I fit a full-sized spare in the tire compartment by simply removing the plastic liner designed to keep the temporary spare in place. It's a tight fit both horizontally and vertically but it does fit. I even used it this week.

I, too, find the temporary spare unacceptable. I'm often on poor roads far from home where a real tire is necessary. BTW, I find the XC better on ice & snow than either of 2 Jeeps I had before.

Hi Big,

I removed the plastic insert and the tire still would not fit. I suppose if I jumped up and down real hard on the tire I could get it to go down enough to close the door. I will try it again.

Steven---

PS Ditto on the Jeep!

It's a tight fit for a Continental Touring Contact 205/65-R15 with 7/32 tread remaining, so another brand of the same size or even a brand new tire might not quite fit. The Conti has a 24.7-inch diameter and an 8.2-inch width according to the specs. By comparison, a Michelin X-One (just to pick an example) is 25.3 & 8.2 so it might not fit.