Front Mounted Spare

My offroad career began mid 1970's with a service vehicle - and my Blazer came equipped as the previous serviceman left it, with the spare mounted out front. And over the years, a whole succession of Wyoming and Montana based Blazers and Broncos had the same set-up. Usually a solid mount brush guard with an added disc and studs for the wheel. Many other vehicles in that area shared the same sort of frontal hangers. I know that mine killed a few nice mulies over the years - with virtually no battle damage.

Is this sort of arrangement too tough on airflow for a Tacoma? I only found a couple of Toyota photos on the net.

 

If this is for off-road purposes, that looks like a terrible approach angle!

 

I'd think it would impact MPG more than anything. Thats a big Wall your pushing through the air.

 

Those 2 inch box hitch mounts look a little iffy to me - our service outfits had what looked like a "Ranchhand" style of bumper - augmented with whatever big piece of pipe was hanging around. My Tacoma gets such rotten gas mileage it isn't worth discussing. My '78 Blazer got over 25 on the highway and often drove the old Morman trail over to the Green River .

 

Kinda like this one?

 

Definitely looks like the hangers we had - only missing the 4 inch pipe!

Maybe I'll invent a way to hang my spare out there on some nylon straps and see how hot she runs - nothing to fool with down here in AZ. In Wyoming - at our house in Lander the high for the summer would be something like 82º. So overheating usually meant a blown hose or hole in the rad.

 

The trailers wouldn't tow too good either if the ball was perched on the top of a two foot stalk.

Every bit of deflection and box clearance would be magnified by the lever arm.