spare wheel FORD EXPLORER 2023 User Guide

Damage
Periodically inspect the tire treadsand sidewalls for damage (suchas bulges in the tread or sidewalls,cracks in the tread groove andseparation in the tread orsidewall). If damage is observedor suspected, have the tireinspected by a tire professional.Tires can be damaged duringoff-road use, so inspection afteroff-road use is alsorecommended.
Age
WARNING: Tires degradeover time depending on manyfactors such as weather, storageconditions, and conditions of use(load, speed, inflation pressure)the tires experience throughouttheir lives.In general, tires should bereplaced after six yearsregardless of tread wear.However, heat caused by hotclimates or frequent high loadingconditions can accelerate theaging process and may requiretires to be replaced morefrequently.
You should replace your sparetire when you replace the roadtires or after six years due toaging even if it has not beenused.
U.S. DOT Tire IdentificationNumber
Both United States and CanadaFederal regulations require tiremanufacturers to placestandardized information on thesidewall of all tires. Thisinformation identifies anddescribes the fundamentalcharacteristics of the tire and alsoprovides a U.S. DOT TireIdentification Number for safetystandard certification and in caseof a recall.
This begins with the letters DOTand indicates that the tire meetsall federal standards. The nexttwo numbers or letters are theplant code designating where itwas manufactured, the next twoare the tire size code and the lastfour numbers represent the weekand year the tire was built. Forexample, the numbers 317 meanthe 31st week of 1997. After 2000,the numbers go to four digits. Forexample, 2501 means the 25thweek of 2001. The numbers inbetween are identification codesused for traceability. Thisinformation is used to contactcustomers if a tire defect requiresa recall.
Tire ReplacementRequirements
Your vehicle is equipped with tiresdesigned to provide a safe rideand handling capability.
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If you feel a sudden vibration orride disturbance while driving, oryou suspect your tire or vehiclehas been damaged, immediatelyreduce your speed. Drive withcaution until you can safely pulloff the road. Stop and inspect thetires for damage. If a tire isunder-inflated or damaged,deflate it, remove wheel andreplace it with your spare tire andwheel. If you cannot detect acause, have the vehicle towed tothe nearest repair facility or tiredealer to have the vehicleinspected.
Tire and Wheel Alignment
A bad jolt from hitting a curb orpothole can cause the front endof your vehicle to become
misaligned or cause damage toyour tires. If your vehicle seems topull to one side when you aredriving, the wheels may be out ofalignment. Have an authorizeddealer check the wheel alignmentperiodically.
Wheel misalignment in the frontor the rear can cause uneven andrapid treadwear of your tires andshould be corrected by anauthorized dealer. Front-wheeldrive vehicles and those with anindependent rear suspension (ifequipped) may require alignmentof all four wheels.
The tires should also be balancedperiodically. An unbalanced tireand wheel assembly may result inirregular tire wear.
Tire Rotation
WARNING: If the tire labelshows different tire pressures forthe front and rear tires and thevehicle has a tire pressuremonitoring system, then youneed to update the settings forthe system sensors. Alwaysperform the system resetprocedure after tire rotation. Ifyou do not reset the system, itmay not provide a low tirepressure warning whennecessary.
Note:If your tires show unevenwear, ask an authorized dealer tocheck for and correct any wheelmisalignment, tire imbalance ormechanical problem involvedbefore tire rotation.
Note:Your vehicle may beequipped with a dissimilar sparewheel and tire assembly. Adissimilar spare wheel and tireassembly is defined as a sparewheel and tire assembly that isdifferent in brand, size orappearance from the road tires andwheels. If you have a dissimilarspare wheel and tire assembly, it isintended for temporary use onlyand should not be used in a tirerotation.
Note:After having your tiresrotated, inflation pressure must bechecked and adjusted to the
vehicle requirements.
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•If a temporary spare wheel is mountedon your vehicle, do not use snow chainson the axle with the temporary sparewheel.
•Use snow chains that fit against thesidewall of the tire to prevent thechains from touching the wheel rimsor suspension, see followingillustration.
If you have any questions regarding snowchains, please contact your authorizeddealer.
TIRE PRESSURE MONITORING
SYSTEM
WARNING: The tire pressuremonitoring system is not a substitute formanually checking tire pressures. Youshould periodically check tire pressuresusing a pressure gauge. Failure tocorrectly maintain tire pressures couldincrease the risk of tire failure, loss ofcontrol, vehicle rollover and personalinjury.
Note: You should only use tire sealants inroadside emergencies as they may causedamage to the tire pressure monitoringsystem sensor.
Note: If the tire pressure monitoring systemsensor becomes damaged, it may notfunction.
Each tire, including the spare (ifprovided), should be checkedmonthly when cold and inflatedto the inflation pressure recommended bythe vehicle manufacturer on the vehicleplacard or tire inflation pressure label. (Ifyour vehicle has tires of a different sizethan the size indicated on the vehicleplacard or tire inflation pressure label, youshould determine the proper tire inflationpressure for those tires).
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Check the tire pressure periodically (atleast monthly) using an accurate tiregauge. See When Inflating Your Tires inthis chapter.
Understanding Your Tire PressureMonitoring System
The tire pressure monitoring systemmeasures pressure in your road tires andsends the tire pressure readings to yourvehicle. You can view the tire pressurereadings through the information display.See General Information (page 115).Thelow tire pressure warning light will turn onif the tire pressure is significantly low. Once
the light is illuminated, your tires areunder-inflated and need to be inflated tothe manufacturer’s recommended tirepressure. Even if the light turns on and ashort time later turns off, your tire pressurestill needs to be checked.
When Your Temporary Spare Tire isInstalled
When one of your road tires needs to bereplaced with the temporary spare, thesystem will continue to identify an issue toremind you that the damaged road wheeland tire assembly needs to be repaired andput back on your vehicle.
To restore the full function of the tirepressure monitoring system, have thedamaged road wheel and tire assemblyrepaired and remounted on your vehicle.
When You Believe Your System is NotOperating Properly
The main function of the tire pressuremonitoring system is to warn you whenyour tires need air. It can also warn you inthe event the system is no longer capableof functioning as intended. See thefollowing chart for information concerningyour tire pressure monitoring system:
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Customer action requiredPossible causeLow tire pressurewarning light
Make sure tires are at the proper pres-sure. See Inflating your tires in thischapter. After inflating your tires to themanufacturer’s recommended pressureas shown on the Tire Label (located onthe edge of driver’s door or the B-Pillar),the vehicle must be driven for at leasttwo minutes over 20 mph (32 km/h)before the light turns off.
Tire(s) under-inflated
Solid warning light
Repair the damaged road wheel and tireassembly and reinstall it on the vehicleto restore system function. For adescription on how the system functions,see When Your Temporary Spare Tireis Installed in this section.
Spare tire in use
If the tires are properly inflated and thespare tire is not in use but the lightremains on, contact your authorizeddealer as soon as possible.
TPMS malfunction
On vehicles with different front and reartire pressures, the system must beretrained following every tire rotation.See Tire Pressure Monitoring SystemReset procedure later in this section.
Tire rotation withoutsensor training
Repair the damaged road wheel and tireassembly and reinstall it on the vehicleto restore system function. For adescription on how the system functions,see When Your Temporary Spare Tireis Installed in this section.
Spare tire in use
Flashing warninglight
If the tires are properly inflated and thespare tire is not in use but the lightremains on, contact your authorizeddealer as soon as possible.
TPMS malfunction
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11.Set all four tires to the recommendedair pressure as indicated on theSafety Compliance CertificationLabel, affixed to either the door hingepillar, door-latch post, or the dooredge that meets the door-latch post,next to the driver seating position orTire Label located on the B-Pillar orthe edge of the driver door.
CHANGING A ROAD WHEEL
WARNING: If the tire pressuremonitor sensor becomes damaged itmay not function.
Note:You should only use tire sealants inroadside emergencies as they may causedamage to the tire pressure monitoringsystem sensor.
Note:The tire pressure monitoring systemindicator light illuminates when the sparetire is in use. To restore the full function ofthe monitoring system, all road wheelsequipped with tire pressure monitoringsensors must be mounted on the vehicle.
If you get a flat tire when driving, do notapply the brake heavily. Instead, graduallydecrease your speed. Hold the steeringwheel firmly and slowly move to a safeplace on the side of the road.
Have a flat serviced by an authorizeddealer in order to prevent damage to thetire pressure monitoring system sensors.See Tire Pressure Monitoring System(page 364). Replace the spare tire with aroad tire as soon as possible. Duringrepairing or replacing of the flat tire, havethe authorized dealer inspect the tirepressure monitoring system sensor fordamage.
Dissimilar Spare Wheel and TireAssembly Information
WARNING: Failure to follow theseguidelines could result in an increasedrisk of loss of vehicle control, injury ordeath.
If you have a dissimilar spare wheel andtire, then it is intended for temporary useonly. This means that if you need to use it,you should replace it as soon as possiblewith a road wheel and tire assembly thatis the same size and type as the road tiresand wheels that were originally providedby us. If the dissimilar spare tire or wheelis damaged, you should replace it ratherthan repair it.
A dissimilar spare wheel and tire assemblyis defined as a spare wheel and tireassembly that is different in brand, size orappearance from the road tires and wheelsand can be one of three types:
1.T-type mini-spare: This spare tirebegins with the letter T for tire size andmay have Temporary Use Only molded inthe sidewall.
2.Full-size dissimilar spare with labelon wheel: This spare tire has a label onthe wheel that states: THIS WHEEL ANDTIRE ASSEMBLY FOR TEMPORARY USEONLY.
When driving with one of the dissimilarspare tires listed above, do not:
•Exceed 50 mph (80 km/h).
•Load the vehicle beyond maximumvehicle load rating listed on the SafetyCompliance Label.
•Tow a trailer.
•Use snow chains on the end of thevehicle with the dissimilar spare tire.
•Use more than one dissimilar spare tireat a time.
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•Use commercial car washingequipment.
•Try to repair the dissimilar spare tire.
Use of one of the dissimilar spare tireslisted above at any one wheel location canlead to impairment of the following:
•Handling, stability and brakingperformance.
•Comfort and noise.
•Ground clearance and parking at curbs.
•Winter weather driving capability.
•Wet weather driving capability.
•Four-wheel driving capability.
3.Full-size dissimilar spare withoutlabel on wheel.
When driving with the full-size dissimilarspare wheel and tire assembly, do not:
•Exceed 70 mph (113 km/h).
•Use more than one dissimilar sparewheel and tire assembly at a time.
•Use commercial car washingequipment.
•Use snow chains on the end of thevehicle with the dissimilar spare wheeland tire assembly.
The usage of a full-size dissimilar sparewheel and tire assembly can lead toimpairment of the following:
•Handling, stability and brakingperformance.
•Comfort and noise.
•Ground clearance and parking at curbs.
•Winter weather driving capability.
•Wet weather driving capability.
•Four-wheel driving capability.
When driving with the full-size dissimilarspare wheel and tire assembly additionalcaution should be given to:
•Towing a trailer.
•Driving vehicles equipped with acamper body.
•Driving vehicles with a load on thecargo rack.
Drive cautiously when using a full-sizedissimilar spare wheel and tire assemblyand seek service as soon as possible.
Tire Change Procedure
WARNING: The jack supplied withthis vehicle is only intended for changingwheels. Do not use the vehicle jack otherthan when you are changing a wheel inan emergency.
WARNING: Check that the vehiclejack is not damaged or deformed andthe thread is lubricated and clean.
WARNING: To help prevent yourvehicle from moving when changing awheel, shift the transmission into park(P), set the parking brake and use anappropriate block or wheel chock tosecure the wheel diagonally opposite tothe wheel being changed. For example,when changing the front left wheel,place an appropriate block or wheelchock on the right rear wheel.
WARNING: Always use the jackprovided as original equipment with yourvehicle. If using a jack other than the oneprovided, make sure the jack capacity isadequate for the vehicle weight,including any vehicle cargo ormodifications. If you are unsure if the jackcapacity is adequate, contact theauthorized dealer.
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5.Unfold the third row seat if it is in thestowed position, then remove thecarpeted cargo area to access thespare tire and jack storagecompartment.
6.Turn the wing nut securing the sparetire counterclockwise, remove the wingnut.
7.Remove the spare tire, jack and wrenchfrom the spare tire storagecompartment.
8.Turn the hex nut on the jackcounterclockwise to remove the lugwrench from jack. This lowers the jackand loosens the mechanical lock.
9.Unfold the wrench for use.
10.Remove the strap from the jack.
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11.Loosen each wheel lug nut one-halfturn counterclockwise, but do notremove them until the flat tire israised off the ground.
12.Find the jacking points shown here,small arrow-shaped marks on thesills show the location of the jackingpoints.
13.Place the jack at the jacking pointnext to the tire which you arechanging. Turn the lug wrench handleclockwise until the flat tire iscompletely off the ground.
14.Remove the lug nuts with the lugwrench.
15.Replace the flat tire with the sparetire, making sure the valve stem isfacing outward.
16.Install the lug nuts snug against thehub. Do not fully tighten the lug nutsuntil the vehicle is lowered.
17.Turn the wrench handlecounterclockwise to lower the vehiclecompletely.
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18.Remove the jack and fully tighten thelug nuts in the order shown. SeeTechnical Specifications (page376).
19.If you enabled the Air SuspensionService Mode, switch the mode offprior to driving.
20.Remove the wheel blocks.
Stowing the jack
1.To store the folded wrench on the jack,engage the bracket of the jack baseand the lug wrench pin, swing thewrench upwards, adjust jack heightuntil the wrench hook engages the holeon jack. Tighten the hex nut clockwiseby hand until secure.
2.Place the jack in the spare tirecompartment, install the wing nut andtighten clockwise by hand until secure.
Stowing the flat tire
You cannot store the full-sized road wheelin the temporary spare tire well.
1.Find the flat tire retainer strap tuckedinside the jack channel. Lower thecarpeted load floor.
2.Stow the flat tire in the cargo area onthe load floor with the wheel facing up.Secure the flat tire with the retainerstrap by following the next steps.
3.Locate the rear left side and right sidecargo tie-down rings. Push the loop endof the retainer strap through one cargotie-down ring. Thread the non-loop endthrough the loop.
4.Weave the retainer strap through thewheel openings.
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