4500 Mile Trip Planning for a 1st Gen

Im sure you can get these keyed alike but I am still not clear at all how you will get the tailgate to be the "meat" in between the "bread of the bars inside and the glass outside of it?

Are you picturing closing both the gate and glass at the same time so they mesh together when closing?

Otherwise I cant see how this can work?

Again I also can not see how 2 commercially available locking latches would not be the call by the same principle,close the tailgate and then the glass and then twist and lock them,just like the top already should and can if you just buy a key.

It seems so simple that I am confused about making anything else.

Anyway this is my input,Good Luck.

 

https://www.etrailer.com/Vehicle-Locks/Pop-and-Lock/PAL9772.html

 

This movie was a parody of my family vacation to Disney World in a station wagon down I-95 during the same time.

Only 20 miles to go to get to "South of the Border" if anyone here understands that reference.

 

Tailgate and window both need to swing out and away. Window sits against the tailgate, so in theory, if you're trusting the tailgate lock to be the real mettle here, all you'd need is something on the back of the window bottom that sits behind the tailgate and hangs low enough. Like this, where the brown piece would be a contraption ideally on pass and driver side of the window panel. If tailgate is unlocked, you can pitch it out enough to lift the glass. If not, shit ain't going anywhere.

 

I'm not going to chime in on mechanical issues but, comfort. Last summer I took my fam on a 14 day, 3800mi, 73 hours in the driver's seat trip down and back up the west coast. Started in NW WA and traveled as far south as San Diego. Six of those days were spent is a pretty close area with little driving. The other days were long days on the road. I've got an '07 Escalade ESV with 240K on the clock. We ended up renting a 14 passenger van for the trip that had 10 miles on it and I don't regret a single dollar spent renting it. It was SO nice spending time in a seat with good support that hadn't broken down over the years. All that being said, you should really consider your seats when thinking about a really lengthy road trip. Getting your seats refoamed or buying new ones could be the difference between a comfortable ride or complete hell whenever you're on the road. Just some food for thought.

 

Bring good tunes and snacks, lots of snacks! I like a good mix of healthy and junky snacks, like roasted almonds, fruit, and I always have to bring Bugles. It helps to pass the time. Oh, and I like to have one of those portable jump start batteries and an air compressor along. Have fun.

 

Dude I recently remembered how tasty bugles are!!!! We got a big bag the other week and it’s almost gone!!

 

Right?! Who knows what they are made out of...they are kind of like pork rinds.

 

Hell yeah, fill 'em with cheez whiz and they're silly good.

 

Stop it!!!

 

Slice off a hunk of Slim Jim, stick it in the end of the bugle to shove the whiz down inside, I'm drooling over here.

 

I can feel my arteries clogging just reading this...

 

I wish they still made corn diggers. It puts bugles to shame.

 

My reasoning for this was just for added security since I'll be in areas I know nothing about and be parked in lots of parking lots. Figure if you had the right tool you could just grab the latch and turn it or break it weather its locked or not. At least if the tailgate can be locked and also hold it back that just seems like some good added security.
See the drawing @shifty` made.

Thank you for this! I was just thinking about how to draw it up on my way to work.

I haven't spent more than a couple hours in my truck at once but I really feel like my truck with bench seats has pretty comfy seats. I may end up being wrong but time will tell. Maybe its cause I'm in my early 20's and haven't started hurtin too bad yet or I don't know what I'm missin.

Planning on bringing all that. Other than the bugles. Guess I'm the odd one but never been a fan. Haven't had them in 6 or 7 years though.

 

Also @shifty` that's exactly what I was attempting to describe about the topper lock situation I just didn't put the words together right.

 

I just pictured what you guys were writing and slapped some lines together in Microsoft Paint to show it.

I stake no claims on how well it works IF it works, but it sounded logical, so I drew it. pic is worth 1000 words.

 

All this trouble contemplating the locking hatch mechanism. They’re just gonna break the glass. Put a regular lock on to deter the handle pullers, the “crimes of opportunity” types. Make it any harder for the determined thief and they will just pop the window. Also, don’t take too much stuff. Keep it simple. Simple set of tools. Jump pack and an air compressor are handy. Extra coil packs? Never replaced a single one on my truck at 265k miles. Get the maintenance caught up and head out. It’s a Toyota. Start a road trip thread on here and check in once in a while with some cool Pictures to keep us interested. If you run into trouble, send us an SOS. We’ll come help you out if someone is nearby. Triple A is worth the money on a trip like this.

 

Yeah I guess it's mostly a crime of opportunity prevention. Just trying to be as cautious as I can be.

I hear about people having issues with coils occasionally and figured being 2000 plus miles from home wouldn't be the time I'd like to be looking for a parts store with them in stock.
I have AAA through my parents already. Never had to use it but I got it.

 

I was just going to post this after reading the last response.

It's so easy to break the glass, which is what usually happens here. But it typically only happens in two cases:
1) You leave something in plain sight a desperate crackhead can sell for more than $1.
2) You leave the promise of something valuable inside - I've even seen someone get their window smashed over empty packs of cigarettes in a seat. But anything, including a suction cup for GPS can suggest there may be a GPS unit in the glove box.

When I first started driving up for work to ATL in '02, the first night I stayed in my now-wife's house, not far from downtown in a single family neighborhood, I had a random load of stuff in the back extended cab area of my '03 Sierra. Toolkit on the rear seat, a couple of Cisco firewalls on the floor, a 200 CD case, and probably had about $4k in my stereo system between the JL amps, JL stealthbox, components, cap, and other crap. Windows tinted pretty dark so tough to see in.

About 2:30 in the morning, HONK HONK HONK HONK, truck horn is going off. Bastards were driving by, popped the rear driver side window out, crawled in scratching the hell out of my paint, and were apparently feeding stuff out the window to their buddies, then opened the door, triggered the alarm and were 10 blocks away by the time I got out the front door.

Needless to say, I learned the hard way. I got lucky, they didn't know I had amps behind the rear seat or the sub box under. They didn't smash up my dash to get my head unit out. They took the stuff that was laying around loose. But I learned the two valuable lessons above that day.

I continue to see, time and time again on apps like NextDoor, people bitching "I got my window smashed out while I was having lunch, they took my purse, my laptop bag AND my phone I left in the back seat. OMFG what the hell is wrong with people?!?" Like, no, wtf is wrong with you that you'd leave $4k+ in stuff sitting in plain sight in the backseat? FFS, use your damn brain.

Anyway, same point stands here. For the time you'd spend beefing up the locks and shit, why not instead get oversized blinds for the windows so you can conceal what's in the rear, and be smart about when/where you open it up so anyone can see? Furthermore, some of the places on your trip are going to be higher-density areas which is exactly where smash-and-grab opportunistic crimes happen the most, you need to adopt a "clean car" mentality if you don't want to be a victim.

Oh, and NEVER leave a gun in your car in dense urban areas. Last thing you want is the same type of scumbag who'll smash your window getting their hands on your piece.

 

I'm planning on having tools and such back there. Maybe stuff we pick up along the way. Nothing super valuable but just stuff I'd rather keep if possible. Truck windows are tinted pretty dark (like that when I bought it) so keeping stuff inside the truck may be a better way of going about it when we are stopped somewhere overnight, that or make blinds for the topper which may really be the best solution.

 

Limo tint the camper shell windows and keep the items under a cover or tarp. Out of sight, out of mind. And don’t wash the truck the whole time. Keep It grimy. Fly under the radar.

 

Cool trip. Do it! From personal experience, too much driving isn't fun. so either take longer or reduce length if need be. I've done road trips in the past that had too much driving and it's not as enjoyable. Even 6 hours a few days in a row felt like too much. My opinion.

Good luck, safe travels!

 

4500 miles in a week and a half doesn’t leave a lot of time to enjoy things other than driving. We’ve done more miles in less time but I don’t mind driving from 6am to 2am (have done many 1000-1200 mile days) so everyone can enjoy something the next day and not spend all day driving. Point of my post, try and take more time to do the trip so you’ll enjoy it more and appreciate the time with each other vs looking for it to be over.

 

Yeah I'm slightly worried about this but can't really free up much more time due to vacation time at both of our jobs.
Cutting out the Grand Canyon would cut out about 7 hours but I hate to be "that close" and skip it but it might be what ends up needing to happen. Amarillo and Memphis are really just stopping points for on the way home more than a place to see much. I guess the good thing with driving is that if we decide we want to change our plans slightly we can go a different route. As long as we can find somewhere different to stay.

 

If you have not been, do not, I repeat DO NOT skip the Grand Canyon. It's the most amazing thing I've ever seen. I will never forget the first time I saw it. Easily the most incredible thing I've ever seen...and I've been a place or two in this world.

 

I’ll second that. It’s one of the first times in my life I’ve felt like a painting or a picture could never do it justice. It has to be experienced. Felt. Like seeing the ocean for the first time. The sheer size and beauty of it is unforgettable. That whole part of the country is loaded with amazing wonders of nature. Especially for a boy that group up on flat Louisiana land covered in pine trees.

 

Sounds awesome! I’m planning a road trip from Baja to Alaska. No set time on the road just going to explore.

I always think it’s funny when people say bring all your tools and every spare part as I’m not a mechanic and don’t have the know how. I’m sure I could look up on YouTube how to do most thing but…I just have AAA and good insurance. And I live by the code: “It’s not an adventure until something goes wrong” Trust me you will have memories for the rest of your life.

Make sure you have tinted windows and try to leave as much stuff out of view as possible. Last thing you want is all your stuff stolen.

 

5gal fuel can
45

Personally I’d run Route 66

 

Wish we had the time. Maybe someday

 

So this is EXACTLY what I was saying and asking about above but without an engineering drawing like Shifty provided here!

I just think it is going to be tough to do this maneuver reliably when in a hurry so again why not just buy something actually built for this job?