Space saver spare tyres - speed limited

[Resurrection]

Why are the Falcon spare tyres only limited to 80km/hr?

[2011G6E]

Because they are a useless, penny-pinching, brain dead bean counters wet dream of an idea that has no place in a country where you can easily be hundreds of kilometers from a Tyre shop that can fit a suitable Tyre for you. That's why...

No idea why they fit them...our G6E has the 19" Turbo wheels, and a full sized matching spare siting down hidden in the boot recess. The dealer said all cars they order in have a full-sized spare as standard, because they know that we can be a long way from a Tyre shop out here, especially if you head west.

The real reason (although mine is pretty good...) that they have a much lesser speed and very limited distance rating is that they are a lightweight, low level, lesser capacity Tyre made to be cheap and nasty.

[Neale]

Most new cars have spacesavers are as far as I know & they are all limited to 80kph.

The short answer is because they are a different size to the rest of the wheels & tyres. The performance is therefore reduced in grip & braking when you have a spacesaver on.

Heres a good webpage that covers the dangers of using spacesavers for more than a trip to the tyreshop.

http://www.drive.com.au/Editorial/Ar...ArticleID=5178

[csv8]

My Fez has the same problem,,but only had to use it once..no problem..out bush it would be a problem,,travelling at 80km/hr..

[Jim Goose]

Space savers have been around for too long... and have all been speed restricted. They are ONLY designed to get you to a mechanic/ tyre shop to fix your busted tyre.

They arent designed to be used all day, which i have seen too many times.

These skinny wheels would be very dangerous under heavy braking or sharp cornering at high speed if fitted to the front of the car.

[Jastel]

Not all space savers are the same.

Some space savers are like rubber wheelbarrow wheels.

But on high end cars with larger mag wheels the "spacesaver" is a standard 215/60/16 Dunlop, ie a normal tyre on a low end car.
Match it up on a normal car and it is a normal tyre again.

The speed limit is for unmatched tyre sizes and the resultant bad handling and possible legal action.

[Spudz27]

Atleast ford put a decent size space saver in. Saw a newish car the other day, not sure of model, but it was running around on a rim no wider than a finger nail . It looked very dangerous as clearly the other 3 rims were 17"

[noosacuda]

Could you use them for "front runners" at the drags then? For the classic "Pro-Stock" appearance. (on an older car)

[Bridgette01]

Has anyone replaced the space saver for an 18 inch spare in their FG boot? Interested to know if it can be done and how much room is lost. Then there is the cost of buying a single 18 inch rim and tyre from Ford to match existing on the car. I imagine its a small fortune

[Silver Ghia]

Originally Posted by Bridgette01

Has anyone replaced the space saver for an 18 inch spare in their FG boot? Interested to know if it can be done and how much room is lost. Then there is the cost of buying a single 18 inch rim and tyre from Ford to match existing on the car. I imagine its a small fortune

My FG XR50 has the full size (18 inch) matching spare which I ordered as an option with the new car for $250, which is the standard price.

The wheel sits a little higher in the cavity but is insignificant really. The boot floor mat supplied when ordering a full size matching spare is different to the one that comes when a space saver is fitted, so suits the higher wheel.

Probably the best place to get a full size spare if bought a second hand car without the full size spare, is to ask a wrecker like FTG, or keep looking on ebay which I did with the BA Ghia I had, with success.

[flappist]

The problem with full size spares is that most tyres are designed to rotate only one way and if fitted to your car have a 50/50 chance of being backwards.

As a large number of people are lazy or tight they will just leave this wheel on for extended periods upsetting the geometry of the vehicle especially in wet conditions as backwards has much lower grip.

Many performance cars have 4 different wheels, all of my FPVs and the datto have different combinations on each corner.

Space savers, as well as saving space and weight are limited in speed and are VERY obvious when fitted.

Yes travelling a long distance at 80km/h is a pain but not as big a pain as hitting wet road at 100km/h with a half worn backward fitted mismatched extremely old standard tyre on one corner trying to throw you into oncoming traffic......

Have a look at your spare.
Is it the same pattern as all your other tyres?
Is it uni-directional?
Is it more than about 6 years old?

Be aware that spare tyres can kill you and other innocent people if not understood and operated correctly.

[klawsterfobik]

Originally Posted by noosacuda

Could you use them for "front runners" at the drags then? For the classic "Pro-Stock" appearance. (on an older car)

Depends if you intend on doing a sub 80kph pass?

[svo supporter]

Originally Posted by flappist

The problem with full size spares is that most tyres are designed to rotate only one way and if fitted to your car have a 50/50 chance of being backwards.


.

Who told you this? Or should I ask where's the link to the website that you got this information from? It's garbage. Even if tyres are directional, they can still be rotated front to rear. They can be flipped on rims, so if they were on the left, they are then running to the right.


If a spare is directional, most of them are left hand tyres, as that's the most common side a puncture occurs.

Oh and 90% of tyres these days are NON-directional. Even OEM stuff.

To answer the OP's query. Generally with bigger cars (non all, but a general overview), the "space saver spare" supplied is a smaller diameter tyre than what is fitted to the car. However the tyre itself is able to be used, in conjunction with another 3, fitted to the car. The main reason they put on the rim, 80KPH is because it is smaller than the rest, therefore the car handling is different.

Hope that answers the query properly

[2011G6E]

I'll have to have a look at our matching nineteen inch spare in the G6E and see if it's directional or not. Or, more interesting, if it's a lefty.

I believe those space savers aren't even load rated to suit the vehicle either, which has caused some complaints from motoring organisations in the past as, technically, they aren't legal once you fit them.

Basically, fit a full sized spare and be done with it...how often do you really need every possible single cubic centimeter of load space in the boot? We've travelled with three adults and a load of luggage that would rupture a camel, but didn't feel the boot was too small.

[flappist]

Originally Posted by svo supporter

Who told you this? Or should I ask where's the link to the website that you got this information from? It's garbage. Even if tyres are directional, they can still be rotated front to rear. They can be flipped on rims, so if they were on the left, they are then running to the right.


If a spare is directional, most of them are left hand tyres, as that's the most common side a puncture occurs.

Oh and 90% of tyres these days are NON-directional. Even OEM stuff.

To answer the OP's query. Generally with bigger cars (non all, but a general overview), the "space saver spare" supplied is a smaller diameter tyre than what is fitted to the car. However the tyre itself is able to be used, in conjunction with another 3, fitted to the car. The main reason they put on the rim, 80KPH is because it is smaller than the rest, therefore the car handling is different.

Hope that answers the query properly

Well where did I get this info?
1) From the owners manuals of my FPVs and 350z.
2) From the tyre dealers where I get my tyres.
3) From Bridgestone, Yokohama and Dunlop websites
4) From various magazine articles in MOTOR or WHEELS etc.

As far as rotating, the concept of the spare is to replace a flat tyre in a remote place. Swapping the tyre round on the rim in the middle of the bush is not usually an option.

Interestingly all of the tyres on all of my cars and motorbikes are directional.

[Franco Cozzo]

Space saver are the kinds of spares both my Fiesta and Focus have, thinking about getting rid of the space savers and getting a factory rim, don't like the idea of 80km/h.

I've had a puncture already on my Focus but not bad enough to warrant changing to the spare, I noticed when I did the tyre pressures the rear passenger side was on 20psi and the rest where 38, puncture.

Got it fixed at a tyre shop, it was in the center of the tread so they plugged it.

[SteveJH]

What would be the dynamic effect of putting a non-directional full sized spare tire onto a car fitted with directional tires on the other rims?

[2011G6E]

Nothing if they're on the rear, slight possibility of some problems if they're on the front.

The ones on motorbikes are usually marked as being fitted one way if on the front, and another way if on the rear...usually to do with the drive forces at the rear a acting on the tyre in one direction, and the front being "pushed along" by the bike. The Pirelli Angel tyres on my GSX1400 are like that, as were the Michelens I had on my BMW and the ones I had on my Suzuki cruiser...the pattern is the same one, not a "front tyre" and a seperate and different "rear tyre", they're the same tyre, just reversed for front or rear fitment.

[svo supporter]

Originally Posted by flappist

Well where did I get this info?
1) From the owners manuals of my FPVs and 350z.
2) From the tyre dealers where I get my tyres.
3) From Bridgestone, Yokohama and Dunlop websites
4) From various magazine articles in MOTOR or WHEELS etc.

As far as rotating, the concept of the spare is to replace a flat tyre in a remote place. Swapping the tyre round on the rim in the middle of the bush is not usually an option.

Interestingly all of the tyres on all of my cars and motorbikes are directional.

So you're looking at a very small portion of tyres available, which are not enough to warranty your comments.

Funnily enough I reckon I'd fit maybe 3 sets of directional tyres per week. That's on a good week to. I'd fit more Assametrical tyres than directional ones.

By the way. Dunlop have more non-directional tyres available than directional. I know this because I spent 8 years working for a Dunlop dealership.

Yokies and Bridgestone would be the same as Dunlops.

As for swapping directional tyres. I wasn't saying to do it in the middle of the bush. I was referring to when it came time to rotate the tyres. I commented on why most directional spares are left hand ones too. Did you miss that bit?

Funnily enough I have 9 cars + a work vehicle. None have directional tyres on them. They all have different sizes and brands too.

BTW, having it running the wrong way for a few hundred Kays isn't going to be a big problem. If it's raining, just slow down a tad more that what you'd normally would and you'll be fine.

So may I suggest, before making such comments, actually work in the industry, rather than stick your head in a book, or on a website. You might actually learn more.

[LyleXR8]

I've only ever had full spares due to living in rural areas and can be hundreds of km from a tyre dealer, but inhave bought a few pairs of space savers, do you know how much fun they are to have on a the rear of a 470rwhp Cranky NA ute

[flappist]

Originally Posted by svo supporter

So you're looking at a very small portion of tyres available, which are not enough to warranty your comments.

Funnily enough I reckon I'd fit maybe 3 sets of directional tyres per week. That's on a good week to. I'd fit more Assametrical tyres than directional ones.

By the way. Dunlop have more non-directional tyres available than directional. I know this because I spent 8 years working for a Dunlop dealership.

Yokies and Bridgestone would be the same as Dunlops.

As for swapping directional tyres. I wasn't saying to do it in the middle of the bush. I was referring to when it came time to rotate the tyres. I commented on why most directional spares are left hand ones too. Did you miss that bit?

Funnily enough I have 9 cars + a work vehicle. None have directional tyres on them. They all have different sizes and brands too.

BTW, having it running the wrong way for a few hundred Kays isn't going to be a big problem. If it's raining, just slow down a tad more that what you'd normally would and you'll be fine.

So may I suggest, before making such comments, actually work in the industry, rather than stick your head in a book, or on a website. You might actually learn more.

Well firstly my point was that some people do not do a couple of hundred Ks, they just leave the wrong tyre on permanently, something that is very obvious if the spare is a space saver.

What sort of tyres come out on the FG Falcon, the one the OP asked about?

[svo supporter]

Originally Posted by flappist

Well firstly my point was that some people do not do a couple of hundred Ks, they just leave the wrong tyre on permanently, something that is very obvious if the spare is a space saver.

A normal everyday spare is fine to leave on until it's worn out Space savers are generally removed at the soonest possible convenience by the general public



What sort of tyres come out on the FG Falcon, the one the OP asked about?

Why say about your Datto, 350ZX, FPV and motorbike then then? I mearly pointed out, your quoting about directional tyres was wrong and now you seem to be modifying your original comments to suit yourself .

I will suggest once again. Do some tyre fitting for a while before commenting. Then you will realise what you are saying is no where near what happens in the real world.

[flappist]

Originally Posted by svo supporter

I will suggest once again. Do some tyre fitting for a while before commenting. Then you will realise what you are saying is no where near what happens in the real world.

This thread is on a FORD forum asking about space saver spares that are only available on recent Falcons and therefore original tyres fitted to recent Falcons NOT bottom of the range discount cheapo tyres fitted to old commodores and valiants.

You say you are a tyre expert, what type of tyres are fitted to FG Falcons.......

[Smoke Pursuit]

Ford wont even allow you to order a full size spare with most cars now... Its a joke and about the only benefit of buying an FPV over a standard Falcon....

Space savers are a joke.

[Smoke Pursuit]

Originally Posted by flappist

This thread is on a FORD forum asking about space saver spares that are only available on recent Falcons and therefore original tyres fitted to recent Falcons NOT bottom of the range discount cheapo tyres fitted to old commodores and valiants.

You say you are a tyre expert, what type of tyres are fitted to FG Falcons.......

I still think 100 kms an hour on a directional tyre facing the wrong way compared to a space saver doing 80 kms would be a safer compromise, but then again we all have our own opinion don't we. Its a bit like truckies that run around on recaps...

[b0son]

Originally Posted by svo supporter

Who told you this? Or should I ask where's the link to the website that you got this information from? It's garbage. Even if tyres are directional, they can still be rotated front to rear.

I think by rotate, he actually meant the direction in which the wheels spin, not a tyre rotation front to rear. In which case his comment is correct.

[b0son]

Originally Posted by svo supporter

BTW, having it running the wrong way for a few hundred Kays isn't going to be a big problem. If it's raining, just slow down a tad more that what you'd normally would and you'll be fine.

Have an at fault accident, and the insurance assessor may well spot the wrongly mounted tyre and deny the claim.

[Linkachu]

My mates MX-5 had one of these, i had to change his tyre for him. Problem is, there is no boot space to fit the 15" rim... Except the passenger seat! To bad if there are 2 people in it and you need to use the space saver!

[svo supporter]

Originally Posted by flappist

This thread is on a FORD forum asking about space saver spares that are only available on recent Falcons and therefore original tyres fitted to recent Falcons NOT bottom of the range discount cheapo tyres fitted to old commodores and valiants.

You say you are a tyre expert, what type of tyres are fitted to FG Falcons.......

I see plenty of Dunlop 200E's fited to them. I also see Wanlis, Sunny's and retreads fitted to them. 215/60X16 to be precise. Oh and they're not directional. Any more info you want over them?

El cheapo tyres. Mate, some elcheapo tyres are a hell of a lot better than the high quality Banglop garbage they put as OE stuff on Fords. Even people on this forum hate the high priced Banglops that are OE on Fords. So perhaps you'd better read some more before opening mouth.


Now why mention the other brands of cars and bike YOU did? Won't answer that one will you

[svo supporter]

Originally Posted by b0son

Have an at fault accident, and the insurance assessor may well spot the wrongly mounted tyre and deny the claim.

They can do the same thing with a space saver fitted too... Just the risk you take when you get a flat and take it to be repaired.