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Teraflex Alpha HD adjustable spare tire mount?

rickinAZ

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I have a 2021 on order with the Jeep reinforced hinge gate reinforcement option, but I still need to settle on a relocation bracket to allow the 35" spare to clear the bumper. I've prepurchased the Mopar bracket, but I'm having second thoughts. The adjustable Teraflex bracket (link below) is slick, but heavy (23 lbs). This replaces the OEM bracket but is 3X the weight of the plastic OEM bracket. My wheel/tire weigh 102 lbs. That means I would have 125 lbs on the tailgate. Should I be worried? I've always had frame-mounted carriers in the past.

https://teraflex.com/shop_items/jl-jlu-alpha-hd-adjustable-spare-tire-mounting-kit-complete-5x5?vehicle=JLU Wrangler Unlimited
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Bocephus

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That’s a great piece of gear, highly recommend. It’s not heavy in comparison to most options. Your weak link will be the mopar bracket, but you will be great with just a 35” tire. I carried a 37” on the stock hinge gate and the Teraflex alpha hd carrier For a year, before getting a heavy duty solution. 23 lbs is not that much. You will love the Teraflex carrier and that combo.

There a several great frame mounted option, but i think you’ll be in great shape with the mopar reinforcement and the Teraflex carrier.
 

Sting_NC_USA

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+1 The Teraflex with a 35 is a no-brainer. Solid as a rock, and the ability to use the stock 3rd brake light is a bonus.
 

Oncorhynchus

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Teraflex Alpha HD is a very solid piece of kit. I was very impressed with the engineering of this aftermarket tire carrier for my 35” M/T tire which is pushing 104 lbs. instructions are fantastic - always a really good sign of careful design and manufacturer’s pride in their product when you see the effort that goes into a high quality set of instructions. I also went with the Rugged Ridge HD Tire Carrier Hinge Casting to reinforce the hinge and not just the tailgate.

https://ruggedridge.com/p/rugged-ridge-spartacus-hd-tire-carrier/rgr-11546-56/

The Teraflex provides a very slick look when all said and done.

The only thing I don’t like about it is that when you change the tire you have to disconnect the brake light and push the wire harness into the aluminum tube which is the housing for the backup camera. If you are not careful and you leave the wire hanging out, you could shear the wire. You reuse the OEM connector to the brake light and it is a tiny li’l thang. You know Murphy’s Law that the first time you need to change that tire out in the field it’s gonna be a cold rainy day when you fingers are numb and struggling to fiddle with that little connector. I carry one of these tweezers in my tool bag

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B07D3382K7?psc=1&ref=ppx_pop_mob_b_asin_title

so that I can fish the wire back out from the aluminum tube if I happen to be wearing gloves.

you can take a look at the Teraflex instructions here:

https://teraflex.com/file/attachments/5d2eac91ad5385007d2517a2.pdf

on page 6 step #12 you will see an arrow to a bolt with a 10 mm head. You will need a 12 point socket to get a torque wrench on it. All the other bolts in the kit only require a 6 point socket.

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Jeep Wrangler JL Teraflex Alpha HD adjustable spare tire mount? 4FFF2A4A-6B26-44C0-915F-148B3168A9CD
 

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TxJeepers

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on page 6 step #12 you will see an arrow to a bolt with a 10 mm head. You will need a 12 point socket to get a torque wrench on it. All the other bolts in the kit only require a 6 point socket.
Installed mine over weekend. The 12 point 10mm socket was the second tool I had to run out and get. Earlier in the install I had to run out to get a T8. Luckily I had the 1.5mm.
Lessons learned...
 

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Agswin

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Sorry for the newbie question, but is the Alpha HD needed as insurance because of the heavier weight of the 37" tire? I have seen on instagram people are carrying a 37" tire on just the stock mount with no issues over a year. Just curious on that
 

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Sorry for the newbie question, but is the Alpha HD needed as insurance because of the heavier weight of the 37" tire? I have seen on instagram people are carrying a 37" tire on just the stock mount with no issues over a year. Just curious on that
I have it, in part, because it allowed me to get the tire as close to the tailgate as possible. Doing so puts less leverage on the tailgate, which is a good thing.
 

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Got it, so if I wanted to change bumpers, then it makes sense to just buy a bumper with tire carrier since I will most likely need an Alpha HD or something similar?

Ace has an extension that will allow the bumper to clear a 37" but then that brings the tire out even further and seems like a lot of weight on stock hinges
 

jdubya421

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I personally do not like bumpers with tire carriers, but that is personal preference. I have the Teraflex carrier and it is a really awesome option with a lot of adjustability. If I were to have done something different I would have went with Cavfab or Motobilt's hinge replacement.
 

frogger2020

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I have the Teraflex Alpha and paired it with a Rugged Ridge Tire Carrier. This replaces the weak point of the tail gate, the hinges.
 

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jdubya421

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I have the Teraflex Alpha and paired it with a Rugged Ridge Tire Carrier. This replaces the weak point of the tail gate, the hinges.
I really don't think the hinges are the weak point. In a lot of the various threads about the Mopar reinforcement people seem to agree that the hinges aren't the weak point but the tailgate itself. They beefed up the hinges from the JK because people complained. That is specifically why the Mopar reinforcement doesn't do anything about it, but instead reinforced the tailgate from flexing.
 

TxJeepers

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I have the Teraflex Alpha and paired it with a Rugged Ridge Tire Carrier. This replaces the weak point of the tail gate, the hinges.
That was a JK thing. Jeep beefed up the hinges considerably on the JL.
 
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rickinAZ

rickinAZ

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I have the Teraflex Alpha and paired it with a Rugged Ridge Tire Carrier. This replaces the weak point of the tail gate, the hinges.
I don't believe there has ever been a JK/JL hinge failure reported in the forums. It's the rivets that fail. That why the Mopar tailgate reinforcement doesn't include replacement hinges.
 

Agswin

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Those with an Alpha HD and aftermarket bumper, where do you put your license plate if the bumper doesn't have a relocation bracket? The Alpha HD doesn't seem to have a license plate relocation option
 
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Oncorhynchus

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I don't believe there has ever been a JK/JL hinge failure reported in the forums. It's the rivets that fail. That why the Mopar tailgate reinforcement doesn't include replacement hinges.
I don't believe there has ever been a JK/JL hinge failure reported in the forums. It's the rivets that fail. That why the Mopar tailgate reinforcement doesn't include replacement hinges.
I started with the stock hinges, stock (plastic) tire mounting tub and a Smittybilt spare tire relocator to provide clearance for my 35” tire.

It may the true that the JL hinges are strong enough for a 120 lb spare; without access to the CAD and FEA calculations I’ll never know. But the hinge did feel a bit undersized as I swung the tailgate open and closed with the ponderous weight of the aftermarket spare. I knew I needed the tailgate reinforcement so I spent a little more to get one with beefier hinges. A little extra insurance and piece of mind for sure but I will admit that the stock hinges may very well be adequate.

As for replacing the stock plastic tub and Smittybilt tire relocator, soon after I purchased the vehicle I tried practicing getting the spare on and off so that I would not have any surprises when the time came for me to really need to replace a tire in the field. 120 lbs is rather heavy but I can lift it by myself. However it is awkwardly sized and that stock plastic tub just did not feel strong enough to me so I decided to replace it with the Teraflex Alpha HD.
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