2009 Jazz EX - spare wheel

[guest3155]

Just taken delivery of my 2009 Jazz EX & I'm really pleased with it.

Not having bought a car recently I was amazed to find that virtually all new cars these days don't come with a spare wheel - not even a spacesaver!!

This idea of repairing a puncture with gunk & a compressor fills me with dread & Honda's price of £195 is crazy.

Question: what size of of spacesaver wheel & tyre do I need from EBay, noting the car is fitted with 16" alloys with 185/55R16 tyres.

Presumably I'll need a jack & wheelbrace too. 

[guest2662]

mine came with no sparewheel, so i bought one a spacersaver £175 from honda, however the car came with a jack, as yours should, look in the boot.

[guest2765]

try get the same size of spare wheel - 4 studed and i think its a 6" diameter or a 6.5" (my cars alloys came dual bored as standard with both..and im sure its the smaller)

- reason for same size of spare wheel is that if the front needs changed it should be with the same size to avoid problems with the engine.. at the moment i would have to take off a rear wheel, put the spare on it and replace the front wheel with one off the back.. (ive the standard 14" spacesaver that came with my gd - advised by a mechanic its safe to keep the original as long as i dont put it on the front..)

[guest3155]

Never been one to miss out on a bargain, Ive just won an auction on EBay for a Spacesaver wheel & tyre.
It is 16" wheel with 4 stud holes. The tyre is 125/70/D16.

Question is will this be OK for my 2009 Ex with its 16" alloys.

Advise will be gratefully received

[guest3040]

Do you have a link to the item on Ebay?
If you post it on here, i can take a look for you.

Providing the wheel is 4 stud with an 100mm PCD, it'll fit.
The diameter may be different, but as long as you pop it on the back it'll not a major problem, good enough to get you to a tyre shop anyway...

[guest3155]

Thanks for that Remold but the Auction's ended & I've actually got the Wheel & Tyre.
 Stud holes look about 100Cm across & exact details are above.

I get the point about the diameter being different from the alloys?, so how dangerous would it be to put this on the front?

Would I end up going round in circles

Seriously, can this only be used on the back & if I get a puncture on the front, do I have to shuffle the alloys around?

Thanks again

[guest3040]

How different is the diameter of the spacesaver's tyre compared to the one on your Jazz? You can stand it along side the other one to get an idea...

If it's only a few mm's out, it should be ok to use it on the front.
If it's an inch or so different in size, you would have to swap your tyres around, putting the spacesaver on the rear. If you don't, you'll find it darn hard to keep it in a straight line. 

[guest2765]

as Remould has said, if its only a few mm's out then it can be used either way, but if its half an inch or more out it would be best used on the rear only (remember my spare is 1inch smaller than my alloys lol)

[Aitcho]

If your standard tyres are 185/55/R16 then the wheel diameter difference of your space saver is -28.5mm (-1.1115in).

You can check it yourself by using the 'Tyre Size Calculator' on the Oponeo tyres web site:-

http://www.oponeo.co.uk/advice-and-tips/tyre-size-calculator

In the first column (Model tyre) input your standard tyre size and the second column (Example tyre 1) input the size of your space saver and then just click your mouse button anywhere on the page and it will show the differences between the two tyres.

[guest3155]

Thanks to Achoo & Remold.

You're right! - when I stand to spacesaver next to Alloy the former is about an inch shorter.

Achoo - do you agree with Remold that the spcesaver wil be OK on the back but not the front?

It means a double wheel change if the front one gets a puncture.

Or should I sell this one & get one nearer the total diameter of the alloy & original tyre?

[Aitcho]

According to the tyre size you quoted for the space saver you already have the correct one, so it would be pointless looking for another space saver. The alternative would be to buy a secondhand 16" alloy wheel and fit the same tyre as already fitted to your Jazz, at least then you would not be restricted to a maximum speed of 50mph as applies to your space saver.

Honda themselves acknowledge that the space saver (compact spare tyre) is smaller than your standard wheels, quote from my Honda Jazz handbook:-

"The compact spare tyre is smaller than the regular tyre. Your vehicle's ground clearance
reduces when the compact spare tyre is installed. Driving over road debris or bumps could
possibly damage the underside of your vehicle."

Used sensibly there should not be any problem using it but I personally would only fit one to replace a rear tyre, so if the puncture was in a front tyre I would move the rear tyre to the front and put the space saver on the rear of the car.

I have only used a space saver once before and as an 'emergency' tyre it enabled me to drive to a tyre depot and have the punctured tyre repaired and refitted to the car and distance travelled was only about ten miles.

It is interesting to note that if you took your car fitted with a space saver in for an MOT it would fail its MOT as the space saver is classed as an 'emergency' wheel only.

Here are a few links to some websites that have info relating to space savers:-

http://www.theaa.com/motoring_advice/safety/non-standard-spare-wheels.html

http://ktgreen.co.uk/blog/?p=33

The second link is advice on fitting a space saver to a Subaru WRX Sti, in the text they mention that the space saver should only be fitted to the rear although in the video demonstration they are shown replacing the front wheel. Think the reason for this is that the car in the showroom had its front wheel on a nice bit of carpet and it was easier on their knees! 

[guest255]

"It is interesting to note that if you took your car fitted with a space saver in for an MOT it would fail its MOT as the space saver is classed as an 'emergency' wheel only."

This is incorrect the spare tyre is not part of the MOT test whether its a space saver or normal wheel/tyre.

My Jazz has a space saver tyre, had no problems passing the MOT test.

[Aitcho]

It was my understanding from reading a thread on another motoring forum and what was stated in that thread that if you took your car for an MOT with the space saver fitted and used as a "road wheel" it would fail the MOT.

You are quite correct when you state that a spare wheel is not part of the test.

Quote from MOT testers manual tyres section.

"This inspection applies to
Tyres fitted to the road wheels only.  The vehicle presenter should be informed when it is noticed that there is a defective tyre on a spare wheel".

When a space saver is used in place of an original wheel does it then become a "road wheel" in the eyes of the MOT inspector.

The tyre test is conducted on all "road wheels" that are on the car when presented for the MOT, the manual goes on to describe "The Method of Inspection" :-

On all tyres fitted, check the

1. Nominal size and aspect ratio


Reason for rejection

1a. One tyre is of a different nominal size or aspect ratio to any other on the same axle.

b. Special lightweight or space saving wheels and tyres fitted as road wheels

Note: Tyres with aspect ratios of 80% and 82% are almost identical in size and can be safely mixed in any configuration on a vehicle.  Where this is done, Reason for Rejection 1 does not apply.
In all other cases of mixed aspect ratios on the same axle, rejection is justified.

The above is just a small extract  from the tyre section of the MOT manual and the posters in the other forum appeared certain that a fail would ensue possibly based on either section 1a or b of the manual.

I would have thought that this would only be classed as a 'technical' failure and you would be given the opportunity to return when you had replaced the space saver with an 'original road wheel' and consigned the space saver to the boot whereupon you would be given a pass.

They did go on to discuss why the space saver fitted car was an MOT failure and yet it would be acceptable to the police as being road legal providing you did not exceed 50mph and was used purely in an emergency.

So can only assume it happend to one of their forum members.

Would love to hear the views of an MOT inspector.

[guest516]

Good answer Better than the one I was sending
Enjoy Jazz motoring - I do
Noddy

[guest3155]

Thanks to all concerned for the advice on spare wheel itself, now could I ask about the jack & tools.

I was told by the garage that if a car comes without a spare wheel I wouldn't need tools

That means no jack, wheelbrace, or towing eye.

I've seen many sets on Ebay, some incorporated in polystyrene that will sit in the centre well of the spare.

Will any jack do?

Thanks