My brother-in-law has just had his car converted to LPG. For the conversion, the company has used an LPG tank that fills the spare wheel hole. They have told him to keep his spare in the garage and have supplied him with a tin of "approved" sealant, "as used by the Police, you know, they don't carry spare tyres any more". Also "the MOT says the spare has to be in good nick, not that it has to be present".
Now the obvious question is what happens when he gashes his tyre rather than just holing it, but I also wonder if the law *has* changed, or if he's having the wool pulled over his eyes?
It all sounds a bit convenient for the LPG company to me. Anyone know the facts?
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VIN Says>Also "the MOT says the spare has to be in good nick, not that it has to be present".
Is a complete load of cobblers
Spare tyre condition does not come into the MOT test
See the current MOT tester's manual
Regards
David
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As far as I know, there has never been a requirement to carry a spare wheel. After all, motorcycles don't, do they?
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David, that's one point cleared up, i.e. in at least one of their comments the garage are talking utter b*llocks, but the question I'm asking is:
Is it legal to drive a car without a spare tyre?
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I think it is safe to assume that a spare is not a legal requirement - witness that HJ keeps reminding buyers of Peugeots etc. to check that the externally mounted spare has not been nicked!
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Yes - it is totally legal to drive without a spare tyre
When I have had cars running on LPG with a toroidal tank situated where the spare wheel goes, I have carried a can of Instant puncture fix, thankfully I have never had the need to use it.
I agree with you that these are of no use if the tyre is split etc..
Otherwise I would suggest to carry the spare wheel in the loadspace area but it does defeat the object slightly!
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Put it on the bonnet like Land-Rovers
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OR better still put it on the roof like old sabs or was it minis.?
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Chrysler Jeep actually does an accessory kit for stowing the spare on the roof. Looks a lot better than the scaffolding on the back of a Mercedes ML.
HJ
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Another option is to buy yourself a Mk2 Toyota MR2 which has two stowage areas plus loads of cubbys. It's also a hell of a lot more fun to drive !
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I believe the Mercedas A Class doesn't have a spare wheel and I know the MGF Trophy doesn't, it just has a can of sealant in a first aid case.
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