Spare tire in bed vs. under truck

[solaskaze]

I didn't realize this until buying my spare (first time truck owner) ... that most -- or is it ALL except Rivian -- have the spare hanging out right under the bed facing the road: essentially, the spare is one big skid plate.
I noticed even the Ford Lightning had a very weird, and large, metal clip hanging down ... and realized it was the clip for a spare.
(the rear tire suspension was also very low, the joint well below the center of the rear tires)

So here's my question: is Rivian's rationale for an in-bed spare to keep that rock climbing clearance, to be different simply since they can: no rear gear box, else: save some serious road abuse for that poor spare underneath all those trucks?

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[zefram47]

Better rear clearance with it in the bed. Only time it will be an issue is if the bed is full and you need to use the spare...then you have to unload first. It was not an infrequent occurrence that I'd tag the spare in my 4Runner on the rocks.

 

[C.R. Rivian]

I didn't realize this until buying my spare (first time truck owner) ... that most -- or is it ALL except Rivian -- have the spare hanging out right under the bed facing the road: essentially, the spare is one big skid plate.
I noticed even the Ford Lightning had a very weird, and large, metal clip hanging down ... and realized it was the clip for a spare.
(the rear tire suspension was also very low, the joint well below the center of the rear tires)

So here's my question: is Rivian's rationale for an in-bed spare to keep that rock climbing clearance, to be different simply since they can: no rear gear box, else: save some serious road abuse for that poor spare underneath all those trucks?

Not the only one. Honda Ridgeline, 1st generation for sure, has an in-bed trunk that also contains the spare tire. There are some solutions out there for tires to be mounted via a hitch attachment (bunches on Amazon). That might be worth looking at if you are going somewhere where you are concerned about your tires and need to fill the bed.

 

[azbill]

A lot of people with Raptors or TRXs mount the spare in the bed to provide clearance when 4 wheeling.

 

[opnwide]

A lot of people with Raptors or TRXs mount the spare in the bed to provide clearance when 4 wheeling.

Also helps when you drive your TRX off a cliff in Moab to have your spare in the bed. ? if you haven’t seen Matt’s recovery of this $96k totaled TRX, it is amazing recovery. Miracle driver not killed…

 

[usulio]

It's got to be nice for the aerodynamics too.

 

[zymolysis]

It may also be due to the battery. I don't know how far the battery extends toward the rear, but good weight distribution would probably argue for it being along much of the length of the truck. Mounting the spare underneath would certainly have been something they would have to have designed around.
Note that the CyberTruck has no place (other than the bed) to mount the spare. I suspect that is also because of the battery.

P.S. I think that Rivian uses a skateboard chassis, which means that the battery is integral to the chassis, and that the battery probably does extend at least as far back as the rear wheels - although the rear motors are in there, somewhere, too. So no open space to install a spare from below (without extending the bed out another foot or so).

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