I just bought a 97 LT that has the spare tire in the cargo area. I tried to put it in it's storage area under the vehicle only to find the ratchet system wouldn't budge and the cable itself was broken. Is there anyway to replace the cable only or do I need to be looking for a complete assy? I've thought about looping a chain through a retaining bar and securing it with a padlock. Any ideas will be welcome.

 

well my dad sprayed wd 40 in the cable assembly and she broke free then i got one of those cable ties the one with the 2 7/16 nuts . I made a loop then put the cable tie on it

the tire holds great now.

you can do the same if you got enough cable in her or you need to replace the whole thing

 

it probably isnt worth the time to recable it even if it could be done. I would go junk yard shopping.

 

I thought I had a patent on repairing the spare tire assembly with a cable clamp....I'll be contacting my lawyer. Or..you can just send me 10k now and we'll settle out of court. One good thing about the cable clamp is that if the cable ever gets stuck again you just need to take the clamp off and your spare falls on the ground.

 

I tried the WD-40, still no luck. Upon closer inspection though, I found the slot that the tire iron goes into wasn't lined up with the hole through the bumper. Inserting it at an angle and a couple turns, and some enlarging of the bumper hole, the cable started to come down with some help of vice grips pulling on it. After turning what seemed forever, the light bulb went off over my head. I took an old wood bore bit, 5/8", the flat type, ground the tip down and put it in my 1/2" drill. 4 quick tugs on the trigger and the cable was down to the ground. Now I can attach something to go thru the center hole of the wheel and store it properly. Thanks to all of you.

 

looks good just the way how i did my pops but i used the original plate

 

Mine didn't come with the original so I used what I had laying around. Fortunately I had this 1/4" thick piece of angle iron with some holes already cut into it.