Best Way to Carry 16 Foot Kayak on 2020 Toyota Tacoma with 5 Foot Bed

Updated 06/01/2022 | Published 05/31/2022

Products Featured in This Question

Yakima LongArm Bed and Roof Load Extender for 2" Hitches - Aluminum - 165 lbs

(163)

$387.90

Rhino-Rack 2500 Series Legs for Sportz Crossbars - Naked Roofs or Fixed Mounting Points - Qty 2

(8966)

$139.99

Rhino-Rack T-Load Hitch Mounted Load Assist and Support Bar for 2" Hitches - 49" Long

(515)

$429.99

Question:

I have bed bars in my 2020 Tacoma short bed of 5 ft that are level with the bed sides. I can haul things on these bars and still have full use of the bed under the bars for other things. I would like to carry two Kayaks at bed side height. And need a bed extender that can be adjusted to bed side height instead of the low bed floor height or the high roof rack height. And also stick out the back far enough to carry a 16 foot Kayak. I see that the Yakima Long Arm can be adjusted to bed side height, but it doesnt look to be long enough out the back to allow a balance point far enough back for a 16 foot Kayak. Maybe with a hitch extension it could work.

asked by: Shawn L

Expert Reply:

When the Yakima LongArm Bed and Roof Load Extender for 2" Hitches # Y01149-1150 is fully extended (with the add-on extension piece) it's going to sit about 38-1/4" up and 57" out from your receiver so you'll have roughly 10 feet of the kayak supported. This would be the best solution for that configuration but I agree that there will be too much of the kayak unsupported for this to be practical so I recommend adding a roof rack to your 2020 Toyota Tacoma and using a load carrying extension to get the job done.

We actually have a whole kit like this from Rhino-Rack by using the following:

54" Vortex Aero Crossbar - # RRVA137B
2500 Series Legs - # RRRLKVAH
Fit Kit - # DK174H
T-Load - # RTL002

Attached is a review video of the T-Load being used with a ladder rack just to give you an idea of what the setup will look like.