Monster in 5' bed pickup?

[Duc Fever]

Maybe you could get an extra ramp and park the bike on top of it 

[derby]

i have a doublecab/short-bed tacoma and i've had no tailgate issues with either of my bikes (monster and gsxr) loaded w/ the tailgate down.

what i will say, though, is that i don't completely trust the tiedown cleats by themselves for holding a bike in place during transport. i've seen pics of those things ripped out of the rails.

yeah, i transported by bikes with 'em for a year or so and didn't have any issues, but i was always a little concerned.

honestly, the main issue is the lack of forward tiedown points/d-rings on the floor of the bed. you can buy an additional set or just relocate your rear d-rings to the front.

i ended up buying a baxley sportchock to support the bike and then use tiedowns to the cleats to support the bike. someday i'll get around to adding the forward d-rings.

note that the sportchock actually puts the rear wheel more in the center of the tailgate and i still have no issues.

[NAKID]

The Chevy Avalanche I own had a recall because the cables would corrode inside the plastic shroud.  Many people were hurt (or worse) while loading bikes and atvs. 

I did some research and found a company that made replacement stainless steel arms to replace the cables.  The website was vrstraps.com at the time, not working for me now.

Now I ride my 650lb + Brute Force 750 up the ramp with piece of mind.  Rear wheels sit on the tailgate.  Ive driven over a dozen four hour trips plus miles of rutty logging roads.

Ill see if I can find the link.

http://www.merchant-automotive.com/vrstainlesstailgatestraps.aspx

[Magnus]

very timely thread for me...   was thinking of getting an extended cab for this very reason, but i'd really prefer the full size crew cab.  if i can fit the bike in a short bed, done deal!

[silentbob]

I don't own a Tacoma but when I was looking for info on putting motorcycles in my cousin's truck I found lots of horror stories on 2005+ Tacoma trucks and tailgate failures. 

They are very weak.  Toyota even acknowledged the problem but will only fix them after they fail.

Use the tailgate at your own risk.

[calscrazy]

i have 2 trucks and neither give me probs when i haul the bike. i have a 97 f150 reg cab with a tool box in the back and an 08 f150 super crew. neither truck has given me issues when i load up the bike to go visit friends in ok or to the dealer. yes the rear tire sits about mid way on the tailgate on the 97 but like i said no probs and i use it more often than the new one. amazingly people have a tendency not to leave door dings in it.

[J.P.]

Rent/buy/borrow a trailer? Easiest way to go.
Not so scary to load/unload. I'm a wimp.

[derby]

Rent/buy/borrow a trailer? Easiest way to go.
Not so scary to load/unload. I'm a wimp.

...but, depending on where you live, may take significantly longer to get to your destination.

california, for one, has a statewide 55mph limit for vehicles w/ trailers.

[NAKID]

Yeah and sooooooooooooooooooooo many people follow that...

[Old-Duckman]

Thanx for the input but I'm still not sure what to do.

The trailer is out...One of the main reasons I have had pick-ups is to haul an occasional bike. Prior to my last Tacoma I had an '88' 4-Runner. Great vehicle but I had to rent a trailer when I wanted to haul a bike...Pain in the butt.

The plywood where the front wheel and rear wheels sit on it makes sense to me. As someone said, "spreads the load" I am not a degreed engineer but it makes sense.

A guy on a Toyota forum fabricated an aluminum diamond plate to replace the plastic cover on his tailgate. I PMed him for details but he never answered. I think 1/8" plate would really strengthen the tailgate and it didn't look bad either but I actually like the look of the plastic bed plus it is an expense and a job to layout, fabricate and install.

Nice to know that the stock tie downs can be weak. Shouldn't be a big deal to install 2 "D" rings in the front of the bed...should have come that way from the factory.

I've got to get about 1500 more miles on the Monster till it needs it's 18K service. So (as chilly & rainy as it has been around here lately) I'll have some time to decide.

[bryant8]

I have an '08 Tacoma longbed.   I've transported 1 bike, 2 bikes, and 4 bikes(via 2 in the bed and 2 in a trailer).  I've had no problems at all, but I did make a few changes to the bed to add a bit of peace of mind when transporting.

I added 3 D-rings to the front of the bed to avoid using the cleat rails which are in my opinion not the best to strap a moto to.  The 3rd D-ring in the front lets me load 2 bikes with ease.  I'll probably add another D-ring to the rear of the bed to give more tie down options when loading. 

I use wheel chocks to aid in loading and securing the bike(s) while in transit.

I can't really comment on the tailgate issues since my 848 fits in the bed without sitting on the gate.  When I do have 2 bikes in the bed, the 2nd bike's rear wheel is right on the seam between the gate and the bed (I have my chocks offset to avoid clip-ons from clashing).

I have yet to have problems with the tailgate, but I'm not loading much on it.

[rgramjet]

One person loading is a beautiful thing.

[BMiller]

1" plywood will add the necessary insurance if it is cut to the dimensions of the bed + tailgate.  As long as it is under the front wheel and the bike is tied down it is an excellent, cheap, easy, form of insurance.  Paint it and you will look like a genius 

LOL!  Come on now Will........if he paints it, it'll get extra slick, esp. if it gets wet.........he'll be fine with the wheel on the tailgate.  They plywood would be fine too, but there is no point in doing so.

[derby]

One person loading is a beautiful thing.

yup... i can load and unload my tacoma solo w/ a step stool.

[oldschoollion]

sorry for the delay.  had an issue and while i was at the dealer for it i talked to one of the guys there that happened to have same model type truck and uses it for bike loading and said no worries at all transporting one bike.  loaded mine up the day before and went from the ct shore to nh for a track day.  the 3/4 plywood gave me the opportunity to have a cheap wheel chock to make sure the front did not dance (heard of that happening to others).