sportage tire carriers

[fairweather]

Here are some more pics of the modified Kia rack, I just added a ski option so I can now carry two bikes, two pair of skis, the spare and a water/gas tank and it all swings out of the way. So far less than 200$. Use the largest backing plates you can fit, mine are 1/8" steel. It will flatten ot the body metal at the lower mount when you do this, every other place is already flat. There is alot of welding involved.

This is a gate latch from the Ace, works to support weight out on the end.

The Kia latch that guides the rack into position when closing, to release I grab the rack on the far right and pop the gate latch with my thumb then reach under and release this one with the lever. If I am going to be on rough roads I can push hard and get the secondary latching mech to close then I have to release it with the yellow wire. So three latches if needed.

[youremyboyblue]

sweet, thank you so much! now that you've given an inch, may i ask for a mile? do you have a shot straight on from the back? since i'm thinking of mounting the hinge a little different, i'm trying to get an idea of both where the latch aligns as well as if the wheel is centered on the hatch.

until now, i was unaware of the latch on the hatch (shown in the 1st pic) as, i had believed that, other than the two hinge mounting points on the driver's side body, there was only one other latch below the hatch/beside license plate. your carrier looks a bit different than the carrier's i've been eyeing, did you extend the carrier to handle your bikes/skis? thus, is this where this additional hatch latch stems from?

[fairweather]

The rack has been extended so that I could fit the can and center the tire. It's the smaller loop on the view from the back. The latch points have also been cut off and moved.

The stock rack will put the tire to the drivers side and I think I had no choice but to move the latch because it was where the license plate is.

[youremyboyblue]

here's a few pics from my project. i have a bunch more if anyone is interested in any further details.

here's the raw carrier as supplied by an auto salvage yard:

here's a spring loaded rubber hatch brace (no idea where to source such a thing by it's self if building from scratch):

here's the parts stripped from the carrier:

here's the stripped carrier ready to be prepped and modified:

from my initial efforts, it looks as though the tire can be centered very easily (it's to the driver's side maybe an inch or so. i'm pretty sure there's enough room to just untack the actually tire mount bracket and move it over just a bit (my game plan).

i tossed and turned over how i would come up with a template. paper-mâché was up there but, more time that i was interested in. luckily, it dawned upon me that i could use the same curve the outside of the rear arch uses for the inner edge of the bracket.

i started by using a 1'X3' piece of cardboard and got an idea of the arch:

the resulting cardboard template next to the associated prototype:

test fitting of the bracket's inner edge:

i then beaded some elmer's glue along the seam of the rear arch to get the outer edge of the bracket then, used the template to pick up the glue and eventually transfer to the prototype:

current state, ready to bend to create brace, cleaned up and some steel tacked on to create a hinge point:

i've only just taken a welding class and have no prior experience with metal working. thanks to the plasma torch at the lab, i was able to make short order of this. i'm still debating whether or not to use rod ends but, more importantly, i need to source a latch as one was not supplied with the carrier. if anyone know's where i can source a latch (i'm pretty sure i'm just not using the right terms for the latch), please let me know as, pick-n-pulls are almost extinct around me.

unfortunately due to work constraints, i won't be able to complete this project until june at the earliest then, onto bumpers!

[iceracer]

I like what you are doing. I have looked at the Gary Lee setup and the way you will attach it to the van is similar. I don't understand how you get your hands inside the body to do so. But it must be doable. Keep it coming.
_________________
86 Syncro Wolfsburg edition
63 Beetle (The Iceracer)

[syncrodoka]

I also like what you are doing.
Most people just bolt them on and go but they don't look right and they damage the body- at least all of the ones that I have seen. I had a pathfinder unit and got rid of it because I was gonna spend more time shortening it up and getting it positioned where I want it to make it worth it. They are also very heavy- like 3x-4x the weight of a Gary Lee unit. When mounting a GL unit you have to take out the plastic side louvers to to install the nuts for the bracket and very high behind the taillight to get the lower one installed. The GL bracket is 3/16 metal i believe. Good luck with your build.

[MichaelBuck]

Here are some latch options Chris (loogy) suggested when I was going to build a Gary Lee type carrier:

http://hoplok.com/main/page_product_gallery_small_gate_latches.html

http://store.gaugemagazine.com/universaltrunklatchset.aspx

http://www.southernrods.com/categories/hot-rod-interiors/door-accessories/products/product-968.html

Link to the thread where these were discussed:

http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=280009

Go Dog Go! and keep us posted on your progress.

Michael

BTW: Did you get the smoking engine figured out?