Warning!!! Stupid question coming up!


Will the bumper mounted tire carrier options on the market all work with my factory Hard Rock rear bumper? Some manufacturers say their carrier works with their bumper. I'm not sure if that's marketing, or if the carrier was designed to only work with their bumper.

 

The AEV frame mounted carrier will work with the Hard Rock bumper. It mounts through the hole on the right side of the bumper. Maximus 3 is the manufacturer of the Hard Rock bumpers for Jeep and they have their own carrier that they market directly from their website.

 

I've seen the AEV carriers mounted. The off-center mounting would drive me a little nuts. Do any other manufacturers have something that fits? The Maximus-3 carrier is the tailgate carrier I'm considering, but I figured the bumper mounted options would be stronger.

Are you sure Maximus-3 is making the bumpers? It looked to me like they were just making accessories to fit the bumpers, but not the actual bumpers.

 

Are there any body mount options that have a separate latch, like the swing away models, but actually swing with the tailgate? Seems like something like that would provide additional support over a hinge/tailgate mounted option, but would give the convenience of them and the bumper mounted options that swing with the gate.

 

Many of the tire carrier (swing out options) are designed to work with matching bumpers. The bumper can have either a "male" or "female" spindle or post design which will accept the swing away tire carrier. I don't know of any that will work with different manufacture's bumpers.

Don't know what you mean by a separate latch, but at the same time also able to swing with the tailgate.

How heavy is your spare? you could be underestimating the strength of the tailgate and hinge mounted carriers.

Here's some great options for both hinge mounted carriers that swing open with the tailgate:

Crawler Conceptz
Maximus-3
Teraflex
Retrofit Offroad (3 piece kit and one that I just picked up for my JK to support the tailgate with my 91lb spare.


Only two options exist that I know of that will work with the Hard Rock / 10th Anniversary bumpers. AEV and Smittybilt Gen II. Otherwise you're buying a new bumper with a swing out carrier option, in which there are many options to choose from.

 

When I asked about body mounted ones that have the separate latch but still swing with the gate, I was meaning something like an OR-Fab, Evo, Poison Spyder, etc, that mount to the body, use a separate latch, and swing away, but I was curious if there were any that also swung with the gate. I haven't seen any. I've only see tailgate/hinge mounted and bumper mounted options that swing with the gate.

I was going to get the Teraflex hinge mounted one, then started leaning toward the Maximus-3 setup. However, I discovered that MORryde kit a couple days ago and I really like how that one is reinforced. I also like the price. So that might be at the top of my list right now. I just wanted to make sure I explored all my options before I spent my money.

 

From all of the gates/carriers that I've researched, that doesn't exist. The separate latch would mitigate the point of having it also connected to the tailgate to open at the same time.

Teraflex was also my first consideration but, the price was unreasonable in my opinion. The base is forged aluminum and is mass produced, the adjustable carrier portion isn't the strongest construction compared to what else is out there. Not saying it's a bad product, but for the price there's better options. Best price I found was about $650.

Maximus-3 Looks like it belongs on the Jeep. It appears to be made well, has options for holding Rotopax containers and a Hi-Lift. The cheapest I found was about $649.99

I almost picked up the Crawler Conceptz carrier which is extremely well made and very stout. Only negative to it is it doesn't come powder coated and you have to dissemble the factory hinges, which isn't a big deal but another step. At about $569.99 the price is right but after powder coating you'll be closer to the $700 mark.

I chose the Retrofit Tailgate Support Kit (same as the MOryde kit) for a lot of reasons. It's only 54.5lbs which is one of the lightest of the group. It's a simple design based on sound engineering. The weight of the tire AND the tailgate is supported by the reinforcement frame/hinges. It's modular so if you want you can still run your factory carrier which is a lot stronger than people give it credit for. It's expandable to add Rotopax or a Hi-lift, American made, originally designed by a Jeep lover and brought to production and the price is right. $429.99 right now at Retrofitoffroad.com.

 

I am running 315/70/17 KO2's and I opted for the Terraflex HD Hinged Carrier. It was about $490 and I was able to utilize the stock carrier. Worked out perfectly for me and I didn't have to remove the third brake light. The tire fits absolutely perfectly right under the light. The carrier itself is heavy duty in conjunction with factory hinge mounting points. It looks awesome and has additional mounting points for fuel containers and jack. I as limited in choices because I have an OR-Fab rear bumper (which is awesome). For me, because I didn't have to purchase the tire carrier, the carrier was worth it.