Bellfab Interior Tire Carrier

[CharlieS]

I just installed the Bellfab interior tire carrier and couldn't be happier. It is a really well made product and well suited to my needs.

I have a swingout on my 200, and it is constantly in the way. This allows me to get it out from underneath and not run a swingout.

Will accomodate up to a 40" tire. I have 35s on the way.

Definitely a good product at a fair price from a good vendor.

 

[Bludozer]

That does look nice, swing outs do suck sometimes but an inside tire takes up so much cargo space and smells like ass too.

I’ve contemplated just going spareless on more than one occasion.

 

[CharlieS]

Most of the groups I ride with require a full size spare, so going spare-tire-less isn't really an option for me. This vehicle is primarily offroad use, no second or third row seating, so this fits how I will use it. I had it ratcheted to the floor with heavy duty (car tie down) ratchet straps previously, but doing this will allow me to sleep in it, if I don't want to pitch the tent.

 

[mudgudgeon]

I carried a spare in the back in a previous cruiser.
The constant stink of rubber in the cab sucked, especially if the car had been closed up on a hot summer day

 

[scottryana]

I carried a spare in the back in a previous cruiser.
The constant stink of rubber in the cab sucked, especially if the car had been closed up on a hot summer day

That goes away if its a new tire

 

[mudgudgeon]

That goes away if its a new tire

Wasn't a new tire

 

[80t0ylc]

I carried a spare in the back in a previous cruiser.
The constant stink of rubber in the cab sucked, especially if the car had been closed up on a hot summer day

Chiming in, the smell of rubber is the best an inside spare could supply. Anyone that’s had to use their spare knows why it’s common sense to carry it outside. The OEM location being the worst for several reasons and as much hassle as a swing out is accused of, in reality or with all things considered, a well built swing out gets the unappreciated job done best. For those that leave their spare at home and totally rely on a plug kit, just hope you don’t encounter a sliced sidewall or bead that won’t seal. The small inconvenience of the swing out for rear access, just doesn’t’ justify carrying a spare inside for me, with my 80. On my other vehicles, that have other uses, the spare storage has more lee way.

 

[CharlieS]

I guess I don't see the point of hopping on to criticize. It's cool that you don't like it, don't have need for one, don't like the smell, or whatever. Don't buy one.

For anyone else that is looking for a secure way to carry a tire inside their vehicle, this is a high quality, reasonably priced option.

I had to look hard to find something ready made rather than getting out the welder and fabbing something up, so I wanted to pass this along to others with the same need to save them the hassle of digging if they are looking for an alternative to under the vehicle and swingouts.

And I have dual swingouts on my 200 so I am familiar with their benefits. In my experience, the swingouts are a hassle in day to day life, and even when traveling. I remove my jerry can carrier and second swingout unless I am on a big trip. They reduce visibility, are a pain to open and close any time I want to get in the cargo area or drawer system and impact how close you can park to things if you want to have access to the cargo area. Lots of down sides along with a couple of up sides.

 

[mudgudgeon]

Sharing experiences of an inherent downside is not criticism.
I think the carrier you installed is a great idea and well made product.

I dislike the inconvenience of swingouts, but dislike the stink of rubber more.

I am weird about smells though. And a rubber tire in a car in the Aussie summer sun on a 40⁰c day will stink for life

 

[cybrstar]

I’ve had a tire in the rear of my rig for years, camp inside and never really smell tire.

 

[80t0ylc]

Sorry that my common sense annoys you, - just trying to help. The rack is really attractive. The larger size tires we run take up a lot of room that can be avoided and better used for camping gear or whatever. And changing a flat is quite often a filthy job and always a PITA to move gear to access . It’s nice to keep smells and dirt outside when possible. But I understand we all have our own priorities. Also I understand that there’s a sizable group that prefer inside spare carry with their 80’s and have their reasons. I’m not part of that group and just voicing an opinion.

 

[CrabCake]

Everyone will have an opinion of what fits their needs best, and it's always good to hear what others have run into with personal experiences to let each person make their own call on what is best for them.

For me, I love my BellFab mount...my 80 came with the LRA secondary fuel tank and Kaymar rear bumper with swing outs and the tire on the rear. For regular use, which for me is for occasional sunny day cruising or off road trips, I found the swing outs to be a real nuisance overall. While they work well, they do limit visibility and are a hassle when getting into the rear, which I do often if I drive to work for the day. I run with only the front seats, so I still have plenty of space in the rig for whatever I need to carry, plus enough space to roll out the Exped mat for an overnighter without setting up a tent. I've had 2 different tires in mine and have never had any rubber stink inside...I am familiar with it, but maybe some brands or ages stink less than others.

Undercarriage OEM location pros...functions as it should and keeps the tire out of the way. Cons...larger tires to match upsize fit, but can drag for real off road trips, get crusty (I actually sold a spare wheel to a friend since his was ruined from undercarriage storage), dirty as hell when it comes to changing a tire.

Rear carrier/swingout pros...gives you space for the LRA tank underneath, easier access for tire changes, keeps the spare cleaner, looks cool if that's what you are going for. Cons...limited visibility, especially with larger tires, plus I had to re-locate the license plate and light on mine, always in the way for rear hatch access.

BellFab or similar pros...easy access to the spare for me, keeps the spare clean, easy access into the rear hatch (both window and tailgate), keeps the underside free for my LRA tank, still enough space to lay out the XL single Exped mat, very solid mounting with good design and very reasonably priced (compared to a full bumper/swingout system). Cons...some find stinky tire issue, does take up some space inside, especially if you still use center seats (eliminates one 3rd row seat completely).

I'm sure that others may have comments as well on the "list". For me, this was a great solution. Plus, I still have the swing out parts that I can pop back on in minutes and pull the spare out of the truck while leaving the BellFab mount in with minimal space loss if I go on a longer trip or need additional space. I did get lucky and tried the Slee swing arm mount covers that fit perfectly to protect my mount hubs (screw on and have fat o-rings to keep moisture out).

 

[ChaseTruck]

I’ve had dual swing arms on the rear bumper on my K5; cut them off after some 5 years of being annoyed by them every time I needed to access the back. I have had no reason to regret this decision. For the last 7 or so years, there’s an interior tire carrier now (an extension of the cage) after seeing how well the Tools R Us interior carriers worked for us in the ‘93 and ‘97. I can appreciate the rubber smell perhaps being an issue; I never seem to notice. On the ‘40, the spare is on a single arm swing out carrier outside. Then again, on the ‘40 with the bikini top, everything is outside
I have a few of those IKEA tarp bags in the truck in case I need to mount a dirty flat tire inside.

 

[davidp14]

my spare has always lived inside the truck since I've owned it. The smell of the tire is a lot better than the other smells that inhabit my 80. I recently built drawers and a rear bumper and planned on adding a rear swingout to get tire out of the truck but now I'm thinking about ditching the drawers, getting rid of all the extra heavy overlandy stuff I've been carrying, and getting one of these. drawers and swingouts add a ton of weight and the tire on the rear bumper adds weight right where you don't want it. Plus it makes it a PITA to get in and out of the back.

 

[Somebodyelse5]

Not the greatest picture, but I am a big fan of my BellFab mount + BellFab attic. It clears a 37 perfectly.

You definitely give up the interior space, but after a 5 years or so with dual swingouts on my slee rear (on my 100), I'd had enough. Such a pain to deal with every time you need to open the back. The tire smell didn't last more than a week.

 

[jkeithw]

I just installed the Bellfab interior tire carrier and couldn't be happier. It is a really well made product and well suited to my needs.

I have a swingout on my 200, and it is constantly in the way. This allows me to get it out from underneath and not run a swingout.

Will accomodate up to a 40" tire. I have 35s on the way.

Definitely a good product at a fair price from a good vendor.

View attachment 3431172
View attachment 3431173

we run one, too - I did a couple of hacks on ours to make it perfect. wouldn't go back, and I am going to make a void in the future rear deck/drawer system for it (whenever I get around to making that)

- folks complaining about the rubber smell confuse me; not only does rubber not stink, but once a tire isn't new, I haven't noticed it smelling at all. we certainly had no issues with it on our cross-country trip last year.

 

[CharlieS]

we run one, too - I did a couple of hacks on ours to make it perfect. wouldn't go back, and I am going to make a void in the future rear deck/drawer system for it (whenever I get around to making that)

- folks complaining about the rubber smell confuse me; not only does rubber not stink, but once a tire isn't new, I haven't noticed it smelling at all. we certainly had no issues with it on our cross-country trip last year.

Curious what tweaks you made - a spar to the inside wall to reinforce it laterally maybe?

I was thinking about adding some mounts to the back side for items, since there is some nice real estate there.

 

[CharlieS]

Not the greatest picture, but I am a big fan of my BellFab mount + BellFab attic. It clears a 37 perfectly.

View attachment 3434869

You definitely give up the interior space, but after a 5 years or so with dual swingouts on my slee rear (on my 100), I'd had enough. Such a pain to deal with every time you need to open the back. The tire smell didn't last more than a week.

And Landshark reef drawer! I have the two from my 200 (upgraded to Trekbox) and keep debating about whether to install one Reef box in the 80. Nobody wants to pay a reasonable price for them, so I might as well use them. It just goes against my goal of lightweight trail rig. Decisions, decisions...

 

[jkeithw]

Curious what tweaks you made - a spar to the inside wall to reinforce it laterally maybe?

I was thinking about adding some mounts to the back side for items, since there is some nice real estate there.

I have one of the early ones; not sure what changes have occurred since we got ours - but the tire would suck in at the bottom when tightened (kinda needs a bar to stop it, apparently there is a molle panel option now which also might address your back-side mount idea). I also was a little concerned about the strength of the t-bolt receiver plate (worried about it bending) so I made a PVC spacer to go between it and the backside of the wheel. And finally, since we pack tight for camping, I cut down the T handles so they didn't protrude past the wheel so that we could strap things to the tire itself.

So, in total, I'd've added one bar (I used a ratchet strap to limit lower tire suck-in), would go to 4 bolts/nuts on the t-bolt receiver (just a little more meat to resist bending), and a perpendicular t-handle that is around 12" overall so it sites inside the tire when tightened down for packing purposes. [that's a SHORT list for me, BTW]

So yeah, I'm a fan of this product. Probably buying one for the other 80 series we have, too.

FWIW, we keep our folding camp chairs between it and the wall atm.

 

[CharlieS]

Nice!

One thing that is different on the one I got from the pics on the website is four bolts attaching the bolt receiver. I think that may address one change.

The bar is 16" across, so would still need to be cut down or replaced with a straight bar. I've thought about strapping traction boards to the tire. This setup reminds me of what we used to have for spare tires in our rally car.

There is a cool spacer that fits in the wheel center (like a tire balancing machine).