JEJ0308
New member
Maybe someone has already proposed this idea, but I haven't been able to find it anywhere.
Rather than spending hundreds on a heavy duty spare tire carrier and/or bumper, would it be possible to use the existing carrier and mounting points, drill all the way thru the tailgate, and reinforce the inside with something like a spare tire delete plate? May have to be a little thicker plate actually, but the holes would line up, use some nuts and bolts to sandwich the whole thing together, and viola, no popped welds!
I guess the next question would be; are the stock hinges sturdy enough to bare the weight of something like, say a 35 in tire? I know people don't always upgrade the tire carrier, and not everybody has issues with welds popping, but this seems like a simple, and cheap way to beef up that section of the tailgate.
Rather than spending hundreds on a heavy duty spare tire carrier and/or bumper, would it be possible to use the existing carrier and mounting points, drill all the way thru the tailgate, and reinforce the inside with something like a spare tire delete plate? May have to be a little thicker plate actually, but the holes would line up, use some nuts and bolts to sandwich the whole thing together, and viola, no popped welds!
I guess the next question would be; are the stock hinges sturdy enough to bare the weight of something like, say a 35 in tire? I know people don't always upgrade the tire carrier, and not everybody has issues with welds popping, but this seems like a simple, and cheap way to beef up that section of the tailgate.