A Fix for the Doughnut
Thread Starter
Burning Brakes
Joined: Sep 1999
Posts: 786
Likes: 31
Cruise-In II Veteran
A Fix for the Doughnut
I think most people know that all tires slowly loose air pressure and the doughnut spare on the C-4 looses pressure faster than a regular tire.
Like many C-4 owners, I like to check all of my tire pressures frequently but to check the doughnut is a major pain in the butt! It involves laying on the ground with a socket and a ratchet wrench to lower the spare tire carrier and removing the tire to get at the tire valve. Reinstalling is just as bad.
To make this job easier, I found an old bicycle tire pump that had seen better days. This particular pump had the old style screw on hose end (the newer ones all seem to have quick connect/disconnect fittings). I cut the hose off at the pump and inserted a "tire valve extender" into the cut end, securing it with a screw type hose clamp. Tire valve extenders are available at Autozone, Advance etc.
I then screwed the hose (which was about 24" long) onto the doughnut tire valve and ran the hose out to a point under the rear bumper.
From there it is easy to check the tire pressure and fill the tire. The days of disassembling the spare wheel carrier are over
While I made up my own assembly from junk, after the new piece was installed I found that a similar item is available commercially from several RV vendors.
http://www.racersrvstuff.com/racersr...p?ITEM=3482286
http://www.campersdirect.com/keyston...p?ITEM=3482286
http://www.pplmotorhomes.com/parts/r...ion-system.htm
Like many C-4 owners, I like to check all of my tire pressures frequently but to check the doughnut is a major pain in the butt! It involves laying on the ground with a socket and a ratchet wrench to lower the spare tire carrier and removing the tire to get at the tire valve. Reinstalling is just as bad.
To make this job easier, I found an old bicycle tire pump that had seen better days. This particular pump had the old style screw on hose end (the newer ones all seem to have quick connect/disconnect fittings). I cut the hose off at the pump and inserted a "tire valve extender" into the cut end, securing it with a screw type hose clamp. Tire valve extenders are available at Autozone, Advance etc.
I then screwed the hose (which was about 24" long) onto the doughnut tire valve and ran the hose out to a point under the rear bumper.
From there it is easy to check the tire pressure and fill the tire. The days of disassembling the spare wheel carrier are over
While I made up my own assembly from junk, after the new piece was installed I found that a similar item is available commercially from several RV vendors.
http://www.racersrvstuff.com/racersr...p?ITEM=3482286
http://www.campersdirect.com/keyston...p?ITEM=3482286
http://www.pplmotorhomes.com/parts/r...ion-system.htm
Team Owner
Joined: Mar 2001
Posts: 54,124
Likes: 30
From: Cincinnati, Oh USA
You do not have to lay on the ground to remove your spare tire. Also, you extender is not perfect and it leaks microscopically and will be the reason why you have to fill the spare more often than without the extension. BUT...you have a good idea to prevent the messy job of getting the spare tire out to check its pressure.
