Advice on securing cargo in an SUV

I hope this is on topic. Since BO Vehicles are a common topic here, I figured it might be a good place to ask.

I'm always throwing heavy stuff in the back of my SUV, a Pathfinder. Power tools, generator, 12V AGM battery, etc. I usually have stuff in some kind of box, but that box will sometimes weigh a ton.

My concern is that in a bad accident, where the trucks rolls or otherwise gets in a situation where gravity isn't keeping this stuff on the floor anymore, these heavy projectiles could clobber the occupants and be potentially more lethal than the actual crash.

But there are only a couple really flimsy little tie-downs back there, which, compared to the webbing and hardware for a seat belt, look completely inadequate.

Any suggestions? This must be a common concern, but I haven't found anything that looks very effective.

Thanks! David

The safest bet,I can think of would be a Cargo trailer or a Roof rack. Good Luck with that!

It's a good question to ask.

I wonder if a good mechanic or dealership could install anchor points bolted into the frame. A unibody frame can accommodate a trailer hitch; I see no reason why anchor points would not be possible.

My 2c.

You can get a steel mesh between the passenger and cargo part of you SUV. Very common for SUV's and stationwagons here.

SPAM!



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Agreed. Post has been removed. - CLIFFORD (Mod)

I've seen heavy metal screens used to keep dogs from coming up into the front, that might work. The two SUVs I owned had real tiedowns in the back that went into the frame, and I would use those.

Dealerships and most mechanics won't make any vehicle mods, they don't want the liability for anything custom. Even shops that do custom work will only install bolt on parts.

As someone said the best bet is a steel divider that are commonly sold for suv's and vans to separate the passenger and cargo areas.
I thought those nissan's were frame basedor maybe uniframe like jeep cherokoees so there should be something substantial below to bolt to.

While the idea of a steel separator seems like a good idea, I don't feel that it is your best option.

Let’s take a standard 12 foot tow chain rated for about 6 tons of pull. That weighs in at about 12 to 13 pounds. You slam on the brakes and get into a head on collision at 30 miles per hour. By the time that chain has traveled 2 feet it has become a very dangerous instrument.

Those of us on this site who have responded to car accidents have see items in the back of an SUV, car or truck become dangerous. Some time ago I stopped for an accident; it was a head on collision. One of the cars was a Chevy Cavalier (stating this only for reference and NOT for bashing or endorsing any brand of car) The person in the car had kept a spare tire in the trunk, the back seat was one of those fold down type of seats. When I showed up the spare tire that was "safely" in the trunk of he car was in the passenger side front seat, sort of. It broke the passenger seat and folded it forward.

Anything at all that has significant mass is going to demonstrate Newton’s laws in a rather horrific way when an accident or a roll over happens.

****Disclaimer: I am NOT in any way shape or form associated with any products I am about to mention, I do not receive any compensation for there sales nor am I in any contract with them in any way shape or form. I just love to look for cool stuff on the web for my cars, and trucks******

First you could simply get a truck box that is made of aluminum and put it in your SUV and bolt it down with grade 8 bolts nuts and washers. With some looking and taking precautions I am sure you can figure a place that will allow you to bolt the box down to the stouter part of your SUV.

Second: You can contact Truck Vault at truckvault.com and they can make you a custom box that will bolt into your SUV. (Again I am in no way shape or form associated with this company) I will warn you they are expensive.

Third: look into hiring a carpenter to make a custom drawer set for your Bug out Vehicle. Have a stouter drawer set put into place and again bolt it down with Grade 8 bolts washers and nuts.

Fourth: look into some jeep parts stores and buy the jeep drawers that bolt into the back of the jeep. http://www.tuffyproducts.com/p-116-046-rear-cargo-security-lockbox.aspx (again I have no affiliation; I am just finding the stuff on the web)


If you do go with a metal screen you will need to be sure it is bolted into place so that it will not go forward and add to the chaos if you do crash or roll.


For those of us with a truck,, if it is loose in the bed of the truck and we have a sudden stop due to things like front end collisions,, well you know the math.


Tyber

I like the screen or trunk idea. It depends on what needs securing.

A temporary option (for my vehicle) is to strap things down back there by using rope. Knowledge of a few good knots is necessary.

Thanks for the ideas.

I doubt I will be installing any permanent cargo boxes. This is still my daily driver. Even if I did, I'd still need to figure out what to anchor it to.

I like the wire mesh cage idea, like in a cop car. But it would need to be removable so I could still bet to the third row seat, or put a piece of lumber in lengthwise, etc.

I think the main challenge will be to install anchors, and after that, the actual cage/net can be added. I am going to poke around to see what sort of anchor points there may be under the floor. I figure a seatbelt is anchored with a simple big bolt, so there is a way to do it.

I do have six small anchors on the floor back there, but I can't tell how solidly they are attached. I'm guessing not very. I'll try to get a look at how they are mounted. Maybe I'll be surprised.

Keep any additional ideas coming! Thanks!

David

Any chance you could contact the manufacturer for technical data on these anchors?

A steel barrier may work for front end collisions, but what if you land in a lake or roll over and need to exit through the rear windows?

If you use a cage, I think the loose items should be immobilized somehow, maybe with strong rope or mover straps would be even better. If you keep heavy items loose, Netownian physics may come into play during a collision and destroy the cage. Of course, the stronger the cage, the chance of such destruction goes down.

In Australia Cargo Barriers are common place in 4x4s. I have one myself.

Here, these are all safety rated and designed to stop things from the back ending up in the front. There are a standard dealer option for just about every 4x4 on the market, so there are no issues with warranties, insurance or lease payments.

They can be removed and added, normally be removing a series of bolts, but I've never bothered to do that, the barrier lives in the back full time.

Another popular option are draw and shelving systems like Black Widow http://www.bwidow.com.au/ units. (No Affiliation). These meet local collision standards and work really well. They cost, but the quality is very good.

I have a crago barrier, and a I then added a steel shelf horizontally, which is anchored to the chassis. I have a couple of boxes which "lock" under the shelf to prevent them moving, then I put lighter items (clothes, bedding etc) on top.

Something like this is what I'm leaning toward. But this particular one is really expensive:



http://www.us-rope-cable.com/HTML/cargoWEB.html

Still need to figure out the anchors.

David

For real security I think that a solid barrier is best.
I attach sleeping mats and jackets to the passenger side of the barrier with elastic shock cord.

Because it is bolted in, you don't need to worry about anchor points.

Some models have a small "trap door" in them, so you can access things through the barrier



(No affiliations)

Sometimes the most obvious and simple things are the best option.

Poking around in the far back of the truck, where the optional 3rd row seat folds down, I discovered I already had a heavy-duty securing system with anchors into the frame, and web straps designed to secure hundreds of pounds of delicate, odd-shaped cargo: the seat belts!

I moved my big Stanley plastic job box back there pulled the seat belts across it, and secured them to each other with a heavy carabiner. Don't see how I can improve on that much.

Dave

Decent anchors can be had cheap - using Grade 8 nuts and bolts, and using some steel plate on the underside to help distribute the load. I'd recommend eyelets or D-loops.

I'm pretty sure that most of the "floor" of cars is some sort of polymer-plastic-non metal material. So even if you have a phenomenally strong anchor point, the actual floor might fail first.

Getting some decent rachet-straps to hold cargo would be good too. As an example:
http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc1v/R-...p;storeId=10051