Have you put a road bike in your bed?

I’ve got a bmw 1200rt. 600lbs. Plenty of room with the tailgate down. Wondering if anyone has loaded a bike of this size and if there were any tailgate issues. Thanks.

 

I asked a similar question in a thread specifically about motorcycles and got zero replies. Maybe this time?? My Triumph Tiger is a little lighter, like 500 pounds and I have the 6.5 bed but I still worry about the tailgate cables and tailgate resistance to denting in for loading.

 

Get yourself and 2 neighbors , all 3 of you stand on the tailgate....it holds you up you are good to go

 

I’d rather not be the first to “taco” the tailgate.

 

I put my Triumph Tiger 1200 in the bed of mine and I bet it weighs more than your BMW as well as my Yamaha Tenere, no issues at all. One thing is you will never get both wheels of the bike on the tailgate at one time unless things went crazy bad for ya.

 

Different truck, but I helped my dad move a 1300 lb boulder out of my Gen2 Raptor and it held up fine. Rolled it off the back of the truck slowly so it saw every pound of that weight for a while. I don't see how the Tundra would handle any less.

 

I wouldn’t sweat it a bit. I load my KLR650 @ 500lbs into my 2016 Taco with just a 5’ bed using ramps. The rear wheel sits on the gate. I noticed deflection of the plastic gate cover the first time so I cut a square of 3/4” ply to go under the rear wheel that reaches to the front and rear edges of the gate for support. No issues at all with gate bending or sagging.

 

That's interesting because when I had a second gen Tacoma folks were "tacoing" their tailgates loading bikes. So, most folks ended pulling the tailgate to load them. I took the black plastic off the inside of my tailgate to install an electric tailgate lock and was shocked at how insubstantial the structure was.

 

If both wheels are on the tailgate it really has gone wrong .
Very similar bikes in terms of weight. Mine should be fine.

 

Just to feel safer about the tailgate cables possibly giving way, I have used a scaffold plank to set my bike on when hauling in bed. Gives a better peace of mind because it will distribute the weight of the rear more evenly back into the bed somewhat. If a cable did break, you may have a much better chance this way I feel

 

Shocking what common sense accomplishes. Well Done

 

I've heard the stories about buckling the tailgate. Maybe it's from people riding the bike up the ramp?

 

Right. But how else are you going to load the bike unless you pull the tailgate and put the ramp on the bed. Could carefully walk it up, I suppose, which would put the human weight in a different spot of the tailgate. But that could be tricky.

 

Along that line- has anyone used a hitch mount carrier on a new Tundra? Debating whether to use it or load in the bed for a pretty long trip I'm planning later this summer. I like the hitch carrier because it leaves the bed free and I can keep luggage under the tonneau. Also easier to load than ramps into the bed. Downside is the sensors and camera freaking out, which is super annoying when I use my bike rack. Tongue weight with my Ducati Desert X would be ~600. I have just been too lazy to test it out yet as installing the carrier is a bit of a hassle.

 

DDX here with a hitch rack. I'm in the same boat, like the bed freed up for some gear and much easier to load the bike on a hitch rack. The sensors are fine as long you hit the switch that cancels them out. I find the cameras actually help out to give a quick glance at the hitch and tie downs every now and then.

I have close to 400km of slab before I get to any decent riding and I've used it a few times now without any issues, truck sags a bit but nothing too crazy

 

I've never ridden one up the ramp. I get the truck in a good position to lower the gate height and either push the bike up or use the throttle on a big bike. I have a step I stand on about 2/3 up the ramp.

 

I like the rigging you've got but I wouldn't do it. It just seems like a lot of load with a lot of leverage on the hitch.

 

I agree. I'm sure it is fine as a static load but hitting heaves or bumps in the road at speed would really amplify it.

 

is it any different then a trailer with 600lb of tongue weight?

 

Yes. This is cantilevered whereas with a trailer the hitch is supported on both ends so it won't see near as severe bending loads.

 

In my younger stupid days with a 250 pound CR250 into an 8’ truck bed, yes, it was easy riding it up. Today it’s two ramps. One for walking on, other for the bike. And I do use the motor to drive it up there feathering the clutch. It’s easily done alone. Back down with front brake and clutch with engine off and in gear for rear braking. * Note -If I load it diagonally the wheel is off the gate completely. (this is in the Tacoma)

 

But it's really not. Technically, a ball mount trailer hitch is cantilevered, too, not simply supported no matter what you put on it - bike rack or trailer. The weight at the nose of the trailer cantilevers over the wheels of the trailer to offset the weight of the rear of the trailer. If you don't support the tongue of the trailer with either a jack or truck, it collapses. If you used a rigid coupler instead of pivoting ball at the trailer hitch, it would become simply supported between the trailer axles and the truck's rear axle, with a small remaining cantilever at the rear of the trailer. But that would make the vehicle and trailer useless as it would only travel in a straight line. An example of a simply supported trailer would be a hay wagon with axles front and rear; then the only forces seen at the hitch are horizontal forces of acceleration. Since we use a pivoting ball, the weight is simplified as a vertical force at the ball head which we call tongue weight. It still see's the horizontal force of acceleration but those are temporary and complicate the model as it actually creates a bending moment at the ball itself, but we won't go there.

The ball mount itself sees a rotational force - or moment - as it interacts between the vertical downward force at the hitch head, the furthest rearward point of the receiver hitch mount, and the furthest forward point of the receiver hitch mount which sees an equal vertical upward force to counter the force at the hitch head. But it can be simplified to a downward vertical force, which again, we call tongue weight. The bike rack itself sees the same moment as a trailer ball mount when slid into the receiver hitch but is also simplified to a vertical downward force. Yes, moving that force outward such as an extend length ball mount can increase the moment, but the tongue weight remains the same.

 

I did consider this when I was going back and forth between a small trailer or a quality hitch mount. There are some hitch mounts out there that look pretty sketch, no doubt. This one is definitely rated to carry the load. From their website: “A5005 Outer Channel, 6061 T6 Structural RHS. Main Bar into hitch has ¼” MS350 Connection Plates, ½” High Tensile Bolts in double shear, 3/8″ MS350 Plate welded inside the SHS, this tube will carry 2500lbs”

So with that, the next part is the hitch on the truck itself. Tundra has a class IV rated for 1400lbs tongue weight, as per the OEM. From what I could find, that is at the hitch ball, 9” from the receiver.

When researching to see if this would work, I found a calculation to determine max allowable weight accounting for moment for a setup like this, on ADV rider forum. Using this, the max weight I’m comfortable carrying is 600lbs with this setup. My bike and rack come in at 570lbs so it's close, but there has to be some safety factors baked into the OE ratings as well.

I'm only using this on the highway, long straight and relatively smooth, no mountain passes or anything off road. I've got close to 1600km so far with the hitch rack so far without any issues.

 

Awesome, thanks. That's the most accurate response I could have hoped for. I have a Versa Haul rated for 600 pounds. Bike is just under 500 so it's fine. Carrier weighs about 100 pounds.

That turnbuckle thing you have on the pegs- did you make that or buy it somewhere? I struggle with the first strap and that looks like a good option.

 

They came with the rack, but easy enough to make with a trip to the hardware store. They do all the work holding the bike in place and work awesome, the straps are just a back up. Just make sure to run a strap between the turnbuckles to keep them in place so they can't vibrate loose. A couple cranks and the bike isn't going anywhere

 

You definitely did the homework. I still wouldn't do it but I do think you have a baller set up. Great looking truck with Ducati to match on the back and perfect rigging to tie it all down. A+ on being tidy!

 

Cheers, thanks man!

I sold a R1250GS/A before picking up the DDX. The guy I sold it to loaded in the back of his short bed Dodge 1500. He used a 2x6 plank with a chock bolted to the end the same length as the bed & tailgate. Under the plank at the end of the bed, right before the tailgate, he used a small 1/2" wedge to raise the plank off the tailgate and take the brunt of the load. After we got it in the back of the truck, he used a pry bar to raise the plank enough to slide the wedge under. It worked pretty slick and might be an option if you end up loading the 1200RT in the box and are worried about damage to the tailgate.

 

I have had no issues hauling my KTM 1290 which weighs in at 524 lbs.

 

I use 2 wide ramps. Walk up one and drive the bike up the other using the clutch to modulate. Had a buddy spot me the first couple of times but I’ve pretty much got it down now. Just don’t forget to strap the ramps to the truck. Lots of good you tube fails there.

 

I have done the two ramp thing a lot as well. Works fine but I think I have watched too many Youtube bike loading fails. Every time I do it I picture myself whiskey throttling the bike and launching it through the cab. I do still have a scar on my shin from when my foot went between the steps on my walking ramp.

I also stick a chock in the bed to help stabilize the bike. I can't remember what brand I have but my ramp folds into a bed extender after loading.