Technical Tyre repair kit

[TonyM67]

I’ve just picked up a 2016 Trekking Twinair , I’m hoping to get the spare wheel kit for it , but in the meantime it has the tyre repair kit in it .
The kit appears to have bits missing though, I had trouble working out exactly what’s missing,any insights would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Herts Hillhopper]

I’ve just picked up a 2016 Trekking Twinair , I’m hoping to get the spare wheel kit for it , but in the meantime it has the tyre repair kit in it .
The kit appears to have bits missing though, I had trouble working out exactly what’s missing,any insights would be greatly appreciated.

The tyre stuff is there: the bottle on the right screws into the pump on the left to inject goo which (sometimes) seals a puncture. You can use the pump without the bottle as a regular pump too.

One thing I can see missing is the metal towing eye, the ‘ring’ end of which should be over the small raised bit towards the top of your photo. And also there should be a small grey funnel (black if a diesel) that allows you to use a fuel can to fill the tank. And a black-handled screwdriver with reversible blade for slot and cross-head screws.

Oh, and the ‘key’ for any locking wheel nuts.

That polystyrene tray doesn’t look like the one an earlier Panda of mine had (current one has a spare wheel)…. The tray in mine was round, filling the wheel-shaped ‘well’ in the boot. Has the design changed, or is what you have actually from a different car (does the pump have a Fiat label on it?

 

[Herts Hillhopper]

Here’s the bits that appear to be missing (mines a 4x4 so the towing eye is longer than standard - owing to the deeper bumpers on that model - but you’ll get the idea)

(Edit: yours is a Trekking so in fact it will have that longer towing eye)

 

[TonyM67]

The tyre stuff is there: the bottle on the right screws into the pump on the left to inject goo which (sometimes) seals a puncture. You can use the pump without the bottle as a regular pump too.

One thing I can see missing is the metal towing eye, the ‘ring’ end of which should be over the small raised bit towards the top of your photo. And also there should be a small grey funnel (black if a diesel) that allows you to use a fuel can to fill the tank. And a black-handled screwdriver with reversible blade for slot and cross-head screws.

Oh, and the ‘key’ for any locking wheel nuts.

That polystyrene tray doesn’t look like the one an earlier Panda of mine had (current one has a spare wheel)…. The tray in mine was round, filling the wheel-shaped ‘well’ in the boot. Has the design changed, or is what you have actually from a different car (does the pump have a Fiat label on it?

I’ve just had a good look at the tray and it’s got a VW logo on the back, could well explain why there isn’t a funnel or tow hook.
looks like I can get the spare wheel with jack and most of the bits for about £100 from eBay.
Just waiting to hear if my local Fiat breakers has the bits for less .

 

[Panda IIs]

I’ve just had a good look at the tray and it’s got a VW logo on the back, could well explain why there isn’t a funnel or tow hook.
looks like I can get the spare wheel with jack and most of the bits for about £100 from eBay.
Just waiting to hear if my local Fiat breakers has the bits for less .

I do understand the "nice to have feeling" that a spare and a jack gives you, I felt sceptical of the "pump and goo" solution when I first got my 4x4TA but the frequency of punctures these days really doesn't warrant carrying all that stuff around plus, more significantly, the risks associated with a roadside wheel swap definitely don't warrant it.

In my ownership 6 or 7 years now the Panda has had one puncture - on the drive. I have never (never say never ) had a puncture in my Volvo 940 in 20+ years nor in a MERC E class estate that also passed through my ownership for 10 years. Needless to say tyres are replaced before hitting the tyre wear indicators and pressures checked etc.

As a cyclist, tubeless "pump and goo" solutions are currently fashionable and work well (in my experience) I have also owned a Mini with the original Denovo run-flats which never had to (run flat).

My point is, I guess, is the likelihood of a puncture is statistically quite low even with the proliferation of potholes at the moment.

 

[TonyM67]

I do understand the "nice to have feeling" that a spare and a jack gives you, I felt sceptical of the "pump and goo" solution when I first got my 4x4TA but the frequency of punctures these days really doesn't warrant carrying all that stuff around plus, more significantly, the risks associated with a roadside wheel swap definitely don't warrant it.

In my ownership 6 or 7 years now the Panda has had one puncture - on the drive. I have never (never say never ) had a puncture in my Volvo 940 in 20+ years nor in a MERC E class estate that also passed through my ownership for 10 years. Needless to say tyres are replaced before hitting the tyre wear indicators and pressures checked etc.

As a cyclist, tubeless "pump and goo" solutions are currently fashionable and work well (in my experience) I have also owned a Mini with the original Denovo run-flats which never had to (run flat).

My point is, I guess, is the likelihood of a puncture is statistically quite low even with the proliferation of potholes at the moment.

I have been thinking about putting fresh tyre repair stuff in the car instead of a spare tyre ,but either the tray that goes where the spare wheel sits is hard to get hold of or Google isn’t being very helpful, but I couldn’t even find a photo of one

 

[Panda IIs]

I have been thinking about putting fresh tyre repair stuff in the car instead of a spare tyre ,but either the tray that goes where the spare wheel sits is hard to get hold of or Google isn’t being very helpful, but I couldn’t even find a photo of one

When I got my 4x4 second-hand via Arnold Clarke "up north" it had been robbed of various bits and pieces for (presumably) other S/H cars they had sold on so the tyre repair kit I have is bagged and sits under the passenger seat (pump and goo) at least I think it is still there! I assumed that this was an after market kit that they were forced to source. The bag has the hooky side of velcro attached to it so it "clings" to the carpet under the seat. The car was also missing rear head restraints and parcel shelf when I viewed it. I think the "spare wheel" well may have the expanded polystyrene thingy but certainly nothing in it - I might be moved to go and check in the morning!

 

[Herts Hillhopper]

I’ve just had a good look at the tray and it’s got a VW logo on the back, could well explain why there isn’t a funnel or tow hook.
looks like I can get the spare wheel with jack and most of the bits for about £100 from eBay.
Just waiting to hear if my local Fiat breakers has the bits for less .

Just watch out that the wheel and jack are for the Trekking/4x4 models, not the ‘lesser’ Pandas. The Trekking and 4x4 sit higher off the road, so use a taller jack (that won’t fit in the boot), and a larger diameter 15” spare (that will fit the boot, just). There’s an older thread about all that somewhere - I’ll try and find the link. My 4x4 has the spare, the jack and all the other loose bits go in a Fiat-supplied bag that hides under the passenger seat and is velcroed in place.

Edit: the older post is here:
Post in thread 'panda 4x4 toolkit'
https://www.fiatforum.com/threads/panda-4x4-toolkit.329490/post-4199685

 

[TonyM67]

Just watch out that the wheel and jack are for the Trekking/4x4 models, not the ‘lesser’ Pandas. The Trekking and 4x4 sit higher off the road, so use a taller jack (that won’t fit in the boot), and a larger diameter 15” spare (that will fit the boot, just). There’s an older thread about all that somewhere - I’ll try and find the link. My 4x4 has the spare, the jack and all the other loose bits go in a Fiat-supplied bag that hides under the passenger seat and is velcroed in place.

Edit: the older post is here:
Post in thread 'panda 4x4 toolkit'
https://www.fiatforum.com/threads/panda-4x4-toolkit.329490/post-4199685

Just watch out that the wheel and jack are for the Trekking/4x4 models, not the ‘lesser’ Pandas. The Trekking and 4x4 sit higher off the road, so use a taller jack (that won’t fit in the boot), and a larger diameter 15” spare (that will fit the boot, just). There’s an older thread about all that somewhere - I’ll try and find the link. My 4x4 has the spare, the jack and all the other loose bits go in a Fiat-supplied bag that hides under the passenger seat and is velcroed in place.

Edit: the older post is here:
Post in thread 'panda 4x4 toolkit'
https://www.fiatforum.com/threads/panda-4x4-toolkit.329490/post-4199685

 

[TonyM67]

Thanks for the input, I’ve decided to go with just sealant and pump.
Had to order some new sealant, as the one the car wasn’t just the wrong one for the car it had expired as well .

 

[The Panda Nut]

Dealers seem to throw out old ones when selling second hand. Madness.

 

[Herts Hillhopper]

Dealers seem to throw out old ones when selling second hand. Madness.

I suspect it's the previous owners keeping them when they got for trade in... for some reason

 

[Herts Hillhopper]

....the frequency of punctures these days really doesn't warrant carrying all that stuff around plus, more significantly, the risks associated with a roadside wheel swap definitely don't warrant it...

I have found one good use for the Panda's space saver spare though... for my Land Rover Defender!

I wanted to replace the Landy's brake fluid and have the Gunson one-man kit which uses the pressure of a spare tyre to push new fluid through. But that needs the spare to be dropped to 10psi (and, crucially, pumped back up again in afterwards). The big tyres of the Landy take days to re-inflate with a little 12v pump, so I used the Panda's spare instead. That still took a while to pump up again, but at least it did get there.

 

[Steveetee55]

Mine has a spare wheel but i carry a plug kit soapy water in a spray bottle and 12 volt compressor for longer journeys