Relocate the spare?

[tractors1]

I had to add a small extension to my rear receiver so the bike pedals would clear the spare tire, but while doing so I pondered relocating the spare tire to up front underneath the A-frame. I've seen this method on Lance trailers and wondered if anyone has done this on an Escape....

[KarenH]

Unless I'm misunderstanding something, I would be concerned about clearance and tongue weight.

[tractors1]

Originally Posted by KarenH

Unless I'm misunderstanding something, I would be concerned about clearance and tongue weight.

Clearance shouldn't be an issue that close to the tow, and my tow can handle the added tongue weight. I sent ETI an email as a possible option, will see what they come up with.

[James Gang]

There is this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hsPze0XeHj8

[AK snowbiker]

Hello Charlie,

For us having the spare tire where it is at has most likely saved us from a broken rear window. Most modern bikes have wider handle bars (with the exception of road bikes) than bikes had a decade ago.

As I mentioned in a earlier post. When we hit rough roads on our way home on our inaugural trip, I noticed marks in the road grime on the back window from the handle bar coming into contact with the back window. I moved the 1 UP out a bit, but still had the odd hit due to sway from the occasional big frost heave that would sneak up on us. For us, putting the inboard crank arm up against the spare tire solved the window strike problems. Now I have a Escape tire cover with holes worn through it but my rear window is intact. Scott

Scott and Lori
I like bikes!

[Jim Bennett]

Charlie, have you considered either folding or removable pedals?

[NW Cat Owner]

Well, that hide-a-spare is a nifty idea! The things that exist!

[Brian B-P]

I would be concerned about clearance under the tongue. If the top of the frame is 21" above the ground (the top-of-ball coupling height), then the bottom of the frame is four inches lower or 17" above the ground, and even if the eight-inch-wide tire is pressed against the frame the bottom of it is then 9" off the ground. That sounds like it risks scraping on a speed bump or some driveway entrances.

I would consider a similar mounting system under the back of the trailer, below the dinette (or bed if you have a 19') and behind the fresh water tank. The frame is 4 inches higher there than anywhere from the axles forward. My fifth-wheel trailer has its spare in this location and mounted this way... as does almost every pickup truck and many SUVs.

[KarenH]

Originally Posted by Brian B-P

I would be concerned about clearance under the tongue.

Yes, that's the clearance I was thinking about and Brian's calculations of 9" would be of great concern to me--and I don't even drive off road.

[cpaharley2008]

Both of my Lance trailers had the spare up front and exposed to dirt, grime, salt. In addition a lot harder to remove as well as replace than from the rear of the Escape. That said, both Lance models had large storage areas and I removed the spare and carried it inside in one of the storage areas, similarly in my T@da, it was inside the front storage area.

[escape artist]

Originally Posted by cpaharley2008

Both of my Lance trailers had the spare up front and exposed to dirt, grime, salt. In addition a lot harder to remove as well as replace than from the rear of the Escape. That said, both Lance models had large storage areas and I removed the spare and carried it inside in one of the storage areas, similarly in my T@da, it was inside the front storage area.

Hi: cpaharley2008... Why bother to relocate something you weren't planning to use anyway!!! Alf
escape artist N.S. of Lake Erie

[AKCamper]

I think most bike pedals just screw on. Just need an appropriate wrench. I think taking the pedal on and off would take about 30 seconds. A lot easier than anything I can think of. I know when I put a bike rack on our 19 (Swagman XC2) I didn't think I could get two bikes on without hitting something, but after figuring out the proper positioning they fit fine. Tight, but fine.

[Jim Bennett]

Originally Posted by AKCamper

I think most bike pedals just screw on. Just need an appropriate wrench. I think taking the pedal on and off would take about 30 seconds. A lot easier than anything I can think of. I know when I put a bike rack on our 19 (Swagman XC2) I didn't think I could get two bikes on without hitting something, but after figuring out the proper positioning they fit fine. Tight, but fine.

This is true, it is quite easy to use a wrench on pedals, but my pedal wrench is not one of the bike tools I bring. I try to keep it to a minimum for weight and space. Not sure I would want to leave the threads on the crankset, or the pedals themselves, exposed. Ensuring junk does not get in them would be important, especially if the bikes are exposed going down the road.

My buddy uses the MKS quick release pedals I mentioned above on their e-bikes to fit them in a locker he built out of aluminum for the back of his RV. They seem to be great quality. Another nice thing is that he takes them off almost all the time when stopped out riding, even going into a store or pub, he just throws them in his pack. Kinda deters anyone from stealing by cutting a cable, then jumping on and riding.

I have not used a bike the folding ones you see on some folding bikes to make them compact, but they look good reviewing them too.

With the quick release you would have to periodically clean the socket if mounted on a vehicle, whereas you wouldn't need to with the folding, but I do also like the bit of security the removable adds.

[AK snowbiker]

This is what I'm talking about, use the spare for a bike bumper:

Sorry for the sideways pics, used the iPad. Scott

[Brian B-P]

Link to the BAL Hide-A-Spare page (which includes the video linked above):
BAL Hide-A-Spare
It appears that all models are designed for frames which are wider than that of any Escape, so the sliding tubes would likely need to shortened to work... or one could just custom-built something similar.

For mounting under the tongue, there are no parallel frame rails so the BAL mount would be awkward to use, and the telescoping feature isn't needed anyway. A simple bracket could be used (with the spare just held up by a bolt), or a winch similar to that used for pickup trucks but available as an RV component (e.g. from Lippert) could hold up the spare.

[Brian B-P]

Originally Posted by Jim Bennett

My buddy uses the MKS quick release pedals I mentioned above ...
...
With the quick release you would have to periodically clean the socket if mounted on a vehicle, whereas you wouldn't need to with the folding, but I do also like the bit of security the removable adds.

I had never heard of these (but I don't know a lot about bike pedals) but I found a good description: 9/16" Bicycle Pedals and Shoes from Harris Cyclery (there's lots on the page but the link goes to the section showing MKS pedals and their quick-release hardware).

I think a plug for the socket that stays on the bike would be a good idea. I carried two bikes on the back of an RV across the country a couple of years ago, and they got very grimy - I wouldn't want that stuff in the quick-release sockets.

[Jim Bennett]

Originally Posted by Brian B-P

I wouldn't want that stuff in the quick-release sockets.

Me neither, but easier to clean than the threads would be. A temporary plug would be great.

[gbaglo]

I once knelt in four inches of muck, in the pouring rain, to crank the spare down from under my Jeep Cherokee Grand Chief. Didn't matter that it was coated in mud, because so was I.
Never again will I have a vehicle with the spare under the body.

[Brian B-P]

Originally Posted by gbaglo

I once knelt in four inches of muck, in the pouring rain, to crank the spare down from under my Jeep Cherokee Grand Chief. Didn't matter that it was coated in mud, because so was I.
Never again will I have a vehicle with the spare under the body.

That's understandable, but if you are parked in four inches of muck you're going to be messy by the time the tire change is done, even if a white-gloved butler hands you the pristine spare.

Our Sienna has the spare under the floor, held up by one of those winches. This is not desirable; I would care more about it if in the dozen years and couple hundred thousand kilometres of driving I had ever needed the spare.

The solution, if it is available, is to call for roadside assistance and let them get mucky.

[Jim Bennett]

Seeing I have used a spare tire maybe twice in the last 30 years (as far as I can safely recollect ), I very much prefer it hidden away underneath and out of the way. I did have to lower one hung by cable 10 years ago on a pickup, and it was simple to do.