CrewMax + 6.5' Bed Off Road?

Question for you Crew Max + 6.5' bed owners... how does it perform off road? It's about time to replace my 2009 Double Cab and the new DC back seat is too small. But the CM with a 6.5' bed has me worried about off road maneuverability and ground clearance. I'm not looking to make it a rock crawler, but I like to get into some out of the way camping and hunting spots. Also looking to rig it with a Four Wheel Camper or similar, so the extra foot of bed length would be a plus.

Would love to hear from anyone that has put together a similar build.

Thanks!

 

I have a crewmax with a 6.5 bed and find that it does just fine off-road in Alaska. If you can afford to get one with the pvm camera setup, it is so much easier to maneuver on tight trails. If ground clearance becomes an issue for you (it has not for me) you could always lift it. The one thing that is a major tradeoff is poor maneuvering in small parking lots - I typically just park further away.

 

Thanks! And yes, I plan on getting the off road package with PVM, and add at least 33" tires to start, maybe a lift later.

 

I have crew Max off road package 6.5 bed. ~2.5 in lift on front and ~1 in lift on rear. 37x12.5 tires. Mild off roading and it does great. Desert running, snow, mud, rocky trails (nothing extreme). 3 years and almost 100k miles on my truck

 

OEM tires are 32.5"...that 1/4" of height difference with 33" will be huuuuugge

 

Lol, the OEM tire are closer to a 32 in real life than 32.5. If you get an aftermarket 33 you'll get a inch more. I know it's not a lot, but an inch is an inch


size matters

 

My truck has about the same turning radius as our full size dump truck. I’ve become a master at 3 point turns in parking lots and in the woods, lol. Long wheelbase and sits pretty low even with small lift. Rocky terrain and I’d invest in gas tank skids, etc

 

The women always love that extra inch!

 

I came from a 2008 double cab and have the crew max 6.5’ bed. However I don’t off road my trucks aside from gravel roads.

It is a very long truck, but to me has a good turning radius for how long it is. I also end up parking far away and back in most of the time. I think it would be fine with mild/moderate off roading. I wouldn’t get a shorter one just for slightly better turning off road. The crew max 6.5’ is such an awesome combo.

 

I have this exact config waiting for me to pick up next week: 25" TRD OR Limited 6.5 in Lunar Rock. I need to tow with it so I will deal with the extra length when off road.

 

Even if you get an inch larger tire, it’ll only add 1/2” of clearance. Won’t even make a difference. Just hold off on swapping tires til you’re set on your lift and can get atleast 35’s or 37’s. That’s a really long wheelbase to be off-roading.

 

Yes parking is a problem being a foot longer in length. Using the sensors.

 

35 and 37 look nice, but they are a real killer in fuel economy and ride comfort.

I just measured and my stock tire measure 32.1 and my new ones are 33.5. 35’s are usually between 34.5 and 34.8 so that would only net me another half an inch of extra ground clearance and kill any fuel economy I have. Now going to 37’s would make a drastic difference, but I better hold a funeral for fuel milleage, handling, breaking distance, etc.

I’m not rock crawling or going in extremely steep holes. Slightly bigger, more aggressive tires and better skidplates are enough for what I do. I mostly deal with mud, gravel, sand, water and small rocks, with the occasional bigger boulder climb but they are big enough that I do not have to worry about break over angle.

I can’t go anywhere yet since everything is still snowed in, but I should be able to get to the deer camp by the end of the month and the moose camp by the end of May and see how it goes.

 

I have 35s with a 3” Westcott lift upfront and the TRD Bilsteins from the TRD lift. I have 1” lift Dobinsons springs in the rear with TRD Bilsteins. Sucking the gas mileage down? A bit, I lost about 3 MPG. Ride and handling? Ride same as stock on my hybrid. I also went down to 18” wheels from the stock 20” Handling is much improved. As far as braking, didn’t have an issue towing an 8k lb trailer.

 

What tires do you have?

 

Falken Wildpeak AT4W. Love em.

 

Don’t get me wrong, your truck will be better off-road with the lift and bigger tires and will look amazing. Lifted Tundras with bigger tires are so nice.

But you’re still using 15% more gas, have a longer braking distance, not to say that it’s unusable, but longer nonetheless and poorer ride and handling than a stock truck for day to day.

Is the compromise worth it or not, and to me, 15% more fuel represents around 2000$ a year so it’s a pretty big difference.

 

Wow I thought I drive a lot... $13k a year in gasoline is insane

 

Like I mentioned in my post, my ride is the same as stock with the setup I have and it handles much better through turns. Yes, I knew I’d take a hit on mileage. But there’s a price to looking good.

 

Wow! the things you can learn? I didnt know you could get a CM with a 6.5' box? I'm jelly.

 

Well OP asked about offroading. Not fuel economy.

 

Good old Canadian prices for gas