Double cab short bed vs. Long

Ok I've seen quite a few negative comments on dcsb tacoma's but if 12" of bed length is so critical in a mid sized pick up I say your in the wrong platform, get a full sized truck! I can fit full sheets of plywood and sheetrock with my tailgate down and have carted literally dozens of deer in my bed. If your a contractor or landscaper I don't think the tacoma is optimum for those tasks. So I would love to hear the reasons why the long bed is so much better, and no I don't want to hear any wise ass replys, if there is a legitimate reason im missing please enlighten me.....

 

Fitting a dirtbike/quad with tailgate closed. More room for moving furniture. More comfortable sleeping platform.

 

1) Full sheet of plywood and sheet rock with the bed closed, and with the bed open 8 foot lumber doesn't stick out much.
2) Loader at the gravel shop can dump directly into my bed. Don't think it would work with a 5' bed. I've done at least 10-15 loads of gravel, mulch, and dirt.
3) I can close the tailgate when sleeping in the bed which is optimal. Whole point of sleeping in the bed is the tailgate is closed so I don't get wet. I've slept in the bed many times with my old camper topper, and now with the Flippac I've had guests sleep in the bed area without issue.
4) Lots of room with my new Flippac for sink, water, table, bench, storage.

You say it's only 12", but out of 5' that's 20% more length and 20% more usable cargo area that is not between the wheel wells.

I agree, you can make it work with a 5' bed, but why should I, when there's a 6' bed available. For my purposes the 6' bed has been very useful for both hauling and camping. You also run into a lot of issues fitting truck campers in the 5' bed. I bought the truck with plans for a camper and hauling and the 6' bed works great for both.

Now to your argument that I should have just gotten a full size truck. I don't need the interior width of a full size truck, I just needed a double cab to put a carseat in the back seat. For towing and hauling, I don't need it that much. For daily driving, I don't want to deal with driving a full size truck every day, plus the smaller tacoma is more maneuverable off road than a full size truck would be.

Thus it's more capable than a 5' bed but not quite as big as a full size, and just right for me. 5' bed would have been a big compromise for me, and I looked specifically for a long bed when I bought it, as I knew I would use it.

 

I've got the 5' bed, and every time I see a 6 footer go by, I initially get the feeling of regret that I didn't look harder for a double cab/6'. Then, I come to my senses, that my 14' flatbed will haul much more than I could get in a 6' bed, both longer stuff and heavier stuff. I have 20" high sides on the trailer, and can easily haul over 4 cubic yards of sawdust/wood chips for my barn, or that much mulch for the lawn, and the truck pulls it like it isn't there.

The 4'wide/5' long bed is a huge change from the 5' wide, 8' long bed I had on my dually; I'd have about anything dumped in it, but over time, the fenders and back part of the cab were scratched and chipped from the loader guy missing with part of the load. I'm sort of happy the small bed on the Taco isn't worth dumping loose material into (not enough volume), so I can keep the truck nicer for longer. With a bed cover, it becomes a hellacious big trunk.

 

I would like a trailer as well, but just don't have room for it as I live in the city. Plus besides hauling, the 6' bed works for my camping purposes.

Really what would have been best would be a TRD off road Access cab, but not safe for my son.

 

Not sure if I would want to give up that extra foot length in my garage for the truck lol
I'm good with my 5' bed it doe's/hauls everything I need it to ...
I keep about 4-5 hundred pounds of work supplies/equipment in the bed for my business, I do find it's a lot more space than all my other Rangers & Sport Trac's I've owned ...
For sleeping in the bed, as for me not seeing that happening lol
I'm sure my trailer will be helpful if I need something bigger ...

 

I do a ton of hunting and spend upwards of 50 nights a year away from home and 20-30 nights are spent in the back under a camper. A long bed is a must for me.

 

Most that buy shortbed's buy them so they can park in their garages,myself included.An extra foot of bed is not going too make or break anything.

 

I went with a 6’ so I could haul my dirt bikes and at least have the rear tire in the bed and not on the tailgate, I feel better bringing home 10’ sticks of metal and not having them seem like they are teetering on tailgate, also the longer wheelbase to help with keeping the truck stable when pulling a camper a few years down the road.