I've not used one for years! (1 Viewer)

[ALI G]

hi.
After finding a large and very deep crack in the side wall of a tyre on our 3 year old van near the top of Norway i would not be without my spare wheel

 

[Trikeman]

Just where do you put a spare wheel? 31kg's of dead weight that may never be used and if it is required only a small % of people will do it them self. A job for AA man or whoever, mine is located right at the back so the effect on the rear axle load is high. Do they fit them elsewhere? Inside or out?

Edited as I put 40kg after weighing it is in fact, 31Kg.

Steve.

Steve,
mine is fitted underneath MoHo on a hinged crossmember, just behind the rear axle. I regularly check it for cracks and security, have also made sure the unhooking knob/thread/hinge is well copper greased and it's quite easy to dismount the spare. However, in the piddling down and on a hard shoulder it would take a brave guy to get underneath to unscrew the knob and lower to the ground - let alone change it, so RAC every time (as he grabs for wood).

I suppose the imposed load is to the rear axle, but anywhere forward of the location has tanks, steps, axle, LSV, then a hot exhaust - best of a bad situation I suppose.

Regards,

Trikeman.

 

[motorhomer]

I have had 2 punctures in recent years on motorhomes. Both were at home in my drive! In both cases I put on the spare and took the punctured tyre for repair.

Personally I would not be without a spare . Yes as others have said I could not necessarily change wheels on my own but the AA man could! Cans of goo do not work with a lot of punctures and the tyre cannot be repaired once goo has been used in it. So even if the goo does work it is a very temporary repair before the tyre is changed. And many camper tyres are not readily available - so no spare in a remote location can be a serious problem. If you have a spare a puncture is an inconvenience. With no spare it is a major issue!

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[musson]

Hi I had a bracket made to fit on the towbar (if you have towbar could email you photos) ,225x75x16 weighs about 25kg,we may tow a car at some time but will put spare in boot on car.

 

[Wildbill]

Had a blow out south of Le Havre blooming bang didnt half make me jump luckily light traffic o/s/r

looks like abit of tyre belt separation

 

[gus-lopez]

Calling the recovery people should be your last thought not your first as they are very thin on the ground at weekends and the frequent public holidays and your, and certainly mine, lack of foreign language skills to summon the recovery may also delay their response.

It is rare that you will see a Spaniard change a wheel. They are straight on the phone to the insurance company for the recovery to come & change it. Even though it might take a couple of hours ! I have even passed one who has just had a tyre go / on the way back some hours later they are just changing it !! Never can understand it as they have to learn it as part of the driving test.

looks like abit of tyre belt separation

I thought he'd stuffed it with grass !

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[Andy]

I keep the spare on board, mainly because it sits in the engine bay, and isn't a liability, however, don't bother with a jack, let the breakdown man supply that one!. In reality, would anyone really consider changing an offside puncture on the hard shoulder of the M6??

Likewise, on both the Citroen (hymer) and fiat, both spares are under bonnet............

 

[jonandshell]

This is the result at 60 mph front left on the M62 pulled me from the fast lane to the hard shoulder in a split second

Just lucky I didn't hit anything and even luckier it wasn't the front right
As I'd guess it would have flipped me over the barrier View attachment 58505

The sidewalls are perished and cracked. It was just waiting to happen.

I binned our Pirellis at 3 1/2 years due to sidewall cracking.

 

[Moodybrook]

Don't like any old jack the lad tyre fitter touching my gal, have practiced several wheel changes, ok it was dry and not on the side of the M6, got two warning triangles for a wee bit of warning for dozy truckies disappearing up my jacksy ! etc. but it isn't rocket science, an old blanket and a two wheel chocks that I made from a square post cut across the diagonal. Lay blanket then use a chock at the far side of the wheel so when I wind it down the blighter tilts towards me so I can get the cable block out of the centre. Pull the blanket and she slides out from under the van. Use the chocks so van doesn't move. Lift her up after loosening the wheel nuts. You know the rest.

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[Minxy]

Grrrr ... what are your thoughts on carrying a spare windscreen! We had to have ours replaced last year as on our way back home after a long holiday a stone was thrown up and cracked it ... couldn't be fixed as it spread within a few miles and by the time we got home was very long ... £100 excess on the insurance ... great!

Now, travelling along the motorway in readiness for our return to the UK on Wednesday some numpty drove past breaking the speed limit (of course!) and kicked a stone up adn we've now got a nice 'nick' in the front centre of our less than a year old windscreen! We're hoping it can be 'filled' as it is shallow and hasn't spread otherwise that'll be another £100 excess!!!!!

 

[jollyrodger]

looks like abit of tyre belt separation

Yep Bill it well and truly separated......​

after I ran over that bit of bolt you can see .couldn't swap lanes to avoid it and no hard shoulder .said oh golly gosh as you do ..
First one in a camper hopefully the last

 

[laird of Dunstan]

I always change my tyres once they reach 5 years of age ,ive had two blow out on my caravan and it was down to them being 6 years old , don't go by the depth of tread , once they go past 4 years start thinking about changing them.
As for windscreens, as long as its a small star shapped chip, they can be repaired , ive done a few of them myself , the hardest part is drilling the winscreen and then you have to pressure test it

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[John.]

The sidewalls are perished and cracked. It was just waiting to happen.

I binned our Pirellis at 3 1/2 years due to sidewall cracking.

That tyre was maybe 2 years old & probably 20 000 miles
Are they prone to crack etc that quick?

 

[jonandshell]

Ours had 12000 miles on them and 3 1/2 years use.

 

[GWAYGWAY]

I always change my tyres once they reach 5 years of age ,ive had two blow out on my caravan and it was down to them being 6 years old , don't go by the depth of tread , once they go past 4 years start thinking about changing them.

Save the old ones you take off and put them on top of the van in case the new ones fail , you can have plenty of spares , just need a good set of tyre levers and a pump.

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[jollyrodger]

Glad I'm not the only one ....it'll come in handy oneday

 

[Lenny HB]

I always change my tyres once they reach 5 years of age ,ive had two blow out on my caravan and it was down to them being 6 years old , don't go by the depth of tread , once they go past 4 years start thinking about changing them.

Caravans suffer far more from sidewall degradation as they are often left standing for long periods. If you don't use your Motorhome over the winter I would agree with 5 years but if the van is in regular use throughout the year the rubber stays more supple and providing the tyres are inspected regularly they are usually OK up to 7 years.

 

[Minxy]

As for windscreens, as long as its a small star shapped chip, they can be repaired , ive done a few of them myself , the hardest part is drilling the winscreen and then you have to pressure test it

The chap from Autoglass came this morning and has managed to fix the chip thank goodness so no £100 excess for a new screen as we had last year, and no excess for filling either - our insurer is Safeguard.

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[jpgb43]

I had a spare wheel fitted to our Bessacar 665. It was fitted just behind the rear axle and in front of the fresh water tank. If I ever have to actually use it, I will use the recovery service to change it.

CTC in Witney did a great job

 

[L' Hobo]

If I was going abroad and my payload was limited, I would carry just the tyre, not the rim because, when the breakdown man arrives on a cold and wet night, he/she does not have to try and locate the correct size and make of tyre before they can fix it!

 

[Bluemooner]

Blimey a 2015 thread comes back grand

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[L' Hobo]

Blimey a 2015 thread comes back grand

It's getting close to Halloween?

 

[Soots]

We have! On a motorway in Spain near Jerez when it was peeing down with rain. Fortunately our driver (Gwen) managed to bring us safely to a halt on the hard shoulder.
I wouldn't go anywhere without a proper spare because it Would take more than a can of goo to fix it when this happens:
View attachment 58518

It's fine, just a bit of gaffer tape and straw.

 

[gus-lopez]

If I was going abroad and my payload was limited, I would carry just the tyre, not the rim because, when the breakdown man arrives on a cold and wet night, he/she does not have to try and locate the correct size and make of tyre before they can fix it!

A complete wheel they might change here, a tyre only you'd be recovered to a tyre dealer & have to wait if closed.

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[Leakylunar]

Curbed the van January this year, limped to local BP garage then changed tyre it was rather cold at 5:30 in the morning.
Most annoying as the tyre was only two months old. Would always carry a spare.

 

[VXman]

Slow puncture in Germany out in the sticks and at the weekend so no garages around. Decided to put the spare on. A week later now in Italy and the spare is still on. Can't be bothered with trying to converse with Italian tyre fitters. What's the chance of 2 punctures on a trip? Also if I did get anothrr I could always put the slow puncture one back on and pump it up