Everything is faily tidy now, but is it worth it?

[Silver92B]

Well, I tidied up the amps and wiring for the speakers. Put the amps in the well of the trunk and made a cover for them and to regain some use of the trunk. Got it painted, fit the spare in there, the jack in the right place and the lug wrench in its place... But it's all for nothing. Well, at least the spare, jack/handle and lug wrench are useless. (a) the car is too low to get the jack under it, specially if a tire goes flat. And (b) the tuner lugs are not the same size as the stock lug nuts :roll:. The car has had the tuner lug nuts for years now and somehow it never became necessary to remove the tires away from the garage (great luck I guess). The car was not quite so low as it is now (12" F/12.5" R from certer of wheel to fender), but the only time I have jacked it up, I ran it up on ramps first.. I don't think the spare has ever been on the road! (Knock on wood!).

I wonder if I could just remove the spare, jack, etc. to get more room/less weight and replace them with a can of fix-a-flat, a tire puncture kit and a 12V compressor.... Is anyone else doing something like this?

http://www.fotomecanico.com/miata/wellcover1.jpg

[jnshk]

I removed my spare (because it was contacting the top of my Tein Flex shock) and put a tire plug kit and 12v compressor in the car. I still have the stock jack because I'm probably not as low as you are. I have the stock lug wrench as well because my lugs came with an adapter socket, but truthfully a 1/2" breaker bar would be a better choice.

[friday]

Using a tire plug would be far superior to fix a flat. If the plug does not work, then the goo was never going to work.

[ZOOMX5]

I had been without a spare, jack, and wrench for 4 years of daily driving. I was always local, so I figured I could just have somebody bring me a spare if I had to. If the things in your trunk are of no use, then why have them? I think it is a good idea to at least have a tire fix kit and compressor.

[Tekel]

Many times I have thought about removing my and jacks and spare for a can of fix a flat. NCs don't have a spare. Also I make sure what ever car I have my tuner lugs on, I make sure I have my 4 way lug wrench with me.

[phrenetiK]

Just carry a 2x4 in your trunk to drive/push on if you need to use the jack....

[Silver92B]

Just carry a 2x4 in your trunk to drive/push on if you need to use the jack....
That's not a bad idea, I actually considered something like that. The problem is that it probably needs to be something taller and wider than a 2 x 4. My car is not slammed by any stretch, just lowered a little but even with the tires full of air, I cannot quite get the jack under the jacking points. Also, the wheels are 7.5" wide so the ramp needs to be at least that wide. I made some ramps for leveling my old truck out of 2 x 10's and they work well, but they are too large and heavy to carry in the Miata.... Maybe something can be fashioned.

http://www.fotomecanico.com/miata/ramp.jpg

These are my wheels lowered. As you can see, they are not slammed..

http://www.fotomecanico.com/miata/chaparral/lf.jpg

http://www.fotomecanico.com/miata/chaparral/lr.jpg

[exdotcomer]

I stripped the trunk- no jack, no spare, no carpet, no panels.
I have a can of fix-a-flat in the glove compartment and AAA. I just put a piece of foam in the glove compartment so whatever is in there won't rattle.
I'll be buying a tire plug kit Asap.

[phrenetiK]

I'm surprised then. my car was slammed and my fender was about .75inches from touching the top of the rim and 1 2x4 was enough to get the stock jack underneath the car.

[Silver92B]

I'm surprised then. my car was slammed and my fender was about .75inches from touching the top of the rim and 1 2x4 was enough to get the stock jack underneath the car.

With air in the tires there is less than 1" of clearance between the closed jack and the seam of the body. It seems that if the tire was flat, I would lose all that clearance and more... I would try taking the air out of the tire to test the theory, but I don't want to go through the hassle right now. Did you place the 2x4 lengthwise under the flat tire? If that works, I will definitely keep the jack but go ahead and ditch the spare in favor of the patch kit and 12V compressor.