OEM spare tire install

Ordered the parts online yesterday at 1pm from my local dealer, and they were ready for pickup at 7am this morning. I did not get the Toyota flange nuts as the online system did not recognize the original nor replacement part numbers listed in this thread. I stopped at Home Depot to get them. When I asked the Parts department how they got the parts so fast, they said that the Chicago region parts warehouse is only about 10 miles from the dealership, and they had everything in stock.
Next up is Discount Tire for the spare tire.

 

For the LE trim, can you just save on the
64778-47090 - Protector, Spare Wheel foam pad the wheel sits on. Its that grayish foam piece that sits under the wheel? Will the Floor mat still sit flat?

 

The install without the new Deck Floor Boxes is now complete. Unfortunately, I'm not pleased with the lack of support I'm getting on the far left and right sides of the deck floor. I really wanted to use that space for tool storage. I'm already using the left side cut out for a portable air compressor, but I have more tools to store, preferably out of sight. I'm going to try to bolster the deck floor a little better while still keeping some storage space around the tire. If all else fails, I'll just go ahead and order the two Deck Floor boxes. I REALLY didn't want to spend $300 on those boxes!!

 

1) Dealer wants $175 for the tool/jack kit! What is the size of the LE lug nut? I'm looking for aftermarket, what are the best choices out there?

2) If I just cut the existing foams, I don't need to buy the center foam piece that the tire sits on from the dealer right? If so, should I leave some foam underneath the tire area so the tire can sit flush with the rest of the foam instead of cutting out the whole tire circumference?

 

MY CAR WON'T FIT A SPARE! We just got the car a few days ago and I just measured the distance from the spare well bottom to the top of the foam = 4.75" or 120mm. The spare tire is 145mm at the tread + the bulging area. I don't think it would fit. What is happening? It also looks so shallow:

 

I second this suggestion. There is plenty of information in this thread about installing a spare on the LE. The OEM foam under the cargo area in LE is “shallower” than that in other trims, so the recommended solution would be to scrap the OEM foam and get the LH and RH foam blocks designed to work with the spare (Part numbers already specified by Hammersmith in previous posts)

 

Yes, I read the entire thread a month ago, but I didn't remember everything. All I remembered was that several people cut their existing foams to make it work, and none were the LE FWD (if I remember correctly). I now realized that the LE's foams are much thinner than the other trims. I have ordered just the spare wheel and screw knob first. I will update...Thank you all.

 

The sheet metal pic shown in post 346 is noticeable less indented than previous gen's. Those had a deeper well, that just fit the spare, with maybe an inch clear.

 

SPARE TIRE MOD FOR LE FWD model using factory foam (does not apply to other trims):

1) The LE's trunk floor is lower than the others so are the thinner styrofoam platforms unlike other trims where you can just cut a round hole to fit the spare. You will need to add some height around 2.8-3" at various spots to make it level with the spare tire.

2) Purchase factory spare tire wheel & tightening bolt(carrier) + 145/90/16" spare tire. You will need to put a piece or 2 of 2x4 below the tire at the very end to make the tire level front& back so that the tightening bolt can make an even contact. This is very important; I repeat, it's very important to tie down the spare tire securely, because you don't want it to hit the electrical wires & connections behind the rear seats or have it thrown at the passengers/driver in a serious accident. I wish the bolt is shorter so I can mount the spare upside down which also make it more secure.

3) I was able to find a used jack & tool kit from a used Lexus ES330 for $25 and tested it.

3) Cut a big round hole to fit the spare tire. I used a filet knife which works great without making debris. Note that the spare tire will stick out about 2.9" above the styrofoam.

4) Bought some 2.9"x2"x6" foam blocks from Walmart($2/ea) which is the perfect height without too much modification and glue them at various places using a hot glue gun. I also modified the jack tool kit to fit into my car by cutting a notch at the corners.










I noticed 2 advantage of doing this mod vs getting the factory conversion kit: (a)Because I am using the original foams, those black plastic fastener pins can still pin the foams to the car tight vs if you order the conversion kit from the dealer, those plastic pins would not reach the holes so they are just loose. (b)the trunk floor is about 1.5" deeper than the factory conversion kit, judging from the pictures of the other member's post. Overall, It works well and for very little money. I want to thank everyone especially Hammersmith for posting this very useful thread, and here is my contribution & sharing to your posting and hope other people can benefit from it. God Bless!

Ps. I read the whole 18 pages again and did find a thread on the LE factory conversion that I didn't remember last week. For that reason, I also posted this in the mod section specifically for the LE people.