2022 T@b 320 S Boondock Spare Tire placement?

RPamela

When we picked up our new 2022 T@b 320 S Boondock, the spare tire was mounted at an odd angle underneath the front storage box. By the time we arrived at our first camping stop on a cross country trip, the spare was dangling from the wire cable and bumping the road. We met another T@b owner on the road with the exact same T@b 320s Boondock (even the same dark gray color) and their spare was tucked up inside the A frame as it says in the manual. NuCamp left me a message and said that all of their spares fit inside the A frame. I just measured the frame and the inside is two inches smaller than the spare, so it's not going to fit in there. Does anyone know what the problem is? We put it up front, but it adds weight to the tongue and pushes the bumper on our Subaru Outback down even lower than it already did. I see some people put them up on their roof rack, but that would be difficult for people of our age to do. I am confused by all of this. Any help is greatly appreciated! 

Maple_Geek

Did you get a Boondock spare tire or a non-Boondock one? The Boondock rim + tire has a larger diameter than the non-Boondock one I believe so maybe that explains the difference between yours not fitting and the other T@B's fitting?

When I ordered mine, I did order the Boondock spare rim option but I also ordered the front tongue box mount so I can't really help you with your question.

That being said, if it doesn't fit, I wouldn't have expected Nucamp to mount it there.

CharlieRN

Maple_Geek said:

Did you get a Boondock spare tire or a non-Boondock one? The Boondock rim + tire has a larger diameter than the non-Boondock one I believe so maybe that explains the difference between yours not fitting and the other T@B's fitting?

When I ordered mine, I did order the Boondock spare rim option but I also ordered the front tongue box mount so I can't really help you with your question.

That being said, if it doesn't fit, I wouldn't have expected Nucamp to mount it there.

I have the standard, painted steel wheel as the spare on my 2021 Boondock. I recently had occasion to drop the spare to get better access to the J-box, and when I went to cinch things back up, noticed that the hole in the wheel center was slightly too small to allow the T-fitting of the cable to be flush. The fit is slightly askew, with one side in the hole but the other against the wheel adjacent to the center hole. I strongly suspect that the speculation above is correct as to why this is.

I contacted my dealer who confirmed the slight mismatch, but assured me that if the spare is nestled properly in the tongue, and the cable snugged up, there are no safety issues. While I did not have any problem getting the wheel & tire to fit flush in the V of the tongue, it does require some finessing. I believe that the steel wheel/tire combo is actually slightly smaller than the Boondock aluminum rim/tire.

Maxcamp8

You can try shoving the tire back towards the camper rear as a helper winches it upwards. 
This helps it clear the narrowing of the camper A frame. 

The sideways tilt is caused as you point out by the 'dongle' that lifts the tire being a slightly larger diameter than the tire rim opening.
This is a factory/procurement defect and NuCamp needs to make it right for you!

see prior posting:
https://tab-rv.vanillacommunity.com/discussion/15120/fixing-spare-tire-cable-hanger-tip#latest

CharlieRN

Maxcamp8 said:

You can try shoving the tire back towards the camper rear as a helper winches it upwards. 
This helps it clear the narrowing of the camper A frame. 

The sideways tilt is caused as you point out by the 'dongle' that lifts the tire being a slightly larger diameter than the tire rim opening.
This is a factory/procurement defect and NuCamp needs to make it right for you!

see prior posting:
https://tab-rv.vanillacommunity.com/discussion/15120/fixing-spare-tire-cable-hanger-tip#latest

I'm curious to know if any owners have contacted NuCamp and if yes, what the response has been.The factory must be aware of this fitment problem, but since it appears to be an inconvenience rather than a safety issue, has decided not to address it.