297
Space
saver tyre for the RV8
Gavin Bailey (BRG 0766) from Surrey obtained
an RV8 spacesaver tyre and as they are not readily available, he has provided
some photos. (Feb 09)
RV8
spacesaver tyre is narrower than the standard tyre. (Photo: Gavin Bailey)
Gavin says "I thought you might like the attached photos of the
RV8 spacesaver spare wheel which I recently bought from Steve Beale when he sold
his Le Mans Green car. The car does sit a little lower (around 1") on the
side fitted with the spacesaver, but this does not appear to affect the handling
or ride. I took it for a quick spin down the road and the car handled and turned
OK at the low speeds at which you are supposed to drive when a spacesaver wheel
is fitted".
Comparing the tyre sizes
Gavin subsequently
reported "I have just done done a quick tyre size comparison via the web
comparing the rolling radius of the RV8 spacesaver with the standard tyre which
shows that not only does the car sit just under an inch lower at the corner where
the spacesaver is fitted, the rolling circumference is around 8 inches smaller
than the standard tyre. This will have obvious implications for not only the gearing
but presumably the limited slip differential if the spacesaver wheel is fitted
to the rear of the car. I must admit that it's all a bit of a mystery. "
Gavin's table is below.
Is
the RV8s Spacesaver tyre a standard spare part?
Gavin comments "it
appears that there is only one RV8 Spacesaver Tyre and even the part number, ZKC
5997, does not appear as a listed item in the RV8 parts lists. It may be that
the wheel was a special order or even a prototype that was never officially sold
to the public". The tyre size/make is Michelin TEX T125/80 R15 95M and is
stamped "temporary use
| 
Michelin TEX spacesaver tyre. (Photo: Gavin Bailey)
Part number label for the RV8 spacesaver tyre (Photo: Gavin Bailey)
only" and "20m/h - 30km/h" on the wall of the tyre.
The part number label was still attached to the tyre when Gavin bought the tyre
- a copy is below.
Why do you want a spacesaver tyre?
The boot space is almost completely taken up by the full-size spare wheel so it
is quite a tight space for luggage for even on weekend away, not to mention touring
for a week or more! So the natural attraction of the spacesaver tyre is it takes
far less space so more luggage can be carried. An alternative reported by Tim
Hipwell some time ago is the use of a tyre foam and then you don't need to carry
a spare at all. Have any members come across other spacesaver tyres that can be
fitted and used on an RV8?
Is
the spacesaver tyre legal?
Gavin has done some digging and says "it
appears that the use of spacesaver spare wheel is legal as a "get you home"
measure even if they are of a deferent rolling diameter! A number of Saabs have
them as standard equipment and looking at the internet forums, the cars often
have a slight 'tilt' when they are fitted due to the slightly smaller diameter".
Gavin adds "I think I'll keep my standard spare in the boot unless I specifically
need the extra space when I may carry the spacesaver". |
