Feature Request Thread: MK2 ROAM JL Slimline Tire Carrier Rear Bumper - prototype factoring

[Turfman]

Hi Tara, could you please integrate one or two flag pole mounts on each side of the tire carrier to maintain decent rear visibility and maintain most of the viewfinder from the rear camera?

Also, it would be great if you could add rear lighting duplication of the taillights so that they are more visible when carrying a large loadout on the back that can block the taillights. Since the bumper skin doesn't have holes for rear foglights, these could be integrated here too. Something like this:

Another idea would be a fold-down step that allows easier ingress and egress to the rear cargo of the Jeep which is especially useful for lifted rigs.

Adding to a request for a folding table solution, it would be great if it was sturdy enough to be used as a chair as well.

Probably a big stretch, but it would be awesome if there was an optional tire carrier that pivoted down after swinging out to make it easier to mount and dismount a heavy 100LB spare.

I hope some of these are accepted for proposal and look forward to the end result.

Maybe a small winch system to help get the tire on the carrier!

Sponsored

 

[GRAK]

 

[ROAM]

Hi Tara, could you please integrate one or two flag pole mounts on each side of the tire carrier to maintain decent rear visibility and maintain most of the viewfinder from the rear camera?

Also, it would be great if you could add rear lighting duplication of the taillights so that they are more visible when carrying a large loadout on the back that can block the taillights. Since the bumper skin doesn't have holes for rear foglights, these could be integrated here too. Something like this:

Another idea would be a fold-down step that allows easier ingress and egress to the rear cargo of the Jeep which is especially useful for lifted rigs.

Adding to a request for a folding table solution, it would be great if it was sturdy enough to be used as a chair as well.

Probably a big stretch, but it would be awesome if there was an optional tire carrier that pivoted down after swinging out to make it easier to mount and dismount a heavy 100LB spare.

I hope some of these are accepted for proposal and look forward to the end result.

Sorry about the lack of updates, after Tara told me to update this thread I couldn't find it and thought it was deleted - but turns out its been moved to the "Racks, Carriers & Cargo Hauling" section - so here's a few updates:

Hi Tara, could you please integrate one or two flag pole mounts on each side of the tire carrier to maintain decent rear visibility and maintain most of the viewfinder from the rear camera?

I haven't looked to see of anyone said but a powertank mount would be awesome!

Not a problem! We can add those via the modular addons subsystem - non structural items will probably be added on later vs stuff that weighs more or must be integrated at this stage, such as extreme weight or would require wiring or air lines. But yes, we can definitely add those on.

Also, it would be great if you could add rear lighting duplication of the taillights so that they are more visible when carrying a large loadout on the back that can block the taillights. Since the bumper skin doesn't have holes for rear foglights, these could be integrated here too.

This is actually something in the works already because of how far back the bike carrier sits and because there is the potential of a bike obstructing the taillights. The high mounted brake light however has already been relocated to the high mounted cargo basket along with the rear view camera on the MK2. The 2nd set of rear lighting will be high mounted to clear the tailgate, tire swingarm, and bike carrier.

Another idea would be a fold-down step that allows easier ingress and egress to the rear cargo of the Jeep which is especially useful for lifted rigs.

That's a great idea! In addition to the two fold down steps that are part of the ladder already? As in it'll need to fold into the the surface of the bumper cover when its not being used, almost like power steps but for the rear hatch?

Maybe a small winch system to help get the tire on the carrier!

Probably a big stretch, but it would be awesome if there was an optional tire carrier that pivoted down after swinging out to make it easier to mount and dismount a heavy 100LB spare.

We've actually looked at implementing something like this, however we're currently stuck at how to come up with a solution that would eliminate the possibility of injury during operation. Based on some of our more out there proposals something like a hand truck dolly with an integrated tire lift that mounts to the tire carrier swingarm would probably be safer to operate. Where the tire is mounted to a lift mechanism on the hand truck which is then mounted to the swingarm or something, where when you're changing the tire you'd lower the hand truck lift dolly from the swingarm via the lift mechanism, and then wheel the tire over, and then jack up the corner and then roll the flat away and then wheel the replacement tire over and then roll the flat onto the hand truck lift dolly, bolt the wheel to the hand truck lift dolly and then wheel that to the swingarm, attach to the swingarm and then use the lift mechanism to raise the entire thing.

We're working with a features list on this where the end goal is to improve the Jeep ownership experience, and thus far a recurring complaint has always been how to actually change a 40" tire without requiring a reasonable level or fitness or involve risk of injury. Its not the adding a winch or lever arm or hydraulics thats the problem, its the ease of use and eliminating the risk of injury thats the hold up with all of our current proposed solutions, though I'm sure we'll have this figured out in another month or so when we're caught back up with projects and backlogs.

Adding to a request for a folding table solution, it would be great if it was sturdy enough to be used as a chair as well.

I hope some of these are accepted for proposal and look forward to the end result.

These are all really good ideas - I'll include #1 and #3 into prototype factoring. #2 and #4 are already in the works but a table that also folds into a chair is definitely new - I'll let Tara know to add that to the production factoring queue.

@ROAM What is the ETA on this?

@ROAM any progress?

@ROAM any updates on eta?

What is the ETA on this? 6 months? 18?

If we don't hit any more unexpected delays with other projects then we're looking at small batch availability by SEMA and then general availability by December or January.

And yes, this has been slow because we had to make sure that the exo system superstructure can integrate correctly into the top pivot which was not pictured.

And in the case that no one else at ROAM can either find or fails to update the exo thread here's what that looks like right now and if all goes well we should have a prototype at SEMA. So another month or so?

 

[Shepherd12]

You’ve been busy!

 

[alphalife9]

That's a great idea! In addition to the two fold down steps that are part of the ladder already? As in it'll need to fold into the the surface of the bumper cover when it's not being used, almost like power steps but for the rear hatch?

I would say it could be the part of the flat vertical surface of the rear bumper that folds down, or part of the top horizontal surface and vertical surface of the bumper that rotates down 180 degrees on hinges, in essence creating an "L" shape with the top of the "L" connecting to the bottom of the bumper.




We've actually looked at implementing something like this, however we're currently stuck at how to come up with a solution that would eliminate the possibility of injury during operation. Based on some of our more out there proposals something like a hand truck dolly with an integrated tire lift that mounts to the tire carrier swingarm would probably be safer to operate. Where the tire is mounted to a lift mechanism on the hand truck which is then mounted to the swingarm or something, where when you're changing the tire you'd lower the hand truck lift dolly from the swingarm via the lift mechanism, and then wheel the tire over, and then jack up the corner and then roll the flat away and then wheel the replacement tire over and then roll the flat onto the hand truck lift dolly, bolt the wheel to the hand truck lift dolly and then wheel that to the swingarm, attach to the swingarm and then use the lift mechanism to raise the entire thing.

We're working with a features list on this where the end goal is to improve the Jeep ownership experience, and thus far a recurring complaint has always been how to actually change a 40" tire without requiring a reasonable level or fitness or involve risk of injury. Its not the adding a winch or lever arm or hydraulics thats the problem, its the ease of use and eliminating the risk of injury thats the hold up with all of our current proposed solutions, though I'm sure we'll have this figured out in another month or so when we're caught back up with projects and backlogs.

This is definitely a complex problem when considering ease of use and safety. I'm looking forward to seeing what you come up with!





These are all really good ideas - I'll include #1 and #3 into prototype factoring. #2 and #4 are already in the works but a table that also folds into a chair is definitely new - I'll let Tara know to add that to the production factoring queue.

That's awesome, thank you!



If we don't hit any more unexpected delays with other projects then we're looking at small batch availability by SEMA and then general availability by December or January.

And yes, this has been slow because we had to make sure that the exo system superstructure can integrate correctly into the top pivot which was not pictured.

And in the case that no one else at ROAM can either find or fails to update the exo thread here's what that looks like right now and if all goes well we should have a prototype at SEMA. So another month or so?

Looking at the exo system, it appears to bolt onto a full-width front bumper that seems to be for Sport and Sahara front fenders. Will there be a variation or different end caps that come up to Rubicon fenders?

Also, it looks like the operation of the soft top is maintained if the roof rack is not on the exo system. Is that correct?

 

[ROAM]

Tire carrier is now available and will ship in 7-10 business days. Contact us if you have any questions.

 

[XCPirate]

I have most of the available parts sitting in the garage waiting to be installed. I will also update this thread with install pics and will be creating a companion video to go along with the tire carrier bumper install video.

 

[Jrubi]

Hi!

The Maxtrax or Tred Pro recovery boards can't be moved to the passenger side because when either swingarm is opened anything on the passenger side will interfere with the taillight or body (please see the part cut out of the ladder side profile for reference). We've located the 3rd accessory group, the modular lattice system, on the drivers side because of the interference problem.

There should be enough room however though to attach a trasharoo to the outside of the maxtrax boards at an angle. The modular lattice system as it sits right now should have enough room and attachment points to securely attach something like a trasharoo. Also, the 2nd swingarm doesn't have to have a bike carrier mounted on it at all times and when a foldable bike carrier such as a 1UP or similar is folded up to the "retracted" position, a trasharoo could potentially still be mounted to the spare tire. Our design focuses on and prioritizes the bike carrier because a decent bike or two will probably cost more than the entire bumper assembly itself twice over.





Thats a great idea! How high would you want the air hose reel to sit? E.g. Lower for better access to tires or bike tires or higher up so its more out of the way of things? If its located near or at the cargo basket, there could potentially be enough room to located a retractable air hose reel.





Wait, as in an extension slot of some sort instead of just locking the bike(s) to the swingarm itself? Do you have a picture or an example of a one?

Thanks!

Tara @ ROAM









Thanks for the support!

Thats a great idea! To clarify, you're requesting a standalone skid plate for the bottom of the rear bumper and/or hitch area right? If so, just as a mockup, would something like this fit the bill?

Also, we do have something in the works that will probably also include the functionality that you're describing, though its part of a larger skid system and is meant to primarily protect both our aux fuel system and parts of the exhaust while diverting air/water/debris under the chassis.





This is definitely a great idea! I've forwarded this already to our engineering dept and they're currently discussing how to implement this: the current best guess so far is to make the cargo basket slideable (towards the front of the vehicle) and lockable and then to attach the secondary cargo basket to the outside (towards the rear of the vehicle) of the main slideable cargo basket, so that in the case that the soft top needs to go on (e.g. freak snow storm or similar) then with both baskets attached the vehicle can still "limp home" (with both baskets still attached) as opposed to requiring disassembly before its mobile. The weight of the basket or even an additional basket won't be a problem because of the modular lattice system attachment points (on a FEA program it looks like ~400 lbs should be fine so lets call it 200 before we actually test one out in real life?).




Please look for an upcoming announcement from us soon on a product that will include/incorporate this.





Hi rustyshakelford!

In the rendering, what looks like a rod that sticks out from the bottom of the main hinge pin is actually not there and is just a position indicator to show where the axis for the swingarm is located left over from rendering the tire carrier. The very bottom of the blue part of the ladder / 2nd swingarm mount incorporates a really small skid plate already that curves forward over the bottom of the hinge; the hinge location also closely hugs the body - please see the attached rendering of the mini skid mockup for the hinge location relative to the body and the pictures at the very top of the thread for what the actual hinge looks like (MK1 JL Slimline Tire Carrier Rear Bumper pictured).

Thanks!

Tara @ ROAM









We can probably do a version with zero hitches, though the three hitches are actually structural and are there to not only allow hitch mounted accessories to be installed without taking up the main hitch but are also part of the main structure to spread the force of a rearward impact across a few more load paths. Example here: https://www.jlwranglerforums.com/fo...list-jl-jlu-wrangler.2824/page-20#post-178066

We'll also probably do a budget/economy version that does not include the tire carrier as well.





Wait, just to clarify, you mean to end up with a total of one hitch receiver right (or to remove just the two adjacent to the main hitch receiver right)? The current MK2 prototype factoring has four (4) total hitch receivers - the last one is actually part of the second swingarm and is covered by the bike carrier / ski carrier addon: its actually visible in the very first rendering on the first post of the thread. The swingarm mounted hitch point isn't meant to be a tow point but instead to allow some kind of a hitch mounted accessory to be installed (for example a bike carrier that we've never seen before) and still articulate with the rear tailgate, instead of requiring the accessory itself to incorporate a folding or swingout function of some sort.





How strong would the box need to be (just theft deterrent and/or power tool proof?)? Also can this be incorporated into something else instead of the rear bumper? For example, a concealed door on either the rear part of our JL Rock Rails or on a front bumper instead? We've been testing a version of this for some time already and without making the box a complete Faraday Cage the passive entry feature will still trigger sometimes, and seems to be more sensitive towards the rear of the vehicle as opposed to the front.





I'd be happy to forward this request over to our engineering dept! This can definitely be incorporated into the modular lattice system at a later date.



Thanks for everyone's input and please keep the awesome ideas coming!

Tara @ ROAM

 

[XCPirate]

Day one of the accessory kit install.

 

[maxjlu]

Day one of the accessory kit install.

Nice setup!

 

[GRAK]

What’s it look like now?

 

[XCPirate]

What’s it look like now?

 

[WelderJay]

Can you purchase pieces of this or are they all in one kit. I would like the top rack and bike mount, and tire carrier but nothing else. Can I do that?

 

[XCPirate]

I haven’t installed the bike carrier beaches I broke my hand an have not been able to pick up a wrench in a while; Also, I don’t have a bike. Here is the latest pics of the progress though.

Sponsored