Short bed trucks are everywhere. They’re the most popular truck configurations on the road right now, and for good reason. You get a full-size back seat and a truck bed. Best of both worlds.
Except when you try to fit a full-size bike in that bed.
Most short beds run roughly five to five and a half feet. A standard adult bike, depending on the frame size, can easily extend beyond that when standing upright. Add in the handlebars sticking up and the rear wheel extending back, and suddenly that short bed feels a whole lot shorter.
But here’s the good news. You absolutely can haul a bike in a short bed truck. You just need to think about it a little differently than the long bed crowd does.
The Short Bed Challenge
The problem with short bed trucks and bikes is straightforward. The bike is longer than the bed. If you stand a bike upright in a short bed, the rear wheel is going to hang out past the tailgate. And if you close the tailgate, you’re either going to crunch your bike or leave the gate hanging open.
Some people try to solve this by laying the bike flat in the bed. That technically fits, but now your bike is on its side, the derailleur is getting pressed into the bed liner, the handlebars are jammed against the wheel well, and every bump in the road is a potential scratch or bent component.
Other people try angling the bike diagonally across the bed. That can work in some cases, but the head tube angle makes the frame sit at a weird cant, and you end up with the bike leaning in a way that puts stress on the wrong contact points. Plus you lose basically all your remaining cargo space.
The real solution is to keep the bike upright, secure it properly, and deal with the length issue head on.
The Bed Extender: Your Short Bed’s Best Friend
A bed extender is exactly what it sounds like. It’s a frame that attaches to your tailgate and extends the usable length of your truck bed when the tailgate is down. Some are made by the truck manufacturers themselves, and some are aftermarket.
With a bed extender in place, your short bed effectively gains another foot or so of usable length. That’s typically enough room for a standard bike to stand upright in a WheelWally with room to spare.
Here’s how the setup works:
The WheelWally mounts to the front rail of the truck bed and always sits as far forward as possible. The bike stands upright with the rear wheel extending toward the tailgate. With the tailgate down and the bed extender in place, the rear wheel sits inside the extender’s frame, fully supported and contained.
Add your Off-Road Kit or Rear Wheel Tie Down Kit to secure the back end, and you’ve got a bike that’s held tight from front to rear. The bed extender keeps everything within the footprint of the truck, so nothing is hanging out in the wind or sticking past the bumper.
One thing worth noting: with the tailgate open and the bed extender in place, your backup camera is going to be pointing at the ground on most trucks. That’s just the reality of a tailgate-down setup. Keep that in mind when you’re backing up at the trailhead.
What About Without a Bed Extender?
Can you run a WheelWally in a short bed without an extender? It depends on the size of your bike.
Smaller frame bikes, like a 26-inch wheel mountain bike or a compact road bike, might fit within the bed with the tailgate up. The best way to find out is simple: measure your bike and measure your truck bed. If the bike is shorter than the bed, you’re good. If it’s longer, you need the extender.
If the bike does fit with the tailgate closed, that’s a nice security advantage. The bike is fully enclosed in the bed, out of sight, and harder for anyone to mess with.
But for most full-size adult bikes, especially 29ers and 700c road bikes, the bed extender is going to be the move. It’s a small investment that makes the whole setup work perfectly.
Measure Your Bike, Measure Your Bed
This is the simplest and most important step for short bed truck owners. Forget about looking up specs online or trying to find a compatibility chart. Just grab a tape measure.
Measure the length of your bike from the front axle to the rear axle. Then measure the inside length of your truck bed from the front wall to the tailgate (closed). If the bed is longer, the bike fits with the tailgate up. If the bike is longer, you need a bed extender.
That’s it. It takes about 60 seconds and gives you a definitive answer for your specific bike and your specific truck.
Every bike is different. Every truck bed is a little different. The tape measure doesn’t lie.
Two Bikes in a Short Bed: Is It Possible?
This is a question that comes up a lot. The honest answer is that two bikes in a short bed is a tight fit. It’s much easier in a long bed, where you’ve got plenty of room to mount two WheelWallys side by side and fit both bikes comfortably.
In a short bed, two bikes side by side will work if the bikes are small enough and you stagger the handlebars so they don’t collide. But it’s tight, and you’ll almost certainly need a bed extender.
For most short bed owners hauling two bikes, another approach might be to put one bike in the WheelWally and transport the second bike using a hitch rack. Hitch racks are a popular option and they do a solid job of carrying bikes behind the truck, freeing up the bed for the first bike and any other gear. That way both bikes are secure, and you’re not trying to cram too much into a limited space.
The Bottom Line for Short Bed Owners
A short bed truck is not a dealbreaker for hauling your bike. Far from it. With a WheelWally and a bed extender, you get a setup that’s just as secure and functional as what the long bed crowd has. The bike stands upright, both wheels stay on, the frame stays untouched, and everything is held in place.
The key is just being a little more intentional about your setup. Measure your bike. Measure your bed. Get a bed extender if you need one. Secure the rear wheel with your included Rear Wheel Tie Down Kit or upgrade to the Off-Road Kit for even more stability.
Millions of people drive short bed trucks. Millions of those people ride bikes. The WheelWally was built to work for all of them.
Head over to our Store to grab your WheelWally, and visit our Installation page for the complete setup guide. If you want to know more about the rear tie-down options, check out our O.R.K. vs. R.W.T.D.K. comparison.