Kell

Sorry ... double post.

macjager

My spare mini donut did not fit... So took out the "pretty" gray liner and then in went the tire, and fit...kinda dopey if you ask me, but now I have a spare in case I get another flat...unlike the last time...

higher

You need to pull out the grey carpet liner and the tyre / wheel will then fit. it won't fit with the original carpet / liner in place.

BMW will sell you an alternative grey carpet liner, that is larger to accomodate the spare wheel size but most folks don't bother. the only reason for fitting the modified liner it to protect all the switches and electronic that live under that bay. Once you remove the carpet, there is a polystyrene cover that sits at the bottom of the well, if you lift that there's loads of electric connectors positioned there. Obviously, the carpet would stop them getting wet if you had a leak from say a water bottle etc.

Here is a pic of the carpet being lifted showing the polystyrene cover at bottom of the wheel well ( you have to scroll down to see the pic)

http://www.bmwland.co.uk/forums/viewtopic.php?p=960948

Kell

I've just read through all of that link and I think all the pictures in there are for Saloons.

Like the OP in that topic, I'd feel much more comfortable carrying a full-size wheel. Not so much in the summer, but in the winter. If you get stranded with a puncture on a winter wheel and tyre, I know from experience that you'd be hard pushed to find a replacement tyre in mid-winter if yours is beyone repair. Which then means carrying a full size spare tyre somewhere too.

Though it does also raise an interesting point about the fact that you can make a solution to work with full size wheel in the Saloon, but not the Touring. It seems ludicrous, but I'm sure I tried it with one of my summer wheels and found it just wouldn't go into the well.

Might try it again this weekend and take some snaps.

V70Cat

The spare tire does not have a inflation monitor built in?

Lotus99

Mine was a regular donut. Don't know what you mean by an inflation monitor, but no compressor or something built into it.

Kell

I don't think any of them do do they? Certainly in my car, there's no monitor to tell you the pressure. The way it measures it is by rolling radius - if that changes, the computer assumes that there is a drop in pressure and, therefore, a puncture.

Hence why you'll always get a warning bong when you change from summer to winter wheels - even though there's no loss in presure - it's because they're a slightly different size.