Goose Gear Drawer & Sleeping Platform – Is this the ultimate storage solution for the 5th Gen 4Runner?
Why did I choose this?
As far as I know, Goose Gear is the only company that makes a sleeping platform.
There are some DIY sleeping platform solutions out there, but none come close to the professional quality of the Goose Gear system. Even if there was competition, I have gotten the impression that Goose Gear is the premier storage solution, with practically all reviews being positive.
As for why I wanted an internal sleeping platform instead of a rooftop tent, I did not like how an RTT (Roof Top Tent – Hardshell or Softshell) would add additional top heavyweight to the vehicle.
An RTT would also decrease my overhead clearance creating a potential problem with overhanging branches etc. The security of a sleeping solution inside the car and the ability to camp anywhere covertly was also a nice benefit.
Where to get it and cost.
Goose Gear does not sell their product directly and instead requires you to go through a Goose Gear dealer.
Ideally, you can find a local place because it is usually cheaper to ship LTL freight direct to a dealer. If not, there are a few online dealers that Goose Gear works with. An online option may ultimately be cheaper for you if it avoids state sales tax.
Finding the total cost of the system was tricky.
See the photo of my invoice below so you can get an idea of what it will cost you. If you are not getting the full sleeping platform and only one side or skipping the drawers, it will cost substantially less.
The system is made to order and took about 2 months to arrive. It arrived at the dealer in a big FedEx box on a pallet. Everything was very well packaged.
Goose Gear & Accessories
- Goose Gear Base Plate
- Goose Gear 5th Gen 4R Sleeping Platform 40% Delete
- Goose Gear 5th Gen 4R Sleeping Platform 60% Delete
- Goose Gear Base Plate Drawer Module
- Wenzel Sleeping Bags: Check Price
- MegaMat Sleeping Pads: Check Price
- Small Electric pump: Check Price
- D-Rings tie-down hardware
- Raingler cargo net: Check Price
To find the price on a system for your set-up, use the Goose Gear “dealer locator tool” on their website.
THE INVOICE
DRAWERS IN USE
The drawers are made from a CNC cut, high-quality wood board with an aluminum frame and heavy-duty slides.
It overall feels very sturdy and I don’t get any sense of the drawers sagging when fully loaded and extended.
SLIDERS
The latches feel very well made and are nice to use as well as lockable.
COATING MATERIAL
The top is coated in a thick layer of truck bed liner and so far, I have not been able to scratch it through normal use.
BOTTOM OF MOUNTING PLATE
In order to attach the drawers, you also have to buy their mounting plate.
You can tell that some serious research went into making a solid product. It has plenty of reinforcements at the bottom specifically shaped to the 4runner.
Sleeping Platform
I went with both the 60% passenger side platform as well as the 40% drivers side platform for 100% coverage.
With this, I can fit 2 sleeping pads to create similar coverage to a queen mattress. I use both platforms when camping with my SO, and just 60% when solo camping.
I use 2 Exped MegaMat 10 Sleeping Pads and highly recommend them. They are very sturdy, warm, and comfortable. Because of the square edge design, there is no problem with the center sagging where the two pads meet.
The RW size fits perfectly inside the 4Runner if you are on top of the rear wheel wells. I also bought a small electric pump to inflate and deflate them using the rear 12V jack.
MATTRESSES
For sleeping bags, I use 2 Wenzel Grande 0° bags.
I have camped in 10-degree nights with these and felt plenty warm. The zippers and shape allow for them to be easily attached to each other with one bag as a bottom blanket and the other as a top blanket.
The bags are very well made with durable materials. The flannel liner inside is super comfortable. This has worked great for cold weather camping, but for warm camping, I plan on using a Grande 0 on the bottom and then something lighter on top.
Overall, with this combination of products, I am as comfortable, if not more comfortable, than at home.
SLEEPING BAGS IN USE
I also got a Raingler cargo net to tie everything down. I used their 4Runner 4-point cargo containment net and it fit the top of the drawers perfectly.
I used some D-Rings and other hardware I found online to tie it down, but if I were to do it again I would have spent the extra money and bought goose gears anchors.
EVERYTHING TIED DOWN
If you are someone with long legs keep in mind that you will lose some seat movement with the 40% drivers side platform installed.
I am 6’2” and I’d prefer to move my seat back some more when driving, but after a few weeks of it installed I got used to it. You lose about 2” of sliding back room with the seat at a normal sitting angle.
However, I would recommend removing the sleeping platform when not in use long term. If you get in a bad rear-end collision the sleeping platform could possibly be pushed into your back.
LOST SEAT SPACE
INSTALLATION OVERVIEW
This took me a solid day of work to install the entire system because I ran into a problem that resulted in a run to the hardware store.
I have included notes on how to overcome this problem, so it should be must easier for you if you read this guide. If I were to do it again, I could see it taking only 4 hours or so.
Note that in all the following pictures my rear (2nd row) seats have already been removed. This is not required unless you are also installing the sleeping platform. The seat removal is easy and there are already some guides online.
Installing The Plate System
The plate system is required for attaching the drawers to the 4Runner body.
Goose Gear provides instructions on this if you email them, so I won’t be going through the instructions on this, but there is one major thing I would do differently than they tell you.
A step of the instructions involves removing the factory D-rings and trim closest to the 2nd-row seats (back of the cargo area).
You will then use the remaining 4 threaded holes to attach the front half of the plate to the body of the vehicle. In the instructions provided by Goose Gear, they tell you to screw in a roughly 3” long provided bolt until it completely bottoms out.
I followed these instructions and found that the bolt would start to feel resistance after only being screwed in about 1”. I kept screwing it in and the bolt felt like it was pushing through something that it shouldn’t.
I ended up checking under the vehicle and found that the bolt had pushed its way through some sealant and was now poking outside the car! I contacted Goose Gear to ask about this strange step. I was told that the purpose of this step was to make sure that the threads of the mounting hole were cleaned out so that it would readily accept the new bolt once it was in place with the platform.
Even though I followed this strange step and fully bottom out the bolt, this did not work for me and I found that I could not get the bolt to go into the threaded hole once the platform was in place without it starting to cross thread immediately. After trying to make it work for a few hours I drove to the hardware store and bought a 6mmx1.0 tap to chase the threads.
After I did that everything went in smoothly.
#1 – Use a 6mmx1.0 Tap To Chase Threads
IN SUMMARY: Buy a 6mmx1.0 tap and use it to chase the threads instead of the 6mm x 3” bolt like Goose Gear says in their instructions (step 9). This will make the install substantially easier and reduce the risk of vehicle damage.
#2 – Bolt It Down And Install The Drawers
Installing the drawers was much easier than the platform.
Remove the drawers from the sliders using the release switch located inside the slider.
That will make it much easier to lift into place as well as give access to the inside to bolt it down.
Once the drawers are lifted roughly into place, loosen the 8 pan head bolts holding the 4 brackets to the frame at the bottom of the drawer frame.
Once the bolts are loosened you can slide the brackets into place so that the bottom holes line up with the threaded holes of the plate system below. After this, use the supplied 8 bolts and washers to tighten the brackets down to the plate system.
#3 – Tighten Bracket Inside And Slide In Drawers
Tighten the brackets down to the plate system. Then, slide the drawers back in and that’s it!
SLEEPING PLATFORM
Goose Gear does not have any instructions for the sleeping platform.
It was fairly easy to figure out how everything fits together but getting everything actually attached requires some patience. Doing this in a certain order makes everything much easier.
Keep in mind that these instructions will be different if you do not have the sliding drawer module.
Start with placing all the drop-in nuts into the aluminum frame of the drawer module. Location is not important for now.
#4 – Drop In The Nuts
Next, loosely place the bolts and slot nuts into the supportive wood board. You want them to be as loose as possible without falling out.
#5 – Slide in Supportive Wood Board
Next, slide the supportive wood board into the aluminum extrusion on the bottom of the sleeping platform.
#6 – Tighten the Bolts For Wood Board
Tighten up the bolts so that they are tight enough to not fall out right away, but loose enough you can still slide around the supportive wood board.
#7 – Attach Brackets To Sleeping Platform
Flip the sleeping platform over.
Grab some random object and use it to support the bottom of the sleeping platform temporarily so that you are closer to lining up the brackets with the frame of the drawers.
#8 – Use a Bucket For Support
Use a small screwdriver to push the drop in nuts around until the line up with the bracket holes.
Once they do, screw in the bolts until they are tight, but still able to slide around.
#9 – Secure The Bracket And Tighten
Move the sleeping platform around until it is lined up to your liking. Then, tighten down all the fasteners.
Attach the bottom D-ring.
#10 – Attach the Strap and Add Decals
Use the provided strap to securely hold the sleeping platform down to the floor.
All done.
Make sure to customize your drawers!
Do you still have this setup? I’m trying to find the measurements between the height measurements between the top of the drawers and the roof.
What kind of wood do they use? The hardware is not very long so I am trying to figure out how thick of wood they used. It kind of looks like MDF
Thanks for the valuable info. I am into this set up but wonder where do you keep your cooler and dry food when you are asleep in the back of the 4Runner?
in Baja the coyotes would be stoked if I left my food outside
You wanna sell the set up?
I ended up switching to a tent setup with a fridge in the car. Crawling in and out of the car got old quick. You could get a heavy duty lockable cooler though.
Hey Bryson – Are those the 25.6in wide Exped Megamats?
This is awesome thank you. I have this setup on order due to be fitted in May. We were advised to get the 8″ drawers to give more headroom in the rear when sleeping inside. How do you find the 10″ drawers for headroom? Also, would it be easy to reconfigure the setup? So delete the 40% to take 2 passengers. Or delete both platforms and just use the rear seats with the drawer system installed. Also, do you know of any fixed points for securing a fridge slide without drilling into the drawer top?
Did you have the Toyota OEM trunk slide installed? I have read somewhere that the installation is different if you do not have the slide fitted.
I definitely would appreciate some more headroom. but it’s certainly doable. To take out the sleeping platforms you can just take off the strap and then unscrew the 4 allen bolts, so it’s not super difficult but not something I would want to do every weekend either.
From what I have read, you will need to drill to add points for the fridge slide. I bet you would contact GG and have them add it for you if you know the sizing.
I do not have the OEM truck slide. It is different and I think that the plate is actually different too.