Spare Tire Storage

[44ficus44]

when u all put the spare tire on the rear door howd you atach the spare holder? i just bought a rodeo spare holder but dont want to cut into the door just yet. did you put an ibside bracket so the bolta dont just mangle the door?

[VXorado]

when u all put the spare tire on the rear door howd you atach the spare holder? i just bought a rodeo spare holder but dont want to cut into the door just yet. did you put an ibside bracket so the bolta dont just mangle the door?

I believe they drilled through and added a metal plate on the backside for support. If you do add an over sized spare tire, consider putting a lower support bumper for the door.

I used a suspension bumpstop mounted on the frame to support the heavy spare tire.

[44ficus44]

is that so the added weught on the door doesnt bend diwn on the frame ?

[Marlin]

I have had min on the door for 3 years. How often do you really open the rear door?
I did not ahve to add any support to the inside of the door. The rear door is structural and pretty thick. I just ran the bolts all the way through to the spare bracket, so several inch long bolts. I have no deformation and I just grease the door hinges/stop arm every once in a while. There are some wear products in the grease, but not enough that I am worried about it.

[44ficus44]

yea i saw the inside door plate is pritty sturdy cuz its welded all around. i might just add a square support with thin metal. just in case cuz im planning on using that space for 2 woofers and the sterio amps so once i seal it and mold it with carbon fiber theres no taking it off. woop new project

[VXorado]

I have had min on the door for 3 years. How often do you really open the rear door?
I did not ahve to add any support to the inside of the door. The rear door is structural and pretty thick. I just ran the bolts all the way through to the spare bracket, so several inch long bolts. I have no deformation and I just grease the door hinges/stop arm every once in a while. There are some wear products in the grease, but not enough that I am worried about it.

The hinges are definitely strong enough, I had them spec'd at 800 lbs each. But how about the metal in the body or door? Tom's hinges ended up ripping out of the body and he had to remove the spare tire. After that, I installed the bumper support...better safe than sorry imo.

[44ficus44]

The hinges are definitely strong enough, I had them spec'd at 800 lbs each. But how about the metal in the body or door? Tom's hinges ended up ripping out of the body and he had to remove the spare tire. After that, I installed the bumper support...better safe than sorry imo.

very true. gotto cover your own rear

[Marlin]

The hinges are definitely strong enough, I had them spec'd at 800 lbs each. But how about the metal in the body or door? Tom's hinges ended up ripping out of the body and he had to remove the spare tire. After that, I installed the bumper support...better safe than sorry imo.

That is a good point, but we are back to the question of how often do you open the rear door? With the door closed, the weight is distributed through the hinges, the frame of the door as well as the latch, and it is static. I have seen Tom's photos, he used his to haul stuff so he might have used the rear access more often. I have put only 25K miles on my truck over the last 4 years. She doesn't get driven much, and at least 10K of that is just the drive across country and long drives to URE and back.
Better safe than sorry I suppose, but I wouldn't let that stop you from getting the mod done. You can always add the support later.

[tom4bren]

Mine had 2 rather hefty plates on the inside. They were tucked up behind the plates that the OEM spare rested against. My bolts did not go through that plate.

My hinges were not ripping loose from the body (thank gawd). They were ripping loose from the door.

Since that all started happening after Boy started driving it, I have no way of knowing if he had the door open a lot or if it would've happened anyway ... so I didn't rip him a new one over the incident

I don't think that the dovetail on mine was positioned properly so the latch was probably carrying the bulk of the weight of the door when closed. In retrospect, I wish I'd have added a little rubber bumper on the lower sill to carry some of the weight.

[VXorado]

That is a good point, but we are back to the question of how often do you open the rear door?

I probably use mine too much, maybe average once a day. Also, I was loading up the back of the VX with supplies on the trails and found the door can be really scary to open when the VX is on a hill . I decided to get the cargo basket to load trail gear and avoid a mishap.

I agree that the less you open the rear door, the less problems you'll encounter.

My hinges were not ripping loose from the body (thank gawd). They were ripping loose from the door.

Got it.

Did you end up putting the spare back on?

[tom4bren]

Did you end up putting the spare back on?

Not yet. I decided not to until I have a matching tire on that rim.

[VXorado]

Not yet. I decided not to until I have a matching tire on that rim.

You should put a super skinny tire on the back... changed it up.

[bartmanS4]

I agree that the less you open the rear door, the less problems you'll encounter.

I find this applies to my mouth too!

[tom4bren]

I find this applies to my mouth too!

I have no response to that.

[tom4bren]

You should put a super skinny tire on the back... changed it up.

I'm thinking that bubble wrapping my front left corner is a higher priority in the long haul (2 hits there in 2 years - AAARRRGGGHHH!!!!)