forwardlean Posted November 4, 2012 Share Posted November 4, 2012 Hi guys, Does anyone have any clue how I could go about mounting a spare to the front roll cage? It’s one that surrounds front window and then reaches the rear of the sunroof. Over the top rather than round the sides. How can I make it secure security wise too, have locking wheel nuts Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
landroversforever Posted November 4, 2012 Share Posted November 4, 2012 A picture of the car would be useful for people to come up with ideas. But personally I wouldn't want mine up there... land rover wheels & tyres aren't light! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bishbosh Posted November 4, 2012 Share Posted November 4, 2012 +1 - very difficult getting it up there and back down again. If you can't put it on the rear door, what about the bonnet or the rear load bay? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Disco-Ron Posted November 4, 2012 Share Posted November 4, 2012 You already have the cage, so just for interest, try getting the wheel up there! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sean f Posted November 5, 2012 Share Posted November 5, 2012 Would agree with the rest, the wheel would not be easy to get up and down. I believe this was banned for comp safari cars a few years back after a heavy roll (Scottish hill rally??) which resulted in the spare on the roof being pushed down through the roof and injuring the co driver, something to bear in mind. Unless you have strong reasons not to, the rear door on a swing away carrier is far easier and better, these can be made to work with doors or tailgates quite easily, even modifying one for your particular set up is probable easier than making a roof / roll cage mount. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikec Posted November 5, 2012 Share Posted November 5, 2012 I wouldn't be too fussed about getting it up there weight wise. Hopefully you'll not be using it! I'd be more worried about affecting centre of gravity but that'd soon get used too. Why not weld a scaffold bar across the two longitudinal bars mount a rear door spare wheel plate on there? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tanuki Posted November 6, 2012 Share Posted November 6, 2012 My biggest 2 objections to wheels-on-the-roof are the severe pain getting them up there, and the great effect they will have on raising the centre-of-gravity of the vehicle, making a rollover more likely. There's also the issue of increased wind-resistance. When I was involved in survey work with a half-dozen or so Defenders and someone barrel-rolled one of them down a Welsh hillside with 'interesting' bits-of-roofrack-penetrating-the-cabin issues, we promptly removed all the roof-racks.and mandated use of trailers for carrying all non-internal loads irrespective of weight. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reb78 Posted November 6, 2012 Share Posted November 6, 2012 I wouldn't be too fussed about getting it up there weight wise. Hopefully you'll not be using it! I'd be more worried about affecting centre of gravity but that'd soon get used too. Why not weld a scaffold bar across the two longitudinal bars mount a rear door spare wheel plate on there? I agree with this. Mines been on the roof rack for ten or more years. Getting it up and down is fine. I keep looking at swingaway carriers as the roof was only meant to be a temporary measure, but they cost £££ to get a good one and there is always something more important to spend the money on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave W Posted November 6, 2012 Share Posted November 6, 2012 Attaching a spare wheel to the roll cage, especially on the roof, is likely to compromise the safety and structure of the cage. I'm not sure if it was the same incident referred to above but when I was competing on one of the Hill Rallies many years ago I saw the aftermath of a roll where the roof mounted spare wheel appeared to have focussed all the energy of the impact into a small area of the cage. The result was that the cage and the passenger compartment were compromised and one of the occupants seriously injured. Essentially the vehicle flipped and landed on the spare wheel instead of the cage which directed all the energy downwards through the mounting point. You have to ask yourself why you have a roll cage IMV. If the cage is there to protect you in a roll over then welding/attaching anything to it that will reduce the effectiveness of it is probably not a good idea. Do NOT simply weld a piece of scaffold tube onto the cage if you have the cage as a safety feature or you need to get the cage through MSA scrutineering at any point. If the roll cage is there for show purposes then your only concern is the centre of gravity problem that putting large weights on the top of a vehicle can cause. There is also room for the "comedy moment" when taking the wheel down - never just throw the wheel down to the ground, lower it down on a strap or a rope. Many years ago I remember one quite high profile off roader having to retrieve his spare wheel from a bog at the bottom of a fell about half a mile from where he threw it off his roof rack expecting it to hit the ground and stay there It was VERY funny to watch at the time, especially the expression on his face when it dawned on him how fast it was travelling down the fell side, although it could have done someone a serious injury in hind sight. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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