Keep my trunk organized

October 17, 2022 7:08 PM

What solution have you found to corral stuff in your car's trunk? Mainly thinking about grocery bags, but for other stuff I carry in there as well. Something that would fit in a Corolla sedan, if it matters.
posted by cozenedindigo to Shopping (19 answers total)

Monster Truck?
posted by praemunire at 7:10 PM on October 17, 2022

Not the most exciting answer but since you asked: milk crates
posted by mannequito at 7:11 PM on October 17, 2022 [10 favorites]

Laundry basket
posted by PSB34me at 7:38 PM on October 17, 2022 [3 favorites]

I have both a laundry basket and a collapsible box. I prefer the laundry basket for general use and keep the box collapsed underneath it for times when I have a lot.

I also use zippable tote bags (free ones from work and conferences) to separate out emergency gear from grocery bags and those totes are both kept in the laundry basket for daily travel then pulled out and set to the side of the basket or tossed into the rear footwell as space requires.
posted by beaning at 7:56 PM on October 17, 2022 [1 favorite]

Whatever solution you go with, make sure it has smooth rounded handles and is easy to hold when heavy! I had to replace a laundry basket due to rough edges on the handles and the handles are partly why I don't use the box regularly.
posted by beaning at 7:59 PM on October 17, 2022

I like milk crates too, over other bins and baskets because of the perfectly vertical sides and everything right angles. I have half my trunk filled with those and then leave the other half empty for big items (my grocery hauls typically fit in two milk crates). I also line the whole trunk including under the crates with a tarp for leaky things and plants.
posted by Tandem Affinity at 8:20 PM on October 17, 2022 [1 favorite]

I use a large insulated cooler bag to store my non-insulated shopping bags. It comes in handy when I have cold items to store or just bulky stuff. I have also tried the collapsible square bins but they don't hold as much.
posted by Ochre,Hugh at 8:22 PM on October 17, 2022 [1 favorite]

I have:

- a laundry basket to corral my errands (like bags of stuff I plan to return to a store),

- a diaper caddy for small items (deodorant, mouthwash, warm gloves, reusable shopping totes, face masks, hair clips, pen, notepad, scissors, etc)

- a backpack solidly packed with kid stuff including diaper supplies, spare clothes, spare kiddo jacket, small toys, and nonperishable snacks like granola bars, boxed raisins, and bottled water, so I don’t ever need to bring a diaper bag

- a duffel bag with car stuff- jumper cables, bungee cords, road safety kit, wheel ramps for mud, small ice scraper

- I always keep $50 cash folded up tiny and hidden in my car somewhere very unobtrusive, in case I forget my wallet and need to buy gas (it happened last month an hour from home and man I was glad for that stashed $50 bill!)

- close to hand I keep sanitizer, wipes, hand lotion, a charger, and tissues

- a dark coloured blanket to cover all the trunk stuff so it can’t be seen through my hatchback, and also function as a blanket if needed.
posted by nouvelle-personne at 8:40 PM on October 17, 2022 [6 favorites]

I use this organizer that has two removable dividers and can collapse down half way or be folded and tucked away completely. It reliably holds grocery bags upright and keeps things from rolling or thunking around. It's a little shorter than similar organizers which works out better for my car and my short self. The downside is that the dividers are secured by velcro on both sides and I'm afraid they will eventually give way when I inevitably stuff one compartment too full, though they have held up so far. I usually use one section for regular stuff that stays in the trunk and the other two sections for holding up grocery bags.
posted by Miss Matheson at 8:53 PM on October 17, 2022 [1 favorite]

I use flexible animal feed buckets like this, apologies for amazon link. They're hard to break, you can get them in many colours - makes coralling them easier, and 'cause they're floppy they pack together tightly when full of stuff.
posted by unearthed at 10:32 PM on October 17, 2022 [1 favorite]

I use an organizer more less like the one Miss Matheson posted, held in place with a couple of bungee cords. Corrals grocery bags and any loose items (like if the milk wasn’t bagged) quite nicely.
posted by skycrashesdown at 10:57 PM on October 17, 2022 [2 favorites]

Collapsible basket for gear, and grocery bags are just corralled into one bag-of-bags. Does require proper folding, but also means that when I need more trunk space, I can toss the entire bag on the back seat (or front seat in a pinch).

I think the Corolla sedan has troublesome access to the under-the-trunk-floor space, but my Kia has a nifty handle that means some of the less accessed emergency items just live under the floor next to the spare tire.
posted by I claim sanctuary at 11:43 PM on October 17, 2022 [1 favorite]

Another option if you don't actually need containers is movable cargo blocks with velcro on the bottom. You might add an additional cargo mat (carpet) if you don't want the velcro to damage your car's factory material (and there may be model-specific ones out there).
posted by rhizome at 3:22 AM on October 18, 2022 [3 favorites]

I use these soft-sided containers. They're especially helpful for riding with things that roll or are fragile.
posted by 10ch at 5:09 AM on October 18, 2022 [1 favorite]

Bungee cords in the trunk full-time, cooler(s) depending on the type of shopping expected and temperatures outside. Bungee cords keep the grocery bags and cooler in place.

Not sure if a Corolla sedan trunk has convenient anchor points for bungee cords, though.
posted by research monkey at 6:15 AM on October 18, 2022

Two cars ago my truck's carpet was a closed-nap loop type carpet. I found that the hook (rough) side of Velcro stuck and didn't noticeably damage it, so I used Sterilite bins with sticky Velcro on the bottom to keep my trunk junk sorted and not sliding around.
posted by workerant at 6:41 AM on October 18, 2022

I use canvas tote bags of various sizes. They get dirty, but they smoosh together or down for ease of throwing stuff in the car without rearranging.
posted by theora55 at 10:13 AM on October 18, 2022

I've got a soft-sided organizer that folds, has handles, and has velcro on the bottom. What's nice is that: it collapses when I need to put big items into the trunk; the velcro makes it stay in place; and it's just the right size to fit in a shopping cart, so I can use it for grocery shopping without having to bring bags from home. That said, if I do shop with bags, each compartment will fit two Trader Joe's-sized paper bags side-by-side.

You can easily fit 2 or 3 of this size in the trunk of a Corolla.
posted by uncleozzy at 6:02 AM on October 19, 2022

Response by poster: I ended up going with this collapsible soft-sided organizer, and it works well. Thanks all!
posted by cozenedindigo at 4:07 AM on November 12, 2022