spare wheels

[lofty]

found some pics of cars with spare wheels.does anyone know when this stopped?started.was it a regulation?is a can of expandite foam legal in current rules? is the truth outhere?

[Canada Phil]

Hi Lofty,
           In the begining there were ride along mechanics spare wheels and even extra tires.
Until quite recently ( for an old guy) the rules required a second seat.
Phil

[Nordic]

Spare wheels where carried by the cars as recent as 71 so i guess it had to be in the regs. Plenty of pictures show 917's with them strapped under the rear wing.

Both the 917 and 512 were designed to old rules that had all sorts of requirments based around road car use.

seems to have stopped around then so guess it was part of the rules shake up that happened then.

[Grand_Fromage]

I think the 'spare' requirement came and went a few times. I think the GT40 Mk1 could carry a spare in a rack next to the exhaust, but you probably wouldn't want to use it after being casseroled for 24 hours. There has also been a notional 'luggage carrying' requirement now and again, that led to some fairly bizarre designs and locations.

Spare wheels where carried by the cars as recent as 71 so i guess it had to be in the regs. Plenty of pictures show 917's with them strapped under the rear wing.

Both the 917 and 512 were designed to old rules that had all sorts of requirments based around road car use.

seems to have stopped around then so guess it was part of the rules shake up that happened then.

[Lorry]

The GT40s spare wheel was carried in the front, under the removable panel, behind the radiator outlet.  Thats why the outlet was usually two triangles, as the wheel was in the middle.  It was the luggage compartment that was next to the exhausts.  This was originally a large biscuit tin, about a foot square, which happened to be the right size.  

I thought that the 917 had a spacesaver spare between the exhausts.  At one race, they lost the spare and found that a front wheel wouldn't fit, and they couldn't even get it in the cockpit.

Apparently, the spare tyre/boot rule lasted till the 1969 rule change.  I would have given it another few years

[Grand_Fromage]

There is no definitive answer to this question. On the Lola GT that the GT40 was based upon, the dual nostril was indeed to make space for the spare wheel, but the space was hijacked for the dry-sump oil tank in the early Mk1. The 2 nostril design was replaced by 1 large slot on some cars. and several different configurations for the locations of tanks, vents and spare wheel were experimented with on the Mk1 over its 7 or so years in endurance racing.

The GT40s spare wheel was carried in the front, under the removable panel, behind the radiator outlet.  Thats why the outlet was usually two triangles, as the wheel was in the middle.  It was the luggage compartment that was next to the exhausts.  This was originally a large biscuit tin, about a foot square, which happened to be the right size. 

I thought that the 917 had a spacesaver spare between the exhausts.  At one race, they lost the spare and found that a front wheel wouldn't fit, and they couldn't even get it in the cockpit.

Apparently, the spare tyre/boot rule lasted till the 1969 rule change.  I would have given it another few years

[lofty]

i think i heard of a barrel backed healey with a bulbous rear end to take the spare.must of been a bit like a marcos or the ferrari bread van.

[Lorry]

With the Ford, it wasn't long before they went onto wider rubber, so the spare wouldn't fit in the front.

I think they discarded the cross-over exhaust too, so they would have been some room in the back.  The only photos I can find show 2 luggage bins, one either side of the gearbox

[nopanic - neil]

Ahh spare wheels, I had a renault 5 that had the spare wheel under the bonnet, on top the engine.

I wonder if any car still does that?

And yes i know Bristols had them in the front wing -

[Fran]

Ahh spare wheels, I had a renault 5 that had the spare wheel under the bonnet, on top the engine.

I wonder if any car still does that?

My MR2 had the spare wheel (spacesaver) under the bonnet, but the engine was in the middle! 

[nopanic - neil]

Ahh spare wheels, I had a renault 5 that had the spare wheel under the bonnet, on top the engine.

I wonder if any car still does that?

My MR2 had the spare wheel (spacesaver) under the bonnet, but the engine was in the middle! 

Oh yea, forgot about those.

That reminds me my first car had the spare wheel under the bonnet and the engine in the boot 

[Grand_Fromage]

The most original and inventive spare I've seen was a disk of 1 inch plywood with some old tread nailed to the outside and a bit of recycled brass plate glued to the centre with stud holes drilled in it. Probably not safe at walking pace, let alone 40mph.

Ahh spare wheels, I had a renault 5 that had the spare wheel under the bonnet, on top the engine.

I wonder if any car still does that?

My MR2 had the spare wheel (spacesaver) under the bonnet, but the engine was in the middle! 

Oh yea, forgot about those.

That reminds me my first car had the spare wheel under the bonnet and the engine in the boot 

[lofty]

i found some pics from 1968 lola and 1967 ferrari spares on show.would having a back to pit spare be of use these days?the amount of damaged caused by a shredding tyre always makes me wonder why dont have a spare anymore.i guess its too much weight and work for driver .