JL Issues with Mopar HD Hinge and Relocation bracket

[richk225]

Hello to all, long time Jeeper here, and I have a question for those of you who have purchased the Mopar HD hinge support and tire relocation bracket. I am running 17" Mopar Gladiator rims with 35" BFG MT KO`3`s
No problem fitting everything and mounting the spare.( I have the Rubicon steel bumpers and the 35" would not fit on the factory spare mount, it hit the bumper ) So I figured I would do the right thing for the time being to save my tailgate until something better comes out. I don`t want to change the factory steel bumpers
Here is the issue, my spare tire rattles when going over bumps in the street or if I hit the dreaded pothole. I have the 2 rubber tire idolaters re positioned in the tire mount so they are getting compressed to where there were stock, if not more.
I can go to my spare and physically hit the top outside face of it and watch it rattle, at least I thought it was the tire rattling.
It turns out that the entire tailgate is flexing, I had a friend look at the bottom of the tailgate and it was moving, as it turns out the top is also moving.
For a temporary fix I took my REESE trailer hitch which has a 5 1/4 drop and turned it upside down and put a rubber bushing between the tire and hitch. My tire or tailgate has been about 90% eliminated.
I had the Smittybilt HD spare carrier hinge mount on my JK and the tire was SOLID

I honestly believe Jeep needs to look into this, the bracket just raises the spare tire mount and in no way reinforces it, the HD hinge does not bolt to the body like the JK did, It just bolts to the tailgate. Even with the stock 33" there was some tailgate flex. I could not imagine putting a 37" on there like MOPAR claims that you can
I was at a recent Jeep event here in NJ and found out that Skyjacker is working on a brace that supports the tire from underneath pretty much like their JK one.
Sorry for the long post but I figured I would put as much info that I had, anyone have a similar experience ?

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[W5MQS]

Hmmm...this is the first I've heard of this...tail-gate flexing, that is. While I'm running 35" tires on my JLUR, I don't have the HD hinge support but instead opted for a bumper mounted tire carrier. Again, with that being said, even though I have the bumper mounted tire carrier, I haven't heard of anyone with the problem you're having with the re-inforcement part. Can you post any pics???

 

[aCeMedic13]

Hello to all, long time Jeeper here, and I have a question for those of you who have purchased the Mopar HD hinge support and tire relocation bracket. I am running 17" Mopar Gladiator rims with 35" BFG MT KO`3`s
No problem fitting everything and mounting the spare.( I have the Rubicon steel bumpers and the 35" would not fit on the factory spare mount, it hit the bumper ) So I figured I would do the right thing for the time being to save my tailgate until something better comes out. I don`t want to change the factory steel bumpers
Here is the issue, my spare tire rattles when going over bumps in the street or if I hit the dreaded pothole. I have the 2 rubber tire idolaters re positioned in the tire mount so they are getting compressed to where there were stock, if not more.
I can go to my spare and physically hit the top outside face of it and watch it rattle, at least I thought it was the tire rattling.
It turns out that the entire tailgate is flexing, I had a friend look at the bottom of the tailgate and it was moving, as it turns out the top is also moving.
For a temporary fix I took my REESE trailer hitch which has a 5 1/4 drop and turned it upside down and put a rubber bushing between the tire and hitch. My tire or tailgate has been about 90% eliminated.
I had the Smittybilt HD spare carrier hinge mount on my JK and the tire was SOLID

I honestly believe Jeep needs to look into this, the bracket just raises the spare tire mount and in no way reinforces it, the HD hinge does not bolt to the body like the JK did, It just bolts to the tailgate. Even with the stock 33" there was some tailgate flex. I could not imagine putting a 37" on there like MOPAR claims that you can
I was at a recent Jeep event here in NJ and found out that Skyjacker is working on a brace that supports the tire from underneath pretty much like their JK one.
Sorry for the long post but I figured I would put as much info that I had, anyone have a similar experience ?

Verify that you torque'd the new screws for the reinforcement correctly. I had some rattle/misalignment and it was fixed with some tightening. Truthfully I may have had the same experience sometime last week taking a turn and a bump. I wasn't sure if the tailgate was moving though. It definitely doesn't feel as solid as it used to be. (I have 35's and some black rhino wheels). Honestly I will probably looking at replacing it with a aftermarket rear bumper with more accessories a few months down the line when we have more options.

BUT the spare definitely shouldn't be moving like that. My spare/tailgate does not shake or rattle if I push or pull on it. You are saying the entire tailgate is rattling right? Try tightening the hinge screws.

 

[richk225]

I can post a pic of the HD mounting bracket and the hitch with the spacer. I don`t know if I can upload a video, but if your facing the spare tire and hit the top of it you can clearly see it shake and have another person look at the bottom and top of the tailgate while you hit the tire with your hand and it clearly flexes. Not bouncing up and down but actually flexing. Everything is tight and blue Loctite was used

 

[aCeMedic13]

I can post a pic of the HD mounting bracket and the hitch with the spacer. I don`t know if I can upload a video, but if your facing the spare tire and hit the top of it you can clearly see it shake and have another person look at the bottom and top of the tailgate while you hit the tire with your hand and it clearly flexes. Not bouncing up and down but actually flexing. Everything is tight and blue Loctite was used

My neighborhood must think I’m crazy. I keep walking out and shaking my spare. No flex, no rattle. The whole Jeep is moving. My only suggestion is to tighten the four screws some more and see if it does anything. It’s pretty damn tight. How long have you had the bigger tire on there? I've only had mine for about two weeks so...

 

[lookitsadam]

I agree I'm not 100% sold on the HD hinge. It simply reinforces the already thin metal on the tailgate and not the actual hinge itself. When the tailgate is open all that weight is still resting on the stock hinges with no additional support.

I currently have 35in KO2s on the stock rims mounted to the tailgate with no reinforcement, and by my calculations am just a few pounds shy of the weight limit. While I'm not concerned right now, I definitely plan to pick up an aftermarket bumper with bumper mounted tire carrier once more affordable options are available.

 

[richk225]

Most of my neighbors already know that I`m crazy, but I help them whenever I can so it keeps the piece. I had checked a Rubicon last night with the complete stock set up and factory 33`s on it, I smacked the top of the tire and the tailgate flexed top and bottom just a slight amount.
With the extra weight of the 35 hanging and the fact the relocation bracket moves it out further that`s a lot of leverage. I have thought about loosening up my tailgate hinge and catch so that they sit a little lower.. Like I said, I had a Smittybilt setup on my JK and it was rock solid..
If you look at from an engineering standpoint you are simply just adding the weight of the relocation bracket and HD hinge mount along with added leverage to the stock hinges
This has been a concern of mine since installing everything roughly a month ago.

 

[richk225]

FYI, I had stopped at the Jeep dealer just to check out a 2018 JL Unlimited that they had listed on their site. It was brand spanking new and had a Mopar lift installed by the dealer and it also had the HD Tailgate hinge support along with the tire riser bracket. Interesting enough I hit the top of the tire and it rattled more then mine did. The sales person went and brought the Service manager over and I showed him how much it caused the tailgate to flex. He did not have a surprised look on his face, he actually said " you should see it when you close it " Well I did open and close it several times and it did shake substantially. We talked about how the JK vs the JL HD mount and the JK was so much sturdier. I asked him about putting on the Mopar spare tire HD 'kit" and how the paperwork states that you will be able to fit a 37" tire on it. He raid he would rather not answer that question, think about it, "there is a weight limit in the spare tire carrier and you and adding weight to it and leverage"
I wonder what FCA is going to go for all of the people who spent a outrageous amount $800+ ( myself included ) for this set up and they develop tailgate issues such as stress cracks, alignment and closing problems etc.

 

[NFRs2000NYC]

I have a very unpopular thing to say...may even upset many many members here because they spent a bunch of money on these mopar "reinforcements"....and say this in a Morpheus from the Matrix voice....

"What if I told you that the mopar hinge does absolutely nothing, doesn't actually strengthen anything, and its a complete waste of money?"

If you want to safely carry your large spare tire, you need to get a carrier, simple as that. The hinges, the leverage, and the vibrations (especially offroad) are what's going to destroy your tailgate. You will hear people say "mine is fine" and then find out they've only driven for like 10 miles offroad for a weekend. While it DOES seem that FCA addressed the breaking spot welds the JK had, the tailgate is still not made to hold a 100lbs tire, especially with lower backspacing, applying massive leveraging force on a sheetmetal (although thicker than a JK) tailgate. There is going to be a bunch of angry JL owners in the future crying "but I thought this flat piece of $600 metal was supposed to carry the tire without damage"....people need to research the Mopar cold air intake fiasco, just so they learn/understand that Mopar is in the business of making money, not solving a problem hoping to save your tailgate.

 

[NFRs2000NYC]

I agree I'm not 100% sold on the HD hinge. It simply reinforces the already thin metal on the tailgate and not the actual hinge itself. When the tailgate is open all that weight is still resting on the stock hinges with no additional support.

I currently have 35in KO2s on the stock rims mounted to the tailgate with no reinforcement, and by my calculations am just a few pounds shy of the weight limit. While I'm not concerned right now, I definitely plan to pick up an aftermarket bumper with bumper mounted tire carrier once more affordable options are available.

Metal being thin doesn't mean it's weak. Just like carbon fiber thin materials have strength in certain directions. What the HD "carrier" is doing is better assisting in the transfer of force INTO the tailgate. It is not a true carrier because it doesn't take all the tire weight onto itself relieving the force from the tailgate. Hell this thing, unlike the teraflex unit (which still is not ideal) doesn't even tie into the hinges, so if you remove the tailgate for instance, the tire would remain supported by the bracket. If this thing was like $150, I'd say sure, in fact, I'd buy one because I don't like the naked hinges of the JL (prefer the covered hinges on the JK), but for this much money, you can get a bumper/carrier almost for the same price.

 

[richk225]

Amen to those who believe that it’s a waste of money.
THANK YOU NFRs2000NYC !!!!! My exact same thought and that of a service manager. It strikes me how people will go 6+ pages about something trivial on here, I’m not saying any problem is less or more important. Buy every now and then look in your rear view mirror at that spare and think about what your going to do in the fluture ( hopefully not ) to deal with FCA about a damaged tailgate

 

[richk225]

Question, How does one bump this to a existing thread on the same issue
Thanks

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