Sleeping in a 4runner

rihavens

rihavens

New member
Yes, it is another of a million posts about sleeping in a 4runner. I have searched around and have not specifically found an answer to this. I was not wanting to build a platform, but rather I wanted to get a cot for this thing. I saw a post where someone had a Helinox Max convertible cot, but I am not really made of money and this thing is $450.

Has anyone tried a more traditional cot in their 4runner? Did the seats need to come out?

I was looking at this:

https://www.rei.com/rei-garage/product/897546/alps-mountaineering-escalade-cot-large
 
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Looks pretty tall from the specs:
ALPS Mountaineering: Unfolded 80 x 31 x 20 inches
vs.
Helinox: Unfolded 82.7 x 29.5 x 6.7 inches

On a budget, I would just get a sleeping bag :D
 
TravelChair Sleeprite cot

They've changed the design now since I got mine, but the travelchair sleeprite cot can be had for under $150:

https://www.amazon.com/TravelChair-...ocphy=9033151&hvtargid=pla-384425033005&psc=1

I haven't slept in the back with the cot yet (I've slept in there with an airbedz truck bed air mattress - PPI103 fits right in), but I can confirm that neither the air mattress or cot will fit in there unless you remove the rear seat bottoms.
 
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i have a fill size cot, it's way too high to use in the 4runner- you'll need one of the low profile or backpacking type cot. if you're not sure if you'll like it and don't want to spend a lot of money, aliexpress has a lot of knockoff versions for cheap

i hate hate hate air mattresses, but the 4" exped megamat is really comfortable

regarding the seat bottoms, you might need to remove them to take advantage of that area depending on what your cot supports are like. i'm 6'3" and only fit comfortable if i remove a seat bottom and go all the way up to the passenger seat.

if you have a full size cot why not just put it outside the vehicle? i just do that with a basic mesh insect cover and tie a tarp over the cot if it's going to rain
 
rihavens said:
I have, any help on what size air mattresses will fit? Will I need to take out the seat bottoms to make it fit (I am 6'2" tall)
Click to expand...
wish i could actually help, but i'm in a similar boat. i'm hoping the el cheapo twin sized air mattress i use in a tent sometimes will fit/work with some other gear in the car. it may not.
 
I remember I tried to fit one of these in the 4runner to sleep in. Way too long. Rear didn't even close lol. Last night I was browsing for a memory foam top on Amazon for future trips. I saw a post on here that the cargo area is about 66 inches in length I think.

I ended up fitting a twin air mattress that I had and it was awesome. Snug fit but the rear was able to close by forcing it. I'm 5'8" and I was pretty comfy.

GXHuzjPl.jpg


EY3F18Ql.jpg


bSkVHPFl.jpg
 
MyanRagahis said:
I remember I tried to fit one of these in the 4runner to sleep in. Way too long. Rear didn't even close lol. Last night I was browsing for a memory foam top on Amazon for future trips. I saw a post on here that the cargo area is about 66 inches in length I think.

I ended up fitting a twin air mattress that I had and it was awesome. Snug fit but the rear was able to close by forcing it. I'm 5'8" and I was pretty comfy.

GXHuzjPl.jpg


EY3F18Ql.jpg


bSkVHPFl.jpg
Click to expand...

Is that with the seats out, I assume?
 
Don't do memory foam for camping if you ever plan on camping in cool weather, it gets really hard in cool weather and turns into a completely solid rock when it gets cold enough
 
rihavens said:
I have, any help on what size air mattresses will fit? Will I need to take out the seat bottoms to make it fit (I am 6'2" tall)
Click to expand...

As a 6' 1" tall person, I have to sleep diagonal to fit with the seat bottoms still in the vehicle. To do a cot or full air mattress, I'm assuming you'd have to pull the seat bottoms out to fit vertically.

But I think when I slept in my trunk, I just put my camping air pad down and slept diagonally in my sleeping bag. Wasn't the best thing ever but it was sufficient.
 
rihavens said:
Is that with the seats out, I assume?
Click to expand...
Nope, left the seats in there! That red chair bag is actually laying on top of the folded up seat.
I'm sure it would have been less of a squeeze had I removed them. But it all worked out so I left them.
I never attempted removing the the seats trying to fit the cot. Maybe it could have worked.

jhguth said:
Don't do memory foam for camping if you ever plan on camping in cool weather, it gets really hard in cool weather and turns into a completely solid rock when it gets cold enough
Click to expand...
Interesting, thanks for the tip.
 
I have a tri fold 6" memory foam mattress that I trimmed with a bread knife to fit perfectly. It's amazing to sleep on but takes up a lot of room when you are not using it

Sent from my SM-G950W using Tapatalk
 
I'm going to try out an Alps Compact Cot this weekend, and I could let you know how it feels. It would be low enough to fit, but hopefully high enough to go over the seat bottom 'bump' from the second row seat, up against the front seat. I slept in the back of my old '92 2nd Gen by taking out that seat bottom. But I'm only 6'0.

That cot is only $48 on Amazon. If it's comfy, it might be the best bet. And you could pad on top of it if you needed to.
 
jhguth said:
i have a fill size cot, it's way too high to use in the 4runner- you'll need one of the low profile or backpacking type cot. if you're not sure if you'll like it and don't want to spend a lot of money, aliexpress has a lot of knockoff versions for cheap

i hate hate hate air mattresses, but the 4" exped megamat is really comfortable

regarding the seat bottoms, you might need to remove them to take advantage of that area depending on what your cot supports are like. i'm 6'3" and only fit comfortable if i remove a seat bottom and go all the way up to the passenger seat.

if you have a full size cot why not just put it outside the vehicle? i just do that with a basic mesh insect cover and tie a tarp over the cot if it's going to rain
Click to expand...

I can second the expend mega mat, REI only carrys a really big one but you could order a smaller one, they are almost as good as a bed in my opinion.
 
If it's only for a night or two, you might want to consider sleeping in the passenger side front seat. I just slept in the driver's seat, but I'm only 5'10".

Not seeing your exact seat configuration, I can tell you that I considered folding the "60" seat down of the 60/40, and resting my head on the center console. This would require either a cot that gets my head to that level, or some hefty padding. Personally, I would rather use some extra yoga or linkable play mats to fill in the dip in the rear cargo area, than build a heavy wooden platform. Those play mats can be had super cheap and can be stowed as roughly 2' squares stacked together or left in place... if you don't mind bright pastel colors in the back of your rig. If you do, you could also pay a bit more for the "workspace" mats that are basically the same thing, but in solid dark colors.
 
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