Long beds

[Muncher]

I've kinda got the thought that id wanna sell my truck and get a long bed. I've always liked em better. Any pros or cons over having a long bed vs a short bed?

[89 MJ]

I've thought about this too.

 

Short bed pros:

easier to park

seem more desirable when restored

better breakover angle for off-roading

looks taller with less lift (my opinion)

easier to find other bed parts for (toppers, tonneau covers, etc.)

 

Long bed pros:

more hauling space

more load capacity (w/ Metric Ton package)

better ride because of longer wheel base (in theory, cannot confirm or deny this)

 

Short bed cons:

No Metric Ton

Stiffer ride?

slightly less bed space

pricier when you find a nice one

 

Long bed cons:

longer (harder to park)

worse breakover angle

harder to find other bed parts (toppers, tonneau covers, etc.)

 

It all depends on what you use the truck for. Honestly, the short bed has been fine for everything that I've needed it for, I have hauled kayaks with it, I just needed to strap them down, which you should do either way. The only reason I have to want a long bed is because of the metric ton package, which was still an option.

[eaglescout526]

14 minutes ago, 89 MJ said:

better ride because of longer wheel base (in theory, cannot confirm or deny this)

Might be right about this, still have some mystery vibrations going on, not sure if its because 30 year old truck or something else to replace that I can't seem to pinpoint on replacement.

 

15 minutes ago, 89 MJ said:

longer (harder to park)

I find my long bed incredibly easier to park than say a full size truck. I would imagine short beds are a quick easy turn in.

[89 MJ]

4 minutes ago, eaglescout526 said:

Might be right about this, still have some mystery vibrations going on, not sure if its because 30 year old truck or something else to replace that I can't seem to pinpoint on replacement.

 

I find my long bed incredibly easier to park than say a full size truck. I would imagine short beds are a quick easy turn in.

Oh yeah they are. I can out maneuver my dads YJ and moms JKU with ease. 

[Muncher]

22 minutes ago, 89 MJ said:

I've thought about this too.

 

Short bed pros:

easier to park

seem more desirable when restored

better breakover angle for off-roading

looks taller with less lift (my opinion)

easier to find other bed parts for (toppers, tonneau covers, etc.)

 

Long bed pros:

more hauling space

more load capacity (w/ Metric Ton package)

better ride because of longer wheel base (in theory, cannot confirm or deny this)

 

Short bed cons:

No Metric Ton

Stiffer ride?

slightly less bed space

pricier when you find a nice one

 

Long bed cons:

longer (harder to park)

worse breakover angle

harder to find other bed parts (toppers, tonneau covers, etc.)

 

It all depends on what you use the truck for. Honestly, the short bed has been fine for everything that I've needed it for, I have hauled kayaks with it, I just needed to strap them down, which you should do either way. The only reason I have to want a long bed is because of the metric ton package, which was still an option.

yeah I'm not sure what I'm going to do yet. personally id just like the extra bed space and think it just looks better with the longer bed

[eaglescout526]

Lol YJ I understand why. The front axle is still supported by leaf springs. The JKU is just bigger. 

[NHMJXJ]

It's personal preference, but I like the look of the long bed.  I don't do any wheeling, but exit angle seems to be the problem (if any) with the long bed.

 

I bought my latest MJ because it was rust free and had nearly all the other boxes checked ... (not RED) auto, AC, 4wd, unmolested.

 

I posted a wanted ad here several months ago and I'd still entertain a trade.  My shortbed, for your longbed.  I had one genuine inquiry, one troll.

 

 

[JMO413]

I can see both sides of this one. I personally just like the looks of a short bed better.

[MiNi Beast]

i first had short bed, i prefer this look personally. now have long bed and as stated enjoy the extra bed space sleeping or hauling. departure angle sucks with LB but i have found it only a few times been a hindering while backing down from a steep hill climb. tall enough now and have solid  bumper so other times is a another maneuvering option such as rock sliders.  also i like the option to stretch the wheel base or shrink and can make it fit. chop cut it or swap the bed perhaps. 

[Pete M]

just get a longbed and make a trailer out of it.  best of both worlds  

 

 

[watchamakalit]

6 hours ago, Pete M said:

just get a longbed and make a trailer out of it.  best of both worlds  

 

 

And then pull it with a rav4?

[strictlyxjs]

I never like long beds in fact i hated them but i hunted for an mj for a long time and couldnt find a decent short bed one that wasnt rotted to death. I settled on one an its since grown on me. Would still like a HO eliminator some day.

 

[Pete M]

40 minutes ago, watchamakalit said:

And then pull it with a rav4?

 

bite your tongue!     though if it wasn't for the diesel engine I would never have acquired the Libby.

[Muncher]

On 10/1/2020 at 8:36 PM, strictlyxjs said:

I never like long beds in fact i hated them but i hunted for an mj for a long time and couldnt find a decent short bed one that wasnt rotted to death. I settled on one an its since grown on me. Would still like a HO eliminator some day.

 

What about a chief? 

[watchamakalit]

On 10/1/2020 at 8:40 PM, Pete M said:

 

bite your tongue!     though if it wasn't for the diesel engine I would never have acquired the Libby.

You should just suck it up and buy a rust bucket mj to daily and swap in a 4bt

[JustEmptyEveryPocket]

3 hours ago, watchamakalit said:

swap in a 4bt

Naw, go for a BEW TDI.

[watchamakalit]

4 hours ago, JustEmptyEveryPocket said:

Naw, go for a BEW TDI.

Either way just drive it. Lol

[scguy]

Purely my opinion, but stock height, SWBs look better, lifted LWBs look better. Or I tell myself that anyways. I like that with the long bed, you can have a toolbox and still have a useable bed.

[Sir Sam]

I find no difference in the aesthetics.

 

SWB or LWB in an MJ is going to feel longer than an XJ. I noticed the length in my longbed all the time driving it compared to an XJ. The same would be said for TJ vs XJ in turning radius. 

 

That being said while its noticeable the turning radius is still very good 

 

Keep in mind, the longbed is a 7 foot bed, not a fullsize 8 foot.

 

Heck even the shortbed has a bigger bed than some of the new trucks with their microbed. 

 

So far offroad the breakover angle in the rear has not been an issue.

[NHMJXJ]

1 hour ago, scguy said:

Purely my opinion, but stock height, SWBs look better, lifted LWBs look better. Or I tell myself that anyways. I like that with the long bed, you can have a toolbox and still have a useable bed.

 

I share your opinion (while still partial to the long bed overall). 

[rsmecham]

On 9/29/2020 at 11:18 AM, eaglescout526 said:

I find my long bed incredibly easier to park than say a full size truck. I would imagine short beds are a quick easy turn in.

my long bed has a better turn radius than my 03 honda civic

[gogmorgo]

Weighing in on the nearly year-old thread, I’ve got one of each. My long bed floats down the road in comparison to the shorty, but it’s a 4.0/aw4/242 vs 2.5/ax5/2wd so it’s considerably heavier, plus it’s got over double the mileage and the rear springs are toast. So I can’t really rely on that data to confirm that.

I haven’t noticed a significant difference in turning radius, which isn’t surprising considering the wheelbase is only 6” longer and all the steering components are the same. On a similar note, the break over angle isn’t all that different, because again it’s only a 5% difference. The thing I notice the most is departure angle. The extra six inches are much more noticeable there. In my case it’s exaggerated somewhat because the shorty is a bumper delete truck but the long bed has both a bumper and hitch, so any time I’m out on trails with the long bed the hitch is getting packed full of dirt. Doesn’t help either I guess that the springs are shot so it’s sitting a couple inches lower, but still. I can go through stuff with my ZJ that I feel would have my long bed’s wheels dangling in the air. 

As to the length of the bed, there’s only a handful of things I’ve had in the long bed that wouldn’t fit in the short bed. One of them is me. But since building the canoe rack for the short bed long things like lumber, plywood, ladders, have all gone onto the shorty without issues. Although it might be nice not to have my 17’ canoe hanging quite so far off the back of the truck. My long bed has a canopy on it and no rack so it hasn’t even been attempted. And in all honesty I can get more weight into the short bed due to the worn out spring situation.

But I will say that I wouldn’t want a bed shorter than 6’. The comments above about having a tool box with space behind it still… imagine not having a tool box but that’s still all the space you’ve got? The 5’ bed on the JT seems almost pointless, you need the tailgate down to get anything in there. The 4.5’ on the new Maverick and the thing is still longer than a long bed MJ? If you want a minivan just get a minivan… pretty sure some of those old American land yachts have deeper trunks than that.