Nissan Patrol 4x4 (Africa)

Thanks Jonathan

If you are in the CPT area I would really like to give it a try.

My concern is that I will eventually end up with the same issue as Graham where it will get to a point where it doesn’t want to close properly or the light keeps on coming on.

I hear you Thinus on going the bumper route but thats really expensive for the value that I will personally get out of it.

IR_Eddie wrote: ↑02 Oct 2020 10:44 Thanks Jonathan

If you are in the CPT area I would really like to give it a try.

My concern is that I will eventually end up with the same issue as Graham where it will get to a point where it doesn’t want to close properly or the light keeps on coming on.

I hear you Thinus on going the bumper route but thats really expensive for the value that I will personally get out of it.

I am just up the road close to Saldanha, I am sure we will be able to get some help from the Western Cape guys to get it to you. Are you on the whatsapp group?

I'm not on the WhatsApp. will be happy if I can be added.

my Number is 079 nine nine five 19 one five

If anyone is coming past Melkbos from Saldanha ill apricate if you can assist

I did our Namibia trip with the 2nd spare on the roof. The other spare is mounted on my Gobi-X rear bumper so I have experience with both setups.

I have since added a 2nd wheel carrier to the rear bumper and moved the 2nd spare there for a few reasons. Some points below.

- The wheel and rim weighs between 40 & 50KGs. I'm in my early 40's and in pretty good shape, but lifting that wheel up above your head and getting it on and off the roof is very tricky on your own and is best done with the assistance of a 2nd person who can handle that weight too ie most wives and young kids cannot help.
- Drop your tire from roof height or when it is above your head in your hands and watch it bounce. It is very unpredictable and can cause harm to others and your car if it hits them.This I know from experience.
- I have the Eezi Awn mount for the roof rack. The bracket to hold the rim down didn't fit the profile of my Aline mags, which meant that the rim was scratched and more importantly the bracket rattled loose on the corrigation and I had to get up there frequently to check and tighten. This was challenging because my roof rack was tightly packed at the time.
- Clambering around your roof rack handling heavy objects in the middle of nowhere is asking for trouble. No one wants to fall from 2mt up and break something in the middle of nowhere. Now imagine falling and dropping the wheel to the ground at the same time! I redesigned my setup after the Nam trip to get all heavy objects down on the vehicle ,which also helped drop the centre of gravity.
- Someone else also mentioned the increased height and sparking issues.
- Roof rack space is very valuable and ideally you don't want to occupy that space with items that can actually be better placed elsewhere on the vehicle. If you Overland or plan to without towing then this is a very important point.

I know that a proper rear bumper is expensive but it is worth every cent and gives you more mounting and storage options than just a spare wheel. I've also got a swing arm for a 45 litre water carrier than can double as 2x Jerry can holder. You can also mount high-lift Jack's, Maxtrax to them. If your spare wheel is mounted on the bumper then you can mount wheel carrier bags for storage of other camp related items.

Cheers
H