Shaker replied:

Maybe it allows for greater clearance under the vehicle, or allows for larger capacity fuel tanks, or some may say just looks good too!

GO_OFFROAD replied:

Ask your wife to change the flat tyre on the car and see how she goes lifting it on the back door or carrier, compared to winching it up off the ground under the car.

My 80 I ran a 16" steel rim with a 7.50 spare, and lifted the brackets another 12mm, removed the bar at the front of the spare, and you then couldnt see the spare from behind.

Another product we have just developed will make rear door spare access on and off alot easier, as well as serving another purpose, and should be out Jan 05.

Johnno1 replied:

that is a good effort for the ute to be high enough to hit that spare.
Did the guy stalk you ?

fozzy replied:

CHRIS not nice having that happen to you at all and great that you told other car about being hit but in relation to spare on back-my 80 series had wheel carrier on back initially spare underneath scraped quite consitantly and i had long range tank fitted and the spare sat on roofrack until i could afford rear wheel carrier-u ever tried lifting spare up and down from roofrack
have 100 now and one of first things i did was take wheel out from underneath and put on wheel carrier
fricken pain in a... having to open the swing away carrier every time u want a beer or something out of back but certainly no tyre underneath makes for easier swapping of rims
never had to get tyre from underneath in mud and will never have to and will never want to
rear wheel on back is part of car and never had problem with hitting cars in carparks or had wheel hit yey but maybe im lucky touchwood
if i never went off rd or changed wheels or had long range tank fitted then i would definitely leave wheel under back of cruisers

Davoe replied:

When I was a kid I tried a runner after reversing into a car and the upshot was I was fined for reversing without due care and charged with leaving the scene. As I found out it is not only rude but an offence and costly

ianmc replied:

An underslung spare fat wheel is not an option in any real off road situation & I wonder how Tojo have got away with it for so many years. Just have to look at the minimum clearnce between tyre & road in a loaded 4by to see that.
Heard of one being ripped off up the Cape & it got loose & destroyed the
camper trailer suspension., then later on the owner cooked his motor too as he wasnt watching th temp guage at the right moment I guess. What a feeling!
How the heck can you get one out from under when in thick sand or mud with a flat
& a big load onboard??

Member - Jeff M (WA) replied:

Chris why does having the spare tyre on the back make your vehicle more prone to being hit in car parks?

All 3 of my 4bies have had their spares on the back and have never experienced a problem. Mind you I always have my reece hitch locked on the back of the car so good luck getting past that bit first! LOL.

Personally I would have pulled over and got out of the car with my trusty wheel brace in my hand, if he pulled up I would have pollitally asked him if there was a problem as I tapped it into the palm of my other hand. What a moron, people like that make me SO ANGRY!

theshadows replied:

by the time you muck around getting the spare out from under the car then find out its flat{ because being under the car you cannot be bothered to check it.} then change the silly tyre.
its just as bad dropping the tyre off the back of the wheel carrier {but at least I'm more likey to check it to see if it needs air.}
All I do now is pop the compressor on and fix the leak while the wheel is still on the car. {and I dont need to fiind a jack} with a external repair pack. {if I got my mallet and tyre levers with me} I'll pop the tyre off and put an intenial plug in the tyre if Im not in a hurry.

shadow

Member - Roachie (SA) replied:

Now let's see for a minute........

I can buy a swing away rear wheel carrier to stick on the back of a cruiser etc which suggests people like the idea and are prepared to put up with having to lift the wheel up to avail of the benefits of better departure angle and fitment of a larger fuel tank.

However, I just rang around (only in my imagination; I'm not really THAT silly) to all the aftermarket places to see if I could get a replacement set-up so I could move my Patrol's spare to UNDER the body......guess what; nobody sells anything like this. Now, I wonder if the reason no-one sells these is because NOBODY WANTS SUCH A STUPID SET-UP.

Sorry Chris, but I really don't think you've thought this through very well before posting the question.....

I agree that a petite woman would have strife lifting a 265/75 up onto the wheel carrier on back door etc. This, to me, is another reason why people should think twice before buying this sort of vehicle as a shopping trolley. I bought my Patrol cos I like getting into the bush. If I was a city dweller who loved going to flower shows and playing marjon (spelling???) or chess, I'd buy myself a nice little Comode or Hyundai or Subaru Liberty. Much safer for the kids and easier to park etc. In my mind it's a case of horses for courses. You wanna own a big, tough 4x4, you gotta have the muscle to go with it.

Having said that, I have seen a set-up an oldish bloke had on the back of his twin rear wheel carrier that incorporated a small jib and wind up winch (like off the front of a motor boat trailer). It was positioned so that he could winch either of his spare wheels up to the right height and swing it around to get onto it's mounting point.

Just my opinion....not looking for an argument...

Member - Steve (ACT) replied:

A little off the topic, but I've had two visits to shopping centres in the last two months where a vehicle has clipped the 4wd when either reversing out in coming in to park, only marked the silver panel at the bottom.

But to my surprise, no utter shock one time the culprit left name, contact number and regos details, with a sorry. We decided that it wasn't worth chasing but rang them to thank them for their honesty. I think they were equally shocked that we were happy to let it go.

Raises the old faith in humanity thing, until we came home and discovered we'd been clipped again last week, no note this time!!!

Sandy

ev700 replied:

Most of the damage caused to our vehicles has come from shopping trolleys.

We should lobby for mobile security patrols - this would help to cut the thteat of theft and assault too.

Shopping centres should take more care in the design of car parking, especially access.

Coops (Pilbara) replied:

Now who's wife changes the tyre anyway - a small minority I'm betting.
My mobile would be running red hot as soon as she saw it was flat (if she saw it).
I do agree with the lifting bit as I struggle sometimes but have only had to do it twice other than for rotation so am happy with that.
Rear wheel carrier allows me greater clearance as well as cleared up space for LR fuel tank. Also can't fit 2 spares underneath!
Shopping Centre bings - I sorted that with a lift kit and bodylift combined with extra wide sidesteps. Now if their kids open the doors too quickly the damage is to their doors and not mine. Haven't had a bing since although I don't frequent city malls much either

Bob of KAOS replied:

Changing wheels on the 'rubber bladed grader' is an absolute PITA. Give me rear door mounted spares every time. When I take the trailer I remove the underslung spare and carry it on the trailer.

GO_OFFROAD replied:

And the most interesting part of this whole conversation for me, who has had the spare on the back of the last 2 cars, [prado and troopy] in the back of another, [40 with swampers] and mounted in the back of the 80 for comps, [where back seat should be] and under the back for 4wding, is that in the last 5 years, because I run the right tyres, at the right pressures, I have used my spare twice..........

So to be trying to buy a car because of where the spare is seems a little weird, do you check the position of the jack?...........the tool kit?

I know I would much prefer the spare under the back like my 80, that having to open and close it to access the back all the time, and obviously the spare under isnt a problem, or I guess Toyota would sell 5 times more, rather than just 3 times more than anyone else......

ol55 replied:

Hi all.
Just read through all the responses and the main debate seems to have developed into - should the spare be below or on the back door?
There are good reasons given above for both cases. I have had a Jackaroo and a Maverick (on door) and an 80 series (below). My personal preference is for 'below'.
An aspect I didn't notice anyone mention with the Rear door thing - is the lack of visibility. I also found it a pain the r's with the limited access to the rear and the fact that many , many times you could not swing the rear doors open enough due to obstacles - or even in the garage at home without opening the garage door.Sorry for getting off thread with that aspect but it is very much related to the location of the spare. I love the horizontal split of the 80 or 100 series tailgates compared to full or 3/4 swing out doors.
Incidentally, I now drive an 03 Grand Cherro CRD which has the spare in a well under the floor but inside. That has it plusses and minusses too. PITA if you get a flat when the rear is loaded...but at least your spare is not a back breaking job to get out ...and it's nice and clean LOL. However, Grand has a lift up rear window which is great for getting smaller things (like stubbies) out with out having to open the back door. There is no vision issue of spare blocking 3/4 rear window view. I can fully open the rear (same as 80/100series) in the garage with garage door shut - or open in many limited spaces that you cant open the swing out doors.

Unfortunately I have had flats in all those vehicles - mainly nails/screws picked up on building sites and the like. I'm not built like a brick sh*thouse and apologise for having owned so many 4bies in ignorance of that pre-requisite.

As for spare wheels - I found the 80 series almost as easy to access as the Grand (which was not loaded at the time luckily). I buy my 4bies mainly for towing and for the extra load carrying versatiliy inside.

These are just my observations and experiences and I dont pretend to inflict them on any body - just simply offering another viewpoint to keep a balanced debate. Cheers all.

Andrew replied:

ummm........... LMAO

Lexus LX740, Toyota LandCruiser 100-105, Toyota Hilux 4 Wheel Drive
Date: 13/06/2002

Supplier: Toyota Motor Corporation Australia Limited

Category: Motor Vehicles

Product Info: Campaign Number: 2506F. Lexus LX470, Toyota Land Cruiser 100, 105 models produced from 7 January 1998 to 2 September 2001 , and HiLux 4WD models produced from 29 July 1997 to 2 December 2001.

Defect details: When the above models are regularly driven on rough corrugated roads at high speeds for long distances, the spare wheel winch wire cable may become frayed due to road transmitted vibration acting on the under body mounted spare wheel.

Consumer action: All owners of affected vehicles will be contacted by letter. Owners are requested to return their vehicles to an authorised Toyota dealer for rectification.

Make: Toyota

Model: Lexus LX470, Toyota Land Cruiser 100.105 and Toyota Hilux 4WD

Model Years From: 1997-2001

Consequences: The wire cable strength decreases and the spare wheel could detach from the vehicle as a consequence of the cable breaking

Campaign Number: 2506F

Market Coverage: National

Recall Coverage: National

ol55 replied:

Hi Klaus,
I'm sure you will have your spare someplace that suits YOU. Just as I have mine someplace that suits ME.
As for the Toyota recall notices, firtsly looks like I was lucky with my 1997 80 Series, second - I'm surprised they had to recall all those vehicles - it would appear that the so called Toyota reliability is indeed a myth. I know I had two speedos replaced in mine and now they have issues with the A- arms too.....hmmmm....

Looks like we all are at the mercy of the gods no matter which brand we buy.