Family of 5 - ski, road trip, camp needs

[40Man]

We have 2 kids and 3 dogs. Dogs take up the trunk area. When we take the whole fam in the cruiser, we put on at least a Yakima hitch box. We used one today and it held all of our clothes, grocery bags and a cooler. On long ski trips we use both hitch boxes and a roof box for ski gear if we take the 200. The hitch boxes go on fast, and can be removed and carried in with gear still in them. We have been very happy with them. Swings away easily to let dogs in/out.

I also have a Tundra with truck vault that we take on a lot of trips. The truck vault holds all good/gear/clothes and we put a cooler in the shell w the dogs.

 

[bloc]

/\
Becky got back

 

[whatdude17]

We have 2 kids and 3 dogs. Dogs take up the trunk area. When we take the whole fam in the cruiser, we put on at least a Yakima hitch box. We used one today and it held all of our clothes, grocery bags and a cooler. On long ski trips we use both hitch boxes and a roof box for ski gear if we take the 200. The hitch boxes go on fast, and can be removed and carried in with gear still in them. We have been very happy with them. Swings away easily to let dogs in/out.

I also have a Tundra with truck vault that we take on a lot of trips. The truck vault holds all good/gear/clothes and we put a cooler in the shell w the dogs.

View attachment 4178556

That is impressive, I've held off on the hitch box(es). Thanks for sharing your setup!

 

[AZLX570]

Gas stations love a fully loaded up 200 series! Or anything with the 5.7 lol.

 

[40Man]

That is impressive, I've held off on the hitch box(es). Thanks for sharing your setup!

The hardest part is putting in the screw in hitch pin on the Cruiser as there is little room to squeeze in a wrench with all the plastic near the OEM hitch. Still only takes a couple minutes 2ith an open end wrench (box wrench wont fit due to clearance).

The base rack folds up small when no boxes are on it, and when swung open, the top box swings 180 degrees so you have full access to both boxes. Adding a box to the base takes about 15 seconds. With 2 boxes on, we add the additional brake lights as the lc lights get blocked a bit by the top box (when installed on tundra, the brake lights are not blocked). I have offroaded with the base hitch on (no boxes), and it has held up well with a few ground strikes.

It was not a cheap setup, but it made the 200 way more useful for us, particularly with how fast we can remove the boxes at a campsight or at our cabin. So much easier to load and unload than a roof box, and fitting a cooler is a huge benefit. I considered drawers but they'd sit too high for my large dogs. Without dogs I would not need this setup, but for those with dogs or needing 3rd row use, it can bridge the gap between a LC size truck that is good offroad and a full size like a Suburban. We are going on 6 years of use and it has held up well.

 

[thatcabledude]

12, 9, and 9… in a couple years they’re going to be hating life sitting three across. In winter gear I can’t even imagine.

Here is what you need.



I have one and it’s the best thing ever for road trips or going somewhere with a group of friends. There’s no comparison. Mine has doors on both sides. Captains chairs in middle, and a bench in rear. All lay flat. Lots of room behind 3rd row. AWD and factory GM G80 locker. Navigates parking lot better than a 4 door Tundra.

The Chevy express has been in continuous production since 1996. I believe I’m up to 335k on mine. (2003) Rebuilt the trans at 321k.

OP, you really should take one for a spin. You won’t regret it. Take your kids when you do.

 

[thatcabledude]

 

[Heckraiser]

Nice bow wave

 

[whatdude17]

That's quite the rig and I'd love to be able to do that in the snow one day. Thanks for sharing your build and the benefits of the Chevy Express.