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Spare tyre - stored on elevating roof of T6

phatwork

phatwork

Messages
13
Location
Cape Town, South Africa
Vehicle
T6 Beach 102
Since I have a bike rack a door mounted spare is not possible and the tyre space under is too much bulk for the desired departure angle on my 4Motion 5 speed.

So the 25 odd kg spare works fine, placed on the roof - whuch is rated in the manual for up to 60 kg.

I store 2 light polycarb 25mm pipes (in the gutters) to give the back of roof some support and get canvas to be full opened - it else sags 2cm, max

The roof itself is not impacted or bent in anyway - the 2 back tailgate hinges work as anchor points for straps, as does the Frontunner.co.za roof rack ($150)

A loop with lock completes it. The wheel cavity below I will use for the max 70 litre water tank that I would like for expeditions. Its a 7 seater Beach BTW.

Hope this is of some use to the community. In the city I dont carry a spare (just compressor and 4x4 tyre weld) and I will use this for out of town trips.

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Nicely done. :thumb Simple and effective. Only recommendation would be to put some kind of paint protection film on the roof, where the tyre touches to ensure that it does not scratch.

In a pinch, this is definitely an option. I would also put a sticker near the central console "undo tyre straps" before raising roof! I know that once I will forget and it may not end too well!
 
Thanks for feedback. Yes undo 2 of the 3 straps - on hinges - to allow tyre to stay ON while raising roof. Sticker needed!!
 
Another thought - the inner tyre area is capable of taking 2 stuffed sleepign bags or other things - if one makes a plywood lid and threaded bar to lock it to tyre.
 
I would be worried about police stopping you for incorrectly secured load!
You would need to drive a long way from Lion's head for this to become a problem.

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The Alu roof is very fragile, so risk denting with the vibration especially if driving offroad.

Perhaps get an additional roof bar to create a stable platform for the tyre (or just slide the existing front roofbar towards the rear of the van if you dont need it for anything else). Slide some anchor points into the slot on top of the roof bars & secure the wheel to these.

You can get uprated struts for the roof if you should encouter any issues trying to keep roof up with the additional weight. Then you wouldn't need the polycarb support pipes.
 
I would also put a sticker near the central console "undo tyre straps" before raising roof!
AND "remove support pipes" before lowering... :)

I'm surprised you need them. We have seen Cali's with a lot more on the roof than you, in our estimate easily nearing the max 60 kg recommendation, without any additional measures such as your support pipes.

Roofs that are up for some time do have a tendency to sag somewhat after some time because the cylinders loose pressure, e.g. during a cold night when during the day they have been exposed to a lot of sun. Many stories on here of people who have been scared to death when their system starts to pump up the roof automatically in the middle of the night. We wonder what happens then, if the cylinders in front loose pressure a bit and the roof sags as a whole, with your support pipes in place...
 
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AND "remove support pipes" before lowering... :)

I'm surprised you need them. We have seen Cali's with a lot more on the roof than you, in our estimate easily nearing the max 60 kg recommendation, without any additional measures such as your support pipes.

Roofs that are up for some time do have a tendency to sag somewhat after some time because the cylinders loose pressure, e.g. during a cold night when during the day they have been exposed to a lot of sun. Many stories on here of people who have been scared to death when their system starts to pump up the roof automatically in the middle of the night. We wonder what happens then, if the cylinders in front loose pressure a bit and the roof sags as a whole, with your support pipes in place...
OP has a Beach, so no hydraulics. Just muscle power.
 
Ive made props for my roof - but i use longer poles inside the pop top at the highest point at the front. Store them out of sight alongside the mattress if not needed. No danger of dropping the roof on the props
 
I would be worried about police stopping you for incorrectly secured load!
Or the possibility of the wheel breaking loose in the event of an accident. That's a lot of momentum held down with a couple of straps.
 
Since I have a bike rack a door mounted spare is not possible and the tyre space under is too much bulk for the desired departure angle on my 4Motion 5 speed.

So the 25 odd kg spare works fine, placed on the roof - whuch is rated in the manual for up to 60 kg.

I store 2 light polycarb 25mm pipes (in the gutters) to give the back of roof some support and get canvas to be full opened - it else sags 2cm, max

The roof itself is not impacted or bent in anyway - the 2 back tailgate hinges work as anchor points for straps, as does the Frontunner.co.za roof rack ($150)

A loop with lock completes it. The wheel cavity below I will use for the max 70 litre water tank that I would like for expeditions. Its a 7 seater Beach BTW.

Hope this is of some use to the community. In the city I dont carry a spare (just compressor and 4x4 tyre weld) and I will use this for out of town trips.

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Certainly looks easier to get at than putting it on a spare wheel carrier under van as I did!
 
The weight of the wheel sitting on the alloy roof will definitely damage it over time especially as it’s not properly fixed. Eventually the vibration will leave and indentation at the back from unpaved roads. I don’t know what the road regs are in SA but maybe a wheel on the front roo type bar would be a better option.
 
Have I missed something here? Isn't there a risk that the whole wheel could be stolen just by cutting a few straps!
 
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