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hi all, i have just took receipt of my lexus is220d and i am loving it. unfortunately it came with a spacesaver spare wheel..... yuk. can i replace it with a standard alloy wheel and tyre or must i stick with this awful spacesaver? thanks in advance for any help!

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hi all, i have just took receipt of my lexus is220d and i am loving it. unfortunately it came with a spacesaver spare wheel..... yuk. can i replace it with a standard alloy wheel and tyre or must i stick with this awful spacesaver? thanks in advance for any help!

Why bother? I've had my 250 SE-L for four years now and the space saver has never been used. If it has to be it's only to get you home or to the nearest tyre services.

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hi all, i have just took receipt of my lexus is220d and i am loving it. unfortunately it came with a spacesaver spare wheel..... yuk. can i replace it with a standard alloy wheel and tyre or must i stick with this awful spacesaver? thanks in advance for any help!

Why bother? I've had my 250 SE-L for four years now and the space saver has never been used. If it has to be it's only to get you home or to the nearest tyre services.

i know this might sound a bit strange but i like everything to look right... sad or what???

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hi all, i have just took receipt of my lexus is220d and i am loving it. unfortunately it came with a spacesaver spare wheel..... yuk. can i replace it with a standard alloy wheel and tyre or must i stick with this awful spacesaver? thanks in advance for any help!

It works OK as I used mine from Kinloch Hourn to Inverness when Mrs Jerome had an argument with a rock...and lost ! ... 50 mph max on some dodgy roads & we survived.

My answer is ..... would your insurance cover a narrow alloy on the back (or a wide on the front if it would fit?) If not, then its spacesaver (or 2 alloys in the boot)

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hi all, i have just took receipt of my lexus is220d and i am loving it. unfortunately it came with a spacesaver spare wheel..... yuk. can i replace it with a standard alloy wheel and tyre or must i stick with this awful spacesaver? thanks in advance for any help!

When I owned an IS250 the front and rear tyres were of different widths, so could only get it right for one of them (unless willing to carry two spares . . . . . :ohmy: ).

There is a low probability of needing the spare, so I would leave well alone.

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When I owned an IS250 the front and rear tyres were of different widths, so could only get it right for one of them (unless willing to carry two spares . . . . . :ohmy: ).

When I owned Series 1 GS 300 Sport the rears were 275's,fronts 245's. Spare was same as fronts and fitted front or rear if needed....albeit with different wheel nuts. No problem with insurance either.

Will a full size spare fit into the designated spare wheel slot?

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hi all, i have just took receipt of my lexus is220d and i am loving it. unfortunately it came with a spacesaver spare wheel..... yuk. can i replace it with a standard alloy wheel and tyre or must i stick with this awful spacesaver? thanks in advance for any help!

When I owned an IS250 the front and rear tyres were of different widths, so could only get it right for one of them (unless willing to carry two spares . . . . . :ohmy: ).

There is a low probability of needing the spare, so I would leave well alone.

to everyone who replied, thanks i have decided to leave it well alone and opt for sticking with the space-saver unfortunately.... absolutely loving my lexus, amazing its a step up from my vw bora which is an ultra reliable motor...

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When I owned Series 1 GS 300 Sport the rears were 275's,fronts 245's. Spare was same as fronts and fitted front or rear if needed....albeit with different wheel nuts. No problem with insurance either.

Will a full size spare fit into the designated spare wheel slot?

That's interesting. Were there any limitations on use if you had to use different tyre sizes on the same axle following e.g. a puncture?

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When I owned Series 1 GS 300 Sport the rears were 275's,fronts 245's. Spare was same as fronts and fitted front or rear if needed....albeit with different wheel nuts. No problem with insurance either.

Will a full size spare fit into the designated spare wheel slot?

That's interesting. Were there any limitations on use if you had to use different tyre sizes on the same axle following e.g. a puncture?

From what I recall, it was suggested to not exceed 50mph. The Series 1 GS 300 Sport with optional 10" rears had an alloy 8" rim as a spare but it had its own wheelnuts with a different taper to enable it to be fitted to front or rear. Mine didn't have these nuts so Lexus Coventry ordered them for me....FOC since I had purchased the car from them. I actually mentioned it to my insurers who were unconcerned as they were a genuine Lexus fitment.

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When I owned Series 1 GS 300 Sport the rears were 275's,fronts 245's. Spare was same as fronts and fitted front or rear if needed....albeit with different wheel nuts. No problem with insurance either.

Will a full size spare fit into the designated spare wheel slot?

That's interesting. Were there any limitations on use if you had to use different tyre sizes on the same axle following e.g. a puncture?

From what I recall, it was suggested to not exceed 50mph. The Series 1 GS 300 Sport with optional 10" rears had an alloy 8" rim as a spare but it had its own wheelnuts with a different taper to enable it to be fitted to front or rear. Mine didn't have these nuts so Lexus Coventry ordered them for me....FOC since I had purchased the car from them. I actually mentioned it to my insurers who were unconcerned as they were a genuine Lexus fitment.

That is still helpful. It reduces the odds that you will have to drive in a restricted way, as compared with the spacesaver . . . . . :)

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hi all, i have just took receipt of my lexus is220d and i am loving it. unfortunately it came with a spacesaver spare wheel..... yuk. can i replace it with a standard alloy wheel and tyre or must i stick with this awful spacesaver? thanks in advance for any help!

Why bother? I've had my 250 SE-L for four years now and the space saver has never been used. If it has to be it's only to get you home or to the nearest tyre services.

It seems that Lexus/RAC disagree with you. I had a blow-out on the motorway and called the RAC (cover provided by Lexus). They hauled my car to the nearest service station and then refused to take me to my end destination as I had a space saver in my car. It was 01:00AM in the morning and I had a family travelling with me (including two children under 10) as we were going on vacation. Lexus/RAC told me that it was safe for me to complete a 230mile motorway and A road journey using the space saver to get to my end destination where I would need to find at my own accord a tyre replacement service.

I obviously refused to do this and the RAC/Lexus people couldn't see why this was an issue, as far as they were concerned it was safe for me to do this. I ended up opting to pay some third-party to come and fit me a new tyre which cost me £460, the replacement tyre was inferior and not even the same thread/make as the existing tyres which meant I had to change my other front tyre at my own cost aswell.

I am yet to write a letter to Lexus and RAC but I really don't see the point as there is absolutely nothing they can do as they not just cost me a stupid amount of money but also ruined the start of our family holiday.

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hi all, i have just took receipt of my lexus is220d and i am loving it. unfortunately it came with a spacesaver spare wheel..... yuk. can i replace it with a standard alloy wheel and tyre or must i stick with this awful spacesaver? thanks in advance for any help!

Why bother? I've had my 250 SE-L for four years now and the space saver has never been used. If it has to be it's only to get you home or to the nearest tyre services.

It seems that Lexus/RAC disagree with you. I had a blow-out on the motorway and called the RAC (cover provided by Lexus). They hauled my car to the nearest service station and then refused to take me to my end destination as I had a space saver in my car. It was 01:00AM in the morning and I had a family travelling with me (including two children under 10) as we were going on vacation. Lexus/RAC told me that it was safe for me to complete a 230mile motorway and A road journey using the space saver to get to my end destination where I would need to find at my own accord a tyre replacement service.

I obviously refused to do this and the RAC/Lexus people couldn't see why this was an issue, as far as they were concerned it was safe for me to do this. I ended up opting to pay some third-party to come and fit me a new tyre which cost me £460, the replacement tyre was inferior and not even the same thread/make as the existing tyres which meant I had to change my other front tyre at my own cost aswell.

I am yet to write a letter to Lexus and RAC but I really don't see the point as there is absolutely nothing they can do as they not just cost me a stupid amount of money but also ruined the start of our family holiday.

I can't see why you think Lexus/RAC disagree with me, as I said "to get you home or to the nearest tyre services" Obviously the tyre service facility would need to be open to provide you with a repair or replacement tyre, just your bad luck there aren't that many open at 1 a.m.

I've got a full size alloy spare in the IS200, which I've owned for 8 years. In that time it's been used once.

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hi all, i have just took receipt of my lexus is220d and i am loving it. unfortunately it came with a spacesaver spare wheel..... yuk. can i replace it with a standard alloy wheel and tyre or must i stick with this awful spacesaver? thanks in advance for any help!

Why bother? I've had my 250 SE-L for four years now and the space saver has never been used. If it has to be it's only to get you home or to the nearest tyre services.

It seems that Lexus/RAC disagree with you. I had a blow-out on the motorway and called the RAC (cover provided by Lexus). They hauled my car to the nearest service station and then refused to take me to my end destination as I had a space saver in my car. It was 01:00AM in the morning and I had a family travelling with me (including two children under 10) as we were going on vacation. Lexus/RAC told me that it was safe for me to complete a 230mile motorway and A road journey using the space saver to get to my end destination where I would need to find at my own accord a tyre replacement service.

I obviously refused to do this and the RAC/Lexus people couldn't see why this was an issue, as far as they were concerned it was safe for me to do this. I ended up opting to pay some third-party to come and fit me a new tyre which cost me £460, the replacement tyre was inferior and not even the same thread/make as the existing tyres which meant I had to change my other front tyre at my own cost aswell.

I am yet to write a letter to Lexus and RAC but I really don't see the point as there is absolutely nothing they can do as they not just cost me a stupid amount of money but also ruined the start of our family holiday.

I can't see why you think Lexus/RAC disagree with me, as I said "to get you home or to the nearest tyre services" Obviously the tyre service facility would need to be open to provide you with a repair or replacement tyre, just your bad luck there aren't that many open at 1 a.m.

I've got a full size alloy spare in the IS200, which I've owned for 8 years. In that time it's been used once.

The reason I said they disagree with you is because you said space savers will get you to your nearest tyre service or home which I totally agree with.

Lexus/RAC are saying you can use the space saver for a 230mile journey which both me and you know is nonsense regardless of the time of day.

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The reason I said they disagree with you is because you said space savers will get you to your nearest tyre service or home. Lexus/RAC are saying you can use the space saver for a 230mile journey which both me and you know is nonsense regardless of the time of day.

The only nonsense is that you are restricted to 50 mph, not the duration of the journey. If you had a full size spare, the repair or replacement of the punctured tyre would still be necessary when you got to your destination. Guess you'd then whinge that you couldn't get all the family luggage in the boot with the full size wheel (regardless of whether it's an 8J or 8.5J it'd still take up a lot more room than the spacesaver).

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Guess you'd then whinge that you couldn't get all the family luggage in the boot with the full size wheel (regardless of whether it's an 8J or 8.5J it'd still take up a lot more room than the spacesaver).

Strangely that has always been my big argument against spacesavers. Off you go on holiday with all the family and a boot full of luggage.......puncture......no problem, take wheel off and replace with spacesaver. The problem then rears its head!!! The car is full and so is the boot.......so where on earth can we stow the full size wheel which we have removed from the axle due to the puncture?????

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Guess you'd then whinge that you couldn't get all the family luggage in the boot with the full size wheel (regardless of whether it's an 8J or 8.5J it'd still take up a lot more room than the spacesaver).

Strangely that has always been my big argument against spacesavers. Off you go on holiday with all the family and a boot full of luggage.......puncture......no problem, take wheel off and replace with spacesaver. The problem then rears its head!!! The car is full and so is the boot.......so where on earth can we stow the full size wheel which we have removed from the axle due to the puncture?????

Yes, like for like wouldn't be a problem. On an earlier car I was stuck for luggage space and left the full size spare at home, just carried a jack and a two tyre capacity aerosol repair pack. Needless to say I had a puncture on the motorway, late of a Sunday evening on the way back from hols, and the repair aerosol didn't fix it. That was the day I first enrolled in the AA :lol:

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Guess you'd then whinge that you couldn't get all the family luggage in the boot with the full size wheel (regardless of whether it's an 8J or 8.5J it'd still take up a lot more room than the spacesaver).

Strangely that has always been my big argument against spacesavers. Off you go on holiday with all the family and a boot full of luggage.......puncture......no problem, take wheel off and replace with spacesaver. The problem then rears its head!!! The car is full and so is the boot.......so where on earth can we stow the full size wheel which we have removed from the axle due to the puncture?????

Yes, like for like wouldn't be a problem. On an earlier car I was stuck for luggage space and left the full size spare at home, just carried a jack and a two tyre capacity aerosol repair pack. Needless to say I had a puncture on the motorway, late of a Sunday evening on the way back from hols, and the repair aerosol didn't fix it. That was the day I first enrolled in the AA :lol:

So why oh why do various manufacturers insist on fitting spacesaver spares? I think it's more to do with weight savings. Ford, for example, offer a full size spare on the Fiesta for £30 extra....or did in November so the recess for the spacesaver is obviously big enough for a full size wheel although this is not the case with most manufacturers.

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Guess you'd then whinge that you couldn't get all the family luggage in the boot with the full size wheel (regardless of whether it's an 8J or 8.5J it'd still take up a lot more room than the spacesaver).

Strangely that has always been my big argument against spacesavers. Off you go on holiday with all the family and a boot full of luggage.......puncture......no problem, take wheel off and replace with spacesaver. The problem then rears its head!!! The car is full and so is the boot.......so where on earth can we stow the full size wheel which we have removed from the axle due to the puncture?????

Yes, like for like wouldn't be a problem. On an earlier car I was stuck for luggage space and left the full size spare at home, just carried a jack and a two tyre capacity aerosol repair pack. Needless to say I had a puncture on the motorway, late of a Sunday evening on the way back from hols, and the repair aerosol didn't fix it. That was the day I first enrolled in the AA :lol:

So why oh why do various manufacturers insist on fitting spacesaver spares? I think it's more to do with weight savings. Ford, for example, offer a full size spare on the Fiesta for £30 extra....or did in November so the recess for the spacesaver is obviously big enough for a full size wheel although this is not the case with most manufacturers.

maybe they fit spacesavers just to simply get joe public to shell out and buy an extra alloy??? there's a recession on you know, at least thats what they tell the reason is they keep refusing us our payrise lmao

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So why oh why do various manufacturers insist on fitting spacesaver spares? I think it's more to do with weight savings. Ford, for example, offer a full size spare on the Fiesta for £30 extra....or did in November so the recess for the spacesaver is obviously big enough for a full size wheel although this is not the case with most manufacturers.

maybe they fit spacesavers just to simply get joe public to shell out and buy an extra alloy??? there's a recession on you know, at least thats what they tell the reason is they keep refusing us our payrise lmao

The majority of manufacturers who specify a spacesaver as standard don't offer the option of a full size option for the spare, if they did then at least the "wheel well" would be of sufficient size to accommodate the road wheel in the event of puncture.

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You get a space saver because they are cheaper and perfeclty usable to get you home and give you more boot space.

The tyres are fine the reason they resctric you on speed is so you dont go booting it round bends with odd size wheels on and put yourself in a ditch. THe warnign is there as a warnign so you drive carefully it covers the manufacturers back should you crash whilst using it. Its all about sue or be sued these days. Even macdonalds have written "caution hot" on anything hot from there place after a guy sued for burning his mouth on a hot apple pie, he didnt realise it was that hot.

I have done 75mph on a space saver for about 10 miles wasnt a problem as long as your aware it wont handle normally when on a bend.

As for the upgrade to alloy,Its not an option on most cars because it simply wont fit in the hole made for a space saver.

Ford do a duel fuel focus, the gas tank goes in the spare wheel well and they give you a can of tyre weld/repair.

The new mini comes with a can of tyre weld and a compressor and no wheel at all as do a lot of cars. The real top end stuff doesnt come with anything the 355 ferrari has nothing if you get a puncture even the tool kit is an option.The though behind it is if you drive a ferrari you wont be changing your own wheels anyway so why give you the tools to do it.I have, amongst other things a 1985 Lotus esprit turbo this has a space saver and thats from 1985 so a space saver is not a new idea

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You get a space saver because they are cheaper and perfeclty usable to get you home and give you more boot space.

The tyres are fine the reason they resctric you on speed is so you dont go booting it round bends with odd size wheels on and put yourself in a ditch. THe warnign is there as a warnign so you drive carefully it covers the manufacturers back should you crash whilst using it. Its all about sue or be sued these days. Even macdonalds have written "caution hot" on anything hot from there place after a guy sued for burning his mouth on a hot apple pie, he didnt realise it was that hot.

I have done 75mph on a space saver for about 10 miles wasnt a problem as long as your aware it wont handle normally when on a bend.

As for the upgrade to alloy,Its not an option on most cars because it simply wont fit in the hole made for a space saver.

Ford do a duel fuel focus, the gas tank goes in the spare wheel well and they give you a can of tyre weld/repair.

The new mini comes with a can of tyre weld and a compressor and no wheel at all as do a lot of cars. The real top end stuff doesnt come with anything the 355 ferrari has nothing if you get a puncture even the tool kit is an option.The though behind it is if you drive a ferrari you wont be changing your own wheels anyway so why give you the tools to do it.I have, amongst other things a 1985 Lotus esprit turbo this has a space saver and thats from 1985 so a space saver is not a new idea

Spacesaver may not be a new idea as such but they are becoming a lot more prevalent on all types of family car and hatchbacks. In the event of a puncture the question still remains unanswered as to where exactly the affected road wheel get stowed assuming that you have a full compliment of passengers and a bootfull of luggage? On the majority of cars with a spacesaver the recess is not of sufficient size to accommodate a full size wheel.

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Not really the dealers problem mate. How often do you have full five seats and full boot. About once a month for me when its my turn to drive on a scuba dive trip. Your right though there isnt anywere for your wheel if you have a space saver if you have full boot. Again not really the dealers problem, they certainly dont build cars with that in mind they certainly dont make them mechanic friendly either.

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