Spare tire on door?

[James AKA Lynx]

My 97 van has the spare inside taking up space and smells. I was wanting to put it on the rear door. Any problems with that? <br>Drivers side OK? <br><br>I have heard of theft problems and others have said no. Thoughts?<br><br>Thanks, James AKA Lynx

 

[coultergeist]

I've never had a problem with it on a full size van.&nbsp; You can use theft deterrent nuts and bolts for peace of mind.&nbsp; I don't recommend it on smaller vans like an Astro.&nbsp; Their doors aren't really made to support that kind of extra weight.&nbsp; You can still do it, but it takes more work to make it safe.&nbsp; You have to add stiffeners to the inside of the door.

 

[user 423]

You can lock them to the carrier with a short length of hefty chain and a padlock. Deters the casual thief anyway. Put a vinyl cover over it to make it look neat. Mine has been on the back for years and no theft. The tire and wheel of a full size van is pretty heavy, so it's a bit more work hoisting it.

 

[Willy]

This is on my truck, but have seen them on other vehicles too (including vans): <img style="cursor: -moz-zoom-in;" rel="lightbox" src="/file?id=1538996" class="decoded bbc_img"> ..Willy.

 

[flying kurbmaster]

I also have mine on the front like Willy's but I think, if you can make it work you are better off too install it on the back as long as you can still open your doors or at least open one.&nbsp;The advantage of having it upfront is that it is out of the way, The disadvantages are,&nbsp;if&nbsp;you are concerned about aero dynamics, and fuel econmy but this would&nbsp;have a minimul effect.&nbsp;As a&nbsp;note, If you are starting from scratch,&nbsp;&nbsp;I read that if you are installing it on the front there are aero advantages to keeping below the level of the top of the hood, so you still get benefits from the rounded nature of that part also so you don';t have to look through it but these as mentioned would be minimal.&nbsp;Having it up front also works as a grill block especially with a cover&nbsp;keeping fouled air out&nbsp;of engine compartment, which is an aero advantage, Some people worry about cooling but I have not found any difference, perhaps if you were towing&nbsp;in hot weather&nbsp;through the mountains this would be a&nbsp;factor but I doubt it would come into play on most vehicles. &nbsp;If you are worried about weight on your doors you could think about installing on the rear bumper or hitch mount. There is also the roof, which is real bad for aero and the other option is to get rid of it all together which some people are doing, Personnally I haven't had a flat tire in over 30 years, there are spray cans you can carry as a back up and repair beads that&nbsp;can be put inside a tire. I think if you have good tires you are very unlikely to get a flat tire but I also&nbsp;understand the peace&nbsp;of mind of having one if you are doing off road stuff. &nbsp;

 

[wrcsixeight]

I could not imagine the wasted space of a spare tire inside the Van.<br><br>Mine is on my Driver's side back door. &nbsp;I like it there, but it does restrict the door opening, and if the restrictor was not there it would crush the tail light.<br><br>I do have slightly oversized tires, and if they were any bigger, the tire would crush the taillight, and the opposite door would hit the tire and modifications with a welder would be necessary to make it work.<br><br>So keep in mind the restrictions of actually being able to open the doors with a tire mounted on them if you decide to go this route.<br><br>My Buddy's Astro had a donut under the floor in the back, which is nearly useless, but it appeared to me that a full size tire could be stuffed up there. &nbsp;He doesn't even carry a spare because he has blind faith in AAA, yet does not realize he could be sitting on the side of the road for many hours waiting on them. &nbsp;Bet he'd love to have even a Donut after dealing with that nightmare.&nbsp;

 

[twokniveskatie]

I replaced my dry rotted donut with a full-sized used tire. Fits fine up underneath.

 

[VanLifeCrisis]

Just discussing this the other day.&nbsp; Mine takes up space too inside, but i think i will just move it to the other side on the floor where i plan to put a tool closet walled off from the rest.&nbsp; I was a little nervous rigging up some shaky thing on the outside door of the van.<br><br><br>In a smaller astro i would get one that has a swing arm that bolts to the body of the van and locks to the door.&nbsp; You can probably grab one off a suv or jeep at the junk yard (kia sportage for instance).&nbsp; A new one costs about 250-300

 

[James AKA Lynx]

I can get my spare tire carrier for $ 50 at Amazon. Most are more expensive.<br><br>James AKA Lynx

 

[highdesertranger]

I put hundreds of these on back in the day.&nbsp; if your van's rear door hinges are exposed on the outside of the van, &nbsp;there is a good&nbsp;carrier that attaches to the hinges and to the other side of the same door.&nbsp; that type of carrier is good for all except the largest tires.&nbsp; highdesertranger

 

[Simran]

I've got a G30 with 16" wheels on it. I have one of the above carriers<br>that mounts on the hinges and edge of the door. I gotta say it works<br>but mine is definitely the limit on size. No door slamming allowed!!!<br>I really need willie's outfit on my van; I like it!<br><br>gus

 

[MrNoodly]

If you have roof racks on your van, and your solar panels don't take up the entire roof, it's possible to mount the spare up there. Off-roaders have various types of brackets that could be bolted to the roof rack. Of course, you'd need the height and strength to wrestle the tire up there.

 

[Ziggy Moon]

I like the set-up Willy has (Front Mounting).

 

[highdesertranger]

I keep my spares on the roof rack.&nbsp; I found that getting the tires up takes a little muscle but getting them down you better be a little careful. once I thought I could just throw my tire off the roof, &nbsp;I tried to throw it so it would land flat and sit right were I threw it.&nbsp; ha ha ha silly me the tire didn't land flat it landed a just enough of an angle to bounce.&nbsp; well after it bounced it landed upright and took off rolling down hill it hit a ditch and I thought ah the ditch will stop it.&nbsp; ha another miscalculation it hit the ditch and launched maybe 20 feet into the air landed upright and kept rolling down hill.&nbsp; well it finally stopped at the bottom of the hill in a wash.&nbsp; then I had to retrieve it,&nbsp; I tell you the trip&nbsp;the tire took down hill took maybe 5 to 10 seconds but the trip back up took about a hour that tire fought me all the way back up.&nbsp; highdesertranger

 

[caseyc]

I have a spare tire rack installed on the left rear door of my 1995 Ford E150 Econoline conversion van. It is equipped with exactly the same new tire as the others, plus it has a round metal case and a front cover, plus a lock and key for the case to prevent theft. I even have another full identical spare tire underneath the rear of the van for a total of 2 spares. Heck, if I really want to, I can even install a 3rd spare tire on top of the roof on the Yakima MegaWarrior basket! &nbsp;Overkill, I know. &nbsp;I like the spare tire rack with tire attached because I feel it will offer me extra protection in case of a rear end collision. I also have a ladder installed on the right side of the rear doors. People told me all this extra weight of the tire rack and spare tire might damage the door. Well it's been about 6 months now at least since I had that installed and all is fine, so phooey to the naysayers. Good luck on your choice.<br><br>

 

[MrNoodly]

<strong>"...</strong><span style="line-height: 20px;"><strong>I thought I could just throw my tire off the roof, &nbsp;I tried to throw it so it would land flat and sit right were I threw it.&nbsp; ha ha ha silly me the tire didn't land flat it landed a just enough of an angle to bounce.&nbsp; well after it bounced it landed upright and took off rolling down hill..."</strong><br><br>It might be a good idea to add a tether of some kind -- a rope long enough to leave some slack when you drop the tire to the ground, but short enough to keep it from rolling away. You could also use the tether to haul the tire back up to the roof.</span>

 

[highdesertranger]

I thought of that mr noodly but now I just keep control of the tire and not be lazy when taking it off the roof.&nbsp; luckily I don't have to do this very often.&nbsp; highdesertranger

 

[James AKA Lynx]

I got my spare tire mount today for the rear door. Now - Which Side? <br><br>The maker said left. I suspect this is the drivers side. My problem is that if I do this then the bolts are on the top. <br><br>Putting it on the passenger side would put the bolts down, BUT the bolts in the center of the van would be on the very outside edge where the seal is.<br><br>Does anybody know if the tire mount would be OK with the bolts on top of the hinge support? (on the drivers side)<br><br>The non-hinge mount is 2 7/16 bolts. Should I put a mounting plate behind them??<br><br>James AKA Lynx

 

[Simran]

Put it on the left (drivers) side. The reason is <br>simple; that is the door that gets opened the <br>least. Take it from me; mine was mounted on<br>the right (passenger) side. If I knew who<br>mounted&nbsp;it that way&nbsp;I'd find `em and&nbsp;<br>slap `em `til they wake up&nbsp;:&gt<img src="/images/boards/smilies/wink.gif" border="0" align="absmiddle"> !!!!<br><br>gus

 

[caseyc]

Yes, I agree with the left side (driver side) for the reason that door gets opened fewer times. That's how I have mine done.&nbsp;If you have the spare tire on the right side, you will be surprised how HEAVY the door is with the spare tire attached, which makes it more troublesome to open the door with all that extra weight.<br><br>