Tyre Troubles
Our first long trip with the new conversion was to Namibia. We had no fixed plan and we were travelling with a niece, from England. As mentioned, in these early days of gadgets and frames, the beast was at her heaviest. She sat well down on her haunches loaded with 4 batteries, jerry cans, fridges, provisions and 3 people. The new tyres were Dunlop All Terrain and we had 4 new tyres on the wheels and 2 new spares hanging over the back tailgate. Little did we know that tyres were going to be one of our major expenses on the trip. We would eventually limp home with 3 good tyres and 3 full of holes, having bought 3 more brand new tyres en route. Thats a total of 9 tyres in 2 months! A record by any standards.
How not to choose the right tyres
The weight of the over loaded Beast and the Namibian roads are a test for any tyre. Namibia is king at testing the make of your tyre. The sharp stones can carve through multiple layers of rubber and canvas like a knife through butter. The tyre can be heard hissing and popping as it deflates and the car becomes difficult to control.
The side walls of the tyre should have at least 3 layers making them a bit stiff but less likely to puncture. The tread should be thick, closely packed and tough, protecting the inner casing from puncture. The Dunlops had weak side walls, the tread allowed stones through to the tyres and the tread was soft. The weight, gravel roads and soft tread pitted and chipped the tread in no time at all. Needless to say we soon learnt how to change a tyre. The first time took us 2 and half hours, trying to work out which way up the high lift jack went, and now we can do it in 20 minutes. Practice does not make perfect but you get better at it.
I have spoken to many people about tyres. A man who drove gravel roads all his life says BF Goodrich is what he uses but expect the tyres to only last 25 000 to 35 000 kilometres on rough gravel roads. So plan to buy two new tyres a year. The all terrain tyres are more robust in different road conditions but many prefer mud terrain tyres. These are undoubtedly superior in sand and mud but for me the disadvantages of mud terrain are the noise on tar and the fact that the thick treads are too soft and chip badly on gravel roads so they also do not last as well in these conditions. As you cannot guarantee only one type of road surface on a trip rather prepare with the best for all.
I bought BF Goodrich All Terrain tyres which are widely available throughout Southern Africa and I have been much happier since then. Once you get into East Africa you will find South African and Chinese Tyres
How not to change a tyre
Our first tyre change was after 400 kilometres as we sped down the back roads of the South African highveld. The near side back tyre hissed and the car car veered onto the left camber. I ran around and found the tools and keys to start the tyre change. The spare tyres were wrapped in brand new black tyre covers. They were very dusty and taking them off transferred most of this to me . The padlock preventing the tyre from being stolen was also filled with dust and needed DW 40 to get the key to turn, nearly no spare tyres at all. Twenty minutes and we had the spare off the back.
The highlift jack was deployed and we earnestly read the safety precautions and instruction booklet. We raised the car to the full height of the jack to find the wheel was still touching the ground despite the car tilting precariously in the opposite direction. The air suspension was released but there was still a problem. I applied the axle jack to compress the suspension and get the wheel off the ground. A stone was embedded in the tyre casing, the first casualty of the trip. Despite 2 jacks I still found the wheel hub was too low to accept the spare. The car was now tilted so far I was scared it was going to topple over. I did a Mr Bean and dug a hole in the road, with a spade, so the tyre could slide on. Now you know where all the potholes in the highveld come from! I realised that part of the problem was that the jacks were on soft material and the weight of the car was slowly pushing the jacks into the soil. I did not know what a jack plate was at this time, now we never travel without one. It doubles as a hot plate for the fire!. On this first sweat soaked enterprise I was so relieved to get the tyre on I forgot to tighten the wheel nuts properly. So more self inflicted misery was around the corner (next blog).
I now use a wheel hook on a high lift jack to lift the car, axle and wheel. I then deploy the axle jack with little sweat. Release the high lift jack and remove the wheel. In soft soil I will always use a jack plate
Why tyre covers are for people who drive around cities.
The tyre covers get covered in dust and the dust gets inside the tyre cover. You take the tyre cover off and get covered in dust. They should be called dust retainers. They really keep nothing clean. The very first thing we ditched were the wheel covers or, as I call them, dust retainers.
I would suggest a dust cover if the tyre is inside, to keep the dust from the tyre off other provisions. Otherwise leave it behind, less weight and less dust but it does not look so "cool". If that matters to you we will say no more.
How not to choose the right tyres
The weight of the over loaded Beast and the Namibian roads are a test for any tyre. Namibia is king at testing the make of your tyre. The sharp stones can carve through multiple layers of rubber and canvas like a knife through butter. The tyre can be heard hissing and popping as it deflates and the car becomes difficult to control.
The side walls of the tyre should have at least 3 layers making them a bit stiff but less likely to puncture. The tread should be thick, closely packed and tough, protecting the inner casing from puncture. The Dunlops had weak side walls, the tread allowed stones through to the tyres and the tread was soft. The weight, gravel roads and soft tread pitted and chipped the tread in no time at all. Needless to say we soon learnt how to change a tyre. The first time took us 2 and half hours, trying to work out which way up the high lift jack went, and now we can do it in 20 minutes. Practice does not make perfect but you get better at it.
I have spoken to many people about tyres. A man who drove gravel roads all his life says BF Goodrich is what he uses but expect the tyres to only last 25 000 to 35 000 kilometres on rough gravel roads. So plan to buy two new tyres a year. The all terrain tyres are more robust in different road conditions but many prefer mud terrain tyres. These are undoubtedly superior in sand and mud but for me the disadvantages of mud terrain are the noise on tar and the fact that the thick treads are too soft and chip badly on gravel roads so they also do not last as well in these conditions. As you cannot guarantee only one type of road surface on a trip rather prepare with the best for all.
I bought BF Goodrich All Terrain tyres which are widely available throughout Southern Africa and I have been much happier since then. Once you get into East Africa you will find South African and Chinese Tyres
How not to change a tyre
Our first tyre change was after 400 kilometres as we sped down the back roads of the South African highveld. The near side back tyre hissed and the car car veered onto the left camber. I ran around and found the tools and keys to start the tyre change. The spare tyres were wrapped in brand new black tyre covers. They were very dusty and taking them off transferred most of this to me . The padlock preventing the tyre from being stolen was also filled with dust and needed DW 40 to get the key to turn, nearly no spare tyres at all. Twenty minutes and we had the spare off the back.
The highlift jack was deployed and we earnestly read the safety precautions and instruction booklet. We raised the car to the full height of the jack to find the wheel was still touching the ground despite the car tilting precariously in the opposite direction. The air suspension was released but there was still a problem. I applied the axle jack to compress the suspension and get the wheel off the ground. A stone was embedded in the tyre casing, the first casualty of the trip. Despite 2 jacks I still found the wheel hub was too low to accept the spare. The car was now tilted so far I was scared it was going to topple over. I did a Mr Bean and dug a hole in the road, with a spade, so the tyre could slide on. Now you know where all the potholes in the highveld come from! I realised that part of the problem was that the jacks were on soft material and the weight of the car was slowly pushing the jacks into the soil. I did not know what a jack plate was at this time, now we never travel without one. It doubles as a hot plate for the fire!. On this first sweat soaked enterprise I was so relieved to get the tyre on I forgot to tighten the wheel nuts properly. So more self inflicted misery was around the corner (next blog).
I now use a wheel hook on a high lift jack to lift the car, axle and wheel. I then deploy the axle jack with little sweat. Release the high lift jack and remove the wheel. In soft soil I will always use a jack plate
Why tyre covers are for people who drive around cities.
The tyre covers get covered in dust and the dust gets inside the tyre cover. You take the tyre cover off and get covered in dust. They should be called dust retainers. They really keep nothing clean. The very first thing we ditched were the wheel covers or, as I call them, dust retainers.
I would suggest a dust cover if the tyre is inside, to keep the dust from the tyre off other provisions. Otherwise leave it behind, less weight and less dust but it does not look so "cool". If that matters to you we will say no more.