sch0enne
New member
Hi Everyone,
I thought I would make a DIY thread that follows me building my rear cargo drawers for my 2015 4Runner. I love the idea of the truck vaults & ARB drawers available but I hate the price tag. $1,500 is just too much for me to Justify spending on that right now.
When thinking about doing this, these are the main points that I want to accomplish:
-Have out of sight storage for emergency & other items
- For it to be fairly theft proof
- Because my 4Runner is so new I wanted to make it as clean and professional looking as possible
-Use the space as best as possible
I am far from a carpenter and usually shy away from projects that require square edges but I wanted to give this a go. I chose to go with 3/4" Spruce plywood (I wanted to use Maple but it was double the cost) In total I will use about 2.5 sheets. I ordered some 24" full extension drawer slides from Amazon that have a 100lb capacity. I am still trying to find the right locking latches locally but may have to order them online.
I started by removing the 3rd row. It took about 45min and unfortunately I didn't document that part. Its fairly easy though, all it requires is a 10mm and 15mm socket. I packed my rear seats up and put them in the crawl space for the future.
Next I started making the frame for the drawers. I am making it 38" by 38" and the sides have been cut to 10". I used 1"5/8 drywall screws countersunk to secure it all together. Each drawer will be about 17" wide and 36" deep.
Built the drawers using the same 3/4 plywood and left 1/2" on each side to make room for the slides.
Made the drawer faces and cut in the holes for the latches. (Crooked in the pic but I will adjust.
Next I finally did a test fit and I am very happy with it. It does sit a bit higher than I thought it would buy it's still okay by me. I will still retain the two small cubbies in each wheel arch.
Finally got it finished today!
I thought I would make a DIY thread that follows me building my rear cargo drawers for my 2015 4Runner. I love the idea of the truck vaults & ARB drawers available but I hate the price tag. $1,500 is just too much for me to Justify spending on that right now.
When thinking about doing this, these are the main points that I want to accomplish:
-Have out of sight storage for emergency & other items
- For it to be fairly theft proof
- Because my 4Runner is so new I wanted to make it as clean and professional looking as possible
-Use the space as best as possible
I am far from a carpenter and usually shy away from projects that require square edges but I wanted to give this a go. I chose to go with 3/4" Spruce plywood (I wanted to use Maple but it was double the cost) In total I will use about 2.5 sheets. I ordered some 24" full extension drawer slides from Amazon that have a 100lb capacity. I am still trying to find the right locking latches locally but may have to order them online.
I started by removing the 3rd row. It took about 45min and unfortunately I didn't document that part. Its fairly easy though, all it requires is a 10mm and 15mm socket. I packed my rear seats up and put them in the crawl space for the future.
Next I started making the frame for the drawers. I am making it 38" by 38" and the sides have been cut to 10". I used 1"5/8 drywall screws countersunk to secure it all together. Each drawer will be about 17" wide and 36" deep.
Built the drawers using the same 3/4 plywood and left 1/2" on each side to make room for the slides.
Made the drawer faces and cut in the holes for the latches. (Crooked in the pic but I will adjust.
Next I finally did a test fit and I am very happy with it. It does sit a bit higher than I thought it would buy it's still okay by me. I will still retain the two small cubbies in each wheel arch.
Finally got it finished today!
Last edited:
hwell:
