Lost my spare tyre

Lum

HoofeHearted wrote: »

I was on the 'receiving end' of a loose spare tyre, many years ago.

If only they could all be as well behaved as this one:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ugPPvDQ4ln4

BenL

The spare wheel on my old Ford KA did the same sort of escaping act after going for a service and MOT. The bolt inside the boot wasn't tightened up enough and gave enough room over a bump to come off. I think your Fiesta will have the same mechanism.

Ben

HoofeHearted

Lum wrote: »

If only they could all be as well behaved as this one:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ugPPvDQ4ln4

:rotfl::rotfl::rotfl::rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:

DD265

Went back this morning and also drove the same route this evening and nothing there. I've had a few quotes for replacement wheels around the £27-37 mark, but I'll find out where the nearest scrap yard is before buying anything. I will also get some kind of lock as recommended, or keep it in the boot as I rarely have a full car.

Strider590 wrote: »

Ummmm...... How long was it making this scraping noise? I would expect any driver to notice something like that immediately and for their own safety (and that of their passengers) stop as soon as the noise became apparent.

I noticed the scraping noise instantly, and continued driving for about 50 metres. I pulled in as soon as I was able. If I'd stopped I would have completely blocked the road for the 5 or so cars behind me, and didn't want to risk stopping the car and not being able to move it out of the road.

That said, I did hear an odd loud rattle noise now and again over the weekend, but every time I turned my stereo off to listen, I never heard it again. With it being an oldish car and not the quietest anyway I didn't really think anything of it, presumed a bumpy bit of road or something in the boot. Next time I won't be so quick to drop the matter.

BenL wrote: »

The spare wheel on my old Ford KA did the same sort of escaping act after going for a service and MOT. The bolt inside the boot wasn't tightened up enough and gave enough room over a bump to come off. I think your Fiesta will have the same mechanism.

Ben

It does sound the same. MOT was in December and I've done about 750 miles since though. What also gets me about that is how the wheel can have completely vanished without a trace if it hasn't been stolen. I've never changed a wheel but I'm pretty sure that the flap would have had to be right down for the wheel to come out, so the wheel should have been where I heard the scraping noise.

Honestly, given my luck with cars I think that if I rode a bicycle I'd be dead! Thanks for all the input.

Strider590

^^ Wheel was probably nicked and the hanger was replaced so you'd not notice (except for the odd rattle)

Weird_Nev

Lum wrote: »

If only they could all be as well behaved as this one:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ugPPvDQ4ln4

And I hope it wasn't as badly behaved as this one:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xvwOh-tlyJU:eek:

tim9966

Had one fall off a 1992 Fiesta some years ago, but it remained in it's cage which they just dragged along the ground. Luckly I was on a country lane so was able to stop take the wheel out of the cage and put it in the boot, and rehang the hook to keep the cage where it should be. It had just rusted away.

cyclonebri1

Get 1 from a breakers yard, ebay delivery will rule it out as being non "cost effective".
I had 1 stolen years ago but they had to break into the boot to get it so unless they did tat it's just fallen off, probably as a result of being undertightened in the 1st place or more likely as a result of the spare going flat and reducing in size.
Yours is actually the reverse problem of the norm, underslung spare wheel racks normally sieze so the dam things can't be accessed when needed 5 years later,

bartman

cyclonebri1 wrote: »

Get 1 from a breakers yard, ebay delivery will rule it out as being non "cost effective".

The scappy will almost certainly be cheapest if they have one, but it's not true to say that ebay is not cost-effective.
I had to get a wheel for my wife's Corsa last month - she'd damaged the rim. The local scrappy didn't have any, but I bought one through Ebay complete with a brand new Michelin tyre, fully balanced, for less that I would have paid for the tyre alone (compared against Blackcircles).

Road_Hog

Strider590 wrote: »

^^ Wheel was probably nicked and the hanger was replaced so you'd not notice (except for the odd rattle)

I go with this. To be honest you have the other end of the problem, whereby when you need to use the spare, you can't get the bugger undone.

So I'd imagine that someone has had it away, because these things don't just tend to come loose. As had been said, the cage has been jammed back up so you wouldn't notice. You should have someone check that it (cage) is okay before you plonk the new spare back in.