My original plan was to construct a split cargo box that would allow me to install/remove either or both halves as needed (I may need my third row to haul kids and kids' friends someday). Considering all the labor I've put into the first half, I may just call it good as-is. I'm also thinking that having the floor of the entire cargo area raised may not be ideal for hauling coolers and other bulky camping gear. Not sure how or if I'll proceed from here.
My box is constructed of 5/8 inch particle board and 3/4 by 1 inch fir, held together with screws and lots of Liquid Nails.
The drawer slides on 30" 250 lb slides from Lee Valley:
www.leevalley.com/hardware/page.aspx?c=2&p=46578&cat=3,43614,43616&ap=1
The handles and tie-downs were ordered from Allegiscorp:
www.allegiscorp.com
**if anyone ends up ordering anything from Allegiscorp, let me know. I need a few more handles, and they're minimum order is $30 (which my handles won't meet).**
I painted the tie-downs with Plasticote spray-on rubber stuff to minimize rattling.
The carpet is strategically stapled and glued with carpet glue, and it does a great job of hiding my crude carpentry.
The drawer is lined with vinyl runner material cut to fit, glued, and stapled.
The wood, carpet, vinyl, hinges and barrel bolt all came from Lowe's Home Improvement.
I've lost track of the bill at this point, but a few hundred dollars would be close to my cost so far.
The box:
The barrel bolt is to make sure that the loaded drawer won't lay me out when I drop the tailgate on an incline.
What to do with the cavity that's created between the wheel well and the tailgate? I decided to keep it simple by boxing it in and leaving a square hole that allows this cavity to be used a quick place to huck little junk you can't figure out where to put (seen at the left edge of the box in the pictures above and below).
I've added a lifting hatch that allows me to access the drawer without dropping the tailgate:
With the tailgate up:
The drawer is lined inside and out with ribbed vinyl rubber that I've cut to fit. It should be durable, easy to clean, and relatively quiet.
The drawer slides nicely on the Lee Valley slides:
Rather than have a giant drawer that ran the full depth of the cargo area, I decided to add a separate compartment that could be accessed from the second row of seats (as well as from the cargo area):
*I haven't lined this compartment yet.
**The photo is taken with the second row seats flipped up.
Here are a few shots of the basic construction:
The box is secured to the third-row seat anchors by two u-bolts, as well as one M6 bolt screwed into one of the mounts for one of the rearmost factory tie-downs:
The top of the box sits just above the third-row mounting hardware attached to the top of the wheel wells. The platform is well-supported across it's entire area:
With the 3rd row seat in. Toddler added for scale:
Nothing too complicated to construct--even for a novice like me. The most challenging thing was getting the drawer, lid, and hinge tolerances just right to make everything snug but still have enough room to slide, lift, and close.
Hayes
My box is constructed of 5/8 inch particle board and 3/4 by 1 inch fir, held together with screws and lots of Liquid Nails.
The drawer slides on 30" 250 lb slides from Lee Valley:
www.leevalley.com/hardware/page.aspx?c=2&p=46578&cat=3,43614,43616&ap=1
The handles and tie-downs were ordered from Allegiscorp:
www.allegiscorp.com
**if anyone ends up ordering anything from Allegiscorp, let me know. I need a few more handles, and they're minimum order is $30 (which my handles won't meet).**
I painted the tie-downs with Plasticote spray-on rubber stuff to minimize rattling.
The carpet is strategically stapled and glued with carpet glue, and it does a great job of hiding my crude carpentry.
The drawer is lined with vinyl runner material cut to fit, glued, and stapled.
The wood, carpet, vinyl, hinges and barrel bolt all came from Lowe's Home Improvement.
I've lost track of the bill at this point, but a few hundred dollars would be close to my cost so far.
The box:
The barrel bolt is to make sure that the loaded drawer won't lay me out when I drop the tailgate on an incline.
What to do with the cavity that's created between the wheel well and the tailgate? I decided to keep it simple by boxing it in and leaving a square hole that allows this cavity to be used a quick place to huck little junk you can't figure out where to put (seen at the left edge of the box in the pictures above and below).
I've added a lifting hatch that allows me to access the drawer without dropping the tailgate:
With the tailgate up:
The drawer is lined inside and out with ribbed vinyl rubber that I've cut to fit. It should be durable, easy to clean, and relatively quiet.
The drawer slides nicely on the Lee Valley slides:
Rather than have a giant drawer that ran the full depth of the cargo area, I decided to add a separate compartment that could be accessed from the second row of seats (as well as from the cargo area):
*I haven't lined this compartment yet.
**The photo is taken with the second row seats flipped up.
Here are a few shots of the basic construction:
The box is secured to the third-row seat anchors by two u-bolts, as well as one M6 bolt screwed into one of the mounts for one of the rearmost factory tie-downs:
The top of the box sits just above the third-row mounting hardware attached to the top of the wheel wells. The platform is well-supported across it's entire area:
With the 3rd row seat in. Toddler added for scale:
Nothing too complicated to construct--even for a novice like me. The most challenging thing was getting the drawer, lid, and hinge tolerances just right to make everything snug but still have enough room to slide, lift, and close.
Hayes
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I like your version of the drawer/hatch combo, looks like it will function very well.
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