Club 80-90 Forums

I have a T25 Westfalia California (1989) and think the tyres at the front are getting a little near the limit. The wheels are the standard ‘original’ ones, nothing fancy.

I don’t use the van very often, but as I’ll be travelling about 800 miles early next month, I better do something about them.

Luckily, a friend who has a similar van gave me (sorry sold me) his old wheels which had new tyres fitted, when he bought himself a set of alloys. Luckily, the tyre size for his new wheels were different, so I was able to keep his original tyres too. The set of wheels has remained in my garage for nearly 3 years.

Is it simply a case of replacing the wheels on my van (the ones with the worn tyres) with the new wheels, or would I need to get them ‘balanced’

thank you for any replies ... and Merry Christmas to all

whoever you take them to to get fitted will balance the wheel tyre combo

If the tyres are already on the wheels, they'll have been balanced when they were fitted. Wheel/tyres are very rarely balanced on the vehicle.

i probably got confused reading that, i read it as he wants to swap tyres onto other wheels? Still don't quite get it..

Give the 'new wheels and tyres a thorough visual inspection before fitting them.
Check rims for damage including any flat spots, buckling, serious rust.
Check stud holes for wear/damage
Check any wheel balancing weights already fitted, mainly for security (they may be self adhesive, but usually on steel wheels will be clamped onto the edges of the rims, inside and outside as needed)
Check tyres carefully for:
CORRECT VAN RATING!
Correct pressures front and rear
Tyre wall damage, including cuts, bulges, splits and perishing
Date stamp (usually in an oval shape, expressed as four figures....week and year, ie 3204 would be manufactured in 32nd week of 2004)
Check tyre treads for depth, even wear and obvious foreign objects
Once tyres are fitted you can drive van to see if they are balanced.....incorrect balance will result on shaky steering and vibration. Check at varied speeds.
If badly balanced, THEN get them done.
Main thing is the condition of second hand tyres, as you never know what you are getting....

fairwynds wrote:Give the 'new wheels and tyres a thorough visual inspection before fitting them.
Check rims for damage including any flat spots, buckling, serious rust.
Check stud holes for wear/damage
Check any wheel balancing weights already fitted, mainly for security (they may be self adhesive, but usually on steel wheels will be clamped onto the edges of the rims, inside and outside as needed)
Check tyres carefully for:
CORRECT VAN RATING!
Correct pressures front and rear
Tyre wall damage, including cuts, bulges, splits and perishing
Date stamp (usually in an oval shape, expressed as four figures....week and year, ie 3204 would be manufactured in 32nd week of 2004)
Check tyre treads for depth, even wear and obvious foreign objects
Once tyres are fitted you can drive van to see if they are balanced.....incorrect balance will result on shaky steering and vibration. Check at varied speeds.
If badly balanced, THEN get them done.
Main thing is the condition of second hand tyres, as you never know what you are getting....

Thank you very much for your detailed answer. It was very kind of you to write all that information out for me.

Regarding your last line ... the tyres were in a good condition, it was just that my mate wanted to get alloy wheels for his campervan, which is why he didnt keep them. I obviously got his original wheels, as well as the tyres.

Regards !