Spare tire mounting

Claim 1

Apparatus for mounting a spare wheel and tire in a vehicle such as a pick-up truck comprising a cab, a rear window in said cab, a cargo box having a floor, and side walls which extend above said floor rearwardly of said cab to a level no higher than the bottom of said rear window, the height of said side walls above said floor generally being less than the diameter of one of the wheels and tires used to movably support said vehicle, a wheel housing along and immediately adjacent each side of said side walls for covering a wheel and tire when mounted for support of the vehicle, said housings each having a height no greater than said side walls and a predetermined width extending out from the side wall along which it is located, the distance between said wheel housings permitting insertion of cargo along said cargo box floor between said housings and said height of said housings permitting cargo to extend over said housings along the top edges of said side walls; means for mounting a spare wheel and tire generally parallel to and adjacent one of said side walls behind said cab and accessible from the interior of the cargo box such that no portion of the spare wheel and tire extends above the top of said one side wall; the spare wheel and tire being of the type including a central support having a tire-receiving rim extending about the periphery thereof and laterally of either side thereof, the central support including a vehicle axle-receiving aperture located centrally therein and a plurality of apertures for securing the wheel and tire to the axle spaced about the axle-receiving aperture; said mounting means including a well recessed a predetermined distance below said floor adjacent said one side wall for receiving the spare wheel and tire, and securing means for securing the spare wheel and tire within said well including means for engaging the side surface of the central support adjacent said one side wall when the spare wheel and tire is received in said well; said engaging means including a rigid member, a plate secured on one end of said rigid member, at least one stud extending outwardly from said plate, and hinge means for securing the end of said rigid member opposite said one end to said one side wall adjacent said well; said plate adapted to abut the said side surface of the central support adjacent said axle-receiving aperture while said stud projects through one of the securing apertures for securing the central support to said plate; said hinge means allowing pivotal movement of said engaging means between an operative position for engaging and securing the spare wheel and tire and an inoperative position for insertion of the spare wheel and tire in said well, said width of said wheel well being sufficiently wider than the width of the spare wheel and tire received therein to allow said wheel and tire to be tilted and slid past said securing means when they are pivoted, said well width being no greater than said predetermined width of said wheel housing along said one wall whereby when no cargo is loaded in said cargo box, a driver of said vehicle has unimpeded visibility over said side wall in the area of said mounting means when the spare wheel and tire are secured therein, said mounting means permitting the loading of any cargo in said cargo box such as a camper or the like which would otherwise fit between and over said wheel housings.