lot most of the time and felt better about having a full sized spare.

Im going in next week for my 10K check up. I had warranty work done on my cargo area carpet a few months ago and it is already pulling up and when it does, it gets caught in the latch and the door wont close properly. Im pretty frustrated by this. I called the dealer to complain and they stated it would be covered under warranty again, but Im considering taking it up and putting down a rubber mat. Anyone done that?

The first thing I did when I got my FEH was order Husky rubber floor mats, including the one for the cargo area. I disliked the flimsy carpet over the battery pack and it kept sliding it out of place when loading and unloading the vehicle. I *LEFT* the flimsy carpet mat in place and put my Husky cargo liner on top of it -- the Husky has little pointed nubs on the underside so the carpet mat serves to further help anchor it (it's molded to fit the shape of the cargo area floor -- it doesn't shift, so the carpet isn't absolutely required, I s'pose.)

Make sure you get the right mat if you go that route... AutoAnything.com has them for a good price and specifically specifies wich mats fit the Ford Escape Hybrid. I bought my cargo, rear seat (one long piece that fits all the floor space in the back seat), and front driver and passenger side Husky mats from them.

- Shannon (Geeky, Wild Texan)

We still haven't got or FEH yet, but we will soon (probably a mariner hybrid).

We did look at the spare tire area on a hybrid and standard escape and on the std Mariner. They all looked exactly the same to us.

Good to know that someone has successfull installed a full size spare.

Mark