[TrackDay]

SPARE TYRE

Nails. Yes, that is how I would like to start this article. Nails. Those things have been bothering our journeys and caused for the birth of the spare tyre. Back in the day stray horseshoe nails would be all over the road, which would lead to a puncture. Horses no longer occupy our roads, but yes the nails are still left behind. Well, I guess it's just not nails, but I need someone to take the blame for all the punctures and flat tyres. Also is it Tyre or Tire? For British motorists, the rubber wheel-covering is called a tyre – for the Americans it's a tire. But on Team-Bhp auto correct it is Tire. Here I am sticking on with Tyre.

Legend says that Fred Flintstone got the first flat tyre and hence invented the Spare wheel. Kudos to him.

Enough of all the rubbish and let us get into the actual history. Now a Spare tyre is also called a Stepney and this is how it came to be.

In the early days of motoring, the invention of a spare wheel system was a significant contribution to the practicality and success of this novel form of transport.

Thomas Morris Davies and Walter Davies opened an ironmongery shop in Stepney Street in 1895, followed by a cycle shop in Stepney Street Arcade and a small cycle and motor repair works at the rear of the Stepney Hotel.

In 1904 the brothers patented the first practical motor vehicle spare wheel. It was a spoke less wheel rim, mounted on which was a tyre of slightly larger than usual diameter. This rim and tyre could be attached to a wheel with a punctured tyre by adjustable clamps. Although it was only a 'get you home' accessory, and not suitable for extended use, it was widely adopted.

Business boomed and in 1906 they formed the Stepney Spare Motor Wheel Ltd, and opened 'Stepney Wheel Works' in Copper works Road. By 1910 the company had international agencies throughout Europe and North America.

After the First World War the 'Stepney Wheel' was displaced by replaceable road wheels.

The success of Stepney Wheels enabled the Davies brothers to buy Highfield House, a substantial property at Tyisha. To record their contribution to early motoring, a commemorative blue plaque sponsored by ‘Communities First Glanmore and Tyisha’ was installed at Highfield House.

Source: https://www.llanellich.org.uk/files/...ey-spare-wheel

And just like that people started changing spare wheels! But I bet some folks still don't know how to change one. Don't worry it is easy ask Guido. It can be done pretty fast.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VpQvlVMa1F4

Okay. Maybe not everyone can do it that fast. But here is a reasonable one by Scotty Kilmer

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ub-HzyM_R8g

However soon enough this thing was taking up place and it was decided to design a space for it.



Well. These were the days of the early spare wheels and they added charm and exuded elegance to the car.



The era of Civilian Jeep saw the spare wheel basically trying to reach every nook and corner of the vehicle.



The spare mounted on the hood looked brilliant on the defenders.


Cars of the 70's also experimented with the positions on the boot.


The CJ era jeep finally decided to settle on the tailgate mounted style. In my opinion this led to an era of cool form factor jeeps that looked macho. Another advantage of the rear tailgate mounted wheel? You can advertise on it or better write on it what you feel.


Even recently some were in doubt if the tailgate mounted style was the way to go? So they gave us both options. While some could pull it off, others didn't impress the audience that much.

https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/india...are-wheel.html (Real SUV's show off their spare wheel)
https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/techn...packaging.html (Modern SUVs : Spare wheel placement & interior / mechanical packaging)
https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/india...ted-spare.html (Ford EcoSport SE variant dealer dispatches begin; no tailgate-mounted spare)

Some others gave a swinging arm on which the spare wheel is mounted. To this day I have no idea why do things this way rather than just mount it on the tailgate ? Perhaps design & engineering constraints ?


Currently the SUV spare tyre evolution has reached this stage. Yes, below the boot.


Then there is the Trophy Truck Spare tyre setup. I don't know if that is exactly what it is called, but basically the spare is mounted in the flat bed area. One can also recall Dom's charger in the parachute scene from The Fast and Furious 7 having this.



Then there was the era of front mounted wheels which even continues today with the camper lifestyle.


Well, this was a new find for me. Spares in the engine bay! Well if you go back in time, now you know where to find it, if you get a flat tyre. Subaru Leone, Renault 14, Fiat Panda, were amongst the ones to do this.



This is most likely the current trend. Wheel well with a spare wheel space saver or better known as a spacer.



Frankly it looks a bit odd.

The BMW and Audi are from Team-Bhp itself and belongs to BHP-ians Schoudhury & Santoshbhat .
https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/tyre-...ml#post3986925 (Pics: BMW's incredibly stupid spare tyre solution)
https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/tyre-...ml#post4368601 (Four's a wheelie, Five's a waste : Is a matching spare wheel a necessity?)

The only plus side of the spacer wheel? Put four of them in your regular wheel well and voila you have 4 spare tyres. Wait, where do I put the four flat ones? I didn't think that one through!


How is performance with a spacer?

https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a1...-ford-mustang/

Even sports cars have an option for spare wheels. At least a spacer I think. How else on earth, can one fit those super fat tyres into the 'Frunk'


Then you also have the option of eliminating the hero of this story. I am not a fan of where things go from here. As long as cars have wheels, we need spare wheels.

https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/india...pare-tyre.html (New government notification says vehicles with up to 8 seats need not carry a spare tyre)

This is where things stand today. If there is a spare, this is most likely where it is welcome. In the wheel well (most common) or below the boot portion. If one were to get the puncture kit shown in the previous picture, just get a spare or a spacer and keep it in the boot as shown here in the Q7.


It Might also be best to have a Tyre-Pressure-Monitoring-System on board so that you don't land in such a situation.


Might also be better for manufacturers to check out something similar along this line ? A spare popping out from the bottom ? or is it asking too much ?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fJrG...ature=youtu.be

And some took the spare wheel idea a bit too far.


Then there are some who wouldn’t ever need one.

Spare wheels have come a long way from when Fred Flintstone got his first flat tyre fixed. The next generation with EV cars also requires spare wheels. So they are here to stay. Here's to the future hoping we will have flying cars and hence no longer require spare wheels.

[gkveda]

Super compilation of history, need and progress stepney has made from its birth.

What is most amazing is, stepney positions. How it has occupied different positions in the car right from its inception. Front, back, left side, right side, top, underneath, inside, outside, covered, uncovered, tied, hanging with a chain, placed and fastened inside Dickey, same size as that of wheel, different size, and above all, it is all because of a small nail lying on the road

While reading your post, I remembered my daughter. When she was a small kid, sat in the car first time, was so over excited in her life, that she could not sit at one place inside car. She started to move around from lap to lap, front, back, drivers seat, on the top of seat, and what not.

So, stepney also, like a kid, has been enjoying car journey, and has moved all around the car over its long journey.

[RedTerrano]

Absolutely lovely thread. Did not know why it is called Stepney till I read it here.

We have moved from inner tube to tubeless.
It won't be long before such puncture proof airless tires become the norm and the spare wheel might vanish for ever

https://youtu.be/GIYFf6Bmpis

[R2D2]

An interesting and informative thread of a car part that is mostly out of sight and out of mind..well, until you have a flat of course. Thanks for the effort bro.

[GTO]

Deadly writeup & presentation . Thanks for sharing! Will go to our homepage on Monday.

Overlanders & extreme offroaders love dual spare wheel setups for obvious reasons. When you're in the middle of nowhere, 1 can sometimes not be enough:

Source

Dimwit of the decade award has to go to BMW who sold cars in India without a spare! Someone should've left their CEO mid-way between Bombay & Goa with a damaged runflat

[Dr.AD]

Originally Posted by TrackDay

Legend says that Fred Flintstone got the first flat tyre and hence invented.

Enough of all the rubbish and let us get into the actual history. Now a Spare tyre is also called a Stepney and this is how it came to be.

Great post with some very interesting history. Thanks for telling us why the spare tyre is also called Stepney. And some very interesting pictures of how it is mounted at different locations.

Unfortunately, the current state of "Stepney" in some cars, especially some of the European cars is pretty sad. The Run Flat tyres they use allow them to do away with a spare wheel altogether. And then, for those who still insist on having a spare wheel, the only solution is to put in in the trunk. Below is an example from BMW.

The worst possible solution for a spare wheel:


I really hate this. Takes away most of the useful space from the trunk.

Originally Posted by RedTerrano

We have moved from inner tube to tubeless.
It won't be long before such puncture proof airless tires become the norm and the spare wheel might vanish for ever

To some extent, the Run Flat Tyres (RFT) are already making the spare wheel obsolete, and most European cars running on RFTs are doing away with a spare wheel. I agree with you that it is a matter of time before the spare wheels vanish for ever.

[lonetraveller89]

Evolution of the Spare Tyre - From this (1907 advertisement of the original 'Stepney' wheel) -




To this -



Going ahead, I think we can expect more and more car models to stop offering spares to cut costs or to adjust for space/ volume. Especially in cars meant for (mostly) urban driving. What do you guys think? Does having better tyres and RAS services justify this?

[shree_shell]

Originally Posted by GTO

Dimwit of the decade award has to go to BMW who sold cars in India without a spare! Someone should've left their CEO mid-way between Bombay & Goa with a damaged runflat

Dimwit of the Century will also go to BMW for NOT providing a spare, without a runflat! This was the case in the early 2000s and worldwide for M cars.

[landcruiser123]

Nice thread. I still don't get how much FE is saved by removing the spare tire(worst) or providing a donut (worse). This is what happens when the bean counters take over management positions which engineers held over generations.

Typical over-eager young Analyst (YA) who may not be an engineer (because if he is, he is such a disgrace), talking to a senior manager:

YA: Let's save $ 10 million next year on the Camry production next year.

SM: How?

YA: Our sales forecasts are 350,000 units. If we remove the spare wheel & tire costing $40 a piece (actual cost could vary) and put a puncture kit costing $10 in each car, we can cut costs.

SM: Good idea. But won't people complain?

YA: Research shows that 90% of people who experience a flat call their insurance/towing company. Besides, we can get 0.02 mpg extra in the CAFE ratings.

SM: It's a win-win-win. We are going for a grand team dinner this Friday.

****
OTOH, here are some instructions for the donut spare wheel:
1. DO NOT mount the donut on the front axle. It will greatly reduce effectiveness of braking and can potentially cause dangerous situation, especially in wet and slippery conditions
2. Drive within the recommended speed limit, do not accelerate swiftly and allow enough time for braking
3. Cool off and inspect it periodically

[clementw]

Very nice and informative thread. Think with advances coming in self healing tyres or no flat tyres may put spare wheels out of business. The story of Stepney was cool btw.

[slamnos]

Drove one of these during a company event, I was told these SUVs especially in African and Australian continents certainly need 2 spares due to sparsely populated garages

[NaXal]

Outrageous decision by government to allow car makers skip the spare tyre.

Why?

Statistics they say.

Statistically people now days don't need spares as tubeless are good enough.

What about AirBags?

Statistically in India there are probably few billion drives are under taken each & every day. Small or large, commuting or joy rides. Now if we do statistics, percentage value of spare tyre requirements and airbag requirements aren't that different.

Matter of fact, I won't be surprised if need of spare tyre would be higher in percentage compare to AirBags.

But hey AirBags saves life, so forget it and keep it mandatory.

Fine

But similarly we pay for our own pocket for the spare tyre. It doesn't cause government any extra hassle allowing us buying spare tyre rather it gives them little extra revenue

Is there any article in news where anyone asking government to remove spare tyre?

Then?

Why this forceful decision which will cause major problem in people's life.

It's rare but I did have a blowout, middle of dark, unknown place, good 2/3 hours from Kolkata. Family with gold jewellery as we were returning from a wedding.

I thank my stars that I had a spare tyre.

Forgive me as I bring up this sad case, remember Hyderabad scooty rape case?

https://theprint.in/india/they-punct...murder/329459/

Accused punctured a tyre of a scooty, a vehicle without spare tyre. Forcing the unfortunate girl to get standard & look for repair options.

Now it's possible with any car without spare.

Helpless souls now have to "find" repair shops for those sidewall or larger puncture

[ajmat]

The 1963-1976 Rover 2000/3500 P4 had the option of mounting the wheel on the boot lid as the rear DeDion suspension + the spare wheel limited boot capacity.



Big wheels mean big compromises. In an SUV - you lose a seat (Audi Q7 or significant space). Mercedes Estates were considerate. Wheel was placed so that once need not unload the car. increased wheel sizes means flat space savers or tyre gloop




source

[ruzbehxyz]

This is a very interesting thread with loads of information. The research done is fantastic.
What is interesting to note in this thread, is the location of the stephney over a period of time. In modern cars today we have it hidden except jeeps, and that's where the old world charm has gone.

[kamilharis]

The content is well put together by the OP, big thanks for that!

I wonder how would be the road view for the driver with those tyres being bolted on to the bonnet of those Jeeps!

And why do the so-called premium/german car manufacturers skip on the Wheel Well which can hold a spare tyre? Is there any specific reason for that?