[Titanic_04]

I have an LE CC with Utilitrack. I am considering purchasing either the bed extended or bed divider. I am asking for feedback from owners that have either option. I have tried to answer these myself but everytime I go by the dealer they do not have a truck with either option in stock.

Questions / Concerns:

• Can the bed extender be positioned anywhere along the UT? The Nissan site says "3 positions", this does not make sense to me.
• Can the BE be flipped forward towards the cab so it is out of the way?
• How easy is it to remove altogether?
• How theft proof?
• Any other strengths / weaknesses of either product?

Thanks for your comments.....

 

[bestatchess]

I have both the extender and the divider. If you are choosing between the two, I would get the divider unless you have something longer than the bed that you want to haul. (And even then, if you can tie it down in the bed, you can still just lower the tailgate and haul it without the extender.) The extender allows you to haul to the maximum effective length of the lowered tail gate. For all other purposes, the extender is (1) in the way and (2) far inferior to the divider at segmenting the bed space. The divider, when not in use, can be pushed up against the cab where it occupies only about 3 inches of space (shortens the effective bed length). The divider can also be used in a raised position to protect the rear window of the truck. The extender, when not in use, is just a piece of junk consuming alot of space. And yes, you can take it out without much problem.

 

[karlconnell]

I have an LE CC with Utilitrack. I am considering purchasing either the bed extended or bed divider. I am asking for feedback from owners that have either option. I have tried to answer these myself but everytime I go by the dealer they do not have a truck with either option in stock.

Questions / Concerns:

• Can the bed extender be positioned anywhere along the UT? The Nissan site says "3 positions", this does not make sense to me.
• Can the BE be flipped forward towards the cab so it is out of the way?
• How easy is it to remove altogether?
• How theft proof?
• Any other strengths / weaknesses of either product?

Thanks for your comments.....

Bestatchess has some good points but I guess I would take the other angle in that if I had to choose between one or the other I would prefer the sliding bed extender as you can position it in anywhere along the UT rails and can thus use it as a divider or an extender (crew cab version only as it is notched on one of the bars). It can be flipped forward with the cab or the tailgate so it's out of way in both positions. It's a peice of cake to remove, just unlock the tailgate, drop it down, rotate the bed extender vertically and pull up and out (very light weight as well). In terms of being theft proof, someone would have to remove the tailgate before you could remove the sliding bed extender (the same probably goes with the divider as well).

Karl

 

[Titanic_04]

Thanks, so far....

Thanks for the input bestatchess and karlconnel.
I have been leaning towards the BE but bestatchess' experience with both items makes a strong case for the divider.

Anybody else have both?
Any other comments out there?

 

[smcewen31]

I've got both and can't really say which I would choose between the two. I had gone into the dealer wanting the BE not even knowing about the divider and ended up, obviously, with both. I love the fact that the divider can act as a cage for the rear window when hauling bikes, etc or to keep anyone from breaking in through the sliding rear window. Another thing I like is that I can store things back there that are accesible to a person in the back seat through the rear sliding window. What would make the divider even better is if it could be rotated 90 degrees to be parallel with the top of the bed to act as a bench/table etc (can it? i haven't tried it yet). What I like about the BE is a nice area to store stuff (groceries, small boxes, etc) without having to adjust the divider. They are both the same as far as theft, removal, and adjusting goes. It all comes down to what you need it for.

mac

 

[Titanic_04]

not much closer

thanks mac...
I almost considered buying both as well. I think I will try to swing by the dealer again to check them out again.

 

[Dude]

Bestatchess has some good points but I guess I would take the other angle in that if I had to choose between one or the other I would prefer the sliding bed extender as you can position it in anywhere along the UT rails and can thus use it as a divider or an extender (crew cab version only as it is notched on one of the bars). It can be flipped forward with the cab or the tailgate so it's out of way in both positions. It's a peice of cake to remove, just unlock the tailgate, drop it down, rotate the bed extender vertically and pull up and out (very light weight as well). In terms of being theft proof, someone would have to remove the tailgate before you could remove the sliding bed extender (the same probably goes with the divider as well).

My sliding bed extender might be different from yours, but anybody can steal the thing without opening the tailgate. All one has to do is loosen the the two handles on the sliders that secure it to the tracks and lift the extender up to vertical and the thing come right out of the truck. Now the sliders are left in the tracks, but they don't do me much good without my extender. What the heck was the company that designed this thinking? Maybe I don't see something here, but it sure would function just the same if it was permanently attached to the sliders.

Now since there is a definite big problem here, has anyone figured out a solution? If not, I will see what I can come up with, but I don't see how one could easily secure it. If this has already been talked about, I'm sorry I did not find the info in my search.

 

[JetWrench]

Like already said. That bed extender is in the way and only good for things whose length matches the end of the tail gate. Mine came with it and is sold away. The bed extender is great. Slide it back towards the tail gate and it makes everything accesable from tail gate. My wife dirtied up the bed and split the bed with half dirt half mulch and the divider came in handy. I also mounted pvc to mine for holding my fishing poles. Just examples.

 

[Dude]

Like already said. That bed extender is in the way and only good for things whose length matches the end of the tail gate. Mine came with it and is sold away. The bed extender is great. Slide it back towards the tail gate and it makes everything accesable from tail gate. My wife dirtied up the bed and split the bed with half dirt half mulch and the divider came in handy. I also mounted pvc to mine for holding my fishing poles. Just examples.

Not sure if you were talking to me, but since no one has been here since 03/24, I will assume so.

I am happy with my bed extender as it serves the purpose I want it for, i.e., to extend my bed. Having a CC, leaves me with an extra short bed, but the extender brings me back up to a normal short bed.

What I don't like is that anyone can steal it at will. It only takes about 15 seconds and your off to the races with our extenders and there goes $250, which is why I posted. I am trying to find out if anyone has come up with a solution, and I think some people may not be aware how easy it is to steal.

 

[JerseyDirt]

My sliding bed extender might be different from yours, but anybody can steal the thing without opening the tailgate. All one has to do is loosen the the two handles on the sliders that secure it to the tracks and lift the extender up to vertical and the thing come right out of the truck. Now the sliders are left in the tracks, but they don't do me much good without my extender. What the heck was the company that designed this thinking? Maybe I don't see something here, but it sure would function just the same if it was permanently attached to the sliders.

It's actually a great design. Imagine loading up motorcycles (dirt bikes in my case) with the bed-extender in place. It would be the equivelent of loading up the bikes with the tailgate closed. The bed-extender design allows you to easily remove it, load up the bikes, and the drop the extender back into its place and flip it back to extend the bed and keep cargo from flying out. In other words, the bed extender needs to be easily removable for loading anything that can't be lifted over it.

 

[hawkeye680]

Not sure if you were talking to me, but since no one has been here since 03/24, I will assume so.

I am happy with my bed extender as it serves the purpose I want it for, i.e., to extend my bed. Having a CC, leaves me with an extra short bed, but the extender brings me back up to a normal short bed.

What I don't like is that anyone can steal it at will. It only takes about 15 seconds and your off to the races with our extenders and there goes $250, which is why I posted. I am trying to find out if anyone has come up with a solution, and I think some people may not be aware how easy it is to steal.

Lock your tailgate- you have to tilt it up to take it out right? And if the tailgate is locked you can't do that right? Or am I not thinking about it right. I may need to go look at it...

 

[Dude]

Your tailgate doesn't protect anything except the sliders. The Extender can be taken out quickly irregardless of the tailgate.

I agree the feature is great, but the design is dumb. Either put a lock or some type of mechanism to keep people from being able to steal my extender. You won't be using the feature too long if people can just walk up to your truck and take your extender. Like I said, they cost $250, and unfortunately there are a lot of scumbags out there that could care less about your property and will just take it. Hell, I had some bozo steal the cyclops brake light out of my Camaro a few years back. He had to bring a special wrench to remove it. I couldn't believe someone would steal something so insignificant until I found out it cost $75. So if people will go to the trouble to steal a $75 piece of equipment that requires special tools, then what do you think someone is going to do when they can just turn 2 knobs and walk off with $250?

 

[mtbendo]

Lock your tailgate- you have to tilt it up to take it out right? And if the tailgate is locked you can't do that right? Or am I not thinking about it right. I may need to go look at it...

I believe you are right only if you have the non-utilitrack style extender...

 

[Dude]

Utilitrack sliding bed extender which I have, does not require anything to remove except loosening the sliding rails, then tilt the extender vertical like you are going to flip it over and the extender comes right out.

I went out today and bought a cable lock and locked it to one of the built in tie downs. This will not keep somebody that really wants to steal it from taking it if they really want it. They could simply take the tie down off since it is attached with 2 bolts. I am only trying to make it a little harder for the guy who doesn't come prepared with the tools and the balls to climb into my bed to remove the bolts to take my extender. In fact, they could probably use bolt cutters too.

 

[bestatchess]

Utilitrack sliding bed extender which I have, does not require anything to remove except loosening the sliding rails, then tilt the extender vertical like you are going to flip it over and the extender comes right out.

I went out today and bought a cable lock and locked it to one of the built in tie downs. This will not keep somebody that really wants to steal it from taking it if they really want it. They could simply take the tie down off since it is attached with 2 bolts. I am only trying to make it a little harder for the guy who doesn't come prepared with the tools and the balls to climb into my bed to remove the bolts to take my extender. In fact, they could probably use bolt cutters too.

Yes, there are alot of thieves out there. I was in Home Depot the other day when they busted some creep trying to steal some long compound bolt cutters stuck down his pants leg. I have lost quite a bit of stuff over the years. I did catch one guy about 20 years ago with my brand new CJ-7 jacked up and removing one of the wheels. He was quite a bit worse for the wear when I left. I still have his lug wrench. Anyway I am hoping to get my shell before anything gets stolen. They could have designed the utility bed system with a little more security in mind. For example:

http://www.rackwarehouse.com/tr25700.html

 

[SmokeSE]

Yes, there are alot of thieves out there. I was in Home Depot the other day when they busted some creep trying to steal some long compound bolt cutters stuck down his pants leg. I have lost quite a bit of stuff over the years. I did catch one guy about 20 years ago with my brand new CJ-7 jacked up and removing one of the wheels. He was quite a bit worse for the wear when I left. I still have his lug wrench. Anyway I am hoping to get my shell before anything gets stolen. They could have designed the utility bed system with a little more security in mind. For example:

http://www.rackwarehouse.com/tr25700.html

i wonder if those work for our bed extenders. It's the same with the sliding cleats. I never leave those in the track when I'm gone.

 

[SmokeSE]

Utilitrack sliding bed extender which I have, does not require anything to remove except loosening the sliding rails, then tilt the extender vertical like you are going to flip it over and the extender comes right out.

I went out today and bought a cable lock and locked it to one of the built in tie downs. This will not keep somebody that really wants to steal it from taking it if they really want it. They could simply take the tie down off since it is attached with 2 bolts. I am only trying to make it a little harder for the guy who doesn't come prepared with the tools and the balls to climb into my bed to remove the bolts to take my extender. In fact, they could probably use bolt cutters too.

There are a few things you can do.

1. there would be some welding involved. You would need to weld a moon shaped piece of metal to the sliders over the gaps where the extender comes out.

2. Change the bolts that hold the factory bed tie down bolts with torx bolts, similar to the ones that hold the utillirack in place.

3. Take that crap out EVERY TIME!!!!!!!!! Which I have to tell you sucks....

4. You know those stoppers that came with the bed? They also came with a little rubber coated wrench? You can use those to butt up against the rear of your sliders and then lock the tail gate. But anyone with a crescent wrench could loosen those stops.

for a while i left mine in the bed, and then I got wise and removed it all together. If you come up with some better ideas, let me know cause untill then, I'm not using mine. Its too much trouble.

 

[techiboi]

Yes, there are alot of thieves out there. I was in Home Depot the other day when they busted some creep trying to steal some long compound bolt cutters stuck down his pants leg. I have lost quite a bit of stuff over the years. I did catch one guy about 20 years ago with my brand new CJ-7 jacked up and removing one of the wheels. He was quite a bit worse for the wear when I left. I still have his lug wrench. Anyway I am hoping to get my shell before anything gets stolen. They could have designed the utility bed system with a little more security in mind. For example:

http://www.rackwarehouse.com/tr25700.html

Anyway I am hoping to get my shell before anything gets stolen. They could have designed the utility bed system with a little more security in mind.

Ah but Nissan has designed it with security in mind. My extender has straps that snap into the tailgate latching mechanism. Once you here them click you can then use your key to lock the tailgate and the straps are not going anywhere. Here is a pic I took from my camera phone as I was reading this post. I have a web/camera phone.

techiboi

 

[SmokeSE]

Anyway I am hoping to get my shell before anything gets stolen. They could have designed the utility bed system with a little more security in mind.

Ah but Nissan has designed it with security in mind. My extender has straps that snap into the tailgate latching mechanism. Once you here them click you can then use your key to lock the tailgate and the straps are not going anywhere. Here is a pic I took from my camera phone as I was reading this post. I have a web/camera phone.

techiboi

not really, you can remove those pretty easily from the metal peices its almost like the straps on a backpack. I think those are more to hold it down.

 

[Nr1 Qualifier]

My sliding bed extender might be different from yours, but anybody can steal the thing without opening the tailgate. All one has to do is loosen the the two handles on the sliders that secure it to the tracks and lift the extender up to vertical and the thing come right out of the truck. Now the sliders are left in the tracks, but they don't do me much good without my extender. What the heck was the company that designed this thinking? Maybe I don't see something here, but it sure would function just the same if it was permanently attached to the sliders.

Now since there is a definite big problem here, has anyone figured out a solution? If not, I will see what I can come up with, but I don't see how one could easily secure it. If this has already been talked about, I'm sorry I did not find the info in my search.

I secure my bed extender with a cable lock to the tiedown in the
bed of the truck. One can remove the extender from the sliders but
can't get it out of the truck bed. They also can't get my sliders off
if I have my tailgate locked. Thief problem solved.