started farting around with ideas to modify the rear swing out so I could mount a 35" spare and clear the rear bumper.
taking some measurements the mounting surface would need to be raised 21/2 to 3" to clear the reciever
busted out some poster board and made a stencil.
my idea is to use some 11-12 guage steel i picked up last summer, make 2 plates for each side, cut the mounting surface and raise it the required distance, weld and bolt it (grade 8)
test fit of the first piece. the red line indicates where i will probably need to trim the plate to clear the lower part of the rim
i know a few people who have mounted 35's on the factory carrier but they did not have to modify the carrier.
i got this idea from what a guy in England did, i figure adding the plate on both sides should make it as strong or stronger
here is what he did