Chevrolet Silverado 1999-2006: How to Remove Spare Tire

This article applies to the Chevrolet Silverado 1500 (1999-2006).

The spare tire on the Chevrolet Silverado 1500 is prone to getting stuck on the winch that holds it under the bed. There's no one solution to getting the tire to come down, so this article will give you steps to try in the order of increasing labor time. On a day when you have some free time, it's recommended to try to get the spare tire down so you know whether it's working or not before you actually need to get it down.

Step 1 – Try to remove spare tire normally

1. Place the jack under the spare tire so it is putting pressure on the spring in the center of the spare tire.
2. Using the jack handle, insert the square end through the guide hole in the rear bumper.
3. When you feel the jack handle engage, turning it counter-clockwise should begin to lower the tire.
4. Periodically, you'll need to lower the jack as well to allow the tire to come down.

If you can't remove the tire normally, move on to Step 2.

Step 2 – Adjust guide tube

Occasionally, the guide tube can get misaligned, not allowing you to properly engage the winch with the jack handle. If you think this is the case, you can easily pop the guide tube out of the rear bumper from underneath. If you still can't get it to engage, you can try to rotate the winch a little; however, there is very little play.

If adjusting the guide tube didn't work, move on to Step 3.

Step 3 – Let air out of spare tire

This isn't as common, but depending on the temperature outside and the temperature when the tire was filled, it could be jammed in place. The change in air temperature alters the pressure in the tire and can cause the tire to get caught on the winch. However, depending how the tire was installed, this process can either be very easy or an annoyance if the valve stem is on the top.

If letting air out of the tire didn't work, move on to Step 4.

Step 4 – Remove the winch assembly

Unfortunately, if you've come this far, the only feasible option left is to remove the winch assembly. If you are still under warranty or have yet to have this problem fixed previously, most dealerships will still fix this problem for free or for the cost of parts. If you are paying for the parts and plan to leave the spare tire in the bed once removing it, you can get a new spare tire for about the same price, so that's something to consider. There are a couple different ways to remove the assembly:

• Using an angle grinder or something similar, you can cut out the old assembly. This process is a little bit quicker but you run a greater risk of cutting into your spare tire if you are planning on keeping it.

• You can also unbolt and pry the assembly off of the frame crossmember. First you'll need to unbolt the winch assembly from the crossmember; you'll need relatively small hands and a long socket extension. Since the bolt heads are close to the center of the spare tire, letting the air out of the spare can give you more room to work in. Once the assembly is unbolted, you'll need to pry it off. To do this you'll want to take a 15-20" metal pipe and place it on top of a floor jack beneath the spare tire. Running the pipe through one of the holes on the spare's rim, you'll need to get it to catch somewhere on the winch assembly. Once it catches, raise the floor jack to put tension on the assembly. With enough force, the assembly will pop off of the crossmember.

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