G

geofizz

New Member
Hi

Does anyone know if it is possible to use a lightweight temporary spare wheel or space saver wheel with a Defender 90 (07 plate)? It looks like such a wheel is available for the Discovery - will it fit a Defender? Just looking for something that would get me back to base without having to cart the heavy standard steel spare around all the time.

Thanks
Dave
 
Well assuming it actually fits the hub and its the same overall diameter i cant see any issues even weight wise as the d3 has got to be quite a bit heavier than the defender.


Lynall
 
is it really that much of an issue not to carry the original spare?,the light weight one you still gotta put it where the original spare is mounted so whats the difference?
 
MrJC said:
Green Flag is cheaper?
Click to expand...
Only for now! With the number of Recoveries due to "puncture, no spare" rising by the day, is only a question of time before the Breakdown Agencies up their charges - or charge extra for punctures.
 
Well the door hinges look like they are starting to suffer with the weight plus I'm travelling a lot of motorway miles and I'm looking at cutting weight as much as possible to see whether it has any effect on MPG. Yeah OK get a motorway car but my job involves driving 200miles of motorway to then get across quarries, moors, rough tracks etc. The Ford unit is giving up to 35mpg when the vehicle is empty and I'm driving lightfooted at no more than 60mph - load up with about 100lb+ of kit and the mpg starts to drop away from this figure.

Dave
 
geofizz said:
Well the door hinges look like they are starting to suffer with the weight plus I'm travelling a lot of motorway miles and I'm looking at cutting weight as much as possible to see whether it has any effect on MPG. Yeah OK get a motorway car but my job involves driving 200miles of motorway to then get across quarries, moors, rough tracks etc. The Ford unit is giving up to 35mpg when the vehicle is empty and I'm driving lightfooted at no more than 60mph - load up with about 100lb+ of kit and the mpg starts to drop away from this figure.

Dave
Click to expand...
dont forget tho the speed limit and the distance you can travel on a space saver aint too far either

i fail to see how removing a spare wheel is gonna improve your mpg
 
Well maybe it won't make any noticeable difference - but I can see a difference just on the weight of kit I put in the vehicle already so I'm thinking of anything that keeps the weight absolutely minimised maybe will help fuel consumption. This years fuel bill for just this vehicle could run to over £10k so some very tiny changes could save a significant amount of money over the period. I reckon we will be laughing about how cheap fuel is now in a couple of years time given the predicted pressures!
 
I would get a 3 year old Citroen Diesel van that will do 50+mpg and flog the Defender thats 5k off your fuel bill. Guessing you cant do that?
 
Will the spacesaver cope with getting you out of a quarry? Stick with the original. I don't trust those spacesavers, and those cars that just have a tube of sealant - :eek:
 
The sealant idea might be worth a go on its own with no spare, problem will be they may deal with a puncture but not a sidewall ripped out in a quarry.
Then again in all honesty i havent had a puncture that i havent caught in time thats stopped me getting home in years now.
Ive always fixed my tubeless punctures with the string repair kits in fact i carry one in the car, doddle to use.
CAR TUBELESS TYRE PUNCTURE REPAIR KIT WITH 5 STRINGS on eBay (end time 05-Apr-11 09:28:07 BST)

Lynall
 
Well we used to use a Renault Trekka which was pretty good - got us most places at really good mpg but we have issues with being liable for passengers if in the event of an accident we have kit that flies around. The problem wasn't easy to solve with the Trekka and always being a LR fan (used have a 1950s SII) I was pleased to see the quoted mpg off the Ford unit in the Defender so we took the plunge and bought one. However, in the 6months we have had it we have had to be rescued twice, water sucked into the fuel breather and a collapsed wheel bearing which sent us off the road out of control. I would happily dump the Defender if I could get anything near what we paid!!! I don't feel it is fit for purpose unfortunately.
 
A wading kit would have prevented the first.

How do you maintain the 'fender? Do you have it serviced more regularly due to your heavy usage?
 
can you mount a spare wheel on the bonnet with a puma?Improves mpg in older defenders
 
goonarmy said:
can you mount a spare wheel on the bonnet with a puma?Improves mpg in older defenders
Click to expand...
:eek::eek::eek: sticking a fookin great spare wheel on the bonnet of a fender which already has the aerodynamics of a brick is gonna improve the mpg:eek::eek::eek:

will it be even better then if you add those fuel saving magnets aswell;)
 
Yeah since we had it, it has had extra services because of the two problems plus it gets my usual weekly checks. It never gets anything very wet off road so I was shocked by the fuel issue. LR didn't want to pay the warranty on it initially but we found a technical bulletin highlighting the potential problem. Our dealer says that the fuel breather is made from non-fuel grade pipe so it perishes especially as we do a lot of miles we do a lot of fill ups. Once perished it just hoovered up moisture from under the wheel arch so they have made a mod and put leverage on LR to get them to pay up (about £3.5K). Luckily the wheel baring issue was covered by warranty though not the tyre and the opposite disc. My old series II used to have a few issues but are all newer Defenders as problematic as ours?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

L
Mantec Swing Away Wheel Carrier Parts
Replies
0
Views
863
Lumby84
L
O
Spare wheel freelander 2 2013
Replies
2
Views
648
omega007
O
Matt Poiner
Steering wheel nut
Replies
11
Views
1K
Anaconda
A
dag019
Rear storage box
Replies
6
Views
595
kevstar
kevstar
B
Steering Wheel change
Replies
1
Views
340
Graculus
Graculus