Cutting out the spare?

[TommyR]

My spare tire has been stuck for years. I don't think its the mechanism itself. I believe the turn slot or whatever you call it is stripped. When I put the tool in, it doesn't bite on anything so i can even try to turn it. Is there a way I can just cut the damn tire out? I plan on buying a roof basket and just putting the spare up there anyways.

 

[Doubeleive]

you have to put the correct end of the rod in the slot or it will not go in the way and turn the chain, it can be a pain but what you can do is take a flashlight and look in there to see the position first then put the correct end of the rod in right position and push it in all the way and turn, it's pretty unlikely to be stuck otherwise. in the future you can mark the correct rod end with a dab of paint or tape so there is no confusion when its raining and 20 degrees outside and your stuck in bum-f Egypt like I was one day.

 

[corvette744]

you have to put the correct end of the rod in the slot or it will not go in the way and turn the chain, it can be a pain but what you can do is take a flashlight and look in there to see the position first then put the correct end of the rod in right position and push it in all the way and turn, it's pretty unlikely to be stuck otherwise. in the future you can mark the correct rod end with a dab of paint or tape so there is no confusion when its raining and 20 degrees outside and your stuck in bum-f Egypt like I was one day.

You are exactly right-he is putting the wrong end in i did the same and luckily figured it out.

 

[Sasquatch]

If it is actually stuck you can gain better access to cut the cable by removing the license plate. When mine froze luckily it lowered a few inches before it froze so i could reach in and cut the cable.

 

[TommyR]

you have to put the correct end of the rod in the slot or it will not go in the way and turn the chain, it can be a pain but what you can do is take a flashlight and look in there to see the position first then put the correct end of the rod in right position and push it in all the way and turn, it's pretty unlikely to be stuck otherwise. in the future you can mark the correct rod end with a dab of paint or tape so there is no confusion when its raining and 20 degrees outside and your stuck in bum-f Egypt like I was one day.

Its the rod with the hook like end correct? Kinda makes like a [ shape? I've gotten it to catch on something before, but when trying to turn it, it just slips.

 

[Martinjmpr]

It's probably the idiotic "secondary latch" that GM - AND NOBODY ELSE EVER - put on their spare tire carriers for some dumb reason. With the secondary latch, even if you were to cut the cable completely, the spare would still be hanging up there. The Secondary latch is supposed to release when you press up on the spare, but given their location they very often rust solid. Mine was completely rusted in the "locked" position.

Anyway, what I did was got an angle grinder and ground off one of the "ears" of the bell-shaped part that goes through the center hole of the spare wheel.

Once you do that (be ready to catch the spare tire when it falls!) you can remove the rest of the mechanism with a couple of bolts.

Also, if you want to, you can replace the hoist with one that doesn't feature the secondary latch.

Too bad Photobucket went Full Retard, I had all the photos of this on there. Still have them on my computer but no way to post up here.

 

[swathdiver]

If you can see through the holes in the tire, there's just one 15mm bolt holding the hoist in place.

My mechanism is slipping, it will operate without a load but slips when trying to hoist the spare into position. I've been kicking around the idea of grinding off the 5 rivets and having a look inside or just buying another for $85 and be done with it. What do y'all think?

 

[Doubeleive]

Its the rod with the hook like end correct? Kinda makes like a [ shape? I've gotten it to catch on something before, but when trying to turn it, it just slips.

you should be using the big squared female end inserted into the hole and then turned, but use a flashlight to look inside the hole to be sure

 

[Martinjmpr]

If you can see through the holes in the tire, there's just one 15mm bolt holding the hoist in place.

My mechanism is slipping, it will not operate without a load but slips when trying to hoist the spare into position. I've been kicking around the idea of grinding off the 5 rivets and having a look inside or just buying another for $85 and be done with it. What do y'all think?

I would just buy a whole new mechanism. That's what I did. Once I got the spare down (which required grinding off one of the ears of the "bell" that holds the wheel) it was super easy to remove the old hoist and bolt in the new one. I don't think it took a half hour.

 

[RDKill321]

Its the rod with the hook like end correct? Kinda makes like a [ shape? I've gotten it to catch on something before, but when trying to turn it, it just slips.

Nah man, it’s the little square end. You’re using the notch for the jack right meow.

 

[Tonyrodz]

 

[Rocket Man]

Its the rod with the hook like end correct? Kinda makes like a [ shape? I've gotten it to catch on something before, but when trying to turn it, it just slips.

Wrong end like others have said. Use the square end. The hook like end is just for the jack. Hope you got it figured out by now?

 

[HiHoeSilver]

View attachment 188687 View attachment 188688

F*ck you, you secondary latch!!!

 

[Tonyrodz]

F*ck you, you secondary latch!!!

That was the only way I was able to drop that damn spare!

 

[HiHoeSilver]

That was the only way I was able to drop that damn spare!

I just fought with mine when I did the fuel pump a couple weeks ago. I was able to reach up there with a big screwdriver and push that stupid latch enough to make it let go... Dumbest. Design. Ever.

 

[mattt]

Its the rod with the hook like end correct? Kinda makes like a [ shape? I've gotten it to catch on something before, but when trying to turn it, it just slips.

If you're not sure which end to use, look in your manual or look on the plastic instruction sheet that is sewn into the bag that holds the tools. Both places show which tool and which end to use.

 

[MidwestMike]

Too bad Photobucket went Full Retard, I had all the photos of this on there. Still have them on my computer but no way to post up here.

If you want to point to the link, there are plenty of ways to still see the PhotoBucket pictures...

https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/photobucket-embedded-fix/?hotlinkfix=1513188996515

 

[Martinjmpr]

F*ck you, you secondary latch!!!

No kidding. As I said, my solution was the grinder. Then once I got the tire down I removed the whole spare tire hoist and cast it into the fiery pits of HELL from whence it came.

The good news was that I was able to get a replacement that was completely identical to the stock unit - MINUS the awful secondary latch. So after several months of driving around with the spare tire in the back, I was finally able to put it back under the truck.

 

[Toomanyhobbies]

If you have to take out the winch (which you will since there are probably around 6 million GM trucks on the road with spares that won't come down) do what these guys said above and cut the whole thing out. I spent 4 hours trying to make the secondary latch close based on youtube videos and I couldn't get it. I have a 37" arm and tried to go behind the license plate.

 

[Rocket Man]

Funny but the op hasn't been back on since he found out he was putting the wrong end of his tool in the hole. I wonder if that solved the problem after all those years.