spare tire - can't lower it down

Well, there's a long rod you are supposed to stick in that hole and use to crank it down. In my 96 it is hidden with the jack under the passenger side rear seat cushion, not sure about a 90 model. It unwinds a cable that is attached to the plate which holds the tire underneath.

You might be able to use any long rod that accompanies a jack, I've never actually looked at the end to see if it is any different. Hope this helps. Dee

You do use the round end of the jack handle to engage the slot in the spare tire winch. Slide it in the hole in the bumper and then into the winch crank, align the round end of the handle with the slot, slide the hand crank onto the rod and lower it down.

On my '85, the rod and jack are in one side of the rear cargo compartment, the hand crank is in the other side in the factory tool kit.

tire winch. Slide it in the hole in the bumper and

slide the hand crank onto the rod and lower it down.

hand crank is in the other side in the factory

I believe on the '90 the rod is under the back seats. Anyways, if I were a betting man, I'd be willing to bet that the tire winch is rusted in place.

Good luck getting it lined up too. My 95 has several 1 foot pieces you put togeather. Very slopy and not very ridged. Needs a tube for the thing to slide thourgh or a funnel to direct it to the nut.

No doubt. Had to cut the chain off the pulley on my '88 by snaking a keyhole handled hack saw through the hub hole on the spare. What a treat. Now I hold the tire in place with a couple ratchet straps.

Its a good idea to periodically lower the spare and hit the winch mechanism with some penetrating oil to keep it working smooth. My '85 still works fine, but the truck has been in CA most of that time.

The rod is under the rear seat cushions. Climb under and spray the chain ratchet with liquid wrench couple of days before you lower it. They do get rusty if not moved for years.

Thanks to all of you for the info. Will try my luck tomorrow morning.

Vadim

with some penetrating oil to keep it working

Lucky for you. Unfortunately the highway dept's here in WI are wholely owned subsidiaries of the salt lobby.