Wanting to carry spare 33" tire on 3rd gen...options? | Ford Explorer Forums - Serious Explorations

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Wanting to carry spare 33" tire on 3rd gen...options?

thepotroast

Explorer Addict
Joined
February 24, 2009
Messages
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City, State
Asheville, NC
Year, Model & Trim Level
3rd Gen EB 4x4 V8
I am going to be mounting a set of 285/75's shortly on my soon-to-be-lifted 03 4x4 and would like to carry a 5th wheel/tire combo with me as a spare. I have looked at the rooftop basket concept, and have also seen some spare tire carriers that fit into the 2" receiver I have at the rear. I am leaning more towards the rear spare carrier idea, not only for cost, but also to help with the fuel mileage. I realize that baskets with a 33" tire up top probably don't help with that aspect of things, and am wondering if putting the tire on the back might be a better choice.

I have looked all over for a 3rd gen with a rear tire carrier and haven't yet seen one...

The unit I am looking at is a Hidden Hitch #6715. The company describes it as working for front end receivers (which I do have a 2" front receiver as well as a 2" rear receiver) however I am saving the front to fit the winch up to...

If the rear tire carrier idea will not work then I suppose my only other option is to go with a cargo basket up top....but this it not really my desired look. Any ideas or anyone with pics of an Ex with a rear tire carrier?
 



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on the roof might look pretty cool..i had my spare on top with my old durango and it looked awesome..

but if you like the tire under the car...couldnt you just leave the old spare where it is and save money by not buyng a 5th tire? even if its smaller, most cars' spare tires are smaller than the others anyway
 






on the roof might look pretty cool..i had my spare on top with my old durango and it looked awesome..

but if you like the tire under the car...couldnt you just leave the old spare where it is and save money by not buyng a 5th tire? even if its smaller, most cars' spare tires are smaller than the others anyway

yeah but he has 4x4 and that requires tires of the smae size at all times:thumbsup:
 






Just use a tie down strap or two to hold the spare tire on the roof if you want the Quickest/Easiest way.

Or you can buy or Make a more professional holster or case with a cover for the tire on the roof if you want.
Trust me, the roofrack can hold it forever, with no problems.

I swear i saw a rear hatch mount for spare tires for the mounties or explorers.

I also think i've seen a front mounted tow hitch for our SUV's and then you buy the spare tire holder that bolts onto the tow hitch on the front.


You CAN use the regular 29? inch spare tire for emergencies, but remember its going to be WAAAYY smaller, so im not sure what you'd do with an explorer in that situation, but I know if you have a Mountaineer with AWD, you REALLY need to clip that brown wire(brown wire mod) so you're ONLY running in RWD mode....because it will likely damage the transfer case.
 






You CAN use the regular 29? inch spare tire for emergencies, but remember its going to be WAAAYY smaller, so im not sure what you'd do with an explorer in that situation, but I know if you have a Mountaineer with AWD, you REALLY need to clip that brown wire(brown wire mod) so you're ONLY running in RWD mode....because it will likely damage the transfer case.

1st- BWM doesnt do anything for AWD, as stated in the BWM thread

2nd- no matter how far you go you should always get the same size tire with either 4x4 or awd.

3rd- i say put the tire on the roof rack
 






Something I didn't really consider, is that if the tire is hanging off the back (like a Jeep I suppose) it would be impossible to utilize the back door without taking the wheel off....well that would just suck entirely.

As far as putting it on the roof, it would be on a roof cargo basket like a Yakima or Thule....so that it can be secured and locked.
 






Something I didn't really consider, is that if the tire is hanging off the back (like a Jeep I suppose) it would be impossible to utilize the back door without taking the wheel off....well that would just suck entirely.

As far as putting it on the roof, it would be on a roof cargo basket like a Yakima or Thule....so that it can be secured and locked.

I made a removeable swing away tire carrier for the back of mine. But if you don't want to do that, then the roof is about it.
 






make a mount for it in your cargo area inside the ex. that way it is outta sight and won`t affect anything like the rear door, gas milage, ect.
 






I made a removeable swing away tire carrier for the back of mine. But if you don't want to do that, then the roof is about it.

Got pics? I've been looking around for mounts for our bumpers that could be fabbed to carry a tire, cans, hi-lift, etc.
 












Got pics? I've been looking around for mounts for our bumpers that could be fabbed to carry a tire, cans, hi-lift, etc.

Yep:

Tyre attached
Explorer_Rear_light.jpg


The mount:
Explorer_3Wheeler_2.jpg


The swing arm:
Tyre_Carrier_1.jpg
 






That looks really good. Did you make it yourself? Got any closeups of the way you mounted the swingarm? Eventually I'd love to have a tire carrier/rack like these (sorry, I'm a converted Jeep guy, so these are what I know, lol):

23622-lg.jpg

18219-lg.jpg


If I could figure out a way to mount a heavy duty swing-away bracket without losing the bumper cover, that would be ideal. I see a lot of people who replace the entire bumper, but with our GEN3's, that would just look weird. That's the same reason I've refrained from having my metal guy build me a full front bullbar, because IMHO the front bumper of the GEN3's is beautiful, and while I do want better protection up front, I don't want to lose the amazing looks of that bumper. That's why I only have a dinky Manik brush guard right now. If I could find a bullbar that could look just as good as the original bumper, I'd love to have it.
 






whats mounted where your spare tire used to be jcuz? it almost looks like a tank or something?
 






whats mounted where your spare tire used to be jcuz? it almost looks like a tank or something?

Kinda looks like a skid plate over a gas tank....he does have a right hand vehicle (in AU)....I wonder if they are built differently?
 






Kinda looks like a skid plate over a gas tank....he does have a right hand vehicle (in AU)....I wonder if they are built differently?

Don't have any close ups of the swing arm mount - but it's currently an 80kg rated gate hinge - I actually need to go to the next size up (130kg) as this one is slowly bending. A clip keeps the hinge from separating, and I have a latch, plus a small D bolt and a padlock to ensure the swingarm doesn't part company with the truck.

The metal bar attached to the bumper is bolted on with 3 x high tensile bolts and then welded as well to the metal part of the rear bar. I had to cut away some of the plastic cover to make it fit. It's done around 5000km worth of trips with no major issues (apart from a slight bend in the hinge bolt.)

As for the skid plate - yes, that's correct, and it is a gas tank, but not the type of gas you are thinking of (petrol); it's an LPG gas tank. The petrol tank is in the normal location under the rear seat on the driver's side (your passenger side, I guess). My Ex runs on both petrol and LPG; got it converted 15 months ago, and had the check engine light on for most of that time, but thanks to James at Henson Performance, I now have an XCal 3 that stops the coding issue!

Back to the swing arm - we only use it on trips away; around town, if we get a flat (hasn't happened yet), I would ring a mate and ask him to come get me and go and get the spare from home. Or ring roadside assistance (I pay for it, so I should get some benefit from it).
 






Don't have any close ups of the swing arm mount - but it's currently an 80kg rated gate hinge - I actually need to go to the next size up (130kg) as this one is slowly bending. A clip keeps the hinge from separating, and I have a latch, plus a small D bolt and a padlock to ensure the swingarm doesn't part company with the truck.

The metal bar attached to the bumper is bolted on with 3 x high tensile bolts and then welded as well to the metal part of the rear bar. I had to cut away some of the plastic cover to make it fit. It's done around 5000km worth of trips with no major issues (apart from a slight bend in the hinge bolt.)

As for the skid plate - yes, that's correct, and it is a gas tank, but not the type of gas you are thinking of (petrol); it's an LPG gas tank. The petrol tank is in the normal location under the rear seat on the driver's side (your passenger side, I guess). My Ex runs on both petrol and LPG; got it converted 15 months ago, and had the check engine light on for most of that time, but thanks to James at Henson Performance, I now have an XCal 3 that stops the coding issue!

Back to the swing arm - we only use it on trips away; around town, if we get a flat (hasn't happened yet), I would ring a mate and ask him to come get me and go and get the spare from home. Or ring roadside assistance (I pay for it, so I should get some benefit from it).

That's actually what I was thinking, just mount something to the actual bumper and have brackets come out through the bumper cover. That way I can keep the look of the stock bumper cover, but with some extra beef on the outside, lol.
 






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