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Space Saver Wheels ?


marsh man
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As we are now well aware that most cars don't no longer have a spare wheel , so what are the options , hope the sealant repair the punture until you get it done by the tyre people or get a space saver ? , well I have just changed my motor and yes you have guessed there is no spare , only a brand new repair kit , so looking on Ebay I found after searching all the adverts for a Vauxhall Mokka 4x4 a nice lady not that far from me who had a brand new space saver wheel that fit my motor , so I made her an offer which she kindly accepted and I picked it up today , yes it was brand new and never been fitted on a motor , we had a good ole yarn and then made my way back home , my motor had a recess in the boot and I thought it was just a matter of putting the spare in with the jack ect and shut it back up , what a dissapointment , yes the wheel no doubt fit the motor but it was to big in the middle to fit in the hole where it should had gone , so rather than cut the recess cover it will have to stay in the garage till maybe a genuine Vauxhall one turn up .

Have you wise men had the same problems :good:    THANKS

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Does the Mokka have an adjustable boot floor?

Other half's last car which was Mokka sized had a two level boot floor which had to be in the raised position in order to fit a space saver in the boot floor recess. It was a quirky trick from VW so they could advertise the car as both having a larger boot space than the competition and have a spare wheel option. Didn't bother to say that it was one or the other and not both at the same time.

Should tell you in the user manual if this is the case.

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1 hour ago, sam triple said:

Nothing on the underside on the rear of the car to attach it to 

I wouldn't had thought so as it would reduce ground clearance if using the 4x4 .  THANKS:good:

57 minutes ago, Poor Shot said:

Does the Mokka have an adjustable boot floor?

Other half's last car which was Mokka sized had a two level boot floor which had to be in the raised position in order to fit a space saver in the boot floor recess. It was a quirky trick from VW so they could advertise the car as both having a larger boot space than the competition and have a spare wheel option. Didn't bother to say that it was one or the other and not both at the same time.

Should tell you in the user manual if this is the case.

No there is only one level , might well be on the newer models but not on mine THANKS :good:

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2 hours ago, hawkfanz said:

i have a mondeo an 07,threw the space saver in shed and got a full size wheel from scrap yard,,,how can these be legal,it wouldn,t pass mot with space saver,incorrect tyre size.

I know what you mean , my new wheel seem a lot smaller than the ( real ) ones that are on the car , looking them up , it stated the 16 , 17 and 18 inch all fit and will at least get you home , I did buy a full size wheel for my Honda and managed to put it in the boot space by putting a piece of wood under the edge of the cover , it was still in there yesterday morning when I swapped my car over and it had never been used but it gave you piece of mind if it was ever needed .:good:

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25 minutes ago, marsh man said:

I know what you mean , my new wheel seem a lot smaller than the ( real ) ones that are on the car , looking them up , it stated the 16 , 17 and 18 inch all fit and will at least get you home , I did buy a full size wheel for my Honda and managed to put it in the boot space by putting a piece of wood under the edge of the cover , it was still in there yesterday morning when I swapped my car over and it had never been used but it gave you piece of mind if it was ever needed .:good:

I think that the `Peace of Mind` is the thing here.

A few years ago I bought a Suzuki Vitara which didn`t have a spare wheel. The salesman said " I wouldn`t worry, when was the last time you had a puncture?"

"Fair comment, I cannot remember " said I, so thought no more about it.

Blow me down, three weeks later I got a puncture.

Traded the Vitara in a few years later and bought a space saver wheel for the newer car and guess what, had the car for six years and never got a puncture.

However, I would not hesitate in getting a spare (space saver or otherwise) as it`s the peace of mind it gives whether it will ever be used or not.

OB

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3 hours ago, Gordon R said:

My wife had a 13 plate Mokka - got a normal sized steel wheel as a spare. It fit in the boot - no problem.

Hi Gordon R .... Mine is exactly the same reg as your wife and even the ( mini ) wheel stick up nearly two inches above the cover shelf , with the cover being attached to part of the structure near the bottom of the back seats I can't even put some wood around the outside to bring it up level , I dare say the recess is round enough for a full size wheel but it would stick up way above the top of the bumper and would be hopeless for my dog to jump in , so up to now I have cut a piece of ply the size of the boot to protect the cover and to make it exactly level for my dog , the spare is in my garage and for the time being that is where it will stay , if I come across the one made for the recess then if it isn't to dear I will buy it or hope I am not to far from home if I get a punture the sealent can't fix .   THANKS

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The real problem with a space saver is that when you put the space saver on ........... where do you put the (punctured) full sized wheel?  If you have a full car - it's a problem.

I have used a space saver (Honda) and it is fine to get you home/off the motorway/to a garage/tyre place.  You wouldn't want to drive far or fast on it, but it gets the job done.

I have also used the run flat capability of the (standard fit) runflats on a BMW - worked fine and was (contrary to what many say) fully repairable for a normal repair fee.  I've owned the car for 16 years and only had one puncture.

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3 hours ago, Gordon R said:

Marshman - the wheel was placed with the wheel nut size to the floor and the jack etc placed in the wheel. It didn't raise the boot liner at all. 

Hi Gordon .... I recon your wife's motor must be different to mine , would it make any difference with mine being a 1400 Turbo 4 x 4 ? , I have took a photo so you can see the small gap I have got from the bottom to the boot liner .

SAM-7969.jpg

SAM-7971.jpg

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Hi Marsh Man

I had a similar problem in my subaru XV, which use as my shooting transport so a spare was vital. The spare wheel well is very shallow so initially I got a full size steel wheel (plenty second hand on eBay) which sat in the footwell behind the front passenger seat. Then I had the idea that I would get a space saver and make a new raised boot floor so it would fit. A bit of 8mm ply, some upholstery foam and a piece of cheap black carpet later, I've sacrificed about 2 inches of boot floor, but the spare now fits perfectly along with a jack and wheelbrace. The dogs don't mind the slightly reduced headroom and I can now have more space in the back for kit and occasional passengers.

 

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The SOLE purpose of a 'space saver' wheel is to get you to either your home or a garage to have the punctured tyre repaired. It has a maximum speed limit (usually 50mph) and should be removed and replaced by the repaired standard sized wheel as soon as possible. The 'kits' that inflate the tyre and repair the puncture are only any use if you have a 'slow' puncture. If you have a 'blow out', the tyre is either useless or the seal with the rim is broken and therefore not repairable by an inflation kit. I too would not buy a car that did not at least have a spacesaver wheel.

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  • 4 weeks later...

I don't think there are many cars that come with a proper spare now. It's all to do with weight savings and MPG. The works van has a full size spare, but no jack, but it is a rental till the new one arrives at some distant point in the future. I don't suppose it is safe to run a full loded van on a space saver or with it full of snot.

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5 minutes ago, Robden said:

I'm sure I read somewhere that, "space savers" should only be used on the rear wheels. So, should a front blow, you then have to replace that with a rear wheel first.

That is certainly usually 'suggested' on front wheel drive cars.  I don't think it is a legal requirement? 

Some cars (e.g. Mercedes SLK) have rear tyres that are too big to go on the front, but that is a rear wheel drive car.  It has a single sized space saver that is stored flat (i.e. un-inflated) can replace any wheel.  An electric pump is provided.  The problem arises in that the (removed) punctured wheel won't fit in the wheel well in the boot and barely fits in the boot at all ........ a problem if you have luggage.

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