5 Attachments To Mount To The Back Of Your Jeep Instead Of A Spare Tire

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There are countless benefits to owning a Jeep Wrangler, or really any Jeep model. One of the smallest reasons is that those vehicles always come with a spare tire. Most modern vehicles no longer come with a spare, let alone a handy, rear-mounted one that leaves plenty of trunk space available for your stuff. Although the classic rear-mounted spare tire can come in handy, it is rarely a necessity, and there might be other attachments you can mount to the back of your jeep that you might find more useful.

Instead of a spare tire, you could mount a bike rack or an intricate cargo system. That said, if you're not ready to part ways with your spare tire because of the added peace of mind, there are plenty of rear-mounted attachments that add extra functionalities without kicking out the tire. Whichever style you may prefer, here are some of our favorite back-mounted Jeep accessories.

If you're ready to take off your spare tire and relieve your vehicle of the extra weight, one of the best investments you can make is in Yakima's Exo cargo system. It's quite pricey, but if you love to take your Jeep on camping trips, hiking excursions, and fishing getaways, you'll quickly realize its worth.

To kick off your Yakima Exo experience, you'll need the Exo SwingBase, a hitch system base that can swing away from your vehicle. This base piece alone is $699, but if that isn't enough, you can add an Exo TopShelf base for $479 more. With those boring but necessary base pieces out of the way, you're free to personalize your system with the many available accessories.

There's an Exo GearLocker for $619, which is simply a closed container with 10 cubic feet of storage space inside. The Exo DoubleUp accessory is another interesting one: for $549, this bike rack will hold as many as two bikes at once. For campers, there's the Exo OpenRange for $749, a camp kitchen designed to hold eating and cooking utensils, plates, cups, and more. Those are just a few of the available accessories you can customize the bottom and top base pieces with.

Your Jeep already has a little extra storage space in your trunk due to the spare tire being mounted, but if you frequently go on trips that require a lot of gear, you may find yourself struggling to fit everything and keep it organized. For Jeep owners who don't want to ditch their spare tire, a cargo rack like this one from Hooke Road is the perfect solution for increasing organized storage space while incorporating the rear-mounted spare tire.

As long as your spare tire is 30 to 40 inches in diameter, you will have no issues mounting this cargo rack above the tire. You can install this flat rack securely with the two included ratchet tie-down straps, and it can hold up to 80 pounds worth of gear at once on a rectangular surface area of 47.1x14.4 inches. There's a 2.3-inch raised edge to help keep items steady, and built-in storage slots for two 2-gallon fuel containers (not included) below the rack.

If this rear-mounted cargo rack doesn't sound like enough organization for you, check out these other Jeep accessories that add even more storage space.

If you love to cook while you're camping, or you want to experiment with playing host at tailgate parties, The Tailmesa tailgate table from Suntop might be an ideal accessory for your Jeep. It fits the standard holes on Jeep Wrangler JK models, so there's no need to worry about drilling holes or making modifications to the back of your vehicle prior to installing. Plus, it installs on the inner part of your Jeep's tailgate, so you can keep your rear-mounted spare tire right where it is.

When the Tailmesa is closed, it's only 1.3 inches thick, so it shouldn't interfere much with the amount of cargo you're able to fit in your trunk. When it opens, there are two large, weather-resistant shelves made with powder-coated black steel. You can use the top shelf for your portable stove and the bottom shelf for prepped ingredients or dishes to serve the meal on. Alternatively, you can cook on the bottom shelf and flip the top shelf to use it as a windscreen. Of course, if you're a frequent camper, there are many more Jeep accessories that will improve your next camping trip.

For avid bikers, adding a bike rack to your Jeep can improve your travel experience tenfold. Sure, you can fit most bikes in the trunk, but you sacrifice cargo space in exchange; and if you're going on a camping trip, cargo space is precious. You could also choose to invest in a bike rack for the roof of your Jeep, but it's more of a hassle to get the bikes up there and secure them, and your vehicle's new total height with the bikes will prevent you from accessing drive-thrus, low bridges, and most garages.

The alternative is a rear-mounted bike rack, like the Thule T2 Pro XTR, which can hold up to two bikes at once, including e-bikes up to 60 pounds. It also features a tool-free AutoAttach system that makes installation a breeze. It's available for 2-inch and 1.25-inch hitch sizes at the same price of $899.

You can remove your rear-mounted spare tire and install this bike rack as-is, or look into getting a hitch adapter or extender prior to installation, if you'd rather keep the spare tire in addition to a bike rack. Just keep in mind that extenders under 12 inches reduce your hitch load capacity by 25% and extenders over 12 inches reduce load capacity by 50%, at lest according to towing product company Curt.

There's no denying the rear-mounted spare tire is a classic look for Jeeps, and it's just as practical as it is a fashion statement. However, after years of staring at the same old spare tire, which may or may not have ever been needed, you might find yourself wanting to take it down. Or maybe, you've been sick of the extra tire on your tailgate since the first day you owned your vehicle, and you've seen plenty of other Jeeps without a spare tire.

Removing the spare tire from your Jeep comes with some benefits — it lightens the load a little and allows you to more easily mount other accessories — but it will leave you staring at a few unattractive holes where the tire used to be. To clean up the look of your Jeep sans spare tire, you can enlist the help of this Rough Country tire delete kit. The kit includes a powder-coated steel plate that can accommodate your license plate and your vehicle's backup camera and an 8-inch LED bar you can mount to illuminate your license plate.