rolandrat Posted May 6, 2014 Share Posted May 6, 2014 I did a dry run today to see what changing a flat tyre entailed. The spare is located to the rear of the back axle so after weighing it up decided to lower the wheel onto the ground, fairly straight forward until you try to detach it from the cable carrier. You have to reach over the wheel whilst on your back to remove the locating bracket knurled nut, this then supposedly enables you to release the wheel from the bracket. Not a cat in hells chance. To be able to do that the body needs jacking up a good 9 inches and the wheel lowering further to the ground then the wheel can be removed from underneath. Once it was removed it was checked for pressure, cleaned up and the reverse was carried out to stow it back into the correct position. I might add that I cheated a bit because I used a 12 ton bottle jack. It was done on concreted level ground. If a front wheel needed to be changed then the jack would have to used in two different positions as there is no way the spare can be lowered and removed without the back end being raised up to get at the carrier bracket locking nut. I could imagine it to be a very tricky operation at the side of a road or on a motorway hard shoulder and if the surface was uneven. So much for rear mounted spares like Auto-Trail, at least they got something right for once. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Will86 Posted May 6, 2014 Share Posted May 6, 2014 We had a Rapido with a spare wheel fixed under the chassis, an awful place to keep it. I soon sorted that by - at MOT time asking a mechanic to remove it. After cleaning I made a bag and stored it under the bed. No change in vehicle weight and so much easier if anyone had to change it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
euroserv Posted May 6, 2014 Share Posted May 6, 2014 This subject comes up a lot and in fact I have today had a call from one of my fabulous customers to ask my advice. He is just about to take delivery of a new coach-built vehicle and it does not have a spare or spare wheel carrier fitted. He wanted to know what the options were regarding puncture resisting fluids or complete spare wheels and carriers..... The conclusion, after two reasonably intelligent people had brainstormed for a few minutes was to get a spare tyre and keep it in the 'garage' at the back of the vehicle. He will be prepared with a tyre should something untoward happen, it will be accessible, it will be clean(!), it will be the right type and he will save about 20Kg of wheel weight! No, he will not be able to swap the wheel himself, but at the end of the day; who wants to? Quite an elegant solution, even if I say so myself! Nick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Peter James Posted May 6, 2014 Share Posted May 6, 2014 I find that if you wind the wheel down far enough to give slack in the cable, you can drag the wheel back enough to get hold of it better, than stand one edge on a block so you can get the central bell out to release the wheel. You can't compare it with taking a car spare wheel out of the boot. You have got to be prepared to get down and dirty to do a job like this. Its the price you pay for the convenience of having the spare out of the way under the van. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
broc Posted May 6, 2014 Share Posted May 6, 2014 We had a spare in the garage of our Autotrail 696. It was safe, secure & a brute to get out of the garage on the occasion I tried! Our next van was a Hobby, based upon a Transit FWD chassis & that came with a compressor & tyre 'goo' ...... I was never happy with the idea of relying upon this in an emergency so I was pleased when we bought our Autocruise Rhythm PVC with the spare under the floor. I usually drop the spare a couple of times a season to check that the mechanism is not seized & also to make sure the spare has plenty of air. I agree it is hard work, but better than no spare! Accessing the X/250 spare is not much worse than trying to change an underslung great big chunky 4x4 wheel. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snowie Posted May 6, 2014 Share Posted May 6, 2014 broc - 2014-05-06 6:54 PM I usually drop the spare a couple of times a season to check that the mechanism is not seized & also to make sure the spare has plenty of air. I agree it is hard work, but better than no spare! Accessing the X/250 spare is not much worse than trying to change an underslung great big chunky 4x4 wheel. We have a cradle on our PVC, and having read of some failures, I leave well alone. I know I should have checked it regularly....but...... If I ever need it, I am expecting it to be possible to wind the spare down, and at the same time drag it backwards to clear the rear bumper. Am I being optimistic? The liklihood is that we shall have to call the breakdown service, but at least we'll have a spare to fit, regards alan b Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rolandrat Posted May 6, 2014 Author Share Posted May 6, 2014 Van conversions such as IH with a boot have the lowering gear situated behind the offside rear wheel which makes removing the spare wheel dangerous on busy roads and motorways. The lowering mechanism is at the back on vans with normal rear doors and easier to get at. As I'm away touring for a couple of months shortly It was important to make sure that all was well underneath. I've also changed the brake fluid and what a difference it's made, it's recommended to do it every 2 years. As mentioned by Nick the Ceramic grease on brake callipers is a very good idea, it was always recommended by Mintex. Europarts stock it if anyone is interested. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted May 7, 2014 Share Posted May 7, 2014 euroserv - 2014-05-06 5:19 PM This subject comes up a lot and in fact I have today had a call from one of my fabulous customers to ask my advice. He is just about to take delivery of a new coach-built vehicle and it does not have a spare or spare wheel carrier fitted. He wanted to know what the options were regarding puncture resisting fluids or complete spare wheels and carriers..... The conclusion, after two reasonably intelligent people had brainstormed for a few minutes was to get a spare tyre and keep it in the 'garage' at the back of the vehicle. He will be prepared with a tyre should something untoward happen, it will be accessible, it will be clean(!), it will be the right type and he will save about 20Kg of wheel weight! No, he will not be able to swap the wheel himself, but at the end of the day; who wants to? Quite an elegant solution, even if I say so myself! Nick Carrying a spare tyre (rather than a spare wheel + tyre) has occasionally been suggested on motorhome forums in the past as it saves a fair amount of weight and offers a realistic possibility of storing the tyre on the roof of the vehicle. However, unless weight-saving is of paramount importance, if it's practicable to carry a spare tyre within the motorhome (eg. in a 'garage' of under a bed) surely it's logical to carry a spare wheel + tyre instead? If a motorhome suffers a tyre-related problem, say, on a French autoroute on a Sunday, a breakdown company would be able to deploy a spare wheel + tyre (assuming that the motorhome were carrying one) and the motorhome would then become mobile. But it's most unlikely that replacing a damaged tyre with a spare tyre at the roadside would be an option and the motorhome would need to be tranported to place of safety and wait there until the following day when the spare tyre could be fitted by a tyre specialist. Our Transit-based Hobby has a spare wheel + tyre, carried beneath the chassis, and it's definitely no fun getting it out. But the vehicle has no 'garage' and insufficient room beneath the bed for a spare wheel or spare tyre. We are currently considering replacing the Hobby with a Rapido 640 that has no spare-wheel option but does have a 'garage' spacious enough to carry a spare wheel. Weight-saving will not be an issue, nor will the cost of buying a wheel. Consequently, I can't think of any good reason why I should consider carrying just a spare tyre rather than a spare wheel + tyre. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Peter James Posted May 7, 2014 Share Posted May 7, 2014 Changing a motorhome size tyre is not difficult for a man of average strength with decent tyre levers. But few have ever done it because tyre companies fit it 'free' and you probably need them to balance the wheel afterwards. (although of course that doesn't have to be done straightaway) Spare tyre is not as good as spare wheel, but its probably a lot better than nothing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
starvin marvin Posted May 7, 2014 Share Posted May 7, 2014 My only experience of a puncture on a m/h was on a French campsite. Called out the breakdown service who when told that the spare was under the van, gave a Gallic shrug, put a blow up "cushion" under the van and took the wheel away, returning after lunch to refit the wheel. If or when I get another puncture I'll call out the breakdown service. You don't have a dog and bark yourself. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mentaliss Posted May 7, 2014 Share Posted May 7, 2014 starvin marvin - 2014-05-07 1:14 PM My only experience of a puncture on a m/h was on a French campsite. Called out the breakdown service who when told that the spare was under the van, gave a Gallic shrug, put a blow up "cushion" under the van and took the wheel away, returning after lunch to refit the wheel. If or when I get another puncture I'll call out the breakdown service. You don't have a dog and bark yourself.[/quote Exactly] B-) Im having to fit my spare central to under body attached to the chassis cross member, removed it from where I originally fixed it (recently) as its causing too much load on the rear axle, too many posters worrying about under slung spare wheels after all how many times has it been used ? and surely if you are unfortunate that you need to use the spare aren't the breakdown people suppose to sort that?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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