Newbie, Jack location?

[Phillie Phanatic]

Hi, Just got my first Vette last week, 1990 triple black convertible. The previous owner said that the spare tire was an option back then? Is this true, I am still trying to find where the jack would be located? Also on the side behind the drivers seat I noticed a black wire with a loop on the end, does anyone know what it is for? Thanks in advance, this site is great, has already helped me alot!

 

[joe paco]

all of that is in the owner's manuel, Phillie. the jack is in one of the compartments behind the seats. the wire loop probably is for the convertible top release in case of power failure, rear hatch on coupe models. pull it and see.' after 3 yrs, I am still finding things in the manuel that I overlooked.

saludos,
joe

 

[vetteboy86]

Welcome to the CAC! My jack is located in the spare tire carrier with the spare tire. The lug wrench should be bolted to the passenger side wheel well under the hood. I'm not 100% certain what the black wire with the loop is.

 

[boomdriver]

Hi, Just got my first Vette last week, 1990 triple black convertible. The previous owner said that the spare tire was an option back then? Is this true, I am still trying to find where the jack would be located? Also on the side behind the drivers seat I noticed a black wire with a loop on the end, does anyone know what it is for? Thanks in advance, this site is great, has already helped me alot!

Spare tire an OPTION?


I wonder how the P.O. managed for who knows how long without knowing jack about his Corvette?

Take a close look under the rear end....


That cable is probably the emergency bow release in case the electric solenoid fails.

 

[Phillie Phanatic]

Jack location

I've check underneath the rearend, no spare tire. I don't know what you mean by "bow release"? My convertible is not electric.

 

[Jeb]

I've check underneath the rearend, no spare tire. I don't know what you mean by "bow release"? My convertible is not electric.

The bow is that part of the back deck which raises up out of the way so you can fold the top down under it. It is released by a rocker switch located on the rear edge of both doors. If that rocker switch fails for some reason, you can pull the loop and release the bow.

If there is no spare under the rear of the car, either you or the previous owner got screwed. My quess is that it was you because of the story given you by the PO about spares being optional. Those spares are of the space-saver variety and hard to find, especially the rims. Any originals would probably be dry rotted by now. There should have been a rounded "pan" hanging down from under the fuel tank. That's where the spare tire goes. If there's no pan, you will need one if you get a spare. Your owner's manual should have a drawing of the setup.

The good news is, now that you know you have no spare tire, there isn't any need for a jack.

The bad news is that you'll probably need a spare tire and jack sooner or later and you won't have one and you'll have to get a roll-back wrecker to take you to a tire repair/sales store who will have you by the short hairs.

 

[XLR8]

First things first - welcome to the

as for the spare tire...
the good news is, you've discovered you don't have a spare BEFORE you need it... like at 8:30 on Christmas Eve night when it's 25°, you're 10 miles from home and you're looking at a shredded tire (you can imagine how I came up with that particular scenario :L).

The bad news is, as noted here already, a secondhand C4 spare is extremely difficult to find. My friend and Corvette caretaker searched the web for a couple of days before he finally gave up and ordered a new wheel and tire for me. That was nearly ten years ago so I don't recall how much it cost, but I do remember it wasn't cheap.

Enjoy your new C4!
Jane Ann

 

[boomdriver]

I've check underneath the rearend, no spare tire. I don't know what you mean by "bow release"? My convertible is not electric.

As Jeb explained, your convert is managed by electrical switches.....the reason for the E-Cable.

Like others have stated, you or the PO got screwed. NO car sold in this country sells without a spare...I believe that its federal DOT law that cars be equiped with spares. Thats why the mfg's did'nt do away with spares on their sports car models long ago and just went to the life-saver size do-nut spare.

In the case of the Corvette, you Really Really need your spare because its a major part of the cars crash safety system. With no spare, there is nothing to prevent something from flying up fr om below to puncture the fuel tank. The spare also provides protection in the event of a rear end collision. With the series of fuel lines steel and rubber that run on both sides of the tank, having the spare carrier in place helps protect those as well.
Everything is there for a reason.. The spare serves a dual purpose on Corvettes.

Start shopping E-Bay for the spare carrier & tire, or start calling the Vette salvage yards around your area. I know of quite a few from Ca to Fla.
Many of the E-Bay sellers are salvager yards so you can email them a request for a complete spare carrier w/tire & jack.
The only guys that delete their spare are the serious auto-cross racers that want to loose that 30 lbs back there since thier risk of rear end collisions is less than that of a commute to work M-F.

 

[joe paco]

I've check underneath the rearend, no spare tire. I don't know what you mean by "bow release"? My convertible is not electric.

I am ashamed to ask, but you DID check inside the plastic pan that holds the spare, correct? Start with your owners manual, page 190-200 or so. If you're expecting to see a tire, it is well hidden.
Just seems curious that an owner would remove it, plus the jack. It's just as likely that he/she never read the manual.

saludos, joe

 

[Phillie Phanatic]

Thanks for all the replies. I didn't drop the pan but I could clearly see that is no spare in there. I will start checking the local salvage yards for a setup.It is great to have this forum to help each other outThanks again to everyone who took the time to respond.

 

[boomdriver]

Thanks for all the replies. I didn't drop the pan but I could clearly see that is no spare in there. I will start checking the local salvage yards for a setup.It is great to have this forum to help each other outThanks again to everyone who took the time to respond.

well, if you have the carrier, then the tire should be easy. I cannot see why GM would market a car that could'nt use a spare that was common to 1/2 doz other models... The jack/wrench kit can be had at many of the Corvette catalog stores.