Anyone regret/dislike there rear swing out carrier? (2 Viewers)

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Does anyone regret or dislike their swingout tire carrier? I am thinking of doing a rear bumper with a swing out tire carrier. The problem is that i am worried that it will be a pain in the ass and in the way all the time. I do use the the rear hatch a lot. Also i travel on the highways a considerable amount and dont know if it will make a blind spot that bothers me. How is day to day life with a rear swing out tire carrier?

Right now i already have 3 options of where to carry the spare. All have there disadvantage. 1. I am running 285/75/16 so i can carry it in stock position. Works fine but hangs low as we all now. 2. I can carry it laid down flat INSIDE on the rear floor. It fits slides in like a glove under my sleeping platform where rear drawers normally go. This works great but takes a lot internal storage space. 3. I could put it up on top of my Gamaviti rack. Would work fine temporarily but that spare is heavy and bulky to lift up and down from up there. Also I would imagine it raises the CG some. I guess they all have there pros and cons. So how do you guys think about rear swing outs?
 
Swingout + gullwing rear side window is the ticket

Please clarify what the "gullwing rear side window" is? The standard sliding window in the back?
 
Please clarify what the "gullwing rear side window" is? The standard sliding window in the back?

The holy grail is the WagonGear gullwing.

FlipUpFI-220x170.jpg


Phil's and Yoda's are the ones that are actually available.
 
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Does anyone regret or dislike their swingout tire carrier?

I don't regret it but there are times I dislike it. My wife really doesn't like it.

I am thinking of doing a rear bumper with a swing out tire carrier. The problem is that i am worried that it will be a pain in the ass and in the way all the time.

Depends how its used. I use it nearly daily and its just routine. I don't really think about it very often.

I do use the the rear hatch a lot. Also i travel on the highways a considerable amount and dont know if it will make a blind spot that bothers me. How is day to day life with a rear swing out tire carrier?

I run a full-size 315 spare and it does block a little bit of the lower window but its no big deal at all. Its been on there for nearly 8 years now.

Right now i already have 3 options of where to carry the spare. All have there disadvantage. 1. I am running 285/75/16 so i can carry it in stock position. Works fine but hangs low as we all now.

So long as the inflated tire size doesn't reach over 34.2" I can solve that:
80 Series Tire Leveling Kit

2. I can carry it laid down flat INSIDE on the rear floor. It fits slides in like a glove under my sleeping platform where rear drawers normally go. This works great but takes a lot internal storage space.

For me this SUUUUUUUCKS. The smell of a new tire takes a long time to dissipate. Same if its really hot inside. Takes up way too much room.

3. I could put it up on top of my Gamaviti rack. Would work fine temporarily but that spare is heavy and bulky to lift up and down from up there. Also I would imagine it raises the CG some. I guess they all have there pros and cons. So how do you guys think about rear swing outs?

The CoG is the biggest concern and depending on the trails you take should be a serious consideration. I personally am not a fan of doing that but others do. IF you go this route its best to just have it live there because its way too heavy to lift and remove.
 
Ideally, I would rather have the tire in its stock location. But I'm on 35s.

I don't run the tire carrier unless I'm going on a road trip though. So I can open the hatch easily. Not that big of a deal.

:meh:

4X4 labs bumper here.
 
Is this your rig only or is there a wife/girlfriend that will be driving it. My 5'2" wife HATED the rear swing on my XJ and TJ. With 3 little kids and trying to load 3 kids and groceries with a 35" spare on a swing is a nightmare. If it's your daily drive and only your driver then it may not be an issue. I eventually made my XJ a dedicated trail rig (which eventually got 37's) that only I drove and then the 37" spare wasn't a big issue for me to handle. It would have knocked my wife flying. In the end it all depends on how you use your rig. I did get annoyed by how much visibility was lost with a 37" spare hanging off the back. when I built the bumpers for the 80 I decided (mainly my wife decided) to avoid a swingout. I left the 35" spare in the garage 99% off the time. When we went wheelin or camping it just strapped it down to the floor in the back. If I ever had a blow out on the highway (I never did) I would just call AAA.
 
I just added a swing out to mine. Only running 33's right now and the visibility loss isn't bad at all. I set the height as low as it could go though, tire will just clear the bumper with a 37" on there (future plans). I had my spare inside the rear cargo area for a few months while working on my bumper and I hated it. Took up tons of room, made it difficult to put stuff in the back and no matter how I strapped it down it would work its way loose with a lot of bumps.

I've only had the swing out on there a month so I am not used to having to open it each time I use the hatch. With time it will just become part of the routine. I will say that I thought about a double gate but probably won't as I don't want to add another step to getting in the rear cargo area.

I added a hydraulic damper to mine so it opens easily for my wife. The damper also holds the gate open so she doesn't have to mess with it when loading stuff into the rear. She does not mind it at all. It's set up well and my 2 year old son can close and latch it on his own.

The only down side is my wife cannot lift the spare off, but that's why we have AAA. Of all the options you're considering I'd go with either the swing out or keeping it in the stock location.
 
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I have Slee's back bumper for the 80 series. Never one regret. It is one seriously built bumper and holds up very well!
 
Slee bumper with ladder and tire swing outs. No regrets for their purpose but I don't like swing outs due to laziness. Now that I have lift up rear windows I don't have to open the rear hatch as much so problem solved.
 
Have had swings in the past, never again, too much pain, the spare rides indoors. Can see getting a beer out through the window, but not seeing, trail markers, drivers, McLeod, generator, jackhammer, etc?
 
I have a Kaymar bumper with spare tire carrier. Came with the truck when I bought it so no regrets but I do dislike it. At some point, the spare will be going under the truck.
 
The holy grail is the WagonGear gullwing.

FlipUpFI-220x170.jpg


Phil's and Yoda's are the ones that are actually available.

80 Series Land Cruiser another option, and in glass as well. the exchange rate makes things from OZ attractive most of the time....

to answer the question, the swing out is a PITA. but, the alternative for 35's is not great. I did hop on the emu wing group buy for this very reason.
 
huge PITA! unless you plan on being too far away from help or on a serious trail then its just not needed. i dont even carry a spare with me but i do have H1 wheels with run flats in them and can make it at least 50 miles on a flat.
 
Opening the swing outs takes an extra 10 second to get to the hatch. It really isn't a big deal but a lot of people are lazy and/or have an overly fussy wife so that's a deal killer for them. My Slee has a 37" spare and a ladder with Rotopax so a lot of the view is blocked but after having it for so long it doesn't bother me. I have a head unit now that accepts a backup camera so I'll be adding that shortly.
 
If you have a garage, measure the length. In my case,once I had added the Slee shortbus front bumper and the Slee rear bumper with tire carrier the truck became too long to park in the garage.

Yes the swing out is a pain for most wives, small children and grandparents but the extra 10 seconds is nothing in the grand scheme of things. One watch out, when parked off camber opening the spare tire carrier will feel like a tug of war.
 
its not that i am lazy, just it is hell to deal with in a parking lot, off camber, in the woods with trees around, and a million other times when you just dont have the space to deal with it.
 

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