Man!! I did something incredibly stupid. I was visiting a friend tonight and attempted to park my 740 at the end of a culdesac street. The road is circular and parallel parking was a bitch. Anyway, I backed one of my rear tires into the curb and tore the sidewall. HISSSSSS! I was flat.

So I go under the third seat where the Volvo "Special Spare" lives and pull it out. Oh boy! It's toast. Obviously 18 years old, just like the car. It has air in it, but only a dumb fool would actually drive on it. There's a split in the tread--you call that tread????--which goes all the way around the tire. The inner cords are smiling at me. We've got major ply separation.

Some questions:

1. I'm betting that a new "special spare" cost more than a premium regular tire. Is there anywhere I can get this stupid thing replaced for little $$$$

2. Why don't I pick up a used Volvo 15 inch rim and put a real tire on it?

3. If I do that, will it fit in the spare tire place in my 1989 740 wagon? Or, do I *have* to have a stupid space saving spare in there in order to fold my third seat and close the rear storage compartment?

Thanks.

(I am about to go on a cross-country trip. I'm glad I noticed that my spare was NG now instead of in the middle of the New Mexico desert.)

 

I have a 1990 240 and had a similar experience with tire damage. I got distracted and scraped along a curb for a few seconds, and a few seconds later, my tire was flat. The valve stem had been ripped open and there was other damage as well. I have a spare but have not ever checked it but will now. As it turned out, I was near a convenience store where I was able to purchase a product called Fix-a-flat for less than $10. I couldn't believe that it would work on such damage, but it did. I got another 25 miles out of the tire to get to a place to buy a new one. The drawback is that oncethis productis used, the tire cannot be repaired, only replaced, but this would have been the case anyway.

Good luck with your situation. As I said, I will now be sure to check my spare soon. I have had the brick for a year and absolutely love it.

 

Well, there's an inch-and-a-half gash in the sidewall, so fix-a-flat ain't gonna do it. ;-(
This was a very unlucky bump.

I'd still like a response to my questions, if anybody reads this.

 

You could put one of your other wheels in the spare wheel well to see if it fits before you go and buy another one. I've been wondering the same thing. I hate space savers.

 

Resolution: as "uncle" recommended.

For those of you with 740 wagons (240/940 wagons should be the same):

I have a new rim on order but I put the tire in the spare tire well. It fits, barely. This is with the third seat installed. For brick owners w/o third seat, there would be plenty of room. The only question is, when I put the tire on a rim, will there still be enough room to fold the third seat and close the compartment all the way. If the mounted tire is even a couple of millimeters wider, the answer might be, "No".

What I'm gonna do is to push the panel closed and lock it with the key. The third seat should compress a little and it will probably close.

 

Full size spare won't fit... You can pick up a Volvo spare from a wrecking yard for next to nothing, and it will probably be unused...

 

Actually, the full sized tire *does* fit. The door closes with some very gentle pressure. It's very, very close, but it fits good enough to be not a worry.

 

ok i just got ahold of a 1983 volvo 244 DL it is imaculent i have a spare thaty is in perfect shape already and looking to get rid of said "special spare" for a lil money to put in to the car make me a reasonable offer im 100% serious

 

I have a 91 940 wagon with the 3rd row seat and I have a full size spare 15" and it fits fine, my kids still ride in the jump seats