Art Eddy III

Cars.com just put together a list of tailgate tips to maximize your car for the ultimate tailgate experience This year’s favorite is the RAM 1500. The RAM has built in WiFi, and the beverage ready RamBox provides tailgaters with a built in cooler.

Here are some tailgating tips from Patrick Olsen, Cars.com Editor-in-Chief

What’s the best way to use storage space for tailgate gear?

Patrick Olsen: Three words: Cover, secure, safety.

Cover: It starts with laying down a good protective cover (tarp, etc.) inside your car. Even the cleanest travel grill will have a lot of grease and grime after tailgating, and you don’t want that all over your interior.

Secure: Once you have the tarp down, start by putting in the grill because it usually has the most unwieldy shape. You’ll want to put some bracing items around it (coolers are good) to limit any movement while you drive to and from the game. A grill that tips over while you’re driving will make for a bigger mess than the Jacksonville Jaguars. Once you have that down, put other things in with the biggest items (folding chairs, coolers, etc.) first and smaller stuff toward the end. Finally, don’t leave food or other items to become projectiles in the case of a sudden stop or crash.

Safety: Don’t stack anything in your line of sight — especially out the rear or rear-quarter windows — and make sure you store sharp objects like knives or metal tongs in an enclosed container. And, as tempting as it might sound, avoid draping team flags over windows you need to see out of until you get to the tailgate lot. We’re all about creating the ultimate fan-mobile, but do it safely.

Tips for conserving battery life?

PO: Be prepared: Have jumper cables or a rechargeable jumping kit on hand. But feel free to leave the engine running throughout the tailgate. When idling, the typical car only consumes about a gallon of gas per hour, so for most cars, a four-hour tailgate would use less than a quarter-tank of fuel, and eliminate the risk of a dead battery.

Be aware: Avoid standing (or having trash bags and other items) within a couple feet of the exhaust to avoid burns or fires. And obviously this is a bad idea if you’re tailgating in an area with limited ventilation.

How to maximize rear space for an optimal tailgating experience?

PO: See first question.

Tips for quick clean-up after the tailgate?

PO: Set aside some time: Tailgates often turn into a rush for the gates when everyone realizes the game is about to start, and if you aren’t prepared, you might miss kickoff. So keep track of time, and leave yourself 15 minutes just to clean up before heading into the stadium.

Make it a team activity: Don’t be afraid to delegate; after all, you planned this shindig, and you shouldn’t have to clean up alone. Bring a few trash bags, fill ‘em up and identify public trash containers (most tailgate lots have plenty) where you can leave them.

Sound is a key element to any tailgate is there a car with a particularly great sound or multimedia system for tailgating?

PO: Bring your own: While some cars, like GMC’s Acadia SUV, have thought about tailgating when designing the factory stereo, by and large, car stereos are designed to fill the cabin with noise, so they don’t do a very good job broadcasting music outside the car. Bring along a portable stereo with Bluetooth or an iPod plug-in, and either plug it into a car using an inverter or a factory household-style, two-prong outlet.