None ever come with Space Savers,

only spares that were 195/55 R 15 which saves a bit of space, well is not as high say as a 205 or 215 tyre on a wheel.

10 hours ago, georgef said:

My car has a full size steel wheel with a 185/60 x 15 Nexen tyre fitted. The wheel has a yellow sticker on it indicating a speed restriction.

That's interesting George. I've just been out to my drive and checked the loan car MK3 which interestingly is the SEL with the 16" alloys and full size steel spare and there's no speed restriction on the wheel! Is that an error?  My own SE has the full size spare and again no speed restriction on that either. 

 

Headingawayoffski, it's clear that anyone would want to treat any spare wheel with respect and with regard to the points you make,  but the OP is talking about a car with 15" std wheels on it. Any full size spare for that car will not have an official/mandatory speed restriction. 

 

 

 

 

^^^ Which is why when no big Yellow Sticker with 80 kmh / 50 MPH drivers should maybe think, 

i do not know the pressure of this tyres, the tread is brand new and the tyre maybe years old, best drive this fresh unscrubbed tyre carefully,

it does not match the other 3 right now.

 

Space Saver Tyre - Temporary Use Spare Tyres _ RACQ.mhtml

 

Some have the stickers some do not and they are the same steel wheels and 195/55 R 15 tyres.

Edited 9 November, 20178 yr by Headinawayoffski

My 2012 Fabia is just the same - not sure if it's a sticker or very tenacious paint!

Must be VAG covering their backsides?

Indeed it is a sensible arse covering exercise. From the practical point of view a full size steel wheel with the normal speed rated tyre for that vehicle will make no noticeable difference in normal driving. However, observe any speed restriction markings on the wheel (I don't have any on my full size spare and have never had a speed restriction shown on any of my car spare wheels when it's been full size), but otherwise if no label Just treat the tyre of any new spare wheel as a 'new tyre' to allow it to 'run in' and then your good to go, as in normal driving! But bear in mind it is a temporary full size spare and get the right wheel back on as soon as possible. If you have large alloys of different rim and tyre size to the spare you've just put on there may be some more noticeable handling differences. But not on the OP's car which has the same size wheels and tyres all round. 

Edited 10 November, 20178 yr by Estate Man

Same size, maybe different brand, different compound, different wheel weight, different pressure, some ar3e covering is just using common sense.

I ordered  a spare wheele for my SEL 90 but it has a speed restricted sticker. All the wheels on the car have direction of rotation arrows so can only be swapped back to front and obviously the spare has to fitt any wheel this may be why it’s speed restricted plus it has never been driven on yet. Joe

And that makes perfect sense Joe. The SEL parked on my drive also has rotational arrows on the tyres and is for sure why there is a speed restriction on the spare which doesn't have these rotational restrictions. However, the spare in the boot on the SEL on my drive does not have a speed restriction sticker on it. I think that is a mistake! My own car does not have rotational arrows on the tyres and also does not have any speed restriction shown on the spare. My own car has the 15" Mato alloys and the spare is a full size steel spare of the same size, same tyre etc. Even the air in the tyre is the same type...lol!

The law is simple - if the spare tyre is not the same diameter, width and aspect ratio as the tyres on the car then if the spare is fitted the car is limited to 80kph (50mph).  For example, my spare is 205/55-16 which is very close in overall diameter to the fitted 225/40-18, but using the spare still limits the car to 50mph.

Not to make a whole scientific study out of the spare wheel topic, but if its the small "wheelbarrow" spare, as I call it, then that is of course speed limited.

Otherwise, if its the full sized wheel, than it can handle any speed that it was designed for, as if it were on the car with delivery. You just need some caution if the dimensions of the spare rim/tire combo are not the same (but the total size should be +/- 1%) as the other 3 wheels on the car.

 

Rotation arrows... My Mk3 was delivered with Bridgestone B250 tires, which also dont have rotation arrows, because the tire is "rotation neutral". Meaning that the thread pattern is designed that way, so you can flip the tire however you want, and the thread profile stays the same or very similar. 

And my spare wheel was a full sized steel rim, exactly the same dimensions as the wheels on the car, and with the same tire. I had no speed stickers on it, because it was an exact copy of the fitted wheels, so I can swap it on either side and I am good to go. Actually had to do that just 3 days after delivery because I ran over a nail with the front left wheel... :(

 

Speed stickers generally shouldnt be applied if the spare is an exact copy of the fitted wheels. But if you have some 16/17" alloys on, and a 15" spare steel wheel, than it would be smart to warn the driver via stickers, not to drive too "spirited", since a different wheel/tire combo can compromise handling/stability at higher speeds. But in reality it shouldnt be a problem if the width/rim dimensions differ, since it will only be used to get you around until you can fix the bad tire. But I guess that some dealers dont want to risk anything and rather put the stickers on. So the stickers on the full sized spare wheel are not because the wheel couldnt handle it, but because it can compromise handling/stability of the car if its not exactly the same as the fitted wheels, so its advised not to race with it.

 

I am still driving with my spare wheel on, and it goes like a champ. The word "spare" gives it a negative label, like its something bad, when in my case its exactly the same wheel as the rest of the bunch on the car. I have now already put winter rubber on all 5 wheels, so the spare will also be useful in winter. And I will leave the winter tire on, so it can be used in any road condition (summer/winter). I will also keep this wheel (175/70r14) as a spare when I put 15" alloys on the car in spring. 

 

And if some of you also have the spare wheel exactly the same as those fitted on the car, than you also dont need spees stickers on it. If everything is the same (rim/tire combo) and if the rubber is not too old, it will naturally "break-in" like any other tire via normal driving, if there is a new tire on the spare.

So unless you are going to fit the full size spare wheel and go on a track day, chances are you wont even notice much (or any) difference.

Just make sure to check on it once in a while if the pressure is good, and if it is in good condition, while its is sitting in the trunk, waiting for its turn to shine. 

 

Cheers.

 

Edited 11 November, 20178 yr by Recretos