Tail gate capacity on 2019 short bed Tacoma

I want to load and carry a 750 lb motorcycle on a short bed (60" ) Tacoma, so the last 17" of the bike will be sitting on the tail gate, right to the very end. Anyone have experience carrying that kind of load on the tailgate? There are some horror stories about earlier model Tacoma gates buckling under the weight. The dealer claims the gate is rated to hold 400lbs. Thanks

 

I have slid my coolers on it while camping (approx 500ish lbs) and stepped on it without probs. So about 7xx lbs give or take. Should be fine. I would think most of your weight would be in the bed right? Just the rear tire and some of the motor? Should be ok. Guys load their dirt bikes and 4 wheelers all the time. Just don't do any high speed off roading or go over speed bumps to fast

 

How far of a trip are you planning?

I hauled my motorcycle ~250 highway miles with the rear tire resting on the tailgate and had no problems at all.

If you wanted to distribute the weight you could get a 2×8, cut it to length and rest both tires on it. That would eliminate the "pressure point" of the tire on the tailgate.

 

Thank you, that is very useful. I have the option of trading this vehicle for the 6 foot bed, but I really don’t want that if I can carry the bike with about half its weight on the tailgate of the 5 foot bed model. I get it, no off-road work. Just transporting motorcycles on paved roads.

 

That picture is good. Is that the 60 inch or the 72 inch bed? My biggest bike, an old Road King, will have even more of the weight on the tailgate than yours. I carried it in my 2001 F150 easily, gate down, but this bed is shorter. I would rather avoid getting the longer bed version if I can.

 

5ft bed. It's a 750 shadow for reference

 

The picture gives me an idea. Does anyone know if there is a device made specifically for the Tacoma that attaches to the trailer hitch and fits vertically as some sort of bracket to hold and reinforce the tailgate? Given how strong the tail hitches are made, some sort of vertical brace that cradled and supported the tailgate in the down position would be excellent. Anyone ever seen such a thing? (...Or do I call my welder?)

 

Wait hang on your cooler weighs 500lbs?

 

The plank(or a strip of 3/4” ply) with guides idea ftw. One pot hole could ruin your day and your tail gate since it’s a dynamic load rather than static(the difference between jumping and standing). Ribs or bed mat under the bottom to keep it from sliding. One look inside and you’ll see just how flimsy they are. The composites won’t fail but the tin can only flex so much before it kinks.

 

Engle 240 (67lbs empty) with 350lbs of block ice and around 50 lbs of crushed =467ish lbs.

Use it for storing fish and extra ice when camping

 

Something like that is made for carrying loads out the back but it doesn’t support the tailgate, rather it takes the load instead of the tailgate. Supporting it from underneath isn’t a good idea since the sheet metal on the outer face will just crumple. There’s no real rigid skeleton inside, just a series of tabs that support the skin with NVH adhesive foam the same as the stuff that fails in the hood.

 

I wish manufacturers would publish more specific weight limitations like aircrafts. Two numbers I would love to see is max static weight allowed on factory running boards and tailgate just to name a few. If my 250 pound buddy is helping me unload stuff off my roof rack our combined weight would be about 460 plus. 3 dudes tail-gating at a ball game drinking beers would be more than 700 pounds. I know cars are not certified in the same manner as planes so this would never happen. Bummer.

 

This is what’s inside. https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/diy-tailgate-inner-panel-cover.651509/page-9#post-25574097

 

One number won’t cover both a point load and a load spread over the width of the tailgate. The bed has a cross rail at the back so it would be much better to cantilever over that. I stand on mine to tie down roof loads but I avoid anything more than that.

 

Here's an earlier thread for this same question...

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/how-much-weight-can-a-2020-tacoma-tailgate-hold.699952/

 

And here’s a post from that thread showing a catastrophic failure of the tail gate.

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads...oma-tailgate-hold.699952/page-2#post-24795203
The same basic questions and answers were posted albeit starting with a sled instead of a bike but the evidence is pretty conclusive.

 

This picture of the relatively lightweight Ducati creasing the tail gate of a 2nd gen Tacoma doesn't inspire confidence....

 

No way that less than 500lb motorcycle did that with 1/3 of it on the tailgate sitting in the bed. Somebody messed up loading it.

 

I’m with you. No matter how you load that bike, I don’t see how you could crease the tailgate like that. I’ve loaded dozens of bikes from Nortons to Harleys into Ford Rangers and F150s using nothing more than a wooden plank. The tailgate construction and the wires on the Fords look to be the same as the Tacoma. I don’t get it.