I have been looking at as many different drawer system designs on this site and others for a long time now. I have been trying to figure out the exact design that will work for me. There have been a ton on here that i've borrowed their designs from and pieced together. I've been playing with a free version of SketchUp to try and create a CAD of my design. This app is still very new to me so don't expect anything pretty as I really have no idea what i'm doing.

I am currently on a bike trip out of the country so my measurements have been pieced together from a few different pages but I will most likely adjust the numbers once I get home and actually get a chance to remeasure.

Essentially my goals for this system were to have a flat durable drawer system in the trunk of my 4runner with secure mounting points for strapping extra luggage on top when necessary. I hate having anything loose in my vehicle so this should solve that problem. I currently have a large Plano trunk in the back with 2 heavy duty ratchet straps cross strapping them down. But this thing takes up some decent room especially with the straps crisscrossing to the 4 D-Rings. I often camp in the back of my 4runner and hate having to unstrap everything and move it around to create a small sleeping area and then have to redo it all in the morning. So my other goal is to have a remove-able sleeping platform that I can throw in for the trips I know i'll use it on.

I don't have a list of all the members here that i've been inspired by or have borrowed designs from as i've been on and off researching this for about a year now. But the latest one that I have been going off of is Dawg4runner 's build.

Anyways, Here are some screencaps of my current design. It might be difficult to see but the "metal" skinny beams are actually going to be L-Track. This will give me the most adjustable mounting points for whatever I decide to bring with me on adventures. The drawer system itself will be secured using turnbuckles to D-rings and L-track near the front of the vehicle side.

The sleeping platforms (I have two rough designs for solo and one for two people) will need a bit more work but will also utilize L-track.

I would love any thoughts or suggestions for any upgrades or design changes that might improve this design. I hope to get this built and installed in the next few months.
Sorry for the small images, It was either small or massive.

And of course I would be happy to send you the file if anyone would like.

Cheers



Assembled Version:






Assembled with Solo Sleeping Platform:






Expanded Version with Solo Sleeping Pad:





Expanded Version with Full Sleeping Platform:

Very cool. You're definitely right in line with my own thinking. I've slept in my vehicles forever and its such a pain having to remove everything to sleep and then re-load everything again in the am. I'm very interested in your single sleeper version. Would be great to make the extended part foldable or retractable so you could have no interference of the rear seats. I've actually already removed my driver's side rear seat bottom though for more storage.

Tuned in for more! Keep it up.

would be nice to have a table/tray that slides out from underneath on one side. I like where you are going with this as well

I like it, looks similar to mine, though mine was hastily constructed. Mine has lots of room for improvement. Lots. I'm wanting to use steel to keep the drawers as large as possible, and was debating making one single large drawer to maximize space as opposed to 2, but it would need to be strong enough for me to sleep on.

I need to redo mine before our trip next summer, I would be really nice to work out the kinks and rattles ahead of time.

I was debating on which side would be better to sleep on, driver's or passenger's:

• With the driver's side the sleeping platform would need to be level or above the wheel well to maximize the width, and even then it could only be 20" wide.
  
• On the passenger's side the sleeping platform could be lower and still be 25" wide, I don't like sleeping high near the windows so this option is the better sleeping option but that means the drawer underneath is only 9" tall or so, so all the heavy tools will be placed in a taller drawer on the driver's side which will further contribute to the driver's side lean from the gas tank, battery, and driver all on that side. Unless I pick apart my tool box into individual pieces for each trip, which would be a pain.

The fridge will be placed in the back seat row on the opposite side of where I choose to sleep, with one of the seat lowers removed of course. Not sure why I would need 3-person capacity at this point but I'm trying to keep it for our trips just in case.

Just my rambling.

Great looking CAD drawings. I went through a similar process for mine, except I only did one drawer, so I could fit my bike inside too. Check out my setup below:

http://www.toyota-4runner.org/4th-ge...ml#post2851024

My only advice is that the whole system will need to be assembled in the car because the lower platform with the dog ears will not clear the rear hatch opening when the drawer system is mounted. For me, I had to install the platform, and then install the drawer system.

cheers,
colin

Thanks rickashay, I spent some time looking through your drawer build for your 3rd gen while planning this one. I dig your foldable design but my online concern with it was when I am not using it I wanted to keep a flat large surface in the back to keep other items strapped down. I was thinking the few stacked pieces would add some height or diminish the overall floor space. I could be wrong though as I have not actually seen one in person. The retractable idea also interested me. I've got to measure out the rear space and see if its feasible and then how to have the piece slide back into place without covering the L track/tie down points. The solo sleeping platform designed at the moment is actually the same as Dawg4runner's with a solid piece of wood that could be removed from the vehicle with ease and installed with a few tie down points keeping it secure. Maybe it would make more sense to shorten that piece down to only fill in the gap over the rear seats instead of stacking more wood on top of an already flat surface. The solo side would also allow me to fit 4 people in the truck if needed and could maybe double as a laptop platform for editing from the rear seat (maybe i'll look into added a swing out table for the computer so i'm not twisted in the back seat.) The height of the drawer system will be same height as the wheel wells so I can utilize that width but I need to size it out and see if thats even enough room to sleep comfortably. I hope to have enough room beneath the platform for more storage or maybe i'll look into removing that rear seat. How much extra depth did that give you removing the seat bottom?
It's a shame I only got to see RickRunner the one time at the Gear Shop before you moved but that thing is a beast.


Good thought daveherrmann. I have seen a few with those builds and they are a nice feature. I'm gonna look into that as well as possibly having one of the drawers slide out with a solid base on top to double as a table. But then I guess if I need anything from that drawer as I am utilizing that table it could be a pain. I'll play around with some designs for sure. Thanks for the input.



Your SolidWorks designed system looks awesome Inv4drZm! I believe your design was one that i definitely took a few notes from. I dig the slide out table. Have you made any updates to your system since your last post? Your build thread is nuts man! Very detailed. Ya I am a little worried once I actually size things out that the solo platform will be a little too narrow. I starfish when I sleep every now and then and that definitely won't happen on the solo side. I plan on building the drawer system level with the wheel wells so I can use the space and essentially have a completely flat cargo space with a ton of tie down points using the L track. I know what you're saying about sleeping up by the windows. I guess I'll just have to figure out some sort of window shade/screen for camping.
I might end up doing the double wide (passenger side) platform as I can remove it when not camping. Or possibly a full width platform extension (like my last design) for ultra comfort. Once I get a roof rack I could see myself being able to keep the platform completely empty for sleeping. But who am I kidding, If i have the space i'll fill it with toys.
I don't have a fridge yet but its on the list with a LOT of other things so i'll figure that out when I get to it.


Cbelisle that is one awesome looking drawer systems! So clean! Thanks for the advice.
My plan is to have the lower platform completely independent from the drawer system. I will use turnbuckles to secure the system down to the base. That way I could remove it fairly easily? (I have no idea what I'm talking about.) I may actually tear out the rear carpeted area and replace it with the lower platform to save some height and just have a stronger overall base. I like your sleeping platform too. Making me thing maybe the passenger double width side will be a lot more comfortable.
Do you happen to have any measurements from your build? Do you have the sleeping platform extension secured down in any way? I've been trying to think of how to do that while being 4000km away from my vehicle. I like the idea of having everything secured tightly.

Thanks for all the input!

Hey, for mine, I pulled the carpet, installed some sound deadening material, and removed the foam backing from the carpet, and then reinstalled it. this lowered the height by 3/4" so the platform would sit nice and low. I also used the rear two d-shackle tie down points to secure the platform in with (just got longer bolts). I secured the front of the platform in with the other two tie down points that are just behind the rear seats too.

I can get photos later, but for the removable sleeping platform, I put a piece of wood on the back of the drawer cubby, which allows the sleeping platform to rest on (and then i secure it down with 2 adjustable turnbuckles. the front of the platform is just supported by two 1 1/2" dowels that go down and rest against the floor. the turnbuckles pull the platform into the back of the drawer system, and slow down, so once it's tight, it's very solid. I've done some off road trips with it assembled and had zero problems.

DSCF8010 by colin belisle, on Flickr

Can you post some additional pics of the section over your rear seats. I want to extend mine as well. My drawer system is similar and I'll post some details in my build thread.

Thanks,
Jeremy

Here is the back of the drawer box. The platform has a tongue that slides in and sits on top of the red piece of wood. the platform also has turnbuckles that hook onto the eye bolts, so when tightened, it's being pulled into the back of the drawer unit, making for a very snug fit.