I removed the back seat months ago because I needed carrying capacity and I rarely have more than wifey riding with me so the back seat seemed unnecessary. I haven't carried the OEM spare tire for a very long time either and I plan to install a subwoofer and amplifier in the spare tire area in the very near future. I run oversized tires, Falken ZIEX S/TZ P275/70R16 on 8-inch rims. These tires have a diameter of 31.5 inches. The VX OEM spare tire has a diameter of 28.5 inches. I realized that if I ever had a catastrophic blowout it might reek havoc on the TOD if I had to use the OEM spare so I really needed to have another Falken tire as my spare. I decided that carrying a spare tire, and one that's same sized, was a good idea. But where and how? I don't like the looks of carrying it on the roof or attaching it, somehow, to the back of the truck.
Solution: I saw a 1997 (I think) Rodeo at the local Pick 'n' Pull. It had the spare tire mount attached on the outside of the back door. I got the mount and measured it for fitment in the back of the VX. I fabricated some mounting brackets that fit flat on the floor and bolt up nicely to the mount. The floor is corrugated so it's best not to just bolt through it without a bracket. I had the mount sandblasted and powder coated in gloss black. I positioned the mount so that when the tire is mounted to it the front seats can be in the full back position and reclined without touching the tire. There is still room to conveniently stow things immediately behind the seats and plenty of storage room at the back. I cut a 22 inch diameter circular piece of .125 inch thick Masonite to fit horizontally on top of the tire and got a tire cover off Ebay. I also got a roll of rubber truck bed liner from J. C. Whitney and made a mat for the back.
If you decide to do this make sure that you find a Rodeo tire mount that fits a mostly flat rear door. Some mounts seem to be contoured to a more rounded shape. That wouldn't work well on the flat floor.
This is the powder coated spare tire mount off a Rodeo:
These are the 2-piece mounting brackets bolted to the floor:
This is the rubber truck bed liner from J. C. Whitney:
This is the spare tire mount bolted to the floor:
This is the tire bolted to the mount:
View of finished installation:
Another view of the finished installation:
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Originally Posted by rowhard
I don't see this as being any more or less convenient than rowhard's "space-saving" design; both have advantages and disadvantages. rowhard's design preserves more horizontal floor space but does so at the cost of vertical space that might have been used for carrying wider/taller cargo that needs to lean over sideways to fit. Navistar's design eats more horizontal floor space but let's you use the full width of the cargo space that remains. There's no question that rowhard's solution cuts visibility (just look at the pics) but whatever is lost can be regained with $3 blind-spot mirrors. Both are great alternatives and honestly I don't know which one I'd choose.
