[SteveAndStaci]

Well, we just had new tires installed on my wife's 2008 4Runner. Since one of the rims is showing some pretty ugly corrosion, I asked them to swap out the spare and put the corroded rim underneath.

Anyway, the tire shop just called. They somehow broke the cable on the spare tire lowering mechanism. I can't wait to see what it looks like. I don't understand how it just breaks, unless they weren't lowering it properly (I am envisioning a couple guy prying the wheel off the winch plate). Of course they claim the cable was already "messed up" when they got it.

Anyway, they say its going to be about $125 for a new cable and about $100 to install. Has anyone had to replace the spare tire cable before? Any idea where I can find the part and how to install it? I can't find any how-tos by searching.

[jow]

Replacing a 2008 4runner spare tire winch cable. Check the link below. There might be directions with the replacements. Attached is a pic of my 07 T4R’s Spare Tire Hoist. Glance under there, it could easily be a simple job.

Good Luck!

Spare Tire Hoist - Dorman (924-525)

[04_4runner]

The cable on mine was all frayed. When I went to remove the spare, the mechanism bound up and when I torqued on it the few strands left broke. I put it off for a while and then had my Toyota dealer replace it when it was in for other service. They used the mechanism from a 5th gen with the chain, no more cable. A quick call to a Toyota dealer parts department should get the relevant numbers and costs.

[MSRP.]

Do you guys think deflating the tire enough and 2 jacks will depress the tire enough for the plate to get enough wiggle room to drop the spare?

My winch is rusted 10 ways through Sunday..

[gomoboo]

Originally Posted by MSRP.

Do you guys think deflating the tire enough and 2 jacks will depress the tire enough for the plate to get enough wiggle room to drop the spare?

My winch is rusted 10 ways through Sunday..

That is how I removed my spare. Let the air out, and do some creative prying. There is a tang that goes into one of the lug holes. I cut that tang off, so I could move the tire around easier.

[TechWrench]

Originally Posted by MSRP.

Do you guys think deflating the tire enough and 2 jacks will depress the tire enough for the plate to get enough wiggle room to drop the spare?

My winch is rusted 10 ways through Sunday..

If the cable is rusted in place, it is useless to try to save it. I know, because I have replaced two of them on two different vehicles. The easiest way I have found to get the spare removed, when the cable mechanism is frozen, is to cut the cable. I was able to reach the cable with a portable, battery operated reciprocating saw with a 6" metal cutting blade. Just be careful, because the tire/wheel assy., is heavy. The cable cuts fairly easily. Once the tire is out of the way, you have to remove 6 bolts that come from the top down, that hold the lift assy., to the cross member. There isn't a lot of room to get at them, and, in my case, they were badly rusted. So, I wound up cutting them with an air chisel. Once the old one is down, install the new one, with new bolts. As I understand it, Toyota no longer sells the cable style lift, the old part number is superseded to the newer chain style, which is what I got when I changed the last one about a year and a half ago.

The hardest part is removing the old one. Once off, it only takes about 15 min to install the new one.

[Wallace]

I replaced mine today. After breaking the 2 outermost bolts loose from above, I slotted them with a dremel and backed them out with a screwdriver. The other 4 were quite a bit easier to get to once the sheet metal guide was removed. I pre-slotted the outer bolts for the new one which made installation much easier too.

[shahsmerdis]

Life is so freaking funny. I Just was about to make a thread reminding people in the salt belt to lube there spare tire. and I Saw this.

Actually I have no spare tire, Some how it disappeared. the hold down pin seems to still be there, but not actually sure how complete it is. Ill check again in the morning

summery: Spare tire disappeared . we put more air in a a week or two ago.

[iBison]

When mine went bad I got a nice one from the southwest on car-part for about $40 shipped. Was frayed bad.

[Gavin S.]

I've been trying to get my rusted out one off for two days. I've drilled out all 6 bolts and it still won't budge. It's like its welded on the crossmember.

[Berty_K]

Originally Posted by Wallace

I replaced mine today. After breaking the 2 outermost bolts loose from above, I slotted them with a dremel and backed them out with a screwdriver. The other 4 were quite a bit easier to get to once the sheet metal guide was removed. I pre-slotted the outer bolts for the new one which made installation much easier too.

Bumping an old(ish) thread. I've been trying to get this (insert profanity here) spare tire hoist loose for the past week.

I can't get the outermost bolts to break loose! I soaked the bolts with liquidwrench and smacked the thing with a 12 mm, 6 point wrench. Still no dice. I'm at the point where I'm considering drilling the bolts out.

Can anyone give me some pointers? I live in chicago so the bolts are pretty rusted.

Dealer is asking $330 for parts and labor

[TechWrench]

Originally Posted by Berty_K

Bumping an old(ish) thread. I've been trying to get this (insert profanity here) spare tire hoist loose for the past week.

I can't get the outermost bolts to break loose! I soaked the bolts with liquidwrench and smacked the thing with a 12 mm, 6 point wrench. Still no dice. I'm at the point where I'm considering drilling the bolts out.

Can anyone give me some pointers? I live in chicago so the bolts are pretty rusted.

Dealer is asking $330 for parts and labor

As I mentioned in my earlier post, the easiest way to remove those rusted bolts is to chisel them off, and install the new lift assy., with new bolts.

[Berty_K]

Originally Posted by TechWrench

As I mentioned in my earlier post, the easiest way to remove those rusted bolts is to chisel them off, and install the new lift assy., with new bolts.

Did you have to drill the bolts out once you chiseled them? I'll likely use an angle grinder.

[iBison]

I bought one on car-part.com from the west that was virtually rust free for 45. Not that big a deal to change.

[TechWrench]

Originally Posted by Berty_K

Did you have to drill the bolts out once you chiseled them? I'll likely use an angle grinder.

If I remember correctly, the bolts thread in from the top of the supporting cross member, and into the base plate of the winch assy., which has threaded holes for the bolts. If you cut the bolts with a chisel, between the base plate and the support cross member, there is no need to drill anything out. If you cut the shaft of the bolt, where it protrudes from the threaded hole in the base plate, then you would still need to drill the last bit of the bolt out to release the base plate. Since I was replacing the entire lift assy., I wasn't worried about how much damage I did to the plate, so I just cut it away using an air chisel. Once the old one is down, you can install the new one with the same type of bolts that the old one used, so they match the threads in the new base plate, or as I did, just replace the bolts with slightly smaller, in diameter, and use nuts to secure them. This way, if I ever have to remove it again, I don't have to cut the bolts again.