Second Stolen Spare - Beware!

[StephenM]

Looks like the theiving gits have been at it again - second spare gone within a year in what is a safe area to park - can only assume passers by think the scumbag relieving me of a spare is actually legit!

The weakpoint as confirmed by dealer when first wheel went walkies is that by letting air from tyre the sticky fingered chav can drop down the wheel carrier, bypassing the need to unscrew from inside the boot - handy (actually the saleman at the dealer said I was lucky as the picasso has tools in wheel too - indeed I may even put numbers on as I am blessed with luck )

Anyway, got new wheel and fitted it valve side up - that will fool the wee gits (decided against a lock as it may invite damage to wheel holder from frustration) - 6 months later wheel leaves berlingo for probaby 10 squid down the pub!

Now having tested it 'valve in' only 2 ways they could have got it... 1) sheer brute force by 2 folk to get the whole wheel pushed further up into the recess or 2) slashing the tyre out of maliciousness to release it - unlikely but possible!

Citroen really need to sort this out - if you are a blingo owner 'beware the spare' - now its off to the scrappies as I aint giving citroen cash for a new wheel, would go to adtrader but I may end up buying back my wheel!


To finish it off some wee chavs (I reckon of the tracksuited burberry variety) thought it funny to hurl fireworks at the car when I went through a less savoury part of glasgow - end result, 2 dents and gouged paint on roof as well as dipcoating removed from part of roof bar

...hangings too good...

[Terry1100]

[quote]Citroen really need to sort this out [/quote]

Absolutely, this is a massive probblem on the Picasso as well. Wheel and tyre runs you over £75 and it's been going on a long time.

What's worse is that Citroen are fully aware and have a "security kit" which they will supply free if you whinge a lot but is not cheap otherwise. My brother in law has it on their Picaso but I understand it's a "single use" lock. I'll have to look at that as it doesn't make much sense to me.

My solution on all our Citroens is a steel "tow sling" which you might be able to blag from a nearby AA or RAC man and a waterproof padlock.

[Albert]

A BX wheel will fit, as long as you have 14 inch wheels, I've got one in the shed if your in Lancashire, I think the tyre is legal too. Yours for nowt!

[PhilW]

"What's worse is that Citroen are fully aware and have a "security kit" which they will supply free if you whinge a lot but is not cheap otherwise. My brother in law has it on their Picaso but I understand it's a "single use" lock"

My Bling has a "security bolt" which is basically a (rather crudely) drilled hole in the boot floor through which a long bolt goes through to the wheel and bolts it to the boot floor so that even if you were to remove the tray the spare stays there. I'm just trying to remember how the bolt is secured to the spare but I can't! Some type of threaded plate - I'm sure you could fabricate it yourself so if you need an exact description I could check tomorrow in daylight!

[StephenM]

Unfortunatly its a 15" wheel and no local scrappy has such a thing (probably due to other berlingo owners!) I have written a letter to citroen UK so will see what the come back with - dont feel I should have to fork out for a second wheel due to what is a design fault with the car.

I am thinking of wiring up the wheel holder to the battery so that the theiving chavs get a wee fright B)

May look at a bike lock that can be secured onto part of the car - must be one of the cheapest and hassle free options.

[DickieG]

Steve, if you can't find one at the breakers why not buy a new wheel then go to the local tyre fitters and get a tyre from the scrap pile which has just enough tread left on it to be legal, total cost under £30.

Thieves are unlikely to nick the wheel if it has no value. What you could also do is to then paint the tyre some ghastly colour = value in the pub NIL!!

If your front tyres are nearing replacement then put one of those as the spare then rotate the new/old tyre combination to the rear.

At present, I would swap places with you for Berlingo misfortune. I went to Wicks yesterday, parked My Berlingo on the far side of the car park well away from the trolley park and other cars......... Yes, I returned to it to find one of their large trolleys used to carry sheet materials embedded in my N/S/R door scratching the paint and putting FIVE :o sizeable dents in the door. NOT a happy bunny B)

[StephenM]

The second spare that was nicked was a scrappy special - only enough tread to be legal and rusty wheel too... these scumbags will nick anything!

I sympathise with your dent situation - I got a massive dent (not just a ding) in the passanger door from a visit to the dealer (only noticed when I got home) add this to a keyed front wing (done at local supermarket) and 2 dents, 1 with about 1" paint gone from fireworks thrown at the roof and my blingo is a bit battle scarred.

Peevs me off as I really look after my car - a trip to bodyshop will sort these wounds out and have the blingo looking good for round 2 with the thoughtless and malicious gits B)

[DickieG]

Great isn't it? You look after your car and despite everything you try to keep it 'like new' it gets damaged.

I'm surprised about your spare being nicked with so little tread left, you'll have to spray your next one pink with yellow stripes!!

[Brilec]

This issue has been a problem on all Citroen and Peugeot cars for years. In fact for all those with the spare hung under the car.
My old 405 had its spare stolen when with the first owner. He had the wire carrier reinforced with19mm steel angle , so that it would no longer bend or spring. He, and I, have had no further problems since.

The other thing is to ensure that the hook which locates on the frame is done up completely, so that the treaded bolt locks the frame into the hook. Otherwise the frame can be sprung out of the hook and the wheel released. Then the frame is just hooked back up and you don't notice until you need the spare.