Ask The Expert- How big of spare tire on tailgate?

[BigDogTrain]

How large of tire can I put on the rear bumper before having to buy a rear bumper and tire carrier. Is there a cheap way to get around this?

 

[Cloaked Willys]

A 33" tire is as big as I feel comfortable with. I have seen 35's with a spacer on the stock mounts without issues but have also seen them fail. The weight of the tire and wheel combo along with how the jeep is driven can affect this quite a bit. There are quite a few body mounted heavy duty stock style options that will not have any issues with a 35" tire. If you plan on 37's I would recommend a bumper mounted swing out to keep all the weight off the tub.

 

[lindel]

As mentioned, the tailgate is capable of 33" tires, but the trick is to keep the tire tight against the bumpers, and do not allow it to move around.

Since I plan to go to 35s, once I wear the current 33s out, I installed an Exogate carrier. This frees me up to install my choice of bumpers, allows me free access to the tailgate, and it actually swings much easier than the stock hinges.

 

[timatoe]

Not sure what you've got, I've seen pretty big tires on JK's. I don't know how beefy those are. I've seen tons of YJ and TJ tailgates basically destroyed with anything over a 33. My little TJ on 33's is doing a number on the gate and I don't even wheel it.

 

[lindel]

I've got a TJ, and I've had a 33 on the tailgate from the time I bought it in '11, up until I installed the Exogate, about a year ago. No damage to the gate, but I kept the wheel/tire immobile.