Sandhurst

Hi all .I’ve got the problem with the decals crazing so have been to a local sign business in Plymouth to get a quote just for the long silver one on the offside which was £120 +vat which included removal of old decal .So in an effort to save some money I spent an hour and a half with hair drier yesterday to remove it myself which with care went well .All I need to do now is polish that side of van before it is renewed on the 23rd of October.I will keep you informed of the final outcome.                                                                                   Another problem I encountered during the annual service which I carry out myself was the spare wheel whic h over the years I’ve checked the pressure without removal from the carrier.This year I looked at the steel rim which was in need of painting so decided to remove spare unfortunately both securing bolts had totally seized infact the only way I could get it down was by snapping of both bolt heads.I took the bracket to my local engineers who drilled out the old bolts retaped and supplied new bolts. Thoughts of our trips away not being able to get spare out a lesson learned./

KENNJEN wrote: . . . the spare wheel which over the years I’ve checked the pressure without removal from the carrier.

How many years?

There are differing opinions on this, but most people seem to agree that tyres should be changed after around 5 or 6 years for safety reasons, even if they have never been used.

There are loads of posts on all the forums, and professional advice from tyre companies. Could be worth a browse.

Thanks for your advice Dave ,i do know of the tyre lifespan I was trying to highlight the fact of if fellow owners take their vehicles for servicing and the garage checks the spare pressure without removal of the whole wheel they could run into the same problem.The design of the bracket allows the thread which releases the spare to fill with water and corrode leading to the problem I encountered.Ken

Thanks Ken

A good reminder to get underneath with the WD40 spray can. I couldn't any longer change a wheel at my age (74), but it would be kinder to the RAC man if the nuts were not seized solid! 

Agreed - if it's the standard VW spare carrier, it's a problem that quite a few people experience. The bolts they use are big - the same head size as a wheel bolt - so few people have the physical strength the snap the head off without a really long breaker bar!

WD40 should be a help in freeing up seized ones, but my preference is to smear the full length of the threads with CopperEase before putting them in. It's good for that as it's stodgier than, say, Waxoyl, and should not be washed away by road spray.

Hi, not long had my van so better check rather than messing about in the rain, thanks for the tip, matt