Lorrick Posted February 22, 2012 Share Posted February 22, 2012 Hello All I use my TD5 for work and I am in and out of the back all day long, at the moment the spare wheel is mounted on the door, but it is a heavy wheel for something that is opened and closed a lot more than normal and I don't want to damage it. I have seen some Defenders have the spare wheel mounted on the roof rack (I take it they can't be mounted on a TD5 Bonnet) What sort of mounting is there for a wheel on the roof rack ? Any help appreciated Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted February 22, 2012 Share Posted February 22, 2012 There is no reason they can't be mounted on the bonnet, I mounted my boost alloy to mine without any major issues, I did however reinforce the bonnet with chequer plate first. Apart from the issues around making the bonnet heavy and a bit more tricky to open. I have also put one on the roof rack before but they are a PITA to get up there and down again is not easy, you would be surprised how far a Boost alloy will bounce when rolled off a roof!!! The big problem I think people have is they vibrate around but you can get the rubbers from the original bonnet mount kit rubbers to prevent this. Jason. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tacr2man Posted February 22, 2012 Share Posted February 22, 2012 use a disco rear door spare carrier and bolt to rack then bolt tyre to carrier Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scatt Posted February 22, 2012 Share Posted February 22, 2012 Why not buy a proper swing away spare wheel carrier?? There's a chap on the defender2 forum who makes them and they are very smart and very practical. Personally I don't like the roof mounted idea. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
western Posted February 22, 2012 Share Posted February 22, 2012 Td5 bonnet in standard form just isn't strong enough to carry the spare wheel/tyre, hence why LR don't supply a bonnet mount kit for Td5 & has Jason has done by beefing up the bonnet structure. alternative is put the spare inside on floor between rear wheelboxes & put a floor above across the wheelbox top face, [but only if no loadbay seats fitted] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stuck Posted February 22, 2012 Share Posted February 22, 2012 I tried to mount a 35" bogger on my roof, nearly 'kin killed me getting it up there. If yours is a standard wheel & tyre and / or you're built like a brick outhouse then why not, it's out of the way after all. How you would mount it is entirely down to the type of roof rack you have. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mmgemini Posted February 22, 2012 Share Posted February 22, 2012 Max roof weight for a Defender is 75kg. So how much does your spare weigh ? How much does your roof rack weigh ? Have you looked at a swing away carrier ? Actually the three strap method should hold the wheel no problem Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
muddy Posted February 22, 2012 Share Posted February 22, 2012 £mm chequer on a td5 bonnet will take the weight, dont bother with the rubbers let the tyre sit on the paintwork in order to spread the weight more effectivly. I had to file the centre hole of the alloy out to fit around the mounting studs. Will. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted February 22, 2012 Share Posted February 22, 2012 I used a TD5 rear wheel carrier on my bonnet hence having to use the rubbers as the wheel didn't sit down on the bonnet but I did have to shorten the rubbers by about 1/2. I still have the chequer plate if anyone wants to do the same.... I only removed mine as when I built the trailer I got space back in the rear for the extra spare. Jason. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lorrick Posted February 22, 2012 Author Share Posted February 22, 2012 The trouble is that as I do breakdowns and repairs I am opening the rear door a lot every day, I had thought of the swing away carrier, but it is the same thing that it is in use all the time. I have all my tools and kit in the back so no place to put the spare inside, but as you have pointed out if I beef up the bonnet, it can go on there, I hadn't thought of getting the wheel down from the roof rack only getting it up there I would imagine they will bounce a bit !!. I will look into fitting it on the Bonnet, its a shame you are not a bit nearer Jason or I would have had it off you. :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lrfarmer Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 Max roof weight for a Defender is 75kg. So how much does your spare weigh ? How much does your roof rack weigh ? Have you looked at a swing away carrier ? Actually the three strap method should hold the wheel no problem I've fitted 4 wheels and tyres on my roof rack so 28kg x 4 +60kg roof rack so 170kg+, drove to wales with ther caravan on the back as well and was fine maybe a bit top heavy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
specialbikejames Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 I fitted my spare to the roof of my old 110 by just using the original door mountings. The original mount on a pre-TD5 truck is just two simple plates with the long studs for the wheel to sit on. I just slightly modified the plates to fit around the thin tubing of my rack and bolted it all up. I adjusted the backstops on the wheel carrier so the tyre was resting on the rack to add extra support and it was fine. Tyre did rub against the bars slightly as there was slight movement but no damage after a few thousand miles. To get it up there (and back down) just use a piece of rope/tow strop to lower it down with/haul it back up. It sounds like you're a fitter of some sort so a Defender wheel and tyre isn't going to bother you much in terms of weight. Dont throw it down ffs! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mmgemini Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 There's two different size rubbers for the bonnet. A deep one as fitted to the defender A shallow one as fitted to the MOD 109 and I think the Lightweight. With the shallow rubbers, the tyre does sit on the bonnet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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