Getting it home: truck, SUV, or car
By The LQ Furniture floor team ·
Most people can take a piece home the same day if it fits their vehicle, and we will help you load it. The measurement that decides it is the width between the wheel wells in a truck bed, 50 to 52 inches on a full-size and 42 to 44 on a midsize, or the length from the back of the front seats to the tailgate in an SUV with the seats down. If the piece does not fit, we have a third-party delivery vendor, and we will hold your piece while you arrange the trip.
What fits in a pickup
| Vehicle | Fits flat | Fits with the tailgate down |
|---|---|---|
| Full-size, 8 ft bed | Queen mattress, loveseat, most dressers | Most sofas, king mattress |
| Full-size, 6.5 ft bed | Queen mattress, loveseat | Most sofas |
| Full-size, 5.5 ft bed | Full mattress, nightstands, chairs | Queen mattress, loveseat |
| Midsize (Tacoma, Ranger, Colorado) | Twin and full mattress, chairs | Loveseat, queen mattress |
A full-size sofa is the piece that catches people out. Most will not sit flat in any pickup bed, which means tailgate down and properly tied, or a trailer.
The wheel wells are the real limit
Truck beds are not rectangles. The wheel wells intrude, and the usable flat width between them is 50 to 52 inches on a full-size and 42 to 44 on a midsize. A dresser that is 54 inches wide will sit on top of the wells rather than down on the bed floor, which raises its centre of gravity and makes strapping it more important, not less.
What fits in an SUV or a car
- Twin mattress: most midsize SUVs with the seats folded
- Full mattress: larger midsize and all full-size SUVs, seats down
- Queen mattress: tight even in a full-size SUV, and usually a bad idea
- King mattress: will not go inside an SUV
- Recliners and accent chairs: most full-size SUVs and many midsize, seats down
- Dining chairs, lamps, nightstands, small tables: almost any car with a back seat that folds
Measure the opening, not just the cargo area. A hatch opening is usually narrower than the space behind it, and a piece that would sit comfortably inside still has to get through the door.
Tying it down properly
This is the part people skip, and it is the part that costs money.
- Ratchet straps, not rope. Rope stretches and works loose on the highway.
- Two straps minimum, run over the piece and anchored to the bed's tie-down points, not to the tailgate.
- Moving blankets under the piece and over the bed rails. Bare furniture on a steel rail scuffs in one trip.
- A mattress bag for any mattress. Road grime and a sudden shower will both ruin one, and a bag costs a few dollars.
- Anything with a tailgate down needs a red flag on the overhang.
Do not rely on the weight of the piece to hold it. A sofa is large and light for its size, which is exactly the combination that lifts at 60 miles an hour.
When to let somebody else do it
Take the delivery option when any of these are true:
- The piece will not fit your vehicle with the tailgate up
- It is going upstairs, or through a turn you have not measured
- Rain is in the forecast and you have no cover
- It is a mattress and you do not have a bag
- There is nobody at the other end to help you carry it
We have partnered with a third-party vendor for delivery. It is handled by them and is not included in the tag price, so ask at the counter and we will get you set up. If you would rather come back with a truck, we will hold a piece once it is yours.
Where people drive in from
Tupelo is the anchor, but the floor draws from most of North Mississippi. Saltillo, Verona, Belden, Plantersville, Shannon, Guntown and Nettleton are all a short run down the road. Pontotoc, New Albany, Baldwyn, Amory, Fulton, Booneville and Corinth are a comfortable trip for a load worth making, and people come over from Oxford often enough that we recognise the trucks.
If you are driving any distance, it is worth calling ahead on the piece you saw. The floor turns over weekly, and a wasted drive from Corinth is a bad afternoon.
Before you drive over
Bring your vehicle's numbers the same way you bring your room's. Bed length, width between the wheel wells, and the height of the opening if you are loading into an SUV. With those in hand we can tell you in a minute whether a piece is going home with you today, and if it is not, what the alternatives are.
The floor changes every week and we usually cannot reorder, so it is worth knowing your limits before you fall for something. See what is on the floor, check this week's drop, or come walk it Wednesday through Saturday 10 to 6, Sunday 12 to 6.