Windsor rear wheel removal - How ??

Morning all,

I need to remove the passenger side rear wheel of my A/S Windsor. My concern is how I clear the bodywork and where I put the jack. Do I put the jack under the axle or do I need to jack the chassis up thereby effectively dropping the rear axle and providing more clearance.
I realise that I can go to either Ford or a tyre specialist to resolve my immediate problem, but when touring Europe in remote areas I may have no choice but to do it myself.
So, Please has anyone either done it or know how to do it ?

Thanks Mike

Hi Mike,
I dont know if your van is the same as our series 1 Peugoet, but on ours there is a jacking point just in front of the rear spring, this consists of abracket with a hole in it to take the pin on the scissor jack supplied with the van this will jack up the body leaving the axle hanging and providing clearance to remove the wheel.

Brian2

Thanks Brian, ours is based on the Mk7 Ford Transit which has studs rather then bolts for the wheel therefore needing even more clearance, but I guess the general principle applies. Mike

I had a Wilton but fortunatly never had to jack it. It was deliverd with a fabricated steel plinth, about 6" high, on which to place the ford supplied jack under the ford specified jacking point. This wasn't the best solution as you really need to lift the body away from the axle to to get the rear wheels out of the wheel arch. All such wheels I've heard of being removed were done with two trolley jacks and a lot of care.

The wheel can I'm sure be removed with the standard kit and a bit of ingenuity but with my heart condition, I wouldn't have tried.

Peter

Touch wood Mike we havnt had to remove ours either and got the same set up as Peter did when they had the Wilton. There isnt a lot of space so I understand your concern.

We had call to use the AA when we had the Executive and they used 2 trolley jacks one under the axle and the other under a spring mount with an adaptor thingy on to allow safe lifting,to lift the body

No idea why they issue us with a scissor jack as no way is it "fit for purpose" due to the extra weight we put into our M/Hs. I bought a small bottle jack and have tried it but "Hopefully" I won't have to use it.

Morning All,

I have taken note of your comments and have booked my Windsor in tomorrow at my local Ford motorhome designated main dealer to change the rear tyre for the new spare. Cost £35+ Vat.
I also have an odd problem with the reversing light. Vehicle facing downhill on a slope, engage reverse, all ok. Vehicle on the level or facing uphill, engage reverse and the reversing light does not work.
Thoughts are :- 1. Intermittant fault on gearbox switch, caused by vehicle pointing either uphill or downhill.
2. Wiring done by A/S is to tight and position of suspension causes a wire to make or break.
Ford investigating - will post results in due course.

Regards Mike

Afternoon All,

Just an update on the wheel removal and reverse light fault.

The body work looks well away from the wheel but the inner wheel arch on my wagon is only 1 inch clearance from the tyre. Ford main dealer swopped wheels @ £35.

Reverse light failure.

Fault was that the Autosleeper wiring too tight as mentioned by other owners. The wiring chaffed against the chassis and eventually rubbed through causing an intermittant short circuit dependant on position of van i.e. uphill or downhill, this then caused the failure of the reverse switch in gearbox. So new reverse switch fitted, wires soldered, re-insulated and re-routed at a cost of £130, which considering the time to find the fault and rectify it was reasonable.
So well done A/S and other owners just be aware that your wiring could also be a bit tight. might be worth a look under in warmer weather.

I now have a happy " Winnie the Windsor"
Happy Christmas with a prosperous New Year with lots of enjoyable and safe travels

Mike