Centered vs non centered hitch/bumper/tailgate tire mounts.

Centered vs non centered- hitch and tailgate spare tire mounts


I’ve seen these mounts place the spare tire in the center or off to one side of the tailgate. Are there any pros and cons strictly with those two mounting locations?

When I think about it I’ve come up with a few but I don’t know how much they might actually effect the driving experience. I may be splitting hairs

• Mounted closer to the passenger side: might create a blind spot when checking for traffic on my right. At the same time adds some counter weight for driver.
• Mounted closer to the driver side adds more weight to the driver side. But is also mounted in my blind spot so I don’t have to look through a tire.
• Mounted in the center means I can drop the tire into the License plate “well” allowing for larger tires and giving me more visual clearance with my rear view mirror.
• Mounted off to one side allows for a large mounting area for large items. If the tire is centered then two smaller areas would be an option to mount items.

 

• aesthetics
• aesthetics
• and thats it.

 

for me it was about weight. putting it on the passenger side was the obvious choice to avoid putting more weight on the driver's. also better vis out of my rearview with it being mounted out to the side rather than dead center. there is a reason you often seen them there, it's not just aesthetics, but I can see why you would say that with all the mall crawling.

 

Form and function- both can be beautiful. As far as Aesthetics goes why is the non centered liked aesthetically?

 

Assuming the swing out opens to the passenger side, I'd guess tire goes on passenger side to put less strain on the hinge itself. If on the driver side, your hanging the weight well over the fulcrum point? But I'm not an engineer.

 

It wouldn’t hang across the tailgate. What ever side it would be mounted on that’s the side it would be closest to. That’s if it’s not center mounted.

 

Pick the one you like and mount the damn thing.

 

I'm referring to the actual swing out itself. Most of them open toward the passenger side, meaning the hing is on that side of the vehicle. So, having the tire on that side doesn't put added stress on the hinge, compared to being further away from the hinge (middle or driver side). That's my pro for having it on the passenger side. Now, if your swing out opens to the driver (hinge on DS), then flip that logic.

Personally, I think mounted in the side looks better than center mounted. Center mounted would block more of your view out of the back if you are already limited by a camper shell or Softopper.