Using Rear Footwell Space for Spare Tire Storage (Design Ideas)

[Doctors Do Little]

There's no room near the rear axle for a spare under the bed due to the somewhat unique suspension design.

Here's another variant if the spare sits low enough in the bed so the top is below sides. The hump is now a box with a ledge. The ledge would match the height of the flats on top of the wheel wells, and the top of the box would be just below the lip of the bed (to allow for future bed covers). I added "D" rings where the bolts hold the cover down to add some tie-downs to the bed. Lots of space around the spare for tools, jacks, etc.

None of this is to scale. Just concept drawings and not even sure if there's really enough room for a spare to sit in the hole and fit fully down in the bed. Maybe the spare would be so tall as to overlap the rear window some (back to the hump or trapezoid cover if that's the case, but that's okay too).

Would be easy to put some dividers on the inside to keep gear tidy.

 

[nstrains10]

That's the well but yeah... It's hard to tell from that how deep it is and wide it will be. I'miking the idea for an accessible toolbox area that @Dorbiman had talked about in his post.

 

[HTXSlate]

Spares have been hanging under the tailgate for ever and seem to work. I want all the storage space I can get so leaving it where it is works for me. Great idea but not a solution I need for a problem I don't have.

 

[KevinRS]

Spares have been hanging under the tailgate for ever and seem to work. I want all the storage space I can get so leaving it where it is works for me. Great idea but not a solution I need for a problem I don't have.

That doesn't look like an option here. The rear wheels, and so the axles and suspension are too close to the tailgate, and there isn't any recess at all behind the bumper where the tire would go up into. It would end up only a few inches from the ground, so the spare would hit the ground when you go over bumps.

 

[Doctors Do Little]

That doesn't look like an option here. The rear wheels, and so the axles and suspension are too close to the tailgate, and there isn't any recess at all behind the bumper where the tire would go up into. It would end up only a few inches from the ground, so the spare would hit the ground when you go over bumps.

See! I *do* need a lift! But, also how to mount a hitch? I need to see the underbody…visual/experiential learner here.

 

[KevinRS]

See! I *do* need a lift! But, also how to mount a hitch? I need to see the underbody…visual/experiential learner here.

Hitch is something else that hasn't been shown at all as far as I know. Though they've mentioned towing capacity, nothing more has been shown or said. It's likely the prototypes on display don't have the mounting points even for the hitch that would be in the final design?

 

[Dorbiman]

I wonder if one could fab up a spare tire carrier under the frunk, where the definitely not AWD second traction motor hole is

 

[Doctors Do Little]

I wonder if one could fab up a spare tire carrier under the frunk, where the definitely not AWD second traction motor hole is

Hmmm…interesting idea. What do spare plus jack tools weigh? 60# or so?

 

[E90400K]

That doesn't look like an option here. The rear wheels, and so the axles and suspension are too close to the tailgate, and there isn't any recess at all behind the bumper where the tire would go up into. It would end up only a few inches from the ground, so the spare would hit the ground when you go over bumps.

The BMW Z3 is a tiny, tiny car, much smaller than a Slate Truck, it has a compact spare tucked under the floor of the trunk. The spare sits in a plastic tray that slides into a frame, which drops down when released from inside the trunk.

Packaging engineering at its finest. Slate should just copy the Z3's design.

 

[E90400K]

Hitch is something else that hasn't been shown at all as far as I know. Though they've mentioned towing capacity, nothing more has been shown or said. It's likely the prototypes on display don't have the mounting points even for the hitch that would be in the final design?

At 1,000 pounds towing capacity, a trailer ball hitch on the bumper will suffice. No frame-mounted Class III hitch is necessary.

 

[KevinRS]

At 1,000 pounds towing capacity, a trailer ball hitch on the bumper will suffice. No frame-mounted Class III hitch is necessary.

But looking at the images on the site, I see no sign of anything resembling where a hitch would go. The license plate is right where it would be on many trucks, and everything below and on the bumper is smooth. Even the rear bumper upgrade in the maker gives no clue. I'd kind of expect with towing rating being listed from the beginning, for there to be a 1-1/4 hole behind a cover, along with an electrical connection. Barring that, some kind of frame exposed to attach a class 1 hitch kit to. I suppose it's the issue where we are looking at prototypes and not the finished product.

 

[E90400K]

But looking at the images on the site, I see no sign of anything resembling where a hitch would go. The license plate is right where it would be on many trucks, and everything below and on the bumper is smooth. Even the rear bumper upgrade in the maker gives no clue. I'd kind of expect with towing rating being listed from the beginning, for there to be a 1-1/4 hole behind a cover, along with an electrical connection. Barring that, some kind of frame exposed to attach a class 1 hitch kit to. I suppose it's the issue where we are looking at prototypes and not the finished product.

I think you are correct, we've not seen such detail on the prototypes. Similar to, I've not yet seen how the rear glass locks when moved to the SUV kit.