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4biker · 04-08-2008, 12:27 PM

So we decided to drive the 5 hours to St. George in southern Utah. My wife's parents live on the way, so we volunteered to drive them down as well. With the dog, that's at least 4 bags and Jack in the cargo area. I decided to build a cargo platform, based on the sleeping platforms that others had made. I bought a 5/16 sheet at Home Depot and had them make the big straight cuts (since I don't have a table saw). When I got it home I cut the platform corners to size and cut the supports to length. I decided to simplify things by going exactly 10" from the floor. Going 10" gives enough clearance so you don't have to cut out space for the driver's wheel well with the gas filler bump. I decided to put the center support off-center so I can put larger items in if need be, and still have plenty left over. It's plenty strong either way, so I'm happy with it the way it is. To mount the support legs, I screwed 3 strips of 2x1" board to the underside of the platform, then put the platform into the 4Runner. I then screwed the top of each support piece into the side of the 2x1 down the length of the support. The middle support piece looks like it's leaning, but it's straight up & down.
Overall, it's a little tall for Jack, but he still fits fine. We have to leash him in so he doesn't jump into the rear seats or become a projectile in a front-end collision, but it's tall enough for him to stand. Plus, I can fit at least 5 carry-on size bags under the two spaces under the platform. I think the drawers would be nice to have, but I can fit a ton of stuff under this thing and no one knows it's even there. For small stuff I'll just use rubbermaid bins. There is no room for lateral motion, so the screws won't tear out, and It easily supports my weight. I covered the platform with a piece of indoor-outdoor carpet that hides Jack's black & white fur.
The whole project cost about $23 and took about 1 1/2 hours at home. Jack's bed fits perfectly on the side of the heavy cargo mat.

On our trip to St. George, I had 3 passengers (plus me), our medium-sized dog, and about 200lbs of cargo on the way down. I pulled my parents' tent trailer from my sister's house as well with a 150lb tongue weight, so I got to feel the new springs with a load, and see how they held up after hundreds of miles. This shot I took today, showing they certainly aren't sagging. I would happily go with the 881/906 combo again (I don't think I ever bottomed out). I have noticed with the slightly bigger tires, there is a noticeable loss of available passing power on the freeway - I don't know if I'll go to a 33" tire without either regearing or supercharging.

04-08-2008, 12:27 PM	#2 (permalink)
4biker Registered User Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: SLC, Utah Posts: 258	So we decided to drive the 5 hours to St. George in southern Utah. My wife's parents live on the way, so we volunteered to drive them down as well. With the dog, that's at least 4 bags and Jack in the cargo area. I decided to build a cargo platform, based on the sleeping platforms that others had made. I bought a 5/16 sheet at Home Depot and had them make the big straight cuts (since I don't have a table saw). When I got it home I cut the platform corners to size and cut the supports to length. I decided to simplify things by going exactly 10" from the floor. Going 10" gives enough clearance so you don't have to cut out space for the driver's wheel well with the gas filler bump. I decided to put the center support off-center so I can put larger items in if need be, and still have plenty left over. It's plenty strong either way, so I'm happy with it the way it is. To mount the support legs, I screwed 3 strips of 2x1" board to the underside of the platform, then put the platform into the 4Runner. I then screwed the top of each support piece into the side of the 2x1 down the length of the support. The middle support piece looks like it's leaning, but it's straight up & down. Overall, it's a little tall for Jack, but he still fits fine. We have to leash him in so he doesn't jump into the rear seats or become a projectile in a front-end collision, but it's tall enough for him to stand. Plus, I can fit at least 5 carry-on size bags under the two spaces under the platform. I think the drawers would be nice to have, but I can fit a ton of stuff under this thing and no one knows it's even there. For small stuff I'll just use rubbermaid bins. There is no room for lateral motion, so the screws won't tear out, and It easily supports my weight. I covered the platform with a piece of indoor-outdoor carpet that hides Jack's black & white fur. The whole project cost about $23 and took about 1 1/2 hours at home. Jack's bed fits perfectly on the side of the heavy cargo mat. On our trip to St. George, I had 3 passengers (plus me), our medium-sized dog, and about 200lbs of cargo on the way down. I pulled my parents' tent trailer from my sister's house as well with a 150lb tongue weight, so I got to feel the new springs with a load, and see how they held up after hundreds of miles. This shot I took today, showing they certainly aren't sagging. I would happily go with the 881/906 combo again (I don't think I ever bottomed out). I have noticed with the slightly bigger tires, there is a noticeable loss of available passing power on the freeway - I don't know if I'll go to a 33" tire without either regearing or supercharging. __________________ 1997 4Runner Ltd, E-locker, OME 881/906's with black Tokico's, 265/75/16 Yokohama Geolander AT+II's, 1000w inverter, dual batt setup My Profile 1998 Rocky Mountain Element TO (Canada Red)