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R50 Tire Carrier Mod: Let's settle this!


hawairish
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After further mock ups I'm somewhat worried that my carrier may be slightly bent? It seems like the brackets don't hug the curvatures of the quarter panel exactly. Like they have a slight gap in the middle of them. It appears that most all the holes touch the body but I'm just not sure if y'all have the same scenario or not? I'd be curious to see pics of those who have done it where the bracket meets the body without the covers. Another reason why I think it's been hit is because on the lower mount where the pin would normally go to hold shut the hiking is bent and almost not useable. Is it meant to hold it shut and open?

 

Lastly. After taking apart the interior a bit it seems like I can get some strap steel behind atleast on the bolts closest to the wheel. And if the carrier is tweaked that might allow me the extra strength I need to bolt it on securely. I'll try to take some pics when I'm home.

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After further mock ups I'm somewhat worried that my carrier may be slightly bent? It seems like the brackets don't hug the curvatures of the quarter panel exactly. Like they have a slight gap in the middle of them. It appears that most all the holes touch the body but I'm just not sure if y'all have the same scenario or not? I'd be curious to see pics of those who have done it where the bracket meets the body without the covers. Another reason why I think it's been hit is because on the lower mount where the pin would normally go to hold shut the hiking is bent and almost not useable. Is it meant to hold it shut and open?

 

Lastly. After taking apart the interior a bit it seems like I can get some strap steel behind atleast on the bolts closest to the wheel. And if the carrier is tweaked that might allow me the extra strength I need to bolt it on securely. I'll try to take some pics when I'm home.

The hole near the bottom right is used to hold it open, just slide a pin or anytime of bar into the hole.

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The brackets do not hug the quarter panel exactly...there are gaps except where the bolt holes meet the panel. There were rubber gaskets that got sandwiched in, but those parts are NLA from Nissan. I tried using thin adhesive-backed neoprene sheets, but it was still a little too thick for liking.

 

And yes, the hole is for a pin to keep the gate open. Mines pretty fubard too.

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  • 4 weeks later...

Kyle (ferrariowner123) kindly gave me his swingate but I need the latch mounts below the liftgate in the center. If anybody sees these in a pick and pull, junkyard, etc. I would GREATLY appreciate if you could grab them for me. TowndawgR50 has offered to help me mount mine but I just need those last parts.

Thanks!!

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Do you need all the brackets? There are three of them. Im due for a JY visit within the next month or so.

 

I have the swingate itself, the tire adapter, the metal hinge arms & the guide. I'm missing the other two latch brackets, the release mechanism & the hinge covers. (I'm trying to post a picture but haven't done it before so it may take me a bit to figure it out). I would REALLY appreciate it if you run across the missing parts as I definitely want to do it and TowndawgR50 has the expertise and has offered to help!! Thanks hawairish !!!

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Overall my install went easily, minus the few trips to Lowes for some hardware and Orilleys for some other things. I used my shop to do the job since there is a engine hoist to help support the thing while It was being installed. Overall took me about 6 hrs by myself. I started with the latch hook and rubber stop and support, I made some templates for drilling which was a bit harder since I no longer have the factory bumper cover. Got those installed with rivnuts and then used angled aluminum to rivet around them for additional support for the rivnuts as seen earlier in this thread. After that I latched it on and hung it by the engine hoist to line up the mounting locations. I gotta say drilling holes in the side of your body is not fun, I was pretty nervous but managed to get it right the first time :rofl:

 

Onto the quarter panel mounts. I decided to try to do a little extra reinforcement since I'm using a steel wheel with a 35x12.5r16 spare and I'm looking to go to a 37in spare down the line since that's what my other 4 tires are. That being said I only used 4 rivnuts on the inside next to the hatch above and below the tail light. Those 4 are indeed impossible to get any additional bracing or nuts too. Rivnuts were the only option there. For the other 4 I used 10mm bolts and nuts with 1/8in plate steel brackets I made for additional support. The lower went on no problem but the upper was a pain to get lined up. Overall it feels extremely sturdy holds my weight 165lb plus the tire and wheel so easily over 200lb without issue. I just received my license plate bracket and light today from amazon so that's the next step in the process. Id also like to figure out a way to possibly make a stopper from swinging out too fast too far. Thanks to Harwish and others in this thread for that extra push to do this. :goodpost: Ill leave yall with some pictures, I'm a big fan of show and tell.

 

EDIT: Idk why the pics came out sooo small but its been awhile since I have posted a pic on this forum so click them and they get bigger lol

 

 

front.jpg

 

hang.jpg

hang_2.jpg

 

brace.jpg

brace_2.jpg

 

holes.jpg

 

rivnut.jpg

 

rear.jpg

 

side.jpg

swing_out.jpg

 

 

 

Edited by 01silvapathy
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Right on, 01Silvapathy! Glad to see there have been so many others able to do this.

 

Snowboarder12345, this is what I used: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B006SIRYGG (there are cheaper versions, but I think they have a grey housing?).

Though, this one seems pretty cool...don't remember seeing it before: https://www.amazon.com//dp/B0083Y0WL2

Same as the last, except also has a 2nd bank of red LEDs that can be used as a brake light: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0764NCCJH

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Thanks for posting. I saw your pics on Face Book and wondered if you were on NPORA. Looks great!!

 

 

Overall my install went easily, minus the few trips to Lowes for some hardware and Orilleys for some other things.

 

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  • 4 months later...

Thanks for Patrick who started this thread, helped a lot.

 

 

Tore apart my interior to get this to work.
My pathfinder doesn't have the rubber grommet or pigtail that normally comes with the tire carrier model. I looked at the FSM and could not find the wire to tap into and believe I don't have the wire or it stops somewhere up the line.
Regardless, without the pigtail you can still make the switch work with your gauge.
If you look behind the gauge cluster, the #3 wire on M24 harness is the wire for the tire carrier ajar light.
You will need to get an LED bulb put in there (I just moved my seat belt warning light since I don't care for it) and ran wire all the way under to the back where the tire carrier switch is. Ground in the tail light harness.
Technically you can go to the junkyard and pull a door switch from the driver's side door and use that switch to connect to this light on the gauge. Very simple on/off circuitry.
Could do without the light but the tire carrier is pretty heavy I feel like one mistake to forget to close it and you drive away with it open you can do some damage to your truck and/or property around.
Edited by pancake
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Thanks for Patrick who started this thread, helped a lot.

 

 

Tore apart my interior to get this to work.
My pathfinder doesn't have the rubber grommet or pigtail that normally comes with the tire carrier model. I looked at the FSM and could not find the wire to tap into and believe I don't have the wire or it stops somewhere up the line.
Regardless, without the pigtail you can still make the switch work with your gauge.
If you look behind the gauge cluster, the #3 wire on M24 harness is the wire for the tire carrier ajar light.
You will need to get an LED bulb put in there (I just moved my seat belt warning light since I don't care for it) and ran wire all the way under to the back where the tire carrier switch is. Ground in the tail light harness.
Technically you can go to the junkyard and pull a door switch from the driver's side door and use that switch to connect to this light on the gauge. Very simple on/off circuitry.
Could do without the light but the tire carrier is pretty heavy I feel like one mistake to forget to close it and you drive away with it open you can do some damage to your truck and/or property around.

 

 

I like that, good to have a light. If I ever find a carrier I'm definitely doing this, there are enough people out there now with write-ups, little tricks like this, and good results to make me comfortable with doing it to mine.

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Thanks for Patrick who started this thread, helped a lot.

 

 

Tore apart my interior to get this to work.
My pathfinder doesn't have the rubber grommet or pigtail that normally comes with the tire carrier model. I looked at the FSM and could not find the wire to tap into and believe I don't have the wire or it stops somewhere up the line.
Regardless, without the pigtail you can still make the switch work with your gauge.
If you look behind the gauge cluster, the #3 wire on M24 harness is the wire for the tire carrier ajar light.
You will need to get an LED bulb put in there (I just moved my seat belt warning light since I don't care for it) and ran wire all the way under to the back where the tire carrier switch is. Ground in the tail light harness.
Technically you can go to the junkyard and pull a door switch from the driver's side door and use that switch to connect to this light on the gauge. Very simple on/off circuitry.
Could do without the light but the tire carrier is pretty heavy I feel like one mistake to forget to close it and you drive away with it open you can do some damage to your truck and/or property around.

 

 

No problem, glad you've got a solution. Replied to your PM...you might be able to adjust the latch and stopper a little to get more contact on the switch.

 

But to recap the discussion for everyone else, after reviewing the FSMs, it looks like there was a short pigtail that ran between the some harness under the RH tail light and the switch for the carrier. The 2-wire harness branches off of the tail light wires somewhere nearby and should have a grommet on it; the wire in question is a green w/white one. To make the light work, you only need to ground that wire.

 

I think in my case, mine happened to have the pigtail, but others may not.

 

If you take pancake's approach, older gauge clusters have the G/W wire as pin #3 on the M24 harness. In my FSM, that wire is pin #2 of the same harness, so be sure to check your FSM and confirm the wire color (both are listed as G/W). In the FSM, see the EL (Electrical System) chapter, specifically the "Meters and Gauges" section for info about the gauge cluster, and the "Warning Lamps" section for more specific details about pinout and wiring. The schematics will have a "TC" icon to indicate components related to the "tire carrier switch".

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  • 8 months later...

At the request of @Hawairish here are some preliminary photos of the newer style carrier. A big shout out to @PathyDude17 for the photos and also for braving the cold weather in Idaho.

 

a006025bec8db8b2af4dddc566750e31.jpg

e95fb395e59c08004031a1d53d94f44d.jpg

fd84b497b0d0228ccaedac6ace62ae81.jpg

62b9a53848be11f2d12f69b8f058e08f.jpg

882904ec4e4495f409315f93ab90aa3d.jpg

eeec497bd18562af9e5ed06fbd5ecf59.jpg

 

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

Edited by Astrorami
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That’s VERY interesting. I have never seen one of those & didn’t know they existed. Here’s a quick shot of the older one for comparison for those on the thread. Weigh it if you get a chance. It would be interesting to compare. I’ll bet it’s lighter as it’s minus one vertical bar & that flat plating. 15e93e2a80a30168dbdb01fa35a0742b.jpg

 

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It’s in great shape, approximately 40lbs. This is the only one we’ve gotten our hands on right, and only the second sighting of one? I don’t think anyone else on the forum has that 

Edited by PathyDude17
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4 hours ago, TowndawgR50 said:

That liftgate is valuable too. Id snag that in a heartbeat. Its got everything setup to accept the plate

Why don’t you drive on down then?:lol:

Edited by PathyDude17
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Alright, this is crazy, but my dad just showed me a picture of the pathfinder that we owned when I was in elementary school. I kid you not, this is the pathfinder in the junkyard with the new style carrier that I just shipped to @Astrorami. The badging, trim, everything matches, including the fact that it had a tire carrier (looking for more pictures of it), but as of now, I have every reason to believe that my family has twice owned that rear tire carrier assembly. Pretty crazy, lots of history behind this

ZPstBQr.jpg

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