Nuevo 2007 Spare Wheel mechanism

I've been trying to check the spare wheel in my 2007 Nuevo.  After finding my way to the mechanism and the tools I wound for quite a while but with no visible movement of the wheel either up or down.  I suspect the mechanism has corroded and isn't working at all.  Could it be that the cable has broken?  Is there a diagram of the mechanism?  
The wheel can currently wobble and spin on whatever supports it.  Should it be tight up to the chassis? 
I'm pretty sure the breakdown service wouldn't mess around with it and would probably just take the wheel away for repair/replacement.  I doubt I'd risk changing the wheel myself so I could just leave the wheel at home and save carting it around if I could get it off!
Any suggestions on what I could do with it? (tried shouting, cursing, shouting etc.!)

I can't provide a solution only suggest that you try to force the wheel away from the chassis using some handy crowbar/length of timber as the cable may have jammed. The wheel is fully suspended from the cable so if it was broken the wheel would drop off. Normally the wheel should be wound up tight to the chassis. It is quite tricky to undo the fastener that sits inside the wheel then incline the plate to thread through the wheel centre. Due to the weight of the wheel I always lower it to the ground and use a chock of wood under one side of the wheel to allow space to remove the plate. Best of luck!

lcparker wrote:I've been trying to check the spare wheel in my 2007 Nuevo.  After finding my way to the mechanism and the tools I wound for quite a while but with no visible movement of the wheel either up or down.  I suspect the mechanism has corroded and isn't working at all.  Could it be that the cable has broken?  Is there a diagram of the mechanism?  
The wheel can currently wobble and spin on whatever supports it.  Should it be tight up to the chassis? 
I'm pretty sure the breakdown service wouldn't mess around with it and would probably just take the wheel away for repair/replacement.  I doubt I'd risk changing the wheel myself so I could just leave the wheel at home and save carting it around if I could get it off!
Any suggestions on what I could do with it? (tried shouting, cursing, shouting etc.!)

I had this problem when punctured and having to call out a mobile tire fitter when stuck on the road, he used a power tool to lower the wheel cage and then said that he would leave me with the damaged wheel inside the van and use cable ties to secure the cage in the meantime.I was happy with that as I obviously needed the puncture repaired.
When the tire was repaired the cage would not raise again as the power tool had stripped the threads on the winding mechanism and it cost me around £300 to replace it. (The f***** knew he had done it and suckered me well).
Good luck with it but be careful.

The first time I had to lower the spare every thing turned as it should but there was no movement of the wheel, the spare had basically welded itself to the floor of the motorhome, it took a great deal of hammering and banging to free it.

Now winding down the spare is part of the annual spring time commissioning.

On the subject though is there any way of lubricating the mechanism, its underneath and target for all of the road crap and I can see no way of getting grease or oil into it

1.  We had a 2007 Citroen Relay a while ago which was recalled by the manufacturer for an alteration to the spare wheel carrier.  I have no idea what was done, but it was free at the local dealership.  It might be worth checking with a dealer.

2.  We had a puncture on our current van (2009 Nuevo) and the spare wheel came down easily, suspended on a cable.

3.  If your spare wobbles and spins, that doesn't sound safe.

Good luck.

Nick

Update  ...
I've now had the garage remove the spare wheel carrier.  They ground off the rivets to examine the workings and found that the worm drive had been stripped (as happened with mcalid) presumably because someone used a power tool (picture below).  As one might expect it's not possible to just buy a new worm drive you have to buy the whole assembly at about £250!!  This raises a few questions  ...
1 - why on earth is it made of plastic?
2 - why isn't it made so you can take it apart for repair and buy only the parts you need?
3 - why isn't it made to be more robust and more accessible?
I know the answers of course - it's to increase profits.  
Incidentally the garage has done a brilliant job in sourcing the correct part.  The unit they originally sent was the wrong one and they eventually discovered that there are three or four different ones and some chassis' were fitted with different ones.  They are having to have one sent from Italy as they were out of stock in the UK!  Nothing is simple!

raymondo wrote:The first time I had to lower the spare every thing turned as it should but there was no movement of the wheel, the spare had basically welded itself to the floor of the motorhome, it took a great deal of hammering and banging to free it.

Now winding down the spare is part of the annual spring time commissioning.

On the subject though is there any way of lubricating the mechanism, its underneath and target for all of the road crap and I can see no way of getting grease or oil into it

 I really should lower the spare, just to check that when the repair man comes, it'll lower OK.

I've wondered about lubrication. I've sprayed WD40 but that won't help the enclosed mechanism.  Or is it the case that as it's plastic it doesn't need lubricating?  Anyone know what to do?

Cymro

We had this problem last year. It's a design fault. It's very easy to strip the cog even when winding it down manually. The whole weight of the wheel is held on a cable which has to be wound down and up on the cog. It's a good idea to lower and raise mechanism to keep the mechanism free at least twice a year. The whole weight of the wheel is suspended on a metal rope which means the weight is suspended on the cable as it's wound back up and clicked back into place. As it's under the vehicle towards the rear it's also prone to all the rubbish from the road getting into the mechanism. Not good.

After reading about this problem in previous posts I now ask the garage to check the mechanism as part of the annual service.

Cymro wrote:

raymondo wrote:The first time I had to lower the spare every thing turned as it should but there was no movement of the wheel, the spare had basically welded itself to the floor of the motorhome, it took a great deal of hammering and banging to free it.

Now winding down the spare is part of the annual spring time commissioning.

On the subject though is there any way of lubricating the mechanism, its underneath and target for all of the road crap and I can see no way of getting grease or oil into it

 I really should lower the spare, just to check that when the repair man comes, it'll lower OK.

I've wondered about lubrication. I've sprayed WD40 but that won't help the enclosed mechanism.  Or is it the case that as it's plastic it doesn't need lubricating?  Anyone know what to do?

Cymro

Don't know if its any benefit but I sprayed the cable with WD40 Lithium grease, and also the area around the winding mechanism - time will tell if this works......

Pnefan wrote:We had this problem last year. It's a design fault. It's very easy to strip the cog even when winding it down manually. The whole weight of the wheel is held on a cable which has to be wound down and up on the cog. It's a good idea to lower and raise mechanism to keep the mechanism free at least twice a year. The whole weight of the wheel is suspended on a metal rope which means the weight is suspended on the cable as it's wound back up and clicked back into place. As it's under the vehicle towards the rear it's also prone to all the rubbish from the road getting into the mechanism. Not good.

I also wind it down twice a year - even though it is a pain. However, its also a good thing to do to check the spare too.

A question: Has anyone considered doing away with the spare? Perhaps carry one of these squirty sealant can kits? Seems to me there would be a decent weight saving to have, especially as many say they wouldn't change the tyre at the roadside anyway.....

Our AS Suffolk on a Sprinter only had a squirty can and compressor. I deliberately sourced a spare wheel and mounted it on the towbar as a fail safe. Just as well because the compressor subsequently proved not capable of inflating to the pressure needed. Give me a real wheel every time even if I need to get the RAC to change it.

gpilky wrote:A question: Has anyone considered doing away with the spare? Perhaps carry one of these squirty sealant can kits? Seems to me there would be a decent weight saving to have, especially as many say they wouldn't change the tyre at the roadside anyway.....

I did consider it for going away next week before the new spare wheel carrier gets installed but my nerve failed me and I'll just carry it inside and store it underneath when I get to site!  

gpilky wrote:A question: Has anyone considered doing away with the spare? Perhaps carry one of these squirty sealant can kits? Seems to me there would be a decent weight saving to have, especially as many say they wouldn't change the tyre at the roadside anyway.....

If you use the squirty sealant you then need a new tyre or an inner tube when th epuncture is repaired!

inspiredron wrote:

gpilky wrote:A question: Has anyone considered doing away with the spare? Perhaps carry one of these squirty sealant can kits? Seems to me there would be a decent weight saving to have, especially as many say they wouldn't change the tyre at the roadside anyway.....

If you use the squirty sealant you then need a new tyre or an inner tube when th epuncture is repaired!

Yeh - I know...... if it is repairable at all. I have had 6 or 7 punctures in our various cars and only 1 time was it repairable, so my assumption is a new tyre is likely needed anyway. Also, my spare has never been used, and it would save me £100+ if I didn't replace it!

Obvious downside is the loss of the 'safety blanket' that carrying a spare gives.

Tinwheeler wrote:Our AS Suffolk on a Sprinter only had a squirty can and compressor. I deliberately sourced a spare wheel and mounted it on the towbar as a fail safe. Just as well because the compressor subsequently proved not capable of inflating to the pressure needed. Give me a real wheel every time even if I need to get the RAC to change it.

Useful information - thanks. I carry a tyre inflator anyway, so I guess I'd only need the squirty can? I guess I need to check this option out a bit more.......

gpilky wrote:

Tinwheeler wrote:Our AS Suffolk on a Sprinter only had a squirty can and compressor. I deliberately sourced a spare wheel and mounted it on the towbar as a fail safe. Just as well because the compressor subsequently proved not capable of inflating to the pressure needed. Give me a real wheel every time even if I need to get the RAC to change it.

Useful information - thanks. I carry a tyre inflator anyway, so I guess I'd only need the squirty can? I guess I need to check this option out a bit more.......

It pays to consider all angles. Here's ours - easily accessible. Fortunately we already had the towbar and a local man fabricated the bracket. The wheel was secured with a bike lock.

If you use  a ready spare can  read the instructions ,    as the vehicle speed  may be significantly  restricted  .

That gear cog of Icparker looks as if it could be made on a 3D printer  . .