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But, I’d all but pressed the buy it now button on a spare tire delete/license plate relocation ..... then I started second guessing myself. Mainly after my kids started giving me a hard time... Lol. “No Dad! It won’t look like a Jeep then.... that’s what makes a Jeep is the full-size spare on the back.....” 🤣
I’m not really concerned with carrying a full size spare daily. My commute is 6 mi each way. If I went on a longer trip or vacation I’d toss a spare in the cargo area. Or, I’d thought about fabbing up a hitch mounted spare carrier.
Plan was tossing a full-size 295/70/17 on the 5th OEM rim and leaving it in the garage. Not having an actual “matching spare” on the back drives me nuts! Kids want me to buy a matching aftermarket Vision Manx wheel/295 Geolander MT. 🙄
Thoughts/ ideas?!? Still interested in possibly doing a spare delete/plate relocation for now. Good complete kits (ie- 3rd brake light, plate light, etc)??? I’ve seen the Kentrol kits. They look good minus the older ones having a bluish/purple tag light. ???
Spare is dead weight and a new matching one for looks is a waste of money (I know people can argue all day about a 5-trie rotation). Go with a delete. I think you'll appreciate the clean look.
I'm a fan of a full size spare. Yes, you can patch and plug, get off the trail easily but how often have you been presented with less than ideal conditions? Flat tires are typically a result of neglect by the owner but there are certainly occasions where you run over a nail on the highway or you've got something wedged in the bead. For me, it's much faster to swap the tire and jeep keep moving. I can deal with the flat when I've got adequate light (or shade) and heat/ air conditioning.
The other thing I've done in the past is to carry a space saving spare- same overall diameter, but not a full width. It would serve the same purpose to get you to a comfortable spot without the penalty of the weight of a full size spare. Get a narrower black wheel, narrow tire, keep it covered, and run with it.
Spare tire delete does arguably save a ton of money. Bumpers, tire carrier, hinges, buying/ maintaining 5th wheel. I've just been in places where I didn't want to monkey with fixing a tire and it was quite a bit faster to swap it and keep moving.
If I went all out and spent the coin on a matching full-size 5th tire/wheel, I’d definitely do a 5 tire rotation. Whether I actually carried it on the Jeep all the time or not!?! Drives me crazy to see a full-size matching spare with nubs still on the tire which has NEVER touched the ground and four practically bald tires on the ground. Makes no sense to me!?!
I like the clean deleted look and the idea of a little weight savings.
I may do the spare delete/license plate relocation for now and eventually get a bumper with a tire carrier option. I really am not fond of the added stress of a heavier aftermarket tire/wheel on the stock carrier and tailgate hinges.
MorRyde and Teraflex have a solution to the stock carrier and tailgate hinges. I've got the MorRyde and they've been great. They're greasable so they're set for a lifetime.
I think the aftermarket hinges that Karl suggested are both better options than any bumper-mounted carrier if you go the route of a carrier. They're both very strong. Also, the bumper mount route really limits which bumpers you can choose from. They often rattle a lot too. Finally, if you go the clean route now, you can always add a hinge carrier later if you decided.
Haven’t done much to the Jeep since my last post. Just enjoying it!!!
Never did follow through with either option on full-size spare or spare delete. Think I am going to follow through with a matching new full-size tire/wheel soon.
I picked up a set of Quadratec premium LED headlights for it. Then picked up some Amazon “matching” LED fog lights. Pretty happy with both! Headlight output is amazing compared to the dim factory hazy halogens.
Do you have a link for the fog lights? I'm looking to add some to a 2016 and the Mopar fog lights are MUCH brighter than the Axial (extreme terrain brand) ones.
