Pram wheels

[sheerwater]

Hi,
My wifes V70 has the spacesaver pram wheel as a spare. Luckily we have a spare wheel and tyre to fit a V70 so the following comment is not really an issue to us. I know that there is time and a place for the spacesavers i.e. rear seating, weight saving etc. There cannot be much of a cost saving exercise to Volvo so why is an option not given when buying for either space saving or normal? Space savers may be acceptable if you only poddle around the U.K. but our cars are often in situations far away from your local Kwik Fit where a spacesaver is totally unacceptable. i.e. in snow conditions with chains on or on the continent mile from any help with an overnight journey , heavily loaded, is now restricted by virtue of the speed that a spacesaver can be used at. Cheers Nigel

[Networkguy]

>There cannot be much of a cost
>saving exercise to Volvo so why is an option not given when
>buying for either space saving or normal?

Looking at the price list,it is an option.

[Matt360]

Hi All,

Re the above..


the question i would like answered is


if the car has a space saver spare fitted, and you get a puncture

just exactly do you put the punctured tyre??

afterall it was a spacesaver that lived there before

come on volvo corp. give us a definative answer!!!


Matt

[sheerwater]

Great point Matt. I love real thinkers as opposed to those who think they know whats best for us. Its almost like the logic Northampton had when it decided to bring in 1 million rules for Car Boot Sales. i.e. self recycling ,only to find that they were critisised for not recycling enough rubbish themselves!!!! Cheers Nigel

[Networkguy]

>Hi All,
>
>Re the above..
>
>
>the question i would like answered is
>
>
>if the car has a space saver spare fitted, and you get a
>puncture
>
>just exactly do you put the punctured tyre??
>
>afterall it was a spacesaver that lived there before

A full size wheel will fit without a problem in the hole in the boot where the space saver came out of. After all, if you specified the full size spare option, it would have to fit in there anyway

[George Holmer]

I suspect that that is probably true, that just leaves me with one question: why oh why do they fit the space saver wheel. This is perhaps one of the most idiotic "inventions" that the car industry has ever come up with. I once owned a Saab 9000 CD Turbo, a 185 hp car with everything you can possibly ask for in terms of luxury, then you open the boot and under the matt is this bicycle wheel that is supposed to take you home if the ordinary wheel goes. This is then considered an improvement!! The car industry must have saved, what, 2 quid per wheel? And don't give me the weight saving #####, must people carry more stuff in their cars than the weight of a road wheel, I know I do. Maps, CDs, tools, tow ropes, spare clothes...

George

'87 745 GLE Turbo Diesel Intercooler
'88 745 Turbo Intercooler

[Networkguy]

And don't give me the weight
>saving #####, must people carry more stuff in their cars
>than the weight of a road wheel, I know I do. Maps, CDs,
>tools, tow ropes, spare clothes...

Yes but when you have to change the wheel at the side of the road, the SS wheel is a lot easier to carry than a full size 17" alloy.

Although you still have to get the old 17" alloy back in the boot.

[cootuk]

Perhaps it's to make sure you get the puncture repaired...how many people change a wheel then 'forget' to get it repaired and end up with 2 flat tyres?

[GorgeousGeorge]

well, after puncturing one of my craters and fitting the space saver, guess what, the crater didnt fit in the wheel well, naff or what

scott

v40 2.0T

[Simon Linton]

The 850R comes with the horrible spacesaver spare as standard, so I went off and got a used Volans 17" rim which fits in fine.

The only problem was I fitted a DIRECTIONAL tread Falken onto the wheel - prat! Now I have to hope that I have a puncture on the right side of the car.

If anyone wants to trade a brand-new 205/45 17" Falken for a non-directional tyre of the same size, please let me know.

BTW the spacesaver is very useful as a plank support for when I want to work under the front of my car - being a R, standard ramps catch on the front bib.

[a15htn]

Odd that..... my R has a standard size Volan in the boot, and a warning about the fact that the diff will not be impressed if a different size wheel is run on the same axle.... weird ?

Jim,
'96 855-R (The Flying Wardrobe)

[Simon Linton]

That would certainly be the case if your car was a AWD, but the standard FWD car will run spacesaver spares - especially on the back axle of course.

Actually, if your car was a AWD, running a new spare opposite a worn tyre will knacker the diff - puncture one of these and it's a trailer job to the tyre dealers for four new boots.

Yes four, since the front-to-back diameter must also be the same as the side-to-side diameter.

Argh!

[Peter Spurway]

Hi Everyone, from 'The new kid on the block'

With the T5 V70 running Pirelli P6000 225/45 R17, a 'proper' wheel will NOT fit in the wheel well. I actually tried it today!

When I bought the car last year, a 'full size' spare was unavailable in the options list. I assumed that was because it would not fit. Now confirmed :)

[Neil V70R]

I think Jim is refering to the section in the owners manual that refers to wheel diameter on AWD's and cars equipped with the visco-drive differentials (manual 70 series R's) but I aren't sure if manual 850R's used the same diff setup as the later cars.

With regards to the "new" V70's fitted with 225/45 tyres, a friend of mine ordered a full size 17" alloy spare for his V70 2.4T, and we managed to get it to fit in the well, after removing the plastic tray that fits under the lifting floor section.

Has anyone tried these aerosols, like the ones TVR use instead of a spare wheel ? I am fortunate/unfortunate enough to run a R AWD and it seams to me that the space saver ain't a lot of use at all if its going to wreck the diffs when used. Could these aerosols be a get you home alternative if the punctured tyre isn't gashed e.t.c ??


Neil (99 R-AWD)

[Matt360]

Hi Neil

re the tyre gunk/inflator

peugeots new little 205 coupe has no spare wheel, cos of the folding

roof they actulayy supply 2 tubes of the tyre inflating gunk with the car,

and membership to the aa included in the price..

re my experiance with the gunky stuff

it serves only one purpose to get you to a tyre depot or home


the 2 problems associated with it are

if the tyre is off the rim, or the sealing bead has detached

all the inflation aerosol in the world wont work!!

and when you take the true to the tyre depot not exceeding 30mph

cos of the heat the tyre generates

the worst part is that the tyre has to be junked

so if you have a brand new tyre at £100 pounds cost and you puntutre

it at one day old. Then carry out a temporary get you home repair

using tyre gunk, you would have to buy a new tyre again

the reason being that the tyre repair place cannot find the puncture

to repair, as the gunk puts a thin film of sealant over all the inner

surface of the tyre. Hence the do not exceed 30mph bit


from personall experiance i would not use it

but other people may swear by it

regs

matt

[sheerwater]

Interestingly enough some manufacturers are actually advertising a full size spare wheel as standard!!!!Cheers Nigel