87YotaMafia

So I let my girlfriend drive my yota the other day.......not the best idea. So she parked on a hill and didn't take the time to pull the e-brake. Basically oak is harder than a yota bed!! So now I am left with a extremely ugly but still functional long bed. I have been considering a flatbed for sometime now. I know that with how much time I spend at work it's going to be a while before I get to fabricating. So here's my question. Has anyone just ran without a bed??? I was thinking about tossing the bed and mounting my tool box to the front bed mounts and my taillights to the spare tire crossmember. This would leave me bedless for the time being but I hate dents!!! Any tips, pics, legal issues, or ideas to help me decide what to do. Thanks Yota fans!!!

Noltz

You need to run something to cover the backside of your wheels, and the rear must have a bumper. Other than that, Semi's run bobtail no problem so I don't see why you can't. Oh, and lighting... DOT of couse.

Alex 400

Well an easy thing to do for the lights is run the wiring harness along the frame is some kind of shielding and make a bracket to mound your tail lights to the rear cross member. or you could pick up some trailer brake lights. Some companies also make trailer lights with the reverse light built in, too or just get a clear lens on some small ones for a reverse light.

for fenders/mud flaps, you could make some kind of temporary bracket to hold the stock mud flaps to give some kind of shielding.

if it was me and my asthetic taste, i would use a piece of tall rail road track if you can find a piece that would scare people away from the back of your truck.

Jay351

I am scared of driving a bedless yota. The back end is so darn light you don't get much traction.

Put a heavy flatbed, some trailer fenders (you can buy them) then run some semi mudflaps.

Or make your girlfriend "work" off the expense of a new bed/repair

904_runner

There you go, since you made the mistake of letting her drive, there is the solution!

Matt16

Steak and BJ day was last month.

87YotaMafia

Oh trust me, she has more than worked it off The weight issue was a big concern of mine. I have yet to drive a bedless yota but I already complain about the light rear end. So how much do you think a 87 long bed weighs?? I like the flatbed and semi mudflaps idea. If I weld a crossmember between the frame rails and put a hitch in it do I still have to have a bumper??

abecedarian

If you thought your truck with a bed was light in the loafers, so to speak, taking the bed of will make it lighter. A sturdy flatbed will counter most of that though if it's built with boxed square tubing as opposed to angle iron.

In cali, that'd more than suffice for a bumper- you actually don't have to have a rear bumper if you are an SUV, pickup truck, etc.

You will have to have at least flaps behind your tires.

DOT approved lighting is also required- basically you have to have:
-a red reflector and red marker (clearance) light (illuminated with the headlights) as far behind the rear axle as possible and as close to the side of the vehicle as possible, viewable to the side of the vehicle
-a red reflector and red marker (clearance) light (illuminated with the headlights) viewable to the rear of the vehicle
-combination turn signal / brake lights viewable from the rear of the vehicle
... or 2 red brake lights on the rear of the vehicle and 2 amber turn signals (one for each direction) on the rear of the vehicle, in which case the amber turn signals are to be mounted outside, or closer to the corresponding corner of the vehicle than the brake lights are. alternately can be mounted vertically in-line with the brake lights. turn signals 'inside' or closer to the middle of the vehicle than the brake lights are not permissible.
Also, your rear license plate MUST be illuminated by either one centrally located light above the license plate or by two lights, one on each side of the plate.

Ringmaster

This thread is usesless without pics.

rowdy235

^ agreed but I have to ask, my truck holds fine on a hill as long as its in gear. Did she leave it in neutral as well? Or did it roll in gear?

abecedarian

Just a quick thought- park facing up hill and leave the trans in 1st or park facing up hill and leave it in reverse.
Since the engine would be forced to rotate 'backwards' when in 1st there is no compression so to speak, and the ratio difference between 1st and reverse more than offsets any compression advantage.

87YotaMafia

So I have been busy as all hell and haven't really had time to work on my poor yota. But after looking at the extremely ugly trailer light, that I rigged up for the last few weeks, I have decided to fix the back of my truck. So since there is allot of carnage back there and I am a poor college student.
I think I am just going to take a cut off wheel and cut the bed back about 15''. This will eliminate most of the dents and leave the bed right behind my rear spring hanger. I have ordered some allpro 6'' shackles and some oem springs to fix my rear sag. BJ spacers up front are on the way. So here is my question.....I need to weld some sort of bumper between the frame rails. I'm thinking some thing with a receiver hitch and d rings. I want to mount the stock taillights on their side on top of the bumper somehow. Anyone have any idea..pics would be helpful. Thanks guys.
http://i287.photobucket.com/albums/l...fia/Cam055.jpg
http://i287.photobucket.com/albums/l...fia/Cam054.jpg

dirtoyboy

Thats carnage? Looks like a little dent to me

87YotaMafia

Ya but that taillight is so ugly and since it's a long bed I drag the ass everywhere I go. I would bob the bed but since my girl dented the taillight place to hell....I'm just gonna chop it off. I'm just not sure about what to do with the frame rails and bumper..
http://i287.photobucket.com/albums/l...fia/Cam037.jpg

eightnine

that looks a lot better than i imagined.. however that is an ugly ass trailer light

fork

that poor toy. i thought it was bad when my gf rammed my thule bar off the camper shell on a tree, trying to reverse in the jungle. you win!

87YotaMafia

long beds have to much behind the rear axle anyway! I mean I still have stock suspension as of now but I still think that I would be dragging my bumper on departures anyway! What kind of bumper can I fab to protect my shackles and strengthen the rear frame rails.
http://i287.photobucket.com/albums/l...fia/Cam040.jpg

dirtoyboy

That sucks you live in Cali......they dont make it easy to flatbed a truck

87YotaMafia

hmm bump No one has any ideas?

just a 22re

i say get a short box that way your already bobed and then it will look alot better i really dont like flat beds but thats my .2 cents