How many spare tyres

[Tornado]

Just a quick survey,

On a long trip how many spare tyres do people take?

Tow vehicle and tvan, we have one spare for each as well as a puncture repair kit and a tube.

Any thoughts?

[signmaster]

On our last trip we had only one spare on the Hilux and one on the Tvan. We had a puncture near Oodnatatta and I did not notice it was flat until we stopped to open a gate, it was then shredded. We had planned to drive into Lake Ayre but with only one spare decided not to. I now have 2 spares for the Tvan so with the one on the Hilux so  have 3 in total. I also keep a keen eye on the Tvan tyres when driving. Another thing the Hilux has Mags and the Tvan steel rims so I carry 2 spare sets of wheel nuts so the Tvan wheels can fit the Hilux and visa versa. I have done a lot of research on tyre pressures also, check out my website. http://4x4online.com.au/tyres.html


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[Patrol Dude]

HI Tornado, one spare for each is plenty - the trick is two get both the tug and the tvan with the same size rim/stud pattern/offset and tyre, as signmaster has also suggested - They are then interchangeable to either tug or tvan . The tyre repair kit covers third base just in case you are really unlucky. I also run a TPMS solution which keeps an eye on the tyre pressures of both the tug and tvan - great insurance and for the cost of one buggered tyre has paid for its self. Cheers

[Tornado]

Thanks Signmaster and Patrol Dude,

Good food for thought, we are travelling the entire trip with another patrol, all spares between us are interchangable. Patrol, patrol and Tvan. With a total of 4 spares. Its just a challenge to juggle/ fine line with what you NEED and how muh weight you end up with on a trip covering 13000klm.

Scott

[Slick]

Tornado,

I did a trip of similar distance (with some quite remote areas) 2 years ago in company with another Patrol and our circumstances were the same as you have alluded to i.e. two vehicles with spare for car and camper and all interchangeable.  It certainly added to our piece of mind and allowed us to carry more beer in lieu of the second spare 

As far as the safety/convenience versus weight argument, the trick here is make sure that the OTHER bloke carries that stuff 

Vince.

[Tanami TVan]

Hi Tornado
On a big out back trip I carry two on the car and one on the TVan
All interchangeable plus a comprehensive repair kit.
If your travelling up the Oodnadatta track or Strezlecky you can get away with less,
But If you venture onto less used tracks it's better to err on the side of safety
Just my two bobs worth
Norm

[Wildmax]

We spend a fair bit of our time alone and off the beaten track, and already had two spares for the Hilux. When we got the TVan a couple of years ago we matched the rims and tyres to the vehicle, so effectively have three spares interchangeable between van and tow vehicle - plus puncture repair kit. Overkill I know, but I have been in the position with the previous van (with unmatched wheels) of damaging two tyres within 100km on the same stretch out from Marble Bar, so "belt and braces" theory works for me. Carry some spare wheel nuts as well, just in case.

[Mal.W]

Last year on a trip up the Tanami, bit of the Gibb River Road and then back across the Gulf we carried 1 spare for the car (Hilux) 1 spare for the Tvan ( 5 stud cruiser stud pattern ) and a spare tyre up under the Tvan. All Tyres were of the same size and I carry the tools to be able to remove tyres from rims. Spare under the Tvan has a tube in it and a "split rim" liner and strapped together with long cable ties, this keeps the stones etc out of the tyre.
We have since changed cars and the Tvan and car have matched rims and tyres. I still carry a tyre under the Tvan.
I carry a comprehensive puncture repair kit and a couple of tubes to put in the tyres if they get patched due to damage

Mal

[wrose]

We have matched the wheels and tyres on our Tvan to the same as what is on our Landcruiser.
I have 2 spares on the back of the Cruiser, and 1 spare on the Tvan. So 3 interchangeable spares all up.
I also carry a emergency plug kit, a full repair kit & air compressor
As the old adage goes, if you don't have it with you, you'll need it, if you have it you'll probably never use it.

[CJ]

We carry only 1 spare for the TVan as I believe the chance of a blowout on a trailer is far less than for the car.
That said the spares are matched with the car so in an emergency i have effectively (1+3) spares for the car.
I have in the past carried the roofrack just for an additional spare.  This included a 12,000 trip including the Kimberley and all its side roads, and a Cape York trip.  No trouble whatsoever and the trailer tyres still look like new.

[peterjantvan]

We have two spares for the Nissan ( one steel on roof-rack one alloy on rear door ) and one spare ( steel ) on the front box of the Tvan.
All tyres but one are coopers and all wheels same size and offset to match.
We also carry a tyre repair kit and have all wheel the nuts needed to suit any wheel ( alloy or steel ) on any position.
Last year did Melbourne to Uluru and back plus Melbourne to Perth and back - so issues with tyres at all.
Cheers  Peter

[rksbjs]

Have matching wheels, all alloys for Tvan and Patrol and carry the normal spares on TVan and Patrol plus extra alloy on Patrol Roof Rack.
In extensive travels have been lucky with no need to use any spares. This includes the Oodnadatta Track and the Old Ghan track (Reports of railway spikes stuffing tyres) The Gibb River Rd, Mitchell Falls and Kalumbaru. I think the key is tyre pressures to suit the track and keeping speed down a bit. Learnt the hard way many years ago after blowing 2 tyres in 2 days on the Strezleki Track and the lower Flinders Ranges on our first outback trip at road pressures. Still good to have peace of mind with 3 spares as we generally travel on our own.
Cheers R ;)ick

[chris_a]

We are currently in Broome after crossing  the Tanami. Unfortunately don't have matching Prado /Tvan wheels so we carry 2 spares for the Prado and one for the Tvan plush a puncture repair kit and a good compressor. Have the second Prado spare strapped to the top of the Tvan spare on the drawbar.

[rksbjs]

Not to do with this thread but how was the Tanami? We are looking at doing it July August this year.
Have you a separate post on your Trip. Interested in fuel and conditions.
cheers
Rick

[CJ]

How many times have forum members experienced blowouts on the trailer tyres?
Reason I ask is that i have had my fare share of punctures and blowouts on the car, but only once in my 15 years of offroading have I had a trailer tyre go.  And then it was repairable with my repair kit.

I have read in one of the camper trailer magazines some time ago about trailer tyre punctures being rare.

I do have matching rims so i can interchange between trailer and car, but my thinking there is that I actually have more security for the car in case of a mishap in remote areas, not the trailer.

Having done remote tracks (kimberley, CY, CSR, Gunbarrel) with too many spares, I recon in future I will carry only the one spare for the car and one for the trailer.  In case of real emergency I will take the trailer wheels for use on the car, but that will mean more than two unrepairable blowouts.

I like keeping the weight down.  On our CSR trip we took that many tools, spares, etc. for every eventuality, we were overloaded and that in itself caused all the problems.

So, are trailer punctures common amongst this group?