Tacoma Bed Extender Question

[Iceman]

yes definitely recommend a bed extender to support the load better and red flag it. I think your Tacoma bed choices are 5 or 6 foot

[summers in kuwait]

I have a 2013 Tacoma short bed. The bed extender is mandatory. I have put a variety of kayaks in the back: PA 14, Outback, Tarpon 120, Revolution 13. When I went into my Revolution 16, I had to get racks.
As Andy mentioned, make sure to red flag the load.

Brands are going to be one's preference, but having had an old Hilux, I think Toyota makes a very reliable truck.

I would also recommend looking at the Subaru line. Good cars, AWD and decent stock ground clearance.

[SoCalEDC]

As someone who has both rook rack and truck bed extender options, I wills ay that if you can get a rack to load the kayaks on top of the vehicle, it will be much more convenient. its a little higher of a lift to get them up there but finding parking in normal parking lots or in a garage the night before with half a kayak sticking out of your tuck is much more difficult than it is when the kayaks are on top. It is also nice go have a trunk or sealed cargo area so you can load all of your gear into the vehicle ahead of time and feel semi secure about it, vs using the truck bed. Just my .02 on the subject.

good luck what ever route you go!

[f'nsabiki]

I've been looking for a used Tacoma--you'll be shocked at how expensive they are.

[No Losses]

I have a chevy s10.
I fit a PA 14 and outback with no problems and no extender.

[Raskal311]

If u get a 6 footer you can safely go without an extender on a 12 ish foot kayak. But the extender is cheap $40 at harbor freight is why not? Without an extender the kayak moves around a lot more and requires more straps. With an extender it’s actuality much faster to load and unload because u need only 1-2 straps.

[stevie951]

Originally Posted by Raskal311

If u get a 6 footer you can safely go without an extender on a 12 ish foot kayak. But the extender is cheap $40 at harbor freight is why not? .

seems to be the consensus.. at this point likely going to settle on what dealer has on hand compared to pre-ordering as i'm going to haggle with them.. prefer a crew cab 2 door but local lots all seem to only have the 4 door which is not a bad option if family grows but yeah.. believe its the 6 foot bed.. for sure will grab the bed extender plus with my thule roof rack, i'll get new fittings and she will be ready to rock..

decided against a lift due to the effect on towing capacity, please correct me if wrong but it seems to only garner negative side effects?

Headed tomorrow to the local toyota hoping I can walk out with a new 4x4 Tacoma V6 TRD for 38.. fingers crossed