Are we getting lazy.

I have repaired many damaged Sill's caused by incorrect use of jacks , also can be dangerous on un even and hilly roads , it can be a nightmare to remove a wheel these days as they seize on the hub as they are not removed on service .if in doubt get em out .
 
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My new VW only came with goop and a compressor. The first thing I bought was a space saver wheel and a jack. I’ve yet to get a puncture that could be solved with a sealant. Mind you, the tyres fitted are “puncture resistant” so the literature says.

The MH also didn’t come with a spare, only goo and a compressor, but I didn’t fancy getting stuck in the middle of nowhere without anything so I also have a spare wheel for it. I don’t have a jack I’ll happily wait for the breakdown service to come and change it for me - I really don’t fancy jacking up 4 tonnes on a scissor jack.
 
Biggarmac said:
I gave my trolley jack to a neighbour as I will always call the assistance. I know how to change a wheel, but won't.
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This is the key point I think. Knowing how to do something is always good. The desire to do it is another matter entirely and no reason to get judged on for it.

I have taken off the wheels on my van numerous times when at home and used my Trolley Jack (and have removed hundreds of wheels in my time). But I certainly don't carry a trolley jack around with me and if I did have a puncture on the road I would likely engage assistance as I am wary of the standard issue bottle jack.
If I am wary of that, should I not carry a better one I hear people ask? no, as I can call ADAC :)


SimonM said:
My new VW only came with goop and a compressor. The first thing I bought was a space saver wheel and a jack. I’ve yet to get a puncture that could be solved with a sealant. Mind you, the tyres fitted are “puncture resistant” so the literature says.

The MH also didn’t come with a spare, only goo and a compressor, but I didn’t fancy getting stuck in the middle of nowhere without anything so I also have a spare wheel for it. I don’t have a jack I’ll happily wait for the breakdown service to come and change it for me - I really don’t fancy jacking up 4 tonnes on a scissor jack.
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Same here for my Citroen DS5 and my current Vauxhall. Spare Wheels seem to be becoming a rariety on new cars and not a trend I go for.
Even if someone isn't in a position to change a wheel themselves, having one means someone else could help.
 
Molly 3 said:
I have repaired many damaged Sill's caused by incorrect use of jacks , also can be dangerous on un even and hilly roads , it can be a nightmare to remove a wheel these days as they seize on the hub as they are not removed on service .if in doubt get em out .
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Never jack cars/vans up on sills,use the suspension x member etc ,first thing i do with scissor jacks is scrap them,i carry a small hyd jack in a case with some wood blocks and a extending wheel brace.
The places i go breakdown services would never find me in a week,punctures are common here as farmers cut spiky hedges leaving much laying on the road,i have had two in one day.
 
Technology might be a little different and less mission critical in a Cessna, but I get your point, I probably could too.

I don’t think we should berate others for not having a few skills we grew up with.

I bet our Grandparents thought similar things about us.
 
Some years ago I had a blowout on the M25, so me and my Robert are on the hard shoulder, not the safest place on the planet! Gets my triangle out and for the sympathy vote, my husbands wheelchair, I then proceeded to change the front nearside in stages, waiting for gaps between the trucks, as they were rattling the van some. Now on most motorways, and especially the M25, no mercy is shown to anyone stranded on the hard shoulder, and I wanted to be on my way as soon as possible. So I successfully changed the wheel and threw everything back in the van to tidy up later. Came off the motorway at the next junction and managed to find a tyre shop to replace the blown out tyre. Just as an aside, two police vehicles passed us and failed to stop, which I thought was a bit off!
 
helen262 said:
Good luck with them when you have a blowout
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Since 1961 I have driven hundreds of thousands of miles in many different types of vehicles, including HVG's, punctures less than 20, blow outs zero, front wheel complete with stub axle sailing off in front of me 1. when I purchased the van with 70,000 Km Approx 44,000 miles on the clock the spare had never been used... I'll be quite happy to wait a few hrs for recovery to come and sort it out. :)
 
trevskoda said:
You sound like my brother who has never donned a brush or hung a sheet of wall paper,these are lifes basic skills which all girls will want you to do through out married life as they change the decor at a whim.:eek:
My brother has had to do double shifts for years to pay others to do it and now in ill heath doing so.
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I and many of my friends are the ones who do the painting/wallpapering at home....I am better at DIY than my husband - and I keep my tools well hidden - as if he borrows them - they get 'lost' on the farm...
 
I was sat outside a pub when a lady drove past with her rear wheel wobbling away on one stud, she'd lost a nut at the pub in front of where we were sat, so we picked the nut up & another one, ran to where she'd abandoned her car & I lifted the rear corner while my mate put the 2 nuts back on & sort of tightened them up with a shifting spanner.

I would have loved to have seen her face when she got back to it:D.

I carry an SGS 2 ton trolley jack & a Makita 3/4" impact wrench (up to 1400 ft/lbs of torque) a couple of beefy wooden blocks & a knee pad.

Phill
 
When I had a blowout last year I. The van I couldn’t find the wheel brace I had put in so called breakdown.

When he arrived shortly after I soon realised I would never have got the old wheel off myself. He had a what I thought was a decent length of bar but had to get a longer one out his van to crack the studs. The repair guy was young and a lot stronger/fitter than me as well.

The two punctures I have had on cars on the Kane’s around where I live have both been cut sidewalls which the gunk and compressor you get for a spare won’t do anything with.

I know how to do quite a lot of things that I no longer do fir one reason or another but in my case it isn’t because I am lazy.

A lot of the young ones now seem to know it care for little though I agree and the lack of knowledge can be scary at times. That of course is a generalisation and there are young uns very capable but I believe in less numbers as each generation passes
 
When the electricity and all communications fail, there will be many, many things that we all thought everyone could/should be able to do that most will not have a clue where to start with - progress?...........
 
Hi all well I had a flat tyre 3 months ago. Jack out old tyre off. Got new tyre by whwEel. Then lifted in to studs. No sorry tried to lift it on to studs. In the end I had to give up and called a friend to help. I now realise that I am not as strong as I used to be. Even so when I told wife that I could not lift tyre. She said. Should not of tried. Should call out the aa. So when you see someone waiting for the aa man. Bear in mind that they might have a disability or something
 
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