[smart_alec]

Greetings and hoping to join the owners club soon!
Will the ascent fit a 4’ X 8’ sheet of anything flat inside with the seats removed/folded?
Regards
SA

 

[packout]

I just strap my recent 4 X 8 ply purchase on top. I do not have cross bars but will strap down fine with tie downs, as long as you are not highway driving.

 

[smart_alec]

Drywall might be a bit brittle for that depending on where the straps go...

 

[Titanrx8]

I measured 44" between the rear interior panels, so no, not flat on the floor. Might work with one edge raised but haven't tried it myself.

 

[smart_alec]

Thanks guys...!

 

[Jim_in_PA]

Very few mid-sized vehicles have the width to accomodate a 48-47.5" wide sheet of anything. I use a utility trailer for this kind of thing and have for a decade and a half.

 

[Titanrx8]

Very few mid-sized vehicles have the width to accomodate a 48-47.5" wide sheet of anything. I use a utility trailer for this kind of thing and have for a decade and a half.

Or get it delivered

 

[Robert.Mauro]

Very few mid-sized vehicles have the width to accomodate a 48-47.5" wide sheet of anything. I use a utility trailer for this kind of thing and have for a decade and a half.

Or get it delivered

Or rent one of Home Depot's or Lowes' "$19.99 local use 45 minute" trucks. It helps that Lowes is 1/2 a mile away (1.2 miles back, as odd as that sounds), and Home Depot is only 4 miles farther away.

Oh, I've also rented a $19.99 U-Haul, such as when I seriously overbuilt my workshop. I mean, I live on Long Island, but I still wanted a roof capable of a 3 foot snow load, sidewalls I could stand up next to, and needed to keep the roof under 8' for code reasons (it's 7'11 5/8").

After my original drawing, I shortened it by a foot (and took out the mid trim) and heightened the walls a half foot from my original plan (which then required me to beef up the roof without adding a lot of roof load by doing so).

ANYWAYS: because I overbuild (it's all I know how to do), it weighs 3 tons, meaning, the stuff was too heavy for my then-Outback, and even now, for my current Ascent.

And for $20, I'd rather not be dragging big lumber around in my interior.

 

[Jim_in_PA]

Or get it delivered

Actually, most sheet goods I buy are delivered by my primary supplier, Industrial Plywood out of Reading PA. But I still use my 5x8 utility trailer for a lot of things, including hardwood beyond a board or two, etc. I can handle 14-16' lumber on my trailer if I need to down the centerline.

 

[packout]

Drywall might be a bit brittle for that depending on where the straps go...

you can protect the edges where the straps go with thick cardboard or even metal corners that are made for that purpose. The rails are just under 48" center to center as I recall.

 

[packout]

Drywall might be a bit brittle for that depending on where the straps go...

4" Plastic Corner Protectors - Box of 20 - Shippers Supplies: Amazon.com: Industrial & Scientific or something similar. There are many options available. I also suspect that home depot would have something they could simply give you to use.

 

[Iodoxy]

Rent a truck! Even if you could get a 4x8 sheet in the Ascent, the scraping, gouging and dinging of your interior will decrease the value when you sell or trade it by more than most of the Big Box stores charge to rent their pickup. Even the roof rack. One slip-up and you have a scrape down the side of the car or a wind gust takes a sheet the second you untie it.

Peace of mind = priceless.

 

[Titanrx8]

Rent a truck! Even if you could get a 4x8 sheet in the Ascent, the scraping, gouging and dinging of your interior will decrease the value when you sell or trade it by more than most of the Big Box stores charge to rent their pickup. Even the roof rack. One slip-up and you have a scrape down the side of the car or a wind gust takes a sheet the second you untie it.

Peace of mind = priceless.

The thought of damaging the panoramic sunroof if the corner of a plywood dropped on it is enough for me to never even try. I'm actually in the camp of would have preferred a roof-rail delete option since I will never use them.

I have a hitch rack for the bikes and sometimes tow a boat. Never at the same time. All the rest goes inside the Ascent.

 

[pro10is]

Very few mid-sized vehicles have the width to accomodate a 48-47.5" wide sheet of anything. I use a utility trailer for this kind of thing and have for a decade and a half.

I'm with Jim on this. I used to always need to own a truck because I was always hauling something large. But I hated the ride and handling of trucks and the lack of good seating for my family. So I switched to SUVs. To replace the truck bed, I simply purchased a utility trailer. With this, I can haul as much as or more than a truck whenever I need to, and still enjoy the comfort and convenience of an SUV. Utility trailers are not that expensive and can last for decades with little care, far longer than a truck. With one, you have all or more cargo-carrying capacity of a truck but can choose whatever passenger vehicle you prefer. This ended up being the perfect strategy for me.

 

[Jim_in_PA]

I have a really "nice" LoadRite 5x8 utility trailer (all galvanized) and it was still under a grand when I bought it in 2005 after going the SUV route when we adopted our daughters that year. When you do the math including the cost of the trailer and the inexpensive registrations...it's only a few dollars a year to have it. This method certainly isn't for everybody and one needs to be able to park the trailer somewhere when not in use, but it's a good method for many. There are even fold-up trailers available from places that can handle occasional transport of sheet goods for the weekend warrior that take up very little space when "parked".

 

[packout]

I'm with Jim on this. I used to always need to own a truck because I was always hauling something large. But I hated the ride and handling of trucks and the lack of good seating for my family. So I switched to SUVs. To replace the truck bed, I simply purchased a utility trailer. With this, I can haul as much as or more than a truck whenever I need to, and still enjoy the comfort and convenience of an SUV. Utility trailers are not that expensive and can last for decades with little care, far longer than a truck. With one, you have all or more cargo-carrying capacity of a truck but can choose whatever passenger vehicle you prefer. This ended up being the perfect strategy for me.

If you install a long basket on the roof, you can attach any sheet item safely without damage to the roof. I would always suggest ratchet tie down straps.

 

[Jim_in_PA]

But that means lifting relatively heavy things up onto the roof. That's pretty much why I've never used a roof rack for anything in multiple decades and would have opted for a "delete" if it had been available.

 

[Robert.Mauro]

If you install a long basket on the roof, you can attach any sheet item safely without damage to the roof. I would always suggest ratchet tie down straps.

Alternatively, the crossbars work as well, with big pool noodles split open and taped to the bars so the bars don't get scratched.

 

[packout]

Alternatively, the crossbars work as well, with big pool noodles split open and taped to the bars so the bars don't get scratched.

Currently I use the existing bars since the spacing works out for a 4 X 8. I like the idea of the noodles.

 

[ertolsma]

I use a couple 2x4s to transport plywood sheets when I need them. They're notched out to rest on the crossbars which I then bolt in place with a metal plate on the underside, and L brackets at the front to prevent the sheets from moving forward when braking. Then ratchet the sheets down through the doors.