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Tacoma owner needs advice- Slide in camper or build out the topper?

Original Post
LLubchenco · · Carbondale, CO · Joined Oct 2013 · Points: 25

Alrighty,
I've got a '98 tacoma. Ya it's great. I like it.
Anyway, I'm thinking about doing a 4 month road trip from Januaryish to Aprilish. I've got an offer in on a pretty retro (read: old) four wheel pop up slide in camper but I'm having trouble committing to it. Everything works, but I also don't want to sacrifice my vehicle to the limitations of a camper. I see the limitations as mainly it being difficult to haul things like kayaks in the spring, reduced gas mileage, etc. It's general usefulness goes down, but the comfort goes waaaayyyyy up! I don't have a place to store the topper, so I'm kind of faced with an either/or situation. Anybody gone through this?
I've seen some good build kits if I were to just keep the topper, but there is something to be said for standing up to put your pants on inside and just having a nice place to chill for a few months on the road. Any advice from your experiences is greatly appreciated!
Thank you fellow mp'ers and climb well!
Luke

Rob Dillon · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Mar 2002 · Points: 760

I have a '98 Tacoma and the rear suspension is really sloppy. The first thing I'd do before adding a camper on the back is beef that up, before your ass ends up dragging all over the ground. Add a leaf spring and change out the shocks.

Long cold nights in the winter makes having a place to hang out pretty nice for your self-care. Plus, you're never lonely, and you don't have to buy much beer.

Ryan Huetter · · Mammoth Lakes, CA · Joined Apr 2006 · Points: 395

Long time owner of 98 Taco.

Have had a plywood bed and then this past season got my hands on a 1984 Four Wheel Pop Up and refurbished it completely.
My stock suspension was still in good shape so all I have had to do was install Firestone Ride Rite airbags which seem to take care of all the sway and sag.
It is sweet to have the camper rig, but I have room for my shell storage and do switch them out depending on need. 15mpg is a bit rough living in a mountain town with lots of passes.

I say, get the camper. Pimp it out, and if it doesn't work for you, pass it on. They do completely change the perimeters of truck camping though. Enjoy!

Peter D. · · Fairfield, OH · Joined Jul 2010 · Points: 25

had a Tacoma with the high top shell and then got my hands on a nice pop up. All it took was one wet windy night where we had to open the hatch and dive in quickly to avoid the wind blowing rain, we got the pop up a few weeks later and it stayed on the truck most of the season.

the pop up is a really nice change from climbing in the back of a pick up - I'll add I was 49 or maybe just turned 50 and had enough. Plus my camper was way small compared to my friends humongous full camper on the largest diesel Ford.

I had to get work done on the suspension anyway - a leaf spring somehow flattened out - so when that was done I had the shop raise it a little. I did not seem to loose that much in gas mileage, maybe 1 mile per gallon from 20 to 19 mpg.

The really nice thing was the pop up had a furnace and that extended our trips further into the fall and early spring. I had a place to store it so that was nice. Had a hard time selling it when I left Colorado for - gasp NY.

As for dropping it down and getting going in the morning that is just a function of staying organized. Go with the pop up, I'll go back to a similar set up in the not to distant future.

LLubchenco · · Carbondale, CO · Joined Oct 2013 · Points: 25

Great info guys! I'm definitely leaning towards the pop-up. It kind of sounds like a no brainer and I can maybe move towards commuting on the bus more since I won't want to drive my rig around as much. Now I just have to find one light enough....

Guideline #1: Don't be a jerk.

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