Website wheel-size.com give you OEM. There are a number of dimensions, but someone here knows the many used choices.

Tirerack and other can provide new choices.

To be safest, use identical tires. However very close diameter will be ok for spare.

Bolt came with self seal tires by the way.

Some S10 years or sizzer jack.

I just keep 12V air compressor in ever car. I've used them plenty.

 

it's a very confusing subject

 

1: I believe the 15" is OK. People have use 15" snow tires. I've only tested my spare on the back.

2: If you are using a tire that is fairly close to the original size tire then there is no issue using it up front. The 15" you list should be fine (like 0.11% off). Only if you use a doughnut spare can there be an issue. I'm not an expert, but even then just to get off the road and drive a few miles home would probably be fine.

3: Lifting the whole car from the front jack point may be possible. I wouldn't do it. You would need to lift the jack fairly high, it would be rather off balance, and the jack would need a high weight capacity. To be fair, I have jacked up the whole side of my Bolt. But I used a 2 1/2 ton floor jack somewhat centered along the side of the car with a block of wood to protect the pinch welds.

Hope this helps

 

it works on my 2020 using the gm jacking point.only use this on pavement AFTER loosening the nuts one turn.loosening the nuts while jacked up may knock it off the jack.

 

1. I have a spare 15' tire from I believe it was a Chevy sonic and it fits on rear of my car.
2. Unless the tire and wheel combo match the same diameter as the production tire and wheel combo, do not use it on the front. It will mess up your car! This means if you get a flat in the front you have to go to the rear, pull the production wheel off, install the spare on the rear, then take the production wheel that you took from the rear and change the front flat tire. I am in this situation with my spare. It sucks but there you go.
3. yes the front jack point, if lifted high enough will lift that side of the car off the ground both front and rear. (This is what I do with my floor jack when rotating tires) If using a scissor jack only lift near whichever tire you are working on (use a rubber block) I don't trust scissor jacks at all.

 

One thing is, is it even possible to change a tire?
Better be sure now.

Recently thought it a good time to rotate tires from front to back.
Could not loosen a lug nut with 20v impact, and even with a 4-foot cheater bar on a 1/2in breaker bar, could not get one lug to budge at all. Could rock the car back and forth.

Took it to friend's shop and used air tools to break nuts loose.

Maybe confirm capability to loosen lug nut before it is critical?

Have a full size self seal spare tire btw that snug fits in upper trunk.

 

Thank you to everyone that offered advice!!! It's very helpful!
Here's a little backstory to explain my desire for a spare tire. I was recently driving home from work just after midnight on a dark road in eastern PA when I hit a pothole and blew out the sidewall on my front tire. Run flats are absolutely useless when this happens. Called OnStar for road assistance and it took about 2hrs for them to arrive. That's when I vowed to get a spare.

From the info you folks have supplied it looks like:
- a 15" tire will work, but only in the rear

• an OEM size tire ( 215 50R/17) on a 17" wheel should work on front or rear
• a strong scissor jack can be used front or rear with a rubber block

I hate to have to buy an OEM tire, but thinking about my late night blowout scenario it seems to be the only solution. I'm not going to haul around a floor jack, and I'm not going to start moving tires around rear to front on a dark road.

Am I on the right track??

 

Thank you to everyone that offered advice!!! It's very helpful!
Here's a little backstory to explain my desire for a spare tire. I was recently driving home from work just after midnight on a dark road in eastern PA when I hit a pothole and blew out the sidewall on my front tire. Run flats are absolutely useless when this happens. Called OnStar for road assistance and it took about 2hrs for them to arrive. That's when I vowed to get a spare.

From the info you folks have supplied it looks like:
- a 15" tire will work, but only in the rear

• • an OEM size tire ( 215 50R/17) on a 17" wheel should work on front or rear
  • a strong scissor jack can be used front or rear with a rubber block

I hate to have to buy an OEM tire, but thinking about my late night blowout scenario it seems to be the only solution. I'm not going to haul around a floor jack, and I'm not going to start moving tires around rear to front on a dark road.

Am I on the right track??

Short answer, yes, you're on the right track.

What did you do with the blowout? Did you replace one tire, or two?

I had a situation where I ran over a pothole which left a bulge in my sidewall (but not a blowout, thankfully). I decided to replace both front tires (putting the new on the rear), and kept the other tire as a spare. I bought a full size wheel from a junkyard for the spare. That can be an option if you're forced to replace a tire anyway, since the usual recommendation is to replace at least 2 at a time (otherwise different wear, different tread, unpredictable traction in a skid, etc.).

 

1. The 15” wheel with 205/65R15 tire fits, both front and rear. That is what I had for my Bolt and I confirmed the fit personally.
2. You absolutely CAN use a full size (i.e. same outer diameter) spare on the front. It’s still better of course to have matching tires on the drive axle, but in a dangerous scenario like you described, the spare is fine for temporary use. And use common sense if you end up driving on a spare at any position: extra caution, slower speed, etc.

 

For clarity, I’m saying you CAN use the 15” solution on front and rear.

 

215/50/17 tire on a Chevy Cruze ECO rim, in a 2022 Bolt EV:

Chevy S10 scissor jack, using the rear factory lift point:

Rear jack points - pinch welds for "standard" jacks(as with any unibody vehicle), or round factory lift points:

 

Rear jack points - pinch welds for "standard" jacks(as with any unibody vehicle), or round factory lift points:

For tire rotations, in the rear, I will use the coil spring cup as a jack stand point. No reason it couldn't be used as a jacking point for a roadside tire change. This way you don't have to jack as high to overcome suspension droop. Down side - you have to reach under the car.

 

It would take me 2 hours to change tire on side of road. I had to get my wife's car towed once. Took 3 hours. Insurance company deal is last on their list.

 

Huh. I changed my flat in 20 minutes last winter, in the snow. Cold was an incentive to move quickly!

 

For clarity, I’m saying you CAN use the 15” solution on front and rear.
[/QU same-ish total outside diameter, correct?

One thing is, is it even possible to change a tire?
Better be sure now.

Recently thought it a good time to rotate tires from front to back.
Could not loosen a lug nut with 20v impact, and even with a 4-foot cheater bar on a 1/2in breaker bar, could not get one lug to budge at all. Could rock the car back and forth.

Took it to friend's shop and used air tools to break nuts loose.

Maybe confirm capability to loosen lug nut before it is critical?

Have a full size self seal spare tire btw that snug fits in upper trunk.

Especially if a shop ugga duggas them on with an impact gun. Just went through 3 hours of labor involving a broken 3/8 to half inch drive adapter, a Dremel tool, and two 19 mm sockets. It was in my driveway thank God. Good times!

 

triple a will change my tyre, if i can't do it. and i can't.

 

That's what I said to my friend re: his wife's new Bolt. At 65, I'm blessed to have zero experience with towing (shouldn't have said that). My friend said his wife will never change a tire, but when the tow truck arrives, they won't have a wheel/tire to fit every car, so you need to have one on hand. Assuming he's right, then I guess that means they will tow you to a tire dealer who will patch or sell you a new tire. At midnight, I reckon that means waiting overnight till the tire store opens, etc. So now she has a suitable spare on hand.

 

What a valuable response from 1nterceptor. Really.

After 5 years driving my 2019 bolt without any spare, a friend bought a buyback Bolt for his wife and wanted a spare for her to have onboard in case of problems. So we went halves on a steel donut spare with 5x105 lug pattern. ((I figured I'll get it from her on rare occasions when I go on an out-of-town trip.) When it arrived, I mounted it on my front wheel in my driveway, using my S10 jack. (I'm guessing that took 20-30 minutes.) I backed out of the driveway and drove around the block. Several errors popped up on the dash, including "Steering assist is reduced. Drive with care." and I think "ABS requires service" or something similar. But none of the messages stopped me from driving the car. When I put the stock wheel back on the car and drove around the block again, the warnings went away and I've been driving without issues for several months since then. The lesson for me is that if I do ever use the donut, I will put it on the rear - and rotate the rear wheel to the front if needed. Which doesn't seem that big a deal to me. Or just put it on the front and live with the errors on the dash until I'm able to fix my tire.

 

this should be ok for a short trip at a low speed. the differential is designed for turning.but it might get hot if done for long.

 

I just took the plunge on getting a spare for my 2023 EUV. I was going for a full size spare because I wanted to match OEM wheel and tire size to minimize any issues with slightly different outside tire diameter. I took the passenger rear tire off and test fitted in the rear storage compartment. It went in but the diameter fit was tight. It does fit totally below the floor. And you can still fill the center of the wheel with lots of stuff. 1interceptor's post above shows a full size tire and wheel.

I researched on Discount Tire using their chat function. They gave me the following wheel tire combination as a fit for my car:
Discount Tire | Tires and Wheels for Sale | Online & In-Person
Discount Tire | Tires and Wheels for Sale | Online & In-Person
Came to about $314 by the time they included mounting and balancing, a centering disk and install kit for the wheel (OEM lug nuts do not work with after market wheels apparently).

In the end, I ordered a spare tire kit from Value Spares online. It was about $375 complete with donut spare, scissors jack and carrying case. They guarantee proper fit. I decided that the extra space in the storage compartment was more important than I thought. When it comes in, I'll put it on the front and do a test drive like 2019EVLT above. I suspect I'll have the same result.

One last comment. I see lots of remarks about the "run flat" tires on Bolts. From what I have been able to find, Bolts come with "self sealing" tires. Think a bicycle tire with Slime in it. That's not the same as "run flat". Driving on a flat "self sealing" tire will result in the same damage as driving on a normal flat tire.

 

I just took the plunge on getting a spare for my 2023 EUV. I was going for a full size spare because I wanted to match OEM wheel and tire size to minimize any issues with slightly different outside tire diameter. I took the passenger rear tire off and test fitted in the rear storage compartment. It went in but the diameter fit was tight. It does fit totally below the floor. And you can still fill the center of the wheel with lots of stuff. 1interceptor's post above shows a full size tire and wheel.

I researched on Discount Tire using their chat function. They gave me the following wheel tire combination as a fit for my car:
Discount Tire | Tires and Wheels for Sale | Online & In-Person
Discount Tire | Tires and Wheels for Sale | Online & In-Person
Came to about $314 by the time they included mounting and balancing, a centering disk and install kit for the wheel (OEM lug nuts do not work with after market wheels apparently).

In the end, I ordered a spare tire kit from Value Spares online. It was about $375 complete with donut spare, scissors jack and carrying case. They guarantee proper fit. I decided that the extra space in the storage compartment was more important than I thought. When it comes in, I'll put it on the front and do a test drive like 2019EVLT above. I suspect I'll have the same result.

One last comment. I see lots of remarks about the "run flat" tires on Bolts. From what I have been able to find, Bolts come with "self sealing" tires. Think a bicycle tire with Slime in it. That's not the same as "run flat". Driving on a flat "self sealing" tire will result in the same damage as driving on a normal flat tire.

Ouch. Thats way too much for a spare. I went to tire rack and got a 15" steel wheel, tire, all setup for under $150. That was 18 months ago so prices may have crept up.
The "trick" was to look for a wheel that fit a Sonic.

 

I run a full size spare - because I can change a tire in 15-20 minutes vs waiting hours on a tow. Picked up an OEM Bolt wheel+tire+tpms for $100 from a local member 3 years ago who was parting out an OEM set.

It sits very nicely in the under floor storage in my EUV. Even with the supercruise hardware underneath, the top cargo floor fits flush and you'd never know a full size spare was in the car if you didn't go looking. The scissor jack + tool bag + spare charger all fit nicely alongside the spare as well.

To anyone building a spare kit to run, I'd advise once you get all the parts things you need, do a dry run of actually changing the tire in your garage or driveway under a no stress/rush situation. That way you learn/see the jack points, use the tools you purchased, make sure what you bought fits and/or works.

 

I think the jack point was in service manual? Been posted here a few times.

 

Another potential option would have been modern spare, that includes the required tools. It looks however they don't offer it anymore and instead direct you to a kit from value spare.

 

Hi all. Thanks for your help. Sorry to beat this topic to death, but I want to settle this and hopefully get the correct parts. Based on everything I've read, and all the different opinions, I'm pretty sure I will purchase the following items for my spare tire package. (UNLESS SOMEONE OUT THERE TELLS ME I'M MAKING A MISTAKE)

Here's what I'm thinking:
JACK: Scissor jack rated for 3500 lbs (2-3 ton) to be stored in vehicle
RUBBER PINCH WELD PUCKS: magnetic or not
WHEEL: 2018 Chevy Sonic 15" - 15x6.5 w/ +38mm offset
LUG NUTS: open - M12 x 1.5 thread
TIRE: 205/65R/15

The wheel and tire package would be purchased from Tire Rack. SEE PICS BELOW
I know it's not the cheapest solution, but I just need to get a spare and stop spending endless time researching...haha.

If I'm heading off in the wrong direction, someone please alert me! Thanks!!

 

Why not save some bucks with this wheel? https://www.tirerack.com/wheels/Whe...&wheelFinish=Black&wheelFinish=Black&showRear=no&packageFlow=false&package=P326

I'm not sure the wheel you have would fit, since an aluminum wheel will be thicker than a steelie, and my 15" steel wheel (what I linked above) had hardly any clearance to spare around the front brake caliper.

 

Thank you Plaj!!! Great tip!! That's the wheel I was looking for but didn't see it on their site. Thanks!!

 

https://www.chevybolt.org/threads/full-spare-s10-jack-front-plate-bracket-oem-floor-mats.50214/

 

HERE IS THE FINAL OUTCOME OF MY SEARCH FOR A SPARE TIRE SETUP FOR MY 2023 BOLT EV.

First of all, thanks so much for all the valuable advice I received from everyone on this thread!!

A little history for those just jumping on to this thread now. I am a musician who travels a lot of quiet back roads at night. After a recent late night sidewall blowout, I decided that I definitely need to have a spare tire onboard. I have some upcoming trips to upstate NY and wanted to get this resolved before then. After looking at many options, this is what I purchased to solve my spare tire issue. I'll post a few pics to go along with this post.

WHEEL: Plain Black 15" Steel Wheel 15x6 purchased from Tire Rack - $90.26

TIRE: 205/65/R15 purchased from Tire Rack - $80.67
( these items were purchased from Tire Rack as a wheel/tire package for a 2014 Chevy Sonic Hatchback LS. Purchase includes new lug nuts. The tire was mounted and balanced by Tire Rack and delivered to home address in 2 days).

BREAKER BAR: 18 inch (1/2 drive) breaker bar

SOCKET: 19mm deep socket -with- 3inch extension

JACK: 2-Ton scissor jack (purchased from Rock Auto)

JACK PUCK: Magnetic pinch protector puck (from Amazon)

FINAL NOTES: After I purchased all the items, I did a dry-run tire change in my driveway. I used the new jack with the puck and easily jacked up the car at the pinch points front & rear. I also have an S10 jack that I purchased on eBay. The S10 jack worked great on the front where the mounting holes are easily accessible, but it was a pain in the ass to do in the rear, so I'm just going to use the other scissor jack. I removed the OEM tire and mounted the spare with no problems. I did this in both the front and the rear. I also test drove the car with the new spare both times and it was fine, no problems. I was able to easily store all components in the rear compartment. The new fully inflated spare tire just fit. I'll attach pictures of everything below. Thanks!

 

great write up, thank you!