Had the opportunity to do this on the Severn bridge, mid crossing last year. Found a police stand to get on, the police suggested it as the only safe point. I wasn’t going to change the wheel on the hard shoulder as it was the off side wheel. Always a good idea to practice this just in case under less stress full conditions. Also I’d suggest keeping a pair of rubber gloves with the jack.
Dan and Tom. Really appreciated your video as today we found ourselves with 'a flat one' it certainly isn't an easy job but thanks for the tips and advice. (Doggys on tour)
another great video Dan, it shows the amount of corrosion that can be caused by having the spare wheel underneath the caravan. Luckily ours is in the space under our fixed bed, so easy to get too and remains dry, but of course i understand on non fixed bed layouts this is not always an option.
Hi Nick - trust you are well. Thanks for comment. The corrosion is pretty bad on this rim. Im going to have it bead blasted and see if it is salvageable. If not, i will get another one etc. either way - it needs a new tyre while I take the old one down to Antiques Roadshow lol. Speak soon. Dan
Im good thanks Dan...........yes bead blasting may be the way to go. May even be cheaper to get a replacement wheel, .....keep an eye on Ebay perhaps, or even Shpock. ....... Just put our caravan back in storage this week......sad times....:-( .... I love everything about it, but doubt we will get use it the rest of this year :-( ...... any plans for future trips? I'd really like to try that Buxton site you stayed at - looks like plenty of good walks to be had....... talk soon
I once had to replace a flat on a heavy double axle trailer at 3am on the downhill, southbound side of the M6 past Lancaster University. No light, v large Land Rover sized wheel. No torch, no studs to hold the wheel. Each time an HGV hammered past the trailer swayed and the wheel slipped down. I got it on eventually only to discover that it was flat!! Not my trailer BTW, it belonged to Castrol-Honda and held a Honda Super Bike racing machine, workshop and surround screens for a simulated racing game. I drove v slowly and carefully to the nearby exit then several miles back towards Lancaster and to my relief found a garage closed but with an airline. (It is now abandoned) Back on the M/W discovered that the next Services was only a short distance further on!! 👹
@5:15 and just after you skipped one of the most difficult parts of the job that I found when I first did this job, with a rusty carrier. I could only get a short spanner on that off-centre nut and it was not enough. Ended up removing the entire carrier and drilling and sawing it off in the workshop. I have not replaced it as it serves little purpose; the big "wing" nut is not going to undo itself. Apart from that, removing those nuts from inside the wheel is scary because if the jack were to collapse or sink suddenly (this could be on rough ground remember) your arm will be trapped if not amputated. The less work you need to do in there the better. On that point, I don't like your jack being directly on the gravel. I carry a 1" thick short length of plank to go under the jack (actually I have four of them - to go under the steadies).
Another fun video I was recommended to replace both tyres and spare every 5years regardless of tyre wear. Decided to leave it one extra year and had a tyre shread on the m4, fitted the spare and had that blow a few miles further on . Not easy getting a 21ft van on a breakdown wagon. Cost me three new tyres and a new rim. Replace them every 5 years now no matter what condition.
When we got our Coachman the tyres on it were nearly as old as the caravan! It was in the back of our minds to get the tyres replaced. One the way home from an outing one of the tyres disintegrated leaving us stranded on the hard shoulder of the M62. I had no way to loosen the wheel nuts (the wheelbrace from the car didn't fit) so I ended up calling out the RAC so they could fit the spare wheel. We fitted brand new tyres at the earliest opportunity and I kept a wheel wrench in the caravan to avoid a repeat performance. We will be fitting brand new tyres to the Lunar before our first outing in it and I'll be documenting it in a future video. My 2 tonne trolley jack and extending wheel wrench should make short work of it and having the spare wheel in the front locker will make life a bit easier.
Torque settings differ on a steel spare plus if the van wasn't going anywhere so why torque up, FT would have been sufficient. One other thing you never grease wheel nuts or studs as someone already commented.
Hi Paul, yes your correct on torque settings - steel wheels on this van are 85nM, Alloys are 115nM - and you're spot on FT would be sufficient as the van wasn't moving anywhere. The greasing aspect really applies only to the spare wheel carrier and the stud, not the wheel studs etc - in all honesty i will grease the telescopic arms but clean with a wire brush the spindle and the actual carrier etc. The spare wheel however - really does need some attention - so i will focus on that. Thanks Dan
As ever, Dan very interesting. Thank you. We have AA cover with our new Ford car. After ten years away, we're about to start caravanning again - a little 'later in life'. The caravan does come with a spare wheel in the front locker. However...the idea of jacking up the caravan fills me with horror. Heart attacking stuff ! I've emailed the AA to asking if my existing breakdown cover will automatically include both the car and when it arrives, our new caravan when we're 'hooked up'. Not heard back yet - but do you know? Thanks.
Very informative video thank you..did send me into a bit of a flap and when i checked my tyres one of them was 2012 the other had no marking i could see and the spare was 2003...will be changing them asap...I was thinking about jacking up the caravan on axel stands for the winter months and saving the new tyres from the elements and also as a protective measure in case it got stolen...i keep the caravan out the back of the house on tarmac... can you see anything wrong in doing this ?
I got rid of the heavy useless spare wheel carrier and now keep the spare wheel in clean dry conditions beneath the double bed - saved 12kg in weight. I now have no problems in getting the spare wheel out for use.
I'm having a tyre replaced this morning, on site. Do I need to retract the corner steadys before jacking it up? Also, why do you hitch it to your car first? TIA
Great video, had a screw go through a tyre on a campsite in France and can relate to all of the problems highlighted. A couple of points, one lining up the wheel to put the first stud in on your own is a nightmare and while I worked out how to line it up unbeknown to me the hub was slowly sinking (rubber suspension). This meant that the wheel didn't clear the Reich mover assembly. Aaargh only solution is with another jack you need to jack up the hub and quickly fit the wheel before it sinks again. Not sure if this happens with other movers but beware. Why oh why do they use removable studs
Hi Sam, thats a very very good point. I assumed it was because of our uneven ground, but in reality it sounds like it was slowly relaxing. The morale here is an axle stand under the axle tube to hold in place. Thank you for making such a valid point. Take Care - Dan
Just changing my tyres or replacing them, can you help me please, there’s 2 torque settings for the wheel nuts. One for alloys and one for steel which do I use? My wheel trims are aluminium, does that mean I use the alloy setting? Cheers
Hi David, usually the Alloy wheel torque setting will be far higher than the steel wheels. In our case, the spare steel wheel had a torque of 88Nm and the alloy on this caraavn was 118Nm Hope that helps.
Personally I think the alko spare wheel carrier is the worst place to keep the spare wheel although it's out of sight when it comes to actually needing the wheel it's a ridiculous place especially with a near side blowout. My last caravan had one and and luckily in 17 years I didn't need it but checked it every year and replaced it twice because rubber only has a five year life. After changing the caravan last year I decided to have the alko carrier removed when it was serviced recently and now keep it in a wheel bag in the boot area which I realise takes up space but if needed it's easy to get at and obviously when I'm not towing it's kept in the garage. Hopefully if you keep your main tyres checked regularly and changed when necessary you'll probably go many years and not need the spare but when that day comes the alko carrier will make a hard job nearly impossible at the road side.
Thanks for that. Also thanks for doing it a challenging place. Lots of videos are alway on perfect flat ground with lots of space around them. That's not how it happens. So good job for keeping it real. Well done Tom.
Again very interesting vid, (hope I never have to do it?), one thing, your spare wheel looks terribly corroded? Should you buy a new wheel with for a new tyre? as a spare? if so would a normal garage supply it? or would you have to go to a caravan dealer? Oh, interesting thing you said about those spare nuts you carry (for the steel wheel spare), are they all one size? presumably I could go into a dealership and buy a set? ????? Noyt even thought about that, (are all spare wheels steel?)
Great videos, thanks. Our puncture was also nearside, but we were on the concrete of a hard shoulder. With the tyre flat there was so little room under the caravan that the scissor jack failed to operate under the Al Ko hub mounting reinforcing plated. When the RAC engineer arrived he took my plastic caravan levelling wedge and drove the van up onto it to restore the normal ground clearance. The tyre was already wrecked so this was not going to cause further damage to the tyre. We then had the room to remove both the spare wheel carrier and the van wheel.
hi take carrier of van throw it away put spare wheel in storage side panels or in caravan don't get rusty rim had tyre blowout on way to east coast its not good getting under caravan to change wheel to jack up but at 66 wat is
My wife and I are relatively new to caravaning after years of camping. We have made our fair share of mistakes including reversing into a wooden post. Your videos have taught us so much and given us so much knowledge which has helped us .
Hi Alex, i don't own a twin axle, but i will see what i can do. I do know that some folk use the Lock n Level to assist in jacking up and some some axle stands to take the weight of the caravan. Hope that helps Dan
Hi Dan My spare wheel is in the front locker/boot, so the steel wheel & tyre were like "new" we bought the spare when we bought the van new back in1998 as it wasn't supplied wth a spare or at least thats what the dealer said, you know the one just down the road from you next to garden centre. Regards Jon
Yes - thats the place we bought our van from. they were really good with us in fact. Our spare wheel has seen better days. a refurb video is in order i think. Thanks again Jon - speak soon. Dan
Hi, i am new to caravanning don't really know much about them, we have found the videos very helpful I was just wondering if you have any knowledge regarding stabiliser bars like a bulldog ,would you recommend having one or can you manage safely with out it. thank you
Hi Roger, Sadly no - i have very little knowledge on stabiliser bars. - only that my folks had one way back in early 80's It maybe worthwhile joining an online forum and ask any questions in there. Thanks Dan
Being of 2010 vintage, Dan's has the stabiliser hitch so there's no need for the stabiliser bar. My 1991 Coachman has the fitting on the A frame for one but it is quite stable when towing despite being as aerodynamic as a brick. The spare wheel is in the gas locker so it is easy enough to get to. I really need to check the tyres on mine before the I use it next. I reckon a trolley jack be suitable for jacking up the caravan.
That spare would benefit from running a wire brush over the mating face if you ever plan to run it on the road. Also, when removing the alko wheel carrier you can move the extended portion towards the rear of the van slightly if you need more clearance as the chassis legs tend to taper slightly.
Morning Pete, Thanks for your comment - you are spot on about the condition of that spare wheel. It actually looks far worse up close. Im having the tyre removed and having it bead blasted to see if the corrosion around the bolt holes is as bad as it looks - if it is, i guess I'm getting another one, if not it will get a lick of paint and a new tyre. Again - you're correct on the ALKO spare wheel holder, but where we were on lumpy ground and as the tyre flat tyre had reduced clearance - we just couldn't pull out the carrier beyond the van or pull it backwards to get the tyre off etc. It was a bit rubbish to be fair - with a tonne of swear words mixed in. Take care. Dan
Hi Dan, thanks for the reply. Sounds sensible, not that I would expect anything less after viewing your content :) Bead blasting and tyre selection would make an interesting video.
HI Steve - Thanks for your comment. Our handbook specifically states 85nM for the steel and 115nM for the Alloy wheels. Its a good point you raise though, that what is correct for us, may not be correct for you etc. Thanks Dan
Hi Steve, just found this Now we are on the same scale - all makes complete sense now : AL-KO SETTINGS M12 = 88 Nm / 65 ft lbs steel ALLOY = 110 Nm can be increased to 130 Nm M10 = 49 Nm / 36 ft lbs M14 = 135 Nm / 99.5 ft lbs M16 = 210 Nm / 155 ft lbs Thanks for raising this - in future I will ensure i mention the correct scale. Looks like i was 3Nm off when we torqued them up. Thank goodness we didn't travel on this wheel eh ! Take care. Dan
Hi Tony, yes indeed - Its pretty difficult to film and do everything at the same time, especially when you need both hands etc. That aside Tom loves getting his hands dirty with anything vaguely mechanical, This video is a typical example of Tom wanting to (in his words) "just get on with it" Thanks Dan & Tom
Love your videos so keep up the good work. Regards lining up the wheel, my Audi has a plastic threaded pin (around 10mm dia) in the tool kit which screws into a wheel stud hole and helps hold the weight and line it all up you then replace 3 studs and then remove the pin and fit the remaining stud. I'm sure, if your car doesn't have the pin I've mentioned, you could get a bit of threaded rod or long bolt and cut the head off to make a similar pin. Not that interesting but the simple little pin really helps speed up the process, reduces money in the swear jar and saves skint knuckles. Anywhoo have a good year and I look forward to more videos.
