Removing van spare wheel
Taking delivery of new car on Thur. Specified with no spare wheel but has a compressor and gunk to be injected as temp repair , so, have ordered a spare as optional extra, now to the reason for this post, I am considering, to save weight and the hassle
of using the stupid Alko carrier, removing the wheel and carrier and in case of puncture on van using the compressor and gunk provided with car to fix van tyre. Anyone tried this ? I'd appreciate any tips or thoughts on this subject
Comments
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I'd stick with carrying the spare but not in the Alko carrier.
Some compressors take an age to pump up a tyre and, in the case of MHs, often won't reach the required pressure. And, as JVB pointed out, useless if your tyre is beyond repair.
Picture yourself on the hard shoulder of a m/way with an offside puncture. Would you opt for a relatively quick wheel change or the faff of glue and compressor?
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Taking delivery of new car on Thur. Specified with no spare wheel but has a compressor and gunk to be injected as temp repair , so, have ordered a spare as optional extra, now to the reason for this post, I am considering, to save weight and the hassle
of using the stupid Alko carrier, removing the wheel and carrier and in case of puncture on van using the compressor and gunk provided with car to fix van tyre. Anyone tried this ? I'd appreciate any tips or thoughts on this subjectWrite your comments here... I can see the logical thinking of your idea , but like previous poster says tyre may be beyond repair by repair system.
In any case I would advise having Tyron bands fitted on your Caravan as a extra safety measure regardless of carrying a spare or not .
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You've all got me thinking , should I or shouldn't i plus side I have Tyrones fitted, The compressor with car is very good (have one on current car) , I'm to much coward to fix offside tyre on a m/way call Mayday. Thanks for comments it all helps to get
a balanced view0 -
I'm to much coward to fix offside tyre on a m/way call Mayday. Thanks for comments it all helps to get a balanced view
Write your comments here...Deciding not to change an offside wheel on a motorway isn't being a coward, it is common sense. You couldn't be near to facing death if you tried. Under no circumstances would I use gunk as a temp repair, a caravan tyre works
a lot harder and is under more stress than a car tyre.0 -
You've all got me thinking , should I or shouldn't i plus side I have Tyrones fitted, The compressor with car is very good (have one on current car) , I'm to much coward to fix offside tyre on a m/way call Mayday. Thanks for comments it all helps to get
a balanced view...Even more reason not to try gunge ,think of trying to sort out tyron after application
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Has anyone any experience of these liquid sealants that can be injected into car tyres to provide self-sealing properties?
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I think any of these gunks, either pre-loaded or put in afterwards will only deal with pretty small amounts of damage. If you have a puncture on the road, I carry a plugging tool which can fix holes from screws etc and slow punctures in the centre tread area efectively, often without removing the wheel. They are supposedly temporary but have lasted some time on car tyres I've fixed.
The big thing is to get to a safe place to effect a repair. If a tyre goes on the motorway it's highly likely you'll need a new one so all this about gunks is a false security blanket, you need someone to come and help you and work from there.
If you should be carrying a spare and are not, then you may well have problems with your breakdown cover (does not apply if car hasn't any facility for one.
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Tyrons will stop your tyre coming off the rim, but won't necessarily stop bead separation, once the bead is 'broken' you need a rapid injection of air from a 'proper' compressor to re-seat it, the in-car ones won't do it. The repair kits supplied are pretty
useless unless you return to your parked car and find the tyre has gone flat, any sudden deflation will be beyond repair by the sealant, as will the damage done if your tyre goes flat at high speed.cyberyacht - I use latex sealant in my cycle tyres all the time and find it is excellent, but i wouldn't want it sloshing round in a car tyre at 70mph if I'm honest, I suspect it would seriously upset the wheel balance.
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cyberyacht - I use latex sealant in my cycle tyres all the time and find it is excellent, but i wouldn't want it sloshing round in a car tyre at 70mph if I'm honest, I suspect it would seriously upset the wheel balance.
Reading the blurb, it says that the stuff is distributed evenly around the tyre by its rotation so theoretically it shouldn't affect balance. However to quote Mandy Rice Davies 'they would say that, wouldn't they'.
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This topic has arisen before. In reality you need a spare for the car and a spare for the caravan. It's extra weight and extra expense and may never be needed. But if the worst does happen you can change the wheel and be on your way quickly. Check
your car manual and see what it says about towing with a spare that is different from the other wheels (narrower for instance). Some manufacturers (Nissan X-Trail) say not to tow while using the emergency spare that comes with the car. If you ignored this
and towed the caravan you "could" be invalidating your insurance as, in the event of an accident, they might consider that your car was unroadworthy.0 -
I am afraid the inflation kits can only deal with a small puncture. If there is anything more then they are useless so keep the spare.
Frankly I would make it illegal to sell a car without a spare but it will not happen.
Write your comments here...If ALL breakdown companies refused to attend vehicles without a full sized spare, i suspect it wouldnt be long before full sized spare wheels became the norm again.
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I am afraid the inflation kits can only deal with a small puncture. If there is anything more then they are useless so keep the spare.
Frankly I would make it illegal to sell a car without a spare but it will not happen.
Write your comments here...If ALL breakdown companies refused to attend vehicles without a full sized spare, i suspect it wouldnt be long before full sized spare wheels became the norm again.
Wouldn't worry me. I've yet to call them out for a simple flat tyre.
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Lucky you, MM. Spare a thought for those not able to change a wheel themselves.
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The RAC carry a 'multi-fit' wheel. Don't ask me the details - it's probably on their website.
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Out of interest, what does a breakdown company do if they come out to you and you have a tyre that's not repairable and no spare?
We went over a brick in the M1 50 MPH zone where changing lanes was impossible. Rear tyre sidewall damaged beyond repair, no spare supplied with car. Towed off by emergency crew then called AA. The driver took off the wheel and drove us to a tyre supplier who fitted a new one (our cost of course) took us back to the compound and refitted the wheel.
Yes it took more time than if a spare was carried but the system worked and we were on our way after about 1 1/2 hrs in safety.
We were able to claim the cost of the tyre from the motorway contractor BUT the impact had upset both front and rear alignment which had to be corrected later. Breakdown cover, don't leave home without it!
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Out of interest, what does a breakdown company do if they come out to you and you have a tyre that's not repairable and no spare?
We went over a brick in the M1 50 MPH zone where changing lanes was impossible. Rear tyre sidewall damaged beyond repair, no spare supplied with car. Towed off by emergency crew then called AA. The driver took off the wheel and drove us to a tyre supplier
who fitted a new one (our cost of course) took us back to the compound and refitted the wheel.Yes it took more time than if a spare was carried but the system worked and we were on our way after about 1 1/2 hrs in safety.
We were able to claim the cost of the tyre from the motorway contractor BUT the impact had upset both front and rear alignment which had to be corrected later. Breakdown cover, don't leave home without it!
Write your comments here...that works fine during normal working hours, what about middle of the night or an out of stock or rare tyre ? A spare of your own, even if its just the a tyre is a safer bet.
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Out of interest, what does a breakdown company do if they come out to you and you have a tyre that's not repairable and no spare?
We went over a brick in the M1 50 MPH zone where changing lanes was impossible. Rear tyre sidewall damaged beyond repair, no spare supplied with car. Towed off by emergency crew then called AA. The driver took off the wheel and drove us to a tyre supplier who fitted a new one (our cost of course) took us back to the compound and refitted the wheel.
Yes it took more time than if a spare was carried but the system worked and we were on our way after about 1 1/2 hrs in safety.
We were able to claim the cost of the tyre from the motorway contractor BUT the impact had upset both front and rear alignment which had to be corrected later. Breakdown cover, don't leave home without it!
Write your comments here...that works fine during normal working hours, what about middle of the night or an out of stock or rare tyre ? A spare of your own, even if its just the a tyre is a safer bet.
I accept it would be better to have a spare but we don't get one and it would take up much of the boot space so it's a (hopefully) small risk we are prepared to take (haven't had a puncture since and that was over 4 years ago)
If it happened, we'd just have to rely on our breakdown supplier and either get one (we have standard sizes) on call out or, more likely, wait until the next day. It's not a big problem or worry to us, we can cope with a slow puncture or nail in tread area, which is good enough for us. Your views may differ so you have to take whatever spares you think you may need if you can't get them quickly enough for your needs. I wouldn't have a motorhome without a spare however as they should be able to find some space and load capacity.
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My Antara came with repair gunk, it now has proper spare, which fits under floor!!, caravan also has spare which is mounted under bed, so no problem with silly alko carrier, also carry lightweight lolift trolley jack under boot floor, and kept repair canister
just in case. But would still not change o/s wheels on a busy road as too dangerous without protection from another vehicle i.e brakedown service
(and being an ex roadside patrol i do know how dangerous it is)0 -
I am afraid the inflation kits can only deal with a small puncture. If there is anything more then they are useless so keep the spare.
Frankly I would make it illegal to sell a car without a spare but it will not happen.
What we really want is for cars to stop being taxed on emmissions. Thats why we now have goo rather than a spare wheel. Goo is lighter so the emmissions are lower.
Of course we now all know most manufacturers (not just VW) fiddle the figures anyway.
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......Of course we now all know most manufacturers (not just VW) fiddle the figures anyway.
Did they?
Must've missed that ....... Steady now....
Coming out of a toll on the Taymar bridge my caravan wheel hit a kerb that was sticking out that the car missed. Tyre utterly knackered, I had to limp across all of the toll booths to the break down area (I was going through the furthest booth). As I had
a spare, and borrowed the toll break down trucks jack, I was back on the road within 20 minutes.Foam would have been no help whatsoever.
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......Of course we now all know most manufacturers (not just VW) fiddle the figures anyway.
Did they?
Must've missed that ....... They are all at it.
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......Of course we now all know most manufacturers (not just VW) fiddle the figures anyway.
Did they?
Must've missed that ....... They are all at it.
Car manufacturers have obviously made emmission figures to suit their own end. I have an 05 Smart Roadster, the emmissions of which put it in the next band by 1 .... around £120 a year. I also have a 08 Fortwo too, the road tax is £30. My R320 is about £500
a year, the later R350 is around £250 ....0
