How to make any cabover camper fit a Toyota Tacoma or any 1/4 ton truck

• Hi! Please help me build a camper on my Toyota Tacoma so I can be free like the wind!

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  • Its tough to find a camper that will fit on a Toyota Tacoma isn’t it? I spent months before I figured out this trick to make any camper fit a toyota tacoma. All you have to do is shave one of the corners back on your cabover camper. Don’t worry its not load barring, and won’t effect your camper in any way. By doing this you can buy a slightly bigger camper, and still have it fit in you 1/2 ton truck. Opens up a world of truck camping possibilities. I wouldn’t recommend cutting off anything more than a couple inches, but to each their own. The more creative you are the more solutions there are. Truck Camping for Life!!

    Best,

    Adam

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• This is a wonderful article!! We have been searching for a truck camper for our tacoma for over a year now. We even drove all the way up to Alaska this fall only to have a guy sell it before we got there. After reading this we bought a camper from a local dealership we fell in love with 6 months ago. Shaved 3 inches off the corner and are now traveling the country and pursuing our dreams because of you. Thank you so much. Such a simple solution. Kind of embarrassed we didn’t think of it ourselves, but so glad you came to our rescue.

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  • Claire,

    That warms my heart to know my ramblings on this travel blog actually helped someone pursue their travel dreams. So glad I could help out. Thanks for sharing! Where are you guys heading? How are you liking camper life so far? I know we all want to see some pictures! Congratulations, a world of freedom awaits you.

    Best,

    Adam

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  • what truck camper did you end up getting for your 2nd generation tacoma? I’m up in Canada and having trouble finding one

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    • Sorry for the delay Jackie holiday season is always busy for me. Hope you enjoyed the holidays as much as I did. I ended up buying a sun lite 690 truck camper for my tacoma. It wasn’t an exact fit, as I had to shave the corner back a bit to make it fit in my tacoma truck bed, but after living in a truck camper for a couple of seasons if your thinking of doing this full time I would strongly recommend a ripping of your truck bed and building a a flatbed camper on the back. You will get more living space, storage space and functionality. Its easier and cheaper than you think nowadays. If you can’t weld or don’t know somethat can weld you can always hire a local welder. Which is what I am going to do for my next rig, and to keep it as simple as possible I am going to hire him/her to fabricate two boxes and then weld them together. As soon as you tell them I want you to make me a flatbed camper they instantly think of a bunch of uneccssary components, expenses and accessories. So all I’m going to do is have them create the base box with four walls and a floor. Than the top box with four walls and ceiling and weld them together. All made out of aluminum and I’ll do the rest possibly with the help of a local cabinet maker or framer. Not sure yet, but a conventional truck camper from a manufacturer has little to no insulation. Provides a zero real estate to stretch out in, and you cant even sit up in bed. Not to mention there is bare minimum storage and in my current truck camper I have all of 2 inches of counter space.

      If money is tight buy a conventional truck camper, but if your going to spend $10,000 or more on a truck camper just build one. It will up the resale value of your vehicle, and you’ll have a much more functional living space for this lifestyle. Plus if anything breaks you’ll know exactly how to fix it, or at the very least how to bush fix it until you can get back to civilization and fix it properly.

      There are plenty of truck campers that fit a Tacoma nowadays, post COVID, but I would never spend $20,000-$50,000 on these glorified dog houses that some don’t even have the ability to wash a cup or store my mountain bike. I’d be happy to jump on a call or answer any more questions you may have.

      Happy Travels,
      Adam

• Hi Adam, I am a rookie in the world of camping I am planning to buy a 2001 Lance Cabover camper for my 2005 Toyota Tacoma. Any advice. thanks.

  Daniel

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  • Hey Daniel,

    Thanks for stopping by my RV travel blog. Lance truck campers are wonderful cabover campers, but I don’t think they will fit your Toyota Tacoma. Its been almost a year since I did my research on Tacoma truck campers, but if I remember right the smallest Lance truck camper I could find was the 845 which requires 8 feet from your cab to the end of your tailgate. I’m not familiar with the exact measurements of a 2005 Tacoma truck bed, but my 2012 Tacoma measures 64 1/2 inches from the cab to the end of the tailgate (when in the down position). Which means I would need almost another 3 feet to fit a lance. I could be completely wrong though, so make sure you do your research on the lengths and widths before you buy. Here is a link to all of the Lance Truck Camper Floor Plans and dimensions I could find from 2001 ( https://aowanders.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/2001_Lance_Truck_Camper_floor_plans_and_dimensions.png ). None of these will fit a Toyota Tacoma without a ton of modifications. Lance truck campers are the king of truck campers with a solid reputation, which is well deserved, but I would double check your measurements before buying a Lance Truck camper for your Toyota Tacoma.

    As for general advice for buying a truck camper check out my new truck camper guide. If you are just buying a truck camper for a few weekend adventures throughout the year just make sure everything works, built solid and the floor plan has a logical layout. If you are buying a truck camper for full time living then I recommend you be extremely picky right down to the roof vents. For example, you don’t want collapsable roof vents. They can freeze shut when winter camping, forget to be closed before a rainstorm, driving or windy days & they are extremely vulnerable to becoming very brittle under the hot sun. Buying a truck camper for fulltime living is like buying a walk-in closet with a bedroom, kitchen, and bathroom to live out of. Truck camping is extremely versatile and way more adventurous than your normal RV camping, but it comes with its trade-offs. Do your research. Go to the local RV dealership and walk through some of the floorplans. Make sure you can sit up in the cabover bed. Make sure there is enough storage for camping chairs, chainsaws, axes, toys, and various other gear. Make sure there is enough storage for food, pans, utensils, seasonings and whatever else you need to cook with. Make the bathroom has enough storage for bathroom products, and after all of that make sure there is enough room for you to live comfortably. It might be fine for a weekend to sit at the table with your foot resting on the generator or backup battery, but after a month you’re going to want to throw that battery or generator out the door. Make sure there is enough lighting. Again, might be fine to get out of bed to turn on/off the reading light for a weekend camping trip, but how obnoxious is going to be after 6 months on the road? New RV’s & campers are starting to incorporate a wardrobe closet into their floor plans. I have yet to see a truck camper with any type of cupboard or storage are big enough for full time living clothes. I had to create my own “closet” which is on the back of the bathroom I also had to install on my own.

    I love my Toyota Tacoma truck camper, but if I had to do it all over again I would have just bought a different truck. A bigger truck to carry a bigger truck camper. I’m not usually a fan of bigger is better, but when it comes to the world of truck camping. Bigger is always better. The bigger it is the more comfortable it is, and the bigger the truck the deeper into the backcountry I can go. I researched truck campers for over 6 months before I bought my Sun Valley 690 truck camper, and have been living in my truck camper for almost 4 months now during the winter months at a ski resort. I love the snow! The cold, and everything about winter. But my solar panels are constantly getting covered in snow. The generator is always running out of gas. The crankable rooftop vents are always freezing. The bathroom/shower I built never gets used because the waterlines will freeze. But I bought this truck camper for basic necessities and built out what I needed for my upcoming adventure (driving to the end of South America and back). I learned from all my RV mistakes to make sure I knew what I wanted, how I wanted to use it, where I wanted to use it & why I wanted to use it before I pulled the trigger on buying a truck camper. And even then I had to modify my Sun Valley 690 truck camper by 1 1/2″ to make it fit within my wheel well base of the Tacoma.

    I love the fact that you want to put a truck camper on your Toyota Tacoma, but I don’t think a Lance truck camper is going to be an option for you unless you buy a bigger truck. I could offer you a lot more advice, but it would be helpful to know where you plan to use it and how you plan to use it.

    When looking at truck campers or any campers storage is king. Look at blank walls, empty roofs and exterior spaces. Can you add a roof rack or basket/bin of sorts? What about hiring a cabinet maker to install more cabinets? Is there a way to add a drawer slide or any type of storage rack to the underside of your truck camper? As you can see in my photos I took an old ski rack and mounted it vertical to the side of my truck camper to hold my ski’s and wakeboard. I was thinking about adding a 4″ inch cubby between my camper and truck bed, but didn’t like the weight or extra height. SO I almost added drawers between the bottom of my truck camper sides and truck bed walls, but they would have only been 3 inches. Didn’t seem beneficial enough for all that work, but maybe you will have more room. But I like to travel with all my gear. You never know when a great surf session will come up, or when a guitar around the campfire would capture the night perfectly. Storage is king, and the more you can add the better. Don’t just focus on the empty roof.

    Thanks again for visiting my RV travel blog. Hopefully this was helpful, and you can buy a truck camper soon. Looking forward to hearing about your adventures.

    Wishing you the best,

    Adam

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• Can you explain to me more how you made this cabover camper fit on your Toyota Tacoma? Because I have been doing the research into what you say, but I am a little nervous about just buying any old truck camper and then try to make it fit for my Tacoma. Thanks in advance for your help. Really looking forward to your reply for my Toyota Truck camper.

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  • BD,

    Absolutely, and thanks for visiting my RV travel blog. So lets be clear. Not every truck camper can be forced to fit onto your Toyota Tacoma and shouldn’t be, but the truck camping industry is severely lacking for inventory on quarter ton trucks like Ford Rangers, Dodge Dakotas, Toyota Tacomas, Nissan Frontiers & Chevy Colorados or even S10s. Unless you like pop ups which I absolutely hate, but it looks like your trying to buy a truck camper to fit onto your Toyota Tacoma.

    Try to find a truck camper that is close to the dimensions you need. The closer you get the less work in modifications you need to do. When I first started looking for slide in truck campers to fit onto my Tacoma I contemplated cutting out my wheel wells. Removing my truck bed altogether. There is even a bracket you can buy that mounts into your trailer hitch that arcs up to support the backend of your truck camper that I was looking at purchasing or even have made by a local welder off of craigslist. A ski bum friend of mine is the one that suggested the “corner cut” idea, and it was like an instant “ahh HA — lightbulb” moment.

    Almost every truck camper I came across had a base width of 48 inches, but my wheel wells were only 46 1/2 inches wide. My wheel wells came back 30 or 33 inches and were only 8-9 inches tall. The Sun Valley Truck camper that I bought had a base width of 48 inches just like every other cab over camper I looked at, but before buying this used truck camper I inspected both front corners to see what I would actually be cutting into. The drivers side corner would force me to cut a wall line that was inside of a cupboard. While the passenger side would force me to the cut a wall line inside the same cupboard there was a water tank there I would have had to consider relocating or removing temporarily. Before making my cut I put a lot of thought into which side of the truck camper I was going to cut to make this fit onto my Toyota Tacoma. I chose the drivers side because quite frankly I didn’t want to relocate a water tank or remove it and reinstall it.

    After I made the decision on which corner I still had to build up the courage to do so. I was afraid it would damage my camper and light the money I spent on fire, but in the end there was nothing to be afraid of. It was literally a 15 – 20 minute task that was effortless. From the bottom of my camper I marked up 10 inches. My wheel wells were only 9 inches, but I wanted to give the camper some travel room if need be. Which is why I gave it the extra inch. After that, from the front of my camper I marked back 35-36 inches. Again to give my camper some travel room in case it needed it while boondocking down a bumpy jacked up dirt road in the middle of nowhere. From the front of the camper I also marked in 1 1/2″ inch. I didn’t give any “travel” room here. I didn’t want my camper to be able to move from side to side. Plus my wheels had a tapered wall. Wide at the bottom and skinnier at the top. After that I chalked all the pertinent lines, and made my cuts.

    The vertical 10 inch cut was my first cut. Followed by the long 35 inch cut, and the final cut being the 1 1/2 inch cut. I made all my cuts with a circular skill saw. I tried a sawzall, and a dremmel but for me personally I just felt more comfortable making the cuts with the skill saw. The dremmel did come in handy to make the upside down 35 inch cut, but if I could have raised the truck camper higher to create less of a “gymnastic arena” work space I would have used the skill saw there too. To each there own. Whatever you feel more comfortable and safe with run with it. Just make sure to measure 8,9,10,20 times before you make that first cut. Make sure everything is going to work. You can always cut more off easier than you can to add back on.

    After making the cuts and leaving myself a hole that was 35 inches long X 10 inches tall X 1 1/2 inches deep I just framed it back in. Using 2×2’s and 1/8 inch plywood. Then I reattached the existing aluminum that was on before I made the cut. I contemplated buying new metal which you can get for $20 or less at any roofing supply company. Just ask for rolled chimney/valley metal. I would have had to reshape it and form it and all of that. So for me the simplest path was the path of less resistance. Reuse the old shit.

    Again, it literally took me 15-20 minutes to make the cuts. Frame in and close up the hole for this truck camper to now be able to fit on my Toyota Tacoma. It took longer to make my camper tie downs than it did to make this truck camper capable of fitting on my Tacoma.

    In the end I lost 1 1/2 inches by 8 inches long of floor space below the fridge. I tried to find someone to do this for me off of craigslist and other handyman websites. The lowest quote I got was around $1700 for 20 minutes of work. I was told it was unsafe and would make the structure unsafe. I was told it was not doable. I was told all kinds of negative shit. I have since driven over 30,000 mountainous shitty winter driving miles with this truck camper on the back of my Tacoma. Haven’t had one structural or mechanical issue in even the most creative stretch of the imagination. It was super easy. Cheap & anyone can do it. Any truck camper that is 7 feet or less should be able to be modified to fit onto your Tacoma. You could possibly stretch out to 8 feet, but that would be a lot of overhang and a lot of weight.

    Normally I do not care one bit about vehicle specs and manufacturer limitations because in the era of lawsuits they always under bid right? But there is no way I would consider doing an 8 foot truck camper on my Toyota Tacoma unless I drastically beefed up I mean SUPER SIZED my struts, shocks, air suspension & leaf springs. Even than I would be nervous about the weight. Tipping factor and strain I would be putting on the engine as well as transmission. If you want or need an 8 foot truck camper I think you need to upgrade to something bigger than a Toyota Tacoma. Don’t get me wrong I may try it someday. I mean before my truck camper I was towing a 30 foot travel trailer with one slide out, 2 generators, two 560 watt solar panels and 30 feet of gear and living supplies. I am sure I was somewhere between 7,500-10,000 pounds. I never checked. My method of checking was lets hook it up and see if it moves. It did. So for 3 years I called it home.

    Hope that was helpful. If you decide to do it let us know. I am sure others would be curious to see if I am crazy if this a great solution to finding hard walled truck campers for Toyota Tacomas and other 1/4 ton trucks. Enjoy BD

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• Nice Article!! That’s exactly what we did to our truck camper!
  And it works so well, it fits our 2005 Tacoma perfectly!
  But unfortunately, we have to get rid of ours 🙁 heartbroken to see it go.

  ANYBODY IN NEED OF A CUSTOM FITTED TOYOTA TACOMA TRUCK BED CAMPER ?! 🙂

  Seriously, we can’t keep ours.
  It’s hard to find small truck campers and I can only recommend modifying a larger one the way Adam did it! Thanks for sharing this!

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  • Jenna,

    Thanks for visiting my RV travel blog. Sorry to hear that you have to move on from what I am sure is a wonderful Tacoma Truck camper. There are entire websites focused on truck campers for Tacoma’s and Nissan Frontiers. You should have no problem passing this onto someone who will love and cherish it as much as you have. But if you want to take an unconventional route and really make someones day find out what you need for a selling point. Then divide that by 100 or 200. Lets say you want to sell it for $3,000. Divide that by 100 and sell 100 raffle tickets or entrance tickets for $30 a piece. Hold a drawing on specified date, and some lucky winner will get Tacoma truck camper for $30. 1 in 100 chances to win. Not bad odds. Everyone wins. You get your asking price, and some lucky Tacoma owner gets a cab over camper for the price of an expensive case of beer. Divide it by 200 and make it even more enticing at only $15 to buy a truck bed camper for a tacoma. There is a lady in Canada doing that for a $1.8 million dollar house. She is offering to sell it for $19 as long as there are 68,000 entrants, and if there isn’t 68,000 entrants she is offering a full refund. Kind of a cool way to sell your truck camper don’t you think? Just a thought. I am actually thinking of doing this for my 30 foot travel trailer since I can’t use both at the same time, and dread what a dealership would offer. Anyways, best of luck. If you send me some photos I can post it to your comment on this article to help you spread the word (Free of charge).

    Warm Regards,

    Adam

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  • Where is your toyota truck camper located?

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    • Bud,

      Thanks for visiting my rv travel blog. My site doesn’t ask for addresses or anything like that so I can’t tell you were Jenna’s truck camper is located, but I did shoot her an email letting her know that you are inquiring. Also by approving your comment she may get notified of a new comment. What year is your Tacoma? What are the dimensions of your Tacoma truck bed? Is this the best email address to get ahold of you incase I come across a truck camper that fits those needs?

      Happy travels,

      Adam

  • Jenna, Might be interested your truck bed camper for my 2004 Tacoma. Mine Toyota Tacoma is a 4 door crew cab with a short bed so I’m looking for a shortbox truck camper. Would yours fit? Thanks!

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    • Hi Jenna I would also be interested in your in your toyota truck camper. Any pictures on this cabover camper for a toyota? Thanks Adam for allowing us to sell our toyota truck campers on your site at no charge. Plus you have a lot of great camper advice and information that I can’t stop reading. And I love your first rv trip post. Super funny https://aowanders.com/two-dumb-ski-bumbs-take-on-rv-life/

    • Taran,

      Thanks for visiting my RV travel blog. I don’t mind letting you guys sell your Toyota truck campers on my site. I’ve been there. I know how hard they are to find so if I can help any of you out its my pleasure. But I am thinking about selling my toyota truck camper as well. I haven’t made that decision yet, but I am considering it. I only got it for ski season, and ski season is coming to a close. My truck camper is a sun valley 690, and is the one in the photo at the top of this cabover camper article. I have made modifications to it like: Solar panel, roof top luggage rack, 1500 watt pure sine inverter with a 40 amp charge controller. I’ve also upgraded the plumbing to include a 3 stage water filteration system, and the biggest upgrade I made was installing an inside shower. There currently is no howater heater (yes I have taken a cold shower all ski season), but I left room on the backside of the camper bathroom to install an on demand propane hot water heater you can pick up for under $200 at various websites. I was looking at the camper hot water heater from Camper Chef, but there are plenty of brands, makes & models available today. Dry weight my toyota truck camper weighs under 1,0000 pounds, but after I load my gear its probably closer to 2,000. But I am full time living and packing chainsaws, ski’s, kiteboard and various other camping supplies.

      Again I have not decided to sell mine yet, but I am thinking of doing so. Can’t live in two campers at the same time. I am also thinking of just giving it away in some type of drawing or truck camper raffle ticket system. My tentative thought process on giving away my toyota truck camper would be something along the lines of $50 raffle ticket with a full refund if 200 tickets aren’t sold, and I would deliver it for free anywhere in the lower 48. Possibly Canada and Mexico if that variable came into play. SO if there is enough interest in doing this let me know in the comments below. I am thinking of having a deadline of May 25th so that you could enjoy your toyota cabover camper all summer long.

      ON a side note. Thanks Taran for bringing up that embarrasing first RV trip of mine. It is quite commical to look back on now, but boy in the moment that first RV trip was challenging at every turn.

      Happy travel y’all,

      Adam

  • Hi, I am also interested in hearing more about Jenna’s toyota truck camper if it is for sale. Please put us in touch? And I really like your artichle https://aowanders.com/discounted-torklift-frame-mounted-truck-camper-tie-downs/

    Thanks,

    Derek

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    • Derek,

      Thanks for stopping by my RV blog. I have reached out to Jenna for you and waiting to hear back from her, but stay tuned I might be giving my toyota truck camper and torklift frame mounted camper tie downs for only $50. Hit that subscribe button so that you don’t miss the announcement.

      Adam

  • I’d love to buy your old truck camper

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    • Aaron,

      I forwarded your email to Jenna, and reached out myself. I think she has sold it, but I haven’t seen any activity from her on this site in a few months which makes me assume her toyota cabover camper has been sold. I’m thinking of selling mine as well. As I only bought it for ski season, and that has come to a close. If your interested in hearing more about it or want more pictures let me know, and I get em posted for you. I’m also thinking of doing a raffle or some type of giveaway contest for it as well. Which I might choose that route because it would allow someone to win an elusive toyota truck camper that is very hard to find for only couple of bucks.

      If anyone is interested in entering into a giveaway contest for my truck camper let me know, and I’ll put it all together. Might even be able to offer free delivery depending on the level of interest there is out there.

      Happy travels everyone,

      Adam

  • Do you have pictures of your toyota truck camper?

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    • Kerry,

      Jenna sold her toyota truck camper along time ago, but now is the time to find some great deals on truck campers that people don’t want to winterize or pay for storage for another year. You’ll find one. Just keep refreshing that craigslist page.

      Happy camper hunting,

      Adam

  • do you still have your toyota cabover camper for sale? I have a 2013 Tacoma 4X4 with access cab 6 foot bed. Would like to connect with you to buy your used Tacoma truck camper.

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  • I have a 2017 Tacoma with a 6’ bed. Would your camper fit? Do you still have it?

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    • Yes it would fit a 6 foot tacoma bed, but this one was sold a while ago. Or at least I think so since she stopped replying awhile ago.

  • Is your Toyota Tacoma camper still available?

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    • Ann,

      Jenna’s Tacoma truck camper I believe has been sold a while ago. Have you tried rvtrader? Facebook marketplace? Craigslist? Truck campers and RVs are a hot commodity this year. I just hear THOR camper manufacturer has $14 billion in backorders to fill. Its always hard to find a Tacoma truck camper, but it might exceptionally difficult this year. Let us know if you find anything though. You can also check sites like expeditionportal or tacomaworld too. They usually have some Toyota Tacoma Camper’s for sale.

      Regards,
      Adam

• Awesome write up! I have some photos to share with you regarding my 2016 gen 3 tacoma and the fitment of a travel lite 690FD camper we bought last year. Email me back and I will shoot you some pics and of the mods that went in to putting the whole together.

  Regards,

  Mike

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  • Thanks Mike that would be awesome, and I’m sure others would love to see more examples on how to find or make a truck camper fit their Tacoma’s. For those not familiar with Travel lites their bannock South American wood frame are the strongest & lightest in the truck camping industry. The 690FD truck camper by travel lite clocks in at a measly 1,095 pounds, but I don’t think it has a bathroom. Emailing you now Michael. Thanks for visiting my rv travel blog.

    Regards,

    Adam O

    Reply

• Do you have a facebook to connect more. You can find me at my name, Photographer w/4 toyotas.cabover campers.

  Reply

  • Cody,

    You can find me at aowanders on all platforms including Facebook

    Reply

  • Didos about everything written in your blog. I’m absolutely frustrated and disappointed that for over a year now there is nothing! I was planning a trip for retirement ( January of 2017 ) & never would have thought I’d be researching my retirement away for a hard sided toyota tacoma truck camper. No way will I buy another truck. Mine is a 2017 Tacoma w the Xtra cab. It is the mountain truck of choice in these parts, along with many other mountain towns. I just don’t understand why there is not a market for hard sided toyota truck campers with all the amenitites including a full bathroom with shower.

    Reply

    • Frankie, I can feel your frustraiting through the computer. Especially after the popularity of small mid size trucks have taken over the “truck world” I can NOT understand why truck camper manufacturers don’t have a make/model/lineup to cater to the millions of us small truck owners. Chevy s10s, For Rangers, Toyota Tacomas, Dodge Dakotas & Nissan Frontiers have been sold for decades. Chevy even has their new Colorado model, and all of these brands now run with a full crew cab version because of demand, but yet still no manufacturer wants to fill the void. I just drove to Texas to sell mine to lovely couple that has been on the same frustrating search for tacoma truck camper. From my research the best viable option is to find something close and won’t break the bank is to cut a corner like I did. Travel lite makes a 690 & 701 model that would be pretty simple to modify, and you can find about a dozen of them for sale on rvtrader right now. You can find these models for sale for around $5,000. Or use a site like searchtempest to search all of craiglist for a cheaper option you can modify. They did make truck campers to fit tacoma’s years ago and they are still around, but you will have to widen your search. There is one that is sitting on a dodge dakota for sale in Des moines iowa for only $2800, but it is a 1985 model. Craigslist will be your best bet to find a cheap truck camper to fit your 2017 toyota tacoma. Keep looking something will come along I promise, and if you can’t modify it yourself find someone off of the gig section in your local craigslist area to do it for you.

      Best of luck Frankie, and thanks for visiting my travel blog.

      Adam

• Great info. I’ve been researching toyota campers, like you, for months. I don’t have the ‘handyman’ skills. I’m sure I could figure it out with someone. In the meantime, thank you.

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  • Robin,

    Thanks for stopping by RV travel blog. Glad you found some useful information, but the modification I made to make this truck camper fit my Toyota seriously only took about an hour max if I remember right. If you can find a truck camper close to the dimensions of you Toyota Truck bed dimensions you can alway hire a local carpenter to do the handyman skills for you. Even at the highest price point I couldn’t imagine they would charge you more than a couple of hundred dollars. Its 4 simple cuts. Frame a 10 inch X 36 inch X 2 inch hole back in. Put the aluminum skirting back in place and your good. No carpenter or any woodworker worth a damn could mess this up. Send them to this post if they need any guidance or visual assistance on how to modify any cabover camper to fit your Toyota Tacoma. Trust me I was worried too before I finally mustered up the courage to do it, but once I did it and realized how simple it was. Can’t believe I didn’t think of it sooner. Super easy modification to find a truck camper for yourself.

    Happy hunting & let me know if you need any pictures or anything else if you choose to go this route.

    Happy travels,

    Adam

    Reply

• Hey Adam, did you end up selling your toyota truck camper? I’ve been struggling to find one as well and plan to get one for the next winter season! Let me know!!

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  • Branden,

    I have not sold my slidein toyota truck camper yet. Just got back to Minnesota, and was going to post it later this week. If your interested I can get you some interior pics of my tacoma camper if you wish. Or ill just post them here in a couple days.

    Adam

    Reply

    • Hey Adam that sounds great! how should I contact you privately?

    • You can contact me at [email protected]

• Hello Adam! I am so glad that I came across this truck camperarticle and all these replies that people wrote. I have a 2004 Toyota Tacoma and I am a travel nurse and tired of corporate housing Across America. I want a truck camper to fit my beloved truck but I’m unable to find a hard sided cabover camper and I have been looking for months now. So I’m glad that I came across your article because it opens up a whole world of possibilities. I would love to purchase your toyota truck camper or be entered into the raffle. Or just help on making my own to fit! I don’t know how to build stuff but I’m sure I can learn 🙂 thank you so much and I look forward to hearing back from you. Kryssa

  Reply

  • Kryssa,

    Thanks for visiting my rv travel blog. Unfortunately Ijust sold my toyota truck camper last week to a couple in Texas that have also been looking all over the nation for months. I’ve been getting a lot of emails about how i modified this truck camper to fit on my Tacoma. And it really wasn’t that hard once I committed to modifying any slide in truck camper that was close enough to the dimensions I required to fit on my Toyota Tacoma. I’m not sure the exact dimensions of a 2004 Tacoma truck bed, but mine were 69 inches long (5 3/4 feet) and 46 1/2 inches wide (1 1/2 inches short of 4 feet). So all I had to really do was subtract 1 1/2 inches from one side or the other. Like I said in a previous reply don’t try and be all symetrical and cut both corneers 3/4 of inch off. That will just make more work for your self. Shave one corner back the needed length and then frame it back so that it will fit your truck bed. The couple I sold it to had a longer truck bed then my Tacoma so the wheel wells were more centered in the truck bed instead of positioned upfront like mine. If you have the same type of setup I wouldn’t even consider trying to make a cutout that fits snug in the space between the wheel wells and the front of the truck bed box. Just cut it straight off and use that extra space as sometype of storage for things like your battery or other things you won’t need to access on a daily basis. Trying to make a “U” shaped cut that will come out and back in is just more work for your self. Keep it simple.

    And even if your not that handy building stuff there are plenty of people off of craigslist looking for side jobs to help make ends meet. I was on a deadline for ski season so I didn’t put the effort into that option I could have mainly because I felt confident enough to do it myself. But if your nervouse or concerned about whether or not you can get it done shop around. There is bound to be a framer, carpenter, cabinet maker, retired woodmaker someone that would come to your house and do this for you for a reasonable fee. Even if you offered $50/hour there is no way this will take more than 1 hour to do. 2 hours max. It took me less than 30 minutes if I remember right. And dont worry if you damage the metal skirting on the outside. You can buy replacement metal that you can easily shape and form to fit your truck camper from home depot, menards, lowes or even a roofing supply company. Its called roofing wall tins (less than a $1/piece) or you could even use rolled valley metal (10 foot section costs about $20). Just remember when replacing the metal, if you have too, start installing it from the bottom up. Water runs downhill so you want to make sure your overlaps don’t catch water. You want the overlaps to cover the bottom tin by atleast an inch so that no water can get in. Water doesn’t roll up hill, and to be on the safe side caulk your seams with a waterproofing compound. I used roofing tar, but there are a million choices.

    You’ll find somehting now that you know how to modify any slide in truck camper to fit your tacoma. Just be patient, and try to get as close to your dimensions needed. The closer you get the less work you have to do. If you need any help at all modifying your new truck camper shoot me an email [email protected] and we can figure out how to chat in real time. Be more than happy to jump on a call or video chat to walk you through it. RVtrader has 3 travel lite truck campers for less than $3,000 right now. Two 690s and one 701. Both of them should be perfect for this type of modification. My slide in truck camper was sun lite 690 so the travel lite 690 should be a faily similar design, weight and construction. You can also use a site called searchtempest to do a nation wide search of all of craigslist to find cheap used truck campers that might fit your tacoma. If you want to get a custom built one I know capri campers out of texas does theres for around $10,000 & theres another outfit in Tennesse that starts at $9,000.

    ANother unconventional approach is to buy a trailer and mount the truck camper on the trailer. Than you could buy any size you want, and wouldn’t need camper jacks or even truck camper tie downs. And to take it on and off your truck would be as simple as unhitching it from the bumper. Wouldn’t even need to buy airbags or extra suspension. There are a ton of lightweight campers you could tow behind too that come with all the bells and whistles without any modifications. But i get it truck camper life offers way more freedom than a pull behind camper does. But since I just sold my toyota truck camper I am back to dragging around a 30 foot travel trailer with my 2012 Tacoma. It hasn’t even been a week and I already miss it more than I thought I would. So I’ll probably be getting another one. Only this time I will for surely do a video and post it here for you all. So you can see how easy it is. But I might need some encouragement. Don’t know if I am the video type.

    But if you need any help locating, modifying or just want to bounce ideas off of someone for your new Tacoma slide in truck camper reach out. I would be more than happy to help. I mean I just drove to Texas and back in 3 days to help someone else out. So don’t hesitate.

    Good Luck & Happy hunting. Hope you find the truck camper of your dreams and all the rewards that come with truck camper life.

    Adam

    Reply

• Shared it to facebook…hope it came out ok…i have a 2002 tacoma…great trucks…over 320000 mi on it

  Reply

  • Clyde,

    Thanks for the share Clyde. Somebody somewhere is going to be very thankful when they come across it. Maybe it will be a manufacturer who has enough power to force their company to start making truck campers for Toyota Tacoma owners also known as the most adventurous truck owners on the planet!. Thanks again for the share and stopping by my RV travel blog.

    Happy Travels,

    Adam

    Reply

• Hi Adam,

  Great article. I have a 2007 Tacoma with the access cab. It is a 2WD with the 2.7-liter 2TR-FE 4-cylinder engine. I have a friend who is selling their 2005 Sun-Lite 690 camper. Would my truck have enough power and payload to carry this slide in truck camper if I did your alterations?

  Thanks, Franz

  Reply

  • Franz,

    Thanks for visiting my RV travel blog! Glad you enjoyed the read, and looks like you found it more than helpful. Thats the same truck camper I put on my Tacoma.

    As for your trucks power and payload I wish I could say yes or no, but I duno. I have a brother that owns his own mechanic shop so I tend to just go for it and if shit breaks well I know an affordable mechanic. I mean I tow a 7,000 pound travel trailer around with Tacoma which you can see in this article. Tacoma are a sneaky tough workhouse though. Which I am sure your aware of, but if your Sun Lite 690 camper is made the same mine was it should only weigh 700 pounds and gear should be another 500-1,000 pounds. Tacoma’s should be more than capable of carrying less than 2,000 pounds.

    **** BUT I DON”T KNOW FOR SURE **** I’M A GUY THAT TAKES THE ….LETS SEE WHAT HAPPENS APPROACH SO…….

    I bought fireside airbag shocks and would highly recommend them as well as 10 ply tires.

    I know that doesn’t exactly answer your question, but I love my Tacoma and would hate to break iteven with a mechanic for a brother. So I don’t want to tell you yes and then find out in an angry email I was wrong. I would check the manual or tacomaworld forums or even call up an off road customizing shop and ask them. Any mechanic should be able to look it up, and googles full of answers.

    Let me know what you find out. I’m sure others have a similar question.

    Happy Travel Franz and hopefully next we hear from is from your new toyota tacoma truck camper.

    Reply

• Hi Adam, I own a 2018 Toyota Tacamo 4×4 sr5 v6 and I think the load capacity is 1300lbs. It’s an extra-cab (2 doors and 2 1/2 sized suicide doors), not double cab (4 full size doors), so the bed is longer, I think 6 feet. The bed came lined with a tough black plastic liner. Should I remove it before attempting to install the slide in truck camper? I’m not sure what the dry weight of the camper is (I’ll have to get back to you on that.) Given a load capacity of 1300 lbs., is there a weight that you suggest would be in the “safe zone” that I should not exceed? It appears as though I’d only have to remove about 2.25 inches from each side of the front of the slide in , extending about 3 feet back to clear the wheel wells. The length required for how high is a mere 9″. So 9″ x 36″ x (2.25″ deep) bilaterally. Any advice or comments you can give/make would be of great help….I don’t want to by the blasted thing and then not be able to install it. Thank you! , Kevin
  BTW: (It the load is iffy, I guess I could throw in an extra leaf. Ciao! K

  Reply

  • Kevin,

    Thanks for visiting my RV Travel Blog. Sorry it has taken me so long to get back to you and approve your comment I have been traveling through the backcountry so really haven’t had any service to do any work. I am not familiar with the manufacturing specs of a 2018 Toyota Tacoma payload capacities, but my 2013 has a payload capacity of 2500. I also added airbag suspension which you can find here at amazon https://amzn.to/2Hp9rpq

    Another reader who lives out in California bought these same airbags to help her with upgrading your gen 1 tacoma. Way easier and simpler to beef up your payload capaicity to carry the weight of a truck camper. You didn’t mention the brand or manufacture of the one your thinking of buying, but just make sure it is a lightweight truck camper. Also I wouldn’t remove the tough plastic liner. Thats there to protect your truck. I have the same thing in my Tacoma. Never created any issue, but I would also recommend not cutting both corners. I would only cut one corner. Don’t make more work for yourself than you have too. I have since sold my truck camper to a guy down in Texas who has an extended truck bed on his gen 2 Tacoma. So he had to extend my orignal cuts to fit his Tacoma, and it looks fabulous on his Toyota! He also made a cut in the side to install an additional window A/C unit. On another note as you are finding out that they make lightweight full walled truck campers for Toyota Tacoma’s so if you feel like this isn’t for you afterwards you will have no problem finding a buyer for it. When I put my up for sale just in case Texas backed out I had over 200 emails in less than a week from Florida to Alaska!. If you have any more questions I shoot me an email I would be more than happy to walk you through what I did so that you can have a truck camper to fit your Tacoma!

    Regards,

    Adam

    Reply

    • Hi Adam, I’m curious as to how your 2013 tacoma has a payload capacity of 2500#? I have the same truck and the tag on the door says not to exceed 1050 lbs (475Kg)

    • Al,

      HAHA I’m sure my Tacoma has the same sticker saying the same warning not to exceed 1050 pounds, but I don’t read stickers or go by manufactures recommendations. I just do things and see what happens. I guarantee theres no manual out there that says I should be pulling a 7500 pound fully stocked 35 foot travel trailer with a 15 foot slide, but I do and I’ve been pulling that thing all around the country for years. Up mountains and during winter months.

      Before I loaded the sun lite 690 truck camper on my Toyota though, I did install firestone airbags to help increase my payload capacity. Which I purchased this model ( https://amzn.to/2Bw6eEe ), but I would HIGHLY recommend getting the one with the inline compressor because you constantly have to stop and use gas station air pumps otherwise. Its just annoying. I am actually waiting on a delivery for just the compressor that I’ll install next week before loading on a travel lite 690 FD truck camper. If I am reading the specs right it appears these airbag suspension increases your payload capacity to 3,200??? But I could be way off on that too. Just did a quick glance to see if I could find a number for you.

      I don’t know if my payload capacity is 2500 pounds. I just know the camper weighed around 1,000 pounds. A full water tank added another 240 pounds. Installing the bathroom and shower most likely added another 150 – 200 pounds. My gear was easily another 1,000 pounds (kiteboard setup, ski’s, tents, chairs, TV, computer, solar panels, water filteration system, batter bank, inverter, propane tanks, generator, kitchenware, clothes, dog accessories, chainsaw, tools and various other camping accessories needed for full time living). I may not have been at 2500 pounds but I was well over 1050 pounds.

      Tacoma’s are tough trucks and the top in their class. Which is why I own one. I’ve pulled a 40 foot house boat over 2 mountain passes. Hauled over 20 bails of hay in one load because I just wanted to see. Pulled a 35 foot travel trailer over 100,000 miles in 3 years. Carried a 2500 pound truck camper around for over 50,000 miles in 2 years. Yanked a semi out of the ditch. Pulled two sunken docks out of the mud, and various other feats no one thought my truck could do.

      It seems like every time I stop for gas someone is always asking me how do I pull that? How does that handle behind that tonka toy? Aren’t you afraid of breaking your truck?

      My stock answer lately has been, “If my truck and gear can’t handle the life I lead than I need to know that now before I’m in a situation where my life depends on them. I’d rather break something now so that I can replace it with something that actually does what it says it can.”

      Hope that helps Al. Have faith Tacoma’s are tough trucks they can handle more than most ppl think they can. They aint no Ford Ranger thats for sure!
      Leave you with one other thought Al. The Travel Lite 690 FD truck camper is made specifically for small trucks like the Tacoma’s, Frontiers, Dakota’s and Ford Rangers and their dry weight is right around 1,000 pounds. No one expects you to pack nothing in a camper, and even if you pack the bare essentials you’d probably still clock in at around 1,500 pounds. If you get this dual fuel generator like I got https://amzn.to/317Q6n2 thats 100 pounds right there.

      Sometimes you just gotta ignore the rules. Sometimes that comes back to bite you, and other times it opens up a world of possibilities and freedom.

      Happy Travel AL let me know if you have any more questions.

• I am looking to buy a lightweight cabover camper for my 2018 Toyota Tacoma, but was wondering if you had any advice on what brand is best to modify to fit my Tacoma better than another? THNX Kevin

  Reply

  • Kevin,

    There are brands that will fit your Tacoma better than others, but they are so highly sought after you can expect to pay close to $15,000 for those lighweight truck camper gems. The best advice I can give when looking for a cabover camper to modify to make it fit your Tacoma is to try and find a wood based build truck camper as close to the dimensions as you require to fit between the wheel wells of your 2018 Toyota Tacoma. The close you get to the dimensions you need for your Tacoma Truck bed the less work you will have to do. I would also beef up your suspension with these Fireside airbags https://amzn.to/2Hp9rpq from amazon. This is what I purchased for my 2013 Tacoma so make sure when your looking on amazon you enter your vehicles specs properly. Different years require different models, but I am sure they will have a kit for your Tacoma. Let me know if you have any more questions.

    Regards,

    Adam

    Reply

• I am in the same boat as many others..cant find a camper for my beloved Toyota Tacoma, makes no sense. I need to hire someone to modify a camper (not yet purchased). I am writing to ask you to post a video of your process. I have read your step by step process but would find it very helpful to actually see how you do it.
  Can you please make a video and post it?
  I want to thank you for your honest, helpful information.

  Reply

  • Monique,

    Its kind of amazing there are so many Tacoma owners with no options to choose from!! Someday that will change. Anywho, I wish I could post a video, but once I posted that Toyota Tacoma truck camper article a few weeks later my computer had an accident and I lost all my media. If you want I have walked a few others through the process by phone, but don’t make the mistake I did by putting too much thought into it. Its actually really simple. Measure the distance between your wheel, and cut that difference off of only 1 corner. You can do both if you want, but that means you have to do two corners instead of one. Don’t make more work for yourself. And most truck camper floors are 48 inches wide. If your Tacoma is like mine it will be 46 1/2 inches wide between the wheel wells. So all you have to do is cut one corner back 2 inches for the camper to fit between the wheel wells. Than you have to cut up. My wheel wells were 9 inches if I remember right so I cut up 10 inches, and 34 inches back since my wheels wells were 33 1/2 inches long. Again if I remember right. Think of it like Tetris. Your just cutting a square rectangle shape out so one wheel well can fit inside the hole you cut out. Any carpenter worth their salt should be able to figure that out and shouldn’t take them more than an hour to do. Two hours at the most. Just remember they are cutting into 1/4 inch plywood and 2×2 inch wooden beams. It can all be fixed with a trip to the wood supply store. A wonderful woman from Southern California connected with me before she bought a camper that had the entire bottom 6 inches rotted out from water damage. With the help of her daughter and ex husband in a couple days she had a brand new Toyota Tacoma Truck Camper for her generation 1 taco. Its just wood and screws that takes a little thought on how to take it all apart before you put it all back together. If you go ahead with it if you make a video I would love to post it for others so we can all benefit from manufacturers ignoring us Tacoma owners.

    My email is [email protected]

    Let me know if you have any other questions.
    Regards,

    Adam

    Reply

• We have a 2019 Tacoma, 4 doors, 6 ft bed, 4wd.
  We are thinking of buying a 2006 Sun Valley Sky Hawk SB, I think it’s by the discontinued SunLite.
  Our question is how to secure the camper to the bed. Will the tie down room rings in the bed work, or does it need more? Advice please!

  Reply

  • Nancy,

    Thats a great question, and one that I wish I had a full complete answer for you. I am not familiar with the 2019 Tacoma’s truck bed “material”. I thought my 2013 Tacoma had a metal truck bed. It does NOT, and I found that out after purchase when I went to drill an anchor point through what essentially is tough cardboard. I am finding out more and more Tacoma truck beds are nothing more than a composite material. Knowing that I would suggest either find out by calling the dealership or take a drill to your truck bed in a place that wont matter to see if in fact it is actually a metal truck bed. If you do have a metal truck bed than they probably can be used as an anchor point for some type of truck camper tie down system. Here is what I did to create my own frame mounted truck camper tie downs for less than $50 . You can also buy premade Toyota Tacoma Truck Camper Tie downs from a variety of places here is a link to purchase them from Amazon https://amzn.to/2HTZccN. I would also check your local craigslist to see if anyone has a used pair you can pick up for a discount. Hope that helps. Let me know if you have anymore questions.

    Thanks for visiting my RV Travel blog.

    Regards,

    Adam

    Reply

  • I have a hard sided slide in camper for my tacoma, brand new renovations and interested in possibly selling it! didnt need any cutting and i estimate its around 900 lbs.

    What do you think for price?

    Reply

    • Spencer,

      I love that you came here to ask that question!! Thank you, might even have to turn this answer into a seperate blog post, but I’ll try to give you some guidelines.

      Without every seeing you tacoma truck camper I would estimate bottom of the barrel price should be around $3,000! Because they are very hard to find unmolested! If you don’t already know, there are people out there literally looking for months with no success. Trying to find a hard sided short bed truck camper that will fit in their Tacoma. In fact, that is the only reason I cut mine. Because I was tired of looking. I spent 3-4 months before I finally decided to break out the saw.

      If you have a hard sided less than 1,000 pound truck camper that will fit a short bed box of a Toyota Tacoma you have a chunk of gold! I sold mine for $5,000 + $2,000 for gas money and deliver fee to a guy in Texas. Who didn’t even hesitate when I gave him the, “I don’t want to sell it price!”
      Now before you think yours is worth $7,000 I installed a 3 stage water filteration system, 560 watt solar panel, full stand up shower, outlet bar, additional cabinetry, ski racks, roof racks, roof bin, ladder and rear deck onto my Sun Lite 690 truck camper.

      Spencer, depending on the year, make, model and over all condition I think you should be able to get $3,000 all day for your camper. As long as there is no water or structural damage. If its in good working order with all the appliances I would start at $4,000 and negotiate from there. Taking the first $3,500 that comes along. You have a rare desirable camper. That a lot of people are looking for. Especially in the mountain states.

      Toyota tacoma truck campers are a rare find, Tacoma hard sided slide in truck cab over campers are super rare!! You can take any price you feel comfortable with, but I advertised mine in Minnesota and sold it to a guy in Texas!

      If you would like me to help you sell it lemme know [email protected]. I don’t normally do this, but I remember how frustrated I was when I was looking for a truck camper to fit my Tacoma back then. So I would love to help someone that was in my position find what they are looking for. Best of luck to you Spencer! If you got any pictures send me to and I’ll get them posted on here.

      Happy New Year,
      Adam

• HI Adam:
  We are looking for a (non-canvas) truck camper for our 2005 1/4-ton Toyota Tacoma with automatic transmission. When you researched for your 1/2-ton camper, did you come up with any ideas for lighter weight trucks? Our bed measures about 57″ w x 73″ l. I’m not too intimidated by cutting into an existing camper to make it fit, but I am concerned about keeping our overall weight down as much as possible.
  Jason

  Reply

  • Jason,
    Thanks for stopping by my travel blog. My tacoma is a 1/4 ton truck not a 1/2 ton truck. So I’m not sure what you mean by 1/2 ton camper? I just found something that was a close enough fit and went for it. It sounds like you have a bigger box than I do. I can’t even fit a full sheet of plywood in the bed of my truck. After loading up the camper I am guessing my payload was around 2,500 pounds after loading gear, water and other supplies. Which is why I added the airbag suspension and 10 ply tires to my Tacoma. Both made noticeable improvements in handling, gas mileage and overall control. Gave me a much more safer feeling when traveling with the truck camper on. Toyota’s are tough, and built to work.

    Everytime I pulled into a gas station towing the travel trailer or the slide in cabover camper I was asked something about my Tacoma. What engine do you have? What is your gear ratio? Do you have aftermarket shocks & struts? Do you have any problems going over mountain passes? Blah blah blah. Every question you can think of I am sure I have been asked by a stranger at the pumps at one point, and most of the time my answer is I duno. I just turn the key, pump the gas and drive on down the road. Over thinking deletes all the fun out of the adventure. I have helped three people by phone, two by email and one in person. If your worried about weight beef up your shocks, springs and struts. Add airbag suspension. Purchase a bumper mount truck camper support. Don’t fill your water tanks. Load less gear. Build your own.

    I have no idea what the payload capacity of my Toyota Tacoma is, but I know it pulls a 5,000 pound 30 foot travel trailer with a 12 foot slideout with full tanks and thousands of pounds of gear no problem. I’m talking ski’s, wakeboard, 30 foot kite, chainsaw, tools, skill saws, grinder, 54 inch TV, laptops, camera gear, TWO 570 watt solar panels, battery bank, food, clothes, hatches, tents, hammocks, fishing gear, climbing gear, mountain bike, 50cc scooter and much much much more. Over mountains, around mountains, down mountains and up mountains during ski season when roads are covered in snow and ice with no guard rails in the middle of nowhere. And I did that for 3 years. I also know it pulls a fully loaded truck camper that wasn’t designed to sit in my fiberglass truck bed that has no metal on its base or walls. Tacoma’s are tough. Last winter I put a tow strap on a semi that had driven off the road because of the snow in Minnesota. It probably had more to do with his 16 wheels, but my Tacoma pulled a semi out of of the ditch in 3 feet of snow in the middle of February. I’m that guy. Just hook it up and see what happens. Deal with the fall out afterwards.

    I understand your concern for weight, but unless your willing to spend $20,000-$30,000 your not going to find a lightweight truck camper that won’t give you any pause. Your most likely going to load a 1,500-2,500 pound backpack on your Tacoma, and your gas mileage is going to be somewhere in the neighborhood of $50=200 miles. Depending on where and how you drive of course.

    If your asking if I came across any brands that are more compatible with Tacomas than another. I would say any slide in truck camper from the 90s-2009 that is close enough to make it fit your Tacoma with the least amount of work. There is nothing out there besides the Bigfoot & Northstar fiberglass truck campers that are designed to fit Tacoma’s, but both those companies stop making Tacoma campers. So if you find one on the web its not going to be cheap.

    Hope that helps. Shoot me an email if you have any other questions.

    Adam

    Reply

  • Jason check back with me in a couple months, I might have an amazing small truck cabover camper for you!

    Reply

• Mr Adam,

  In the past few days of reading your posts, and going through the comments in regards to your RV understanding and wealth of knowledge, I am sure glad that someone like you is on a site getting the word spread. Good Job brutha!

  What I have is late 1970’s or early 1980’s Papoose Import truck camper, (Originally from British Columbia, Canada.) this cabover camper for 1/4 ton trucks and small truck bed boxes was given to me in rough shape for the low price of $600 CAD on a road stop sale outside of a guys house in a small mountain town of Nelson. When i pulled up both times to view the truck and buy the slide in truck camper, there were people driving buy asking to buy it. Thank gosh i snatched it up as i thought it was a little gem. Complete luck and at the most random time.

  When we got home (over 850km away) to Calgary Alberta, really easily. I have a 2005 Toyota Tacoma 2.7L 4×4 access cab with the 6′ small truck box. No extra mods, so the camper did have sag and that was fixed simply with trimben’s. There is now no sag and its amazing! paired with 31″ wranglers https://aowanders.com/cheap-rv-tires/ the truck is holding its own amazingly. The initial plans were to unload and do a little paint and boom good as new. But as you can suspect, there was many little problems that needed to be solved when renovating a truck camper.

  Short story: Camper has been completely renovated/restored with new interior that has the new trailer style vinyl walls and cabinets in bright white. Then I raised the center standing area of the roof 2.5″ for additional standing room (I am 6’2″ tall) and properly sealed the entire unit with rubber glue in each nook to leak spray. Each wall backing has brand new lightweight silverRboard insulation with a 7.5R factor. All room and a entire new sub floor. Laid down ultra light weight flooring stickers to simulate hardwood, and will put in a nice carpet too. Has a 20# propane box on the drivers side rear part of the camper. Runs a working 3 burner stove dometica and a 2.5 cubic foot 3 way mini fridge (both in fantastic clean shape! has a 8′ x 10′ x 10′ Awning. Has 40 liters of water storage and a working electric pump and sink. Power currently is either generator based if i run speakers or appliances such as a toaster or coffee maker. It can be plugged in for use of the interior lights only from the truck itself off the car battery.

  Dimensions and Weight:
  Box: 39.5″ w x 88″ L (fits in the back of my 6′ tacoma truck bed with over hang 13″ on the tailgate I remove the tailgate to save 45# (which is practically my water weight) and on the very rear end of the truck)

  Sleeping Bed: 52″ w x 72″ L (full size bed area, im 6,2″ as mentioned so i lay at the slightest angle, and with my GF we both fit easily with space to roll a bit.)

  Weight: (what everyone typically cares the most about)
  Unloaded (dry): 900lbs dry weight
  Wet (with Gear) 1150lbs (inside the tacoma including myself and some gear about 5100lbs. GVWR is 5350 so im legally fine and happy with my results being able to carry even more with no problems. although i am pretty darn slow until i get up to speed)

  Any Questions Let me Know or email me at [email protected] with Subject line TINYTRUCKCAMPER and I will get back to you.

  Not many pics at the moment other then the build processes, so once it warms up I will get on it come the mid spring (april or may)

  What is your opinion or thought now on the the unit value Adam?

  Kindest Regards,

  Reply

  • Spencer,

    I love Nelson, British Columbia. I lived there two years ago for ski season in my Toyota Tacoma Truck Camper!! That place brings back so many wonderful memories. You can find a lot of good used RV & Camper deals up there. Thats awesome so glad you got to see Nelson. One of my favorite places in North America!

    Thanks for providing those details about your lightweight truck camper. It sounds like you went down the path of every other “project camper” owner, but sounds like you came out the other side pretty well. And thank you for bringing up Timbrens. If anyone is looking for airbags suspension or a suspension upgrade that is more on the heavy duty side I’ve heard great things about Timbrens. I have never personally used them or bought them, but I have come across alot of overlanders that swear by them. Check em out https://timbren.com/

    To answer your question about value of your Tacoma truck camper. You kind of fall on a double edge sword. Because you’ve upgraded it some people may consider that a molested camper, but if I’m being honest those type of people are a bit snobbish in my opinion. Campers require all kind of upgrades. New campers, used campers doesn’t matter. Nothing comes from the factory life proof and life test and ready to go.
    It sounds like you put a lot of thought into what you’ve upgraded and remodeled. Adding that to the fact that its a full hardsided small truck box camper that fits in a Toyota Tacoma I would start at $5,000 and be hesitant to go below $4,500. There are some hardsided cabover campers that will fit Tacoma’s, but they’re far and few between. You have an updated hard sided Tacoma truck camper that can accommodate a 6 foot individual. Roomy, sturdy and modern are not qualities you find in most slide in truck campers for less than $20,000! You should have no problem selling remodeled truck camper to Tacoma truck owner. Might even find a Dodge Dakota owner, or even a Nissan Frontier owner who can’t give you money quick enough.

    There’s a market out there, and people are looking every day. In fact I just approved a comment from someone else today who said if they can’t find a Tacoma Truck camper in two days they are cutting one just like me. Its unfortunate for us Tacoma owners, but what you gonna do except deal with it and move on.

    Best of luck to you Spencer, and thanks again for your kind words. Let me know if I can help out.

    Happy Travels,
    Adam

    Reply

• I laughed so much reading your post. Im going through the same pain right now trying to find a truck camper for my toyota. I give my self two more days to find one if not im cuting one out for sure. Over it!

  Reply

  • Its so confusing that this is even a scenario with how popular Tacoma trucks are. Especially in adventurous and outdoor towns that have a healthy camping community. I take that back. ITS JUST OBNOXIOUS!!! If you find one thats close do yourself a favor and just cut the corner. Its so easy its ridiculous that I didn’t think of it sooner. The only regret I have about the whole situation is I used a skill saw to cut the corner off of the SunLite truck camper. I wish I would have bought a sawzall or even a 4 inch grinder or anything that would have been more manageable to cut upside down. In any event dont worry. Don’t over think it and just go for it. Or you can do what this guy I saw the other day did. He got so tired of looking for a truck camper to fit his Dodge dakota he bought a long box truck bed trailer. (A trailer that was just the back end of an old F150). Bought an 8 foot long truck camper. Loaded it in the back of his hill billy trailer and pulls it around with his Dodge Dakota. Don’t get me wrong is quite comical looking, but he found away to live the RV life with what he had. Theres no wrong way to travel. Some ways are better than others, but to each there own I suppose. 😀 😀

    Reply

• So I wanted to post on this tacoma camper thread and keep it going! I’ve got a fitment question for everyone for my 5.5 short bed truck camper. Should I have my camper slightly resting on the bed rails or have it about 3/8’s to 1/2″ above the bed rail? Should I also consider foam inbetween the slight gap? does anyone have any ideas or comments about this?

  Reply

  • Spencer,

    Thanks for helping me get the word out for us 5.5 short bed truck camper owners. I wouldn’t rest your cabover camper on the bedrails of your truck. If you’ve never owned a truck camper before there’s a lot of flex and twisting going on. No matter what kind of tie down system you emplore, but these top heavy capsule’s are meant to flex and twist. It’s the slamming impact or constant grind that will damage your truck bed rails and/or cabover camper. You could consider placing foam or some other shock absorbing material between your cabover camper and your truck bed rails, but I think this over thinking it and uneccessary. If cabover camper’s were meant to be rested on truck bed rails than manufacture’s would have addressed this issue long ago, or at the very least a private sector business would have stepped up to fill in the gap. Cabover camper owner’s would have come up with their own ingenius way and spread the word like wild fire. I don’t think its a bad idea, but it’s one of those things that just makes more work for yourself when its not necessary. I’m a 5.5 short bed truck camper owner who’s taken his cabover camper all over the country side, and I think if I would have had any type of system between my tacoma camper and my truck bed rails it would have failed at some point for some reason. Creating a situation I would have to solve deep in the backcountry or downtown city “X”. I hate equations that eventually create a situation for me to fix, and I think this is one of those times.

    Tacoma camper or any cabover camper for that matter are going to flex and twist. This is why you don’t have them attached to the cab of your truck, and that flexing twisting movement has a range of motion. The underbelly of your cabover camper with that extra material will crash into your bedrails, bed walls or the bottom of your cabover camper.

    If I were you, and I wanted to add a cabover camper to my truck I would either
    A)remove the truck bed rails
    B)create a riser so that my cabover camper would clear my truck bed rails.

    If you’ve already modified a capsule to fit in your 5.5 short bed as cabover camper than you might as well finish the job right and continue modifying to set yourself up for success and not failure.

    I love my tacoma camper, and wouldn’t trade it for anything else in the world. I am sure your going to love truck camper life just as much as the rest of us, but make sure you get started on the right foot. Most of the time the answer is the simplest one. Truck bed rails are an accessory not a mandatory accomplice to functionality.

    Hope that helps. Thanks for visiting my RV travel blog.
    Adam

    Reply

• Finally Adam you answered the question better then any research blog or thread I have seen out there again! thank you very much! Yes i got a 4cyl 4×4 reg cab tacoma with a 6 foot box. My camper length is 90″ so it hangs out to the end of the tailgate. I have built a box that will now keep it off the rails and provided a thin rubber mat under and ontop of the box to prevent all movement. Currently I am fabricating my frame tie down supports that will come out from the sides and connect to the metal plates where the jacks are located. Where can i send pics? I would love a forum where we could all share our tacoma over cab truck camper pics!

  Kindest Regards,
  Spencer

  ps ^ iv posted a few times before in this thread above! love the stuff and i use it as reference alot in my decision making on the build!

  Reply

  • Ahh thanks Spencer, you just made my morning. I needed that after all that this weekend has dropped at my door. You can send pics to [email protected] and I will get them up. I am currently creating a forum on this site so people can start posting their pics and favorite campsite locations or GPS coordinates to free campsites since no other website is doing a good job of this. But that wont be for some time. Job board should be up shortly though.

    I would love to see pics of your tacoma camper, and I am sure others would too as well. So get me those pics 😀 Hope this reply finds you safe, well and happy during these coronavirus times.

    Let me know if you have any other questions always glad to try and help out.

    Regards,
    Adam

    Reply

• Hello, I am also looking for both a Toyota truck and a slide-in camper! My question for you is.. I found a 2.4 L and a 3.4 L, the 3.4 does have 6 cylinders versus 4. Do you recommend the one with the bigger engine? Also, I have not found 4×4 do you think a 2wd will hold up a camper ok? I need feedback ASAP!! Thank you so much for helping me find a Toyota Tacoma truck camper.

  Reply

  • Denise,

    Thank you for posting your question to this wonderful community. I apologize for the delayed response from my, but I have been on a backcountry camping trip for over a week. Hopefully, you found some truck camper help/advice while I was disconnected from the world.
    In your case, without pre-owning an existing vehicle to fit a camper to I would buy your truck camper first and than your truck. Don’t get me wrong I love my Toyota and its super tough. Surprising me time and time again the limits I push it too. However, with that said, If I were to do it all over again I would buy a 4×4 dually 1 ton or something in that league and buy a truck camper with a slideout if my intention was to live out of it full time.

    Life changes every 5-7 years, and the number one rule I preach all the time to people asking me about pointers when buying an RV (https://aowanders.com/complete-guide-to-buying-an-rv/) or truck camper is to buy something you can grow into and not out of. Toyota trucks are tough well at least my Tacoma is, but immediately sets limitations on what you can and cannont buy. As long as your willing to concede those constraints there shouldn’t be any issues, but just make sure your aware of them going into this situation.

    But to answer your questions, always put yourself in a situation where its better to not need it and have it —than need it and not have it. So I would recommend in your case the 3.4 6 cylinder, but would highly recommend looking for a 4×4 Tacoma. The whole purpose of truck campers is freedom, and 4×4 creates that extra level of freedom. A 2 wheel drive truck is useless unless you like to help friends moving, and a 2 wheel drive truck as a base for your truck camper is a waste of potential.

    If money is tight and that’s all you can afford with your budget then at least purchase a winch kit and front bumper hitch mount. So that you can self rescue yourself. I mounted square tubing on the sides of my frame so that I could have frame-mounted anchor truck camper tie downs (https://aowanders.com/discounted-torklift-frame-mounted-truck-camper-tie-downs/) as well as a place to quickly mount my winch in case I needed side pull as well. They have come in handy multiple times and I have a 4×4 Tacoma. Set yourself up to succeed. It’s always more annoying when you cut corners and set yourself up to fail when the situation reveals itself.

    Let me know if you have any more questions about a Tacoma truck camper or what you decided to do. Always willing to help you guys out if I can.

    Happy travels,
    Adam

    Reply

• Awesome intel here! I drive a Nissan frontier 5′ bed. Wondering if you had to do anything to your toyota tacoma truck to accommodate thecamper weight over the tailgate? I’m looking at things that are under 1000′ pounds and would have a 2-3′ hang over the tailgate. Thanks!

  Reply

  • Jackson thanks for visiting my RV travel blog. Sorry it took me so long to get back to you, but in the summer I’m usually camping in the backcountry. I didn’t do anything to my trucks tailgate. The only thing I did to my truck to combat the weight was add airbag suspension. Here is a link to the air suspension kit I used for my Tacoma https://amzn.to/2Zsk04v but you’ll have to find one that fits your frontier. I would highly recommend getting the kit that includes the air compressor in it. I didn’t and its super annoying always having to find a gas station or air compressor to keep refilling them.

    Hope that helps. Let me know if you have any more small truck camper questions.

    Adam

    Reply

• What a great forum! I have been pulling my hair out trying to find a camper to fit my 2003 Toyota double cab short bed 4×4 3.6 l. The wheel wells are only 40.9 in. With the tailgate down 80 in. width 57 in.

  Can you help me with explaining my options? Am I correct that I need to find a box that fits between the wheel wells (40.9). I am ok with a pop up.

  Thank you Adam in advance for any advice!

  Brian

  Reply

  • Brian,

    I know the feeling I was in the same boat that summer trying to find a truck camper that would fit my Toyota Tacoma. Its frustrating knowing how popular these trucks are and how adventurous their owners are and there’s a limited amount of options for us Tacoma owners. But I’m glad you found my RV travel blog so lets see if I can help you out here.

    You actually have a few options you can explore to put a truck camper on your Tacoma.

    The easiest option is to find any truck camper that is as close to 41 inches x 80 inches as you can, and then cut one of the front corners so that it will fit between your wheel wells. Most truck campers are 48inches x 96 inches. But if there are a number of manufacturers that make truck campers in the 690 and 770 size. 690 means it is 6 feet 9 inches long=81 inches. 770 means it is 7 feet 7 inches =91 inches. 96 inches is 15 inches past your tailgate. I wouldn’t recommend that. 690’s most likely won’t have a bathroom, but most 770’s will have a bathroom.

    Sunlite, travel lite, palomino, northern light and a few other manufacturers build 690s & 770s. I think Travel lite just went out of business though so you can actually find 2020 690 models for only $11,000 all over the internet. Theres actually one in Eastern Wisconsin for only $9800 at a dealership right now for only $8800. But you should definitely be able to find a popup truck camper that will fit your Tacoma. Unfortunately, right now there isn’t a lot of inventory because 1)its camping season & 2)theres a lot of bored people with a pocket full of government cash due to Covid 19 buying all kinds of toys that they will most likely be selling to pay back rent in the next couple of months. If I were you go back and do your searches on facebook market place and craigslist and rvtrader. See if you can find one that the base is less than 96 inches long. Width doesn’t matter because most likely it will be 41-48 inches wide. Thats a simple fix. If you do find one. Simply cut one of the front corners like I did in my post. If I remember right I had to cut 1 1/2 inches off the corner. 10 inches high and back 34 inches so that it could clear my wheel well. It literally took all of 20-30 minutes to do. No big deal.

    The other options you have are you can cut out your wheel well, but that isn’t option “A” for obvious reasons.
    Another option you could do is build a box that fits inbetween your wheel wells and then put the camper on top of that. You could even add drawers or some type of slide mechanism in that box to hold gear and tools. I actually started with this plan when I was on my search for a truck camper to fit my Toyota Tacoma, but something told me that would be too top heavy so I quit.

    Another option you could explore and I am actually looking into this right now so that I can put a bigger truck camper on my Tacoma is removing my factory truck bed and installing a flatbed truck bed. Then the only restriction is weight, but you could hire a local welder and have them fabricate outdoor storage boxes around your base for gear and tools. Even a generator box if need be.

    The last option which I don’t recommend unless you’ll be doing a lot of campground camping is just buy a truck bed box trailer and tow a truck camper behind you. But if your going to do all that might as well just get a travel trailer. You’ll get more living space, more amenities and more bang for your buck.
    If your just settling for a pop up because you can’t find a hard sided truck camper for you Toyota you can always make a popup into a hard sided. Just pop it up and then frame in the top half of the pop up truck camper. I just met a guy that did that in Utah. Turned out pretty sweet. Gave him more storage, and he was able to convert the temp bathroom into a full stand up shower bathroom. Flatscreen, solar panels and a full size camper fridge.

    Long story short you do not need to find a camper that is 40.9 inches wide. You can take the excess inches off of one of the front corners of the camper you buy and make it fit your Tacoma in less than an hour. I’ve done it twice and I walked a lady in California over the phone on how to do it too. Its pretty simple and when your done with it don’t sell it for less than $5,000 because your not the only one pulling your hair out looking for a cab over camper to fit their Tacoma. Don’t forget to install the firestone air bag suspension. You’ll need that to increase your payload capacity. Well maybe you don’t but it made me feel much more confident in my trucks ability to carry that payload. Tacoma’s are tough but sometimes you gotta give em a little help. This is the one I used for my Tacoma but you’ll have to do a bit more searching to find the kit that will fit your 2003 Tacoma https://amzn.to/3j1tQSq

    Hope that helps, and let me know if you have any more questions or concerns modifying a used truck camper to fit your 2003 Tacoma.

    Safe travels and enjoy truck camper life. Its the most freeing form of travel on the planet!
    Adam

    Reply

• This is so helpful and like everyone else I wish we would have known all this before we bought this specific vehicle (though it is exactly what we need) AND before I spent so many months researching amazing cabovers. We could pull off a pop up if it was fully equipped with bathroom/shower. I know this isn’t your need but do you have suggestions on ones we could purchase tomorrow and can fit without any cutting (this is just too much for us to think about doing right now). I read palimino is the one that fits but it sounds like others might to? You are awesome for supporting all of us searching folks!

  Reply

  • Alicia,

    Thanks for stopping by my RV travel blog. There are actually quite a few truck camper makers that have models that will fit a Tacoma. Palomino is one. Travel lite, Lance, SunValley, NorthStar and a host of others.

    What determines this is the number they give to each model. For example lets say there is a Palomino 670. That means its 6 feet 7 inches long. Or my Sun Valley was a 690. Thats 6 feet 9 inches long. I shouldn’t say any, but almost all truck campers that are 6xx or 7xx will fit a Toyota Tacoma. Some 8xx will too, but I don’t want to stear you down the wrong path. Any truck camper that is a 650, 670,690 should fit your Tacoma. The travel lite 770 I know for sure will fit my 2012 Tacoma. There is actually quite a few listed on RVtrader right now in Ohio for pretty cheap, and they have the big over the cab area. So you can actually sit up in bed without hitting your head. Lance makes a 650 truck camper that will also fit my 2012 Toyota Tacoma. It really all depends on the wheel well measurement of your Tacoma, but any 6xx truck camper model or 7xx slide in truck camper model will be light enough and short enough to fit the length of your truck bed. You might have to put your tail gate down, but thats not a big deal.

    I see you mentioned cutting a corner might be a bit too much for you, but you can always hire a contractor to do that cut and rebuild for you. It shouldn’t cost no more than $100-$200. It literally took me less than an hour to do that cut on my Sun Valley cabover camper.

    But if you seriously want a brand new Toyota Tacoma truck camper. There are 5 of them at an RV dealership in Greanleaf Wisconsin right now for less than $11,000 for Travel Lites 2020 truck camper models. And there are quite a few in Ohio right now for around $13,000 brand new never used truck campers that will fit your Tacoma and require no cutting. I normally would never ever recommend buying from a dealership, but word on the street is Travel Lite is either out of business or clawing back from bankruptcy and unloading their inventory for SUPER CHEAP right now. $11,000 & $13,000 isnt super cheap but compared to the normal price tags of $25,000 & $30,000 its a steal of deal right now. If I had the money I would buy all of them right now and the remaining inventory I could find on the internet. Revamp them to be more condusive to full time living and put them back on the market for a nice profit. Because we both know Toyota Tacoma Truck campers are an elusive animal with a massive customer base.

    If need be I might be able to accompany you or inspect a truck camper for you if its in the midwest. Just let me know.

    Enjoy the summer and hopefully you can experience truck camper life soon.
    Best to you,
    Adam

    Reply

• Why not just put a camper shell or toppper on the back of your tacoma and call it good. Lol the hassle and headache.

  Reply

  • Chris,

    Thanks for visiting my RV travel blog. I’m not exactly sure what you mean by a camper shell. If your referring to a topper the reason I didn’t want to go that route is because you can’t stand up. A topper or camper shell is more suitable for weekend warrior type camping. I didn’t want a scenario where every camping activity required a chore before and after. It’s ok to unpack the camping stove, cook on it and then repack the camping stove for the first 10, 30 or maybe even 90 days. But day 91 its going to get frustrating always having to do a 5 minute chore of unpacking a camper accessory. Use that camper accessory and then repack that camper accessory. Its the same reason why I didn’t go with a roof top ten for my Tacoma because I didn’t want to always have to put up a tent and take it down. I didn’t want to live in a nylon wall house in the winter, and a camper shell isn’t the easiest to keep warm. Plus I have a dog that can’t just sit in a cold truck bed while I go skiing.

    If I was only planning on camping for a few weekends every year a Tacoma camper shell might be viable option, but for full time living its just not practical. It would be like trying to live out of Toyota Prius. There’s no kitchen, no bathroom, no lounge area or even a comfortable sleeping area. I could have gone with something like the geo hub camper or one of the many travel lite truck campers if I wanted to spend $20,000+. The only real hassle and headache I encountered was finding out that they don’t make an affordable Toyota Tacoma truck camper. The actual cutting of the corner and reframing it took less than an hour, and I had a Toyota Truck camper for less than $3,000. Some people can justify or afford spending $25,000 on a cabover camper. I don’t have a trust fund and this travel blog makes far less than minimum wage. So if you can’t afford the options available you have to find creative ways to make the options you can afford work, and a camper shell wasn’t even a consideration for full time winter living up in the mountains with a 9 year old beagle.

    Thanks again for stopping by my RV travel blog,
    Adam

    Reply

• Can I modify an 85 Lance cabover camper model 1000 (as you described doing, not incredibly dificult) for the back of my 93 toyota pickup? bed is 6 ft. I found one online for an awesome price but need your expert opinion so I dont buy something that will not work. Please get back to me. Thanks for sharing all your knowledge and your willingness to help others. Very cool

  Reply

  • River,

    You can absolutely modify that camper, but it will NOT fit in your Toyota Tacoma. If the model number is truly 1000 that means its 10 feet long. You would have almost 4 feet overhanging past your tailgate. You’d have more of the camper base hanging out of your truck than on your frame. The amount of modifying you would have to do to that old truck camper would destroy it.

    And I’m a guy that just does shit until it breaks, but I promise you that truck camper is going to break that truck of yours. In unrepairable ways. I am a firm believer in giving everything a shot if it saves you money, but sometimes you just gotta bite that bullet. Don’t set yourself to fail. Get the right tool for the job. Whats money if it allows you to obtain the goals your trying to desire?? I was in the same boat as many of you when looking for my Toyota Truck camper. Looking at buying a big Ford F150 or Chevy Silverado so that I could get a cheaper used truck camper, but in the end it was only money that stood between me and my goals.

    Regards,
    Adam

    Reply

• Just curious why did you choose airbags over a superspring addition before adding your cabover camper? I have a dodge dakota I’m looking at doing your method of cutting a hole on the side for the wheel well on a six pac camper that’s just a few inches wider than my truck will accomodate. The one thing that I’m concerned about is that where I live it’s humid and rainy. Did you put silicone or something over the patch and under the metal siding to prevent water from getting in?

  Reply

  • Casey,

    Thanks for reaching out. Let me see if I can answer your questions since you caught me online writing about the Appalachian Trail.

    I don’t know what a superspring addition is so thats why I never went with that. I chose the airbag option because thats what the people in my “circle” recommended, and to be honest has been more than adequate. My ride is super smooth with them and the cab over camper on the back.

    I’m from Minnesota where you can cut the humidity in the air with a butter knife, and I used to run my own roofing company. So yes after I made that cut and fabrication I sealed it all back up with roofing tar, liquid nail and silicon. Then I painted it white to turn it all invisible. Well maybe not completely invisible, but it sits in the bed behind a truck bed wall so no one ever got to see it.

    Best of luck to you, and if you have any more questions about how to make your slide in truck camper work for a dodge dakota let me know. I’d love it if you could send me some picks when your all done. Especially if anyone else reaches out I can give them some resources on a dodge since I don’t own one.

    Regards,
    Adam

    Reply

• You mention that you removed 1.5″ off of the base of your 48″ base on your camper to get the base to fit into the 46.5″ of space between the wheel wells.
  Where do you get this number from? The space between the wheel wells on a 2nd generation Tacoma is 43″ at the bottom of the bed and 45″ at the top of the wheel wells. By my math, you would need to remove 5″ off of the 48″ base in order to make this work.

  Where do you get the measurement of 46.5″?

  Reply

  • The measurement of 46.5 inches was the width of the camper. As you said my wheel wells measured 45 inches apart at its widest,and I wanted a tight fit so as you can see from the pictures I provided I cut one and half inches off the drivers side corner making the camper base only 45 inches wide. And yes the bottom of the wheel wells only measure 43 inches my 45 inch wide camper fit snuggly in the bed of my truck. I am not an engineer of any sorts. I can only tell you what I did and what worked for me. Maybe that will work for you maybe it won’t, but if I ever wanted another truck camper for my truck I wouldn’t waste my time trying to find an exact match. I would just cut the corner like I did last time. Here is a list of 33 campers that will fit a Toyota Tacoma https://aowanders.com/33-truck-campers-for-toyota-tacomasno-popups/ Some may need a corner shaved or modified while others will not need any modifications. I recommend upgrading your suspension and going with the smallest camper you’d be comfortable in. If your ok with a pop up there are thousands that will fit in the bed of your Toyota Tacoma. You can also look into the kimbo camper lineup. Alu-cab is a company that makes a full metal truck camper specifically for Toyota Tacomas that come fully equipped with roof top tent, kitchen and all the camper accessories you need for a weekend trip or long overland adventure. There is also a company called four wheel campers that make models specific too Toyota Tacomas, or if you would like to customize and have a company build you a brand new camper from scratch you should get in contact with a company called capri campers.

    Hope some of this helps.

    Reply

• This was a really helpful site. I am at the beginning stage. I have not bought either a truck or a pop top camper ( I am going to follow the sun so not worried about colder climes).

  So I have been hunting for pop top slide ins. Are there certain ones that would fit a Tacoma better. I was thinking about the litecraft, the alpine mountain or northstar 800, or the phoenix. I am worried about payload issues as well as distance between wheel well. Does the wheel base impact this?

  On the truck, I am on a budget, so what type of tacoma should I get? Does the TRD model have any effect on the plan to buy a pop top slide in?

  Or would I be better off buying a tundra?

  Thanks again for all your helpful advice!!!!

  Reply

  • Walt,

    Sorry it has taken me so long to respond back to you, but I was on a camping trip and we kept running into wildfires on our way out so we had to extend until we could find a safe exit.

    To answer your question though I absolutely LOVE my tacoma and all of the camping accessorizations I have done to it, but for someone in your position this is the best advice I can give you and wish I would have had someone tell it to me. When looking for the right truck for a truck camper setup you always want something you can grow into and not out of. You will at some point no matter how much you love your Tacoma will find its ceiling and grow out of it. What I mean by that is there is a limited number of campers that will actually fit on a Tacoma without modifying them, and Tacoma’s have a payload capacity that is lower than a full-size truck. So if you have the budget to the buyer a bigger truck I would highly recommend you do so because it just opens up more options for you. My first year I literally spent all summer tracking down a camper that would fit my Tacoma, and then in the fall, I ended up selling that camper for a massive profit to a guy who was in the same predicament I was down in Texas. Tacoma’s are great for what they are, but they do have limitations when it comes to truck camper. Tundra’s on the other hand will be able to haul a bigger camper and a wider variety of cabover campers. I would highly recommend you buy a Tundra.

    Reply

• Hey Adam,

  Good content! A few questions-

  Did you have a problem with sway while driving the camper?

  How does it handle on windy mountain roads?

  Did you add a sway bar or air suspension to help?

  Reply

  • Hey Avery thanks for visiting my RV travel blog. Sorry about the delayed response, but I usually take the holiday season off. I had no problems what so ever while driving my camper. I wouldn’t even have added the firestone air bag suspension if it wasn’t for everyone posting about weight concerns in facebook groups and other blogs, but I am very glad I did. it seemed to help with control, but in all honesty whether I was driving on the highway or over mountain passes you could barely tell the camper was back there. It was a perfect fit for my rig.

    I’m looking to do the same thing again this year with a new camper I found out in Oregon thats even bigger on the same Tacoma. So stay tuned for that build video.

    Safe travels my friend,

    Adam

    Reply

• Great blog! I’m a little late to the party but I too have a Tacoma and have been exploring removable camper options, good resource. Thanks.

  Reply

  • Matt,

    Thanks for that Matt. Alibaba has some great 3D printed campers for only $3,000. I havent found anyone that has ordered one yet so I am no sure about quality, time frame or if there is an extra shipping charge, but…………

    Reply

• Thank you for the article and information. I am sure I will be referencing back to this more and more as I look for a camper. Eureka campers appears to have gone out of business, but I do appreciate you putting all this information together for us Toyota truck camper owners.

  Reply

  • Larry,

    Thanks for visiting my RV travel blog, and it looks like your right about Eureka truck campers. I’m sure something else will pop up in there place or FWC truck campers looks like they are cornering the market for Tacoma’s. Unfortuntaley, I am not a fan of pop up truck campers. I think they are 100% useless and only feasible for weekend warriors.

    Reply

• Hi Adam you blog is a god send! Please help me! Is there a camper that will fit a Tacoma with a 41 inch wheel arch base! I’m losing the will to live trawling through Craig’s list etc why don’t people measure the dimensions of the base when they sell their campers 🤯🤯

  Reply

  • Lewis,

    I hear you LOUD & CLEAR!! I do not understand why people think every truck has the same wheelbase dimensions, or that every camper is the same measurements. Some people are just oblivious to the facts of life, and I can hear your frustration in your comment. I was there, have been there, and this is how I finally resolved my Tacoma truck camper frustrations.

    But there are truck campers out there made specifically for Tacoma’s. Be prepared to spend at least $10,000 for a used one, or over $20,000 for a new one.

    Truck campers that will fit a Tacoma with no modifications (Look for their smallest model usually the (550-650 version)….

    Glacier Campers
    Fourwheel Campers
    Travel Lite Campers
    Kimbo 6
    Scout Yoho
    Overland Vehicles Camp-M truck camper
    Capri Campers out of Texas
    Palomino truck camper 550 & 650 models.

    And I’m pretty sure the Lance 650 also fits and is the only model with an actual toilet/shower plumbing that will fit a tacoma.

    Here is my list of Truck campers that will fit your Toyota Tacoma. Some of them will need modifications like the corner cut to fit your 41 inch wheelbase, but it all depends on what type of set up your looking for and the budget you have to live within.
    https://aowanders.com/33-truck-campers-for-toyota-tacomasno-popups/

    Reply

• I am so grateful for discovering your website. I have been looking for a truck camper for my Tacoma for months now. After finding this article I went out and did exactly what you did. I found a travel lite 6 foot 5 camper and shaved a corned to make it fit in my box. Since then I’ve been living out of my rig for months, and couldn’t be happier with truck camper life. I have a four-wheel-drive camper that can go anywhere, and it cost less than $4,000!! This is unbelievable. I haven’t spent one cent on campground fees since I started truck camper life. Having a truck camper on my Toyota Tacoma makes me small enough to call any parking spot home for the night without anyone knowing it. Thank you so much for all of your valuable and useful information. Without you I’d still be looking for a truck camper to fit on my Toyota Tacoma.

  Reply

  • Craig,

    I am so glad you have used my Toyota pickup camper experience to find the freedom of truck camper life with your Tacoma. So happy for you, and hope you continue to collect experiences instead of expenses with your new 4×4 camper. Imagine all the van life travelers jealous of your off-road camper setup. Have you found a favorite boondocking campsite yet with your new 4×4 camper? Any advice for others that are considering truck camper life?

    Happy Travels,
    Adam

    Reply

• Oh my goodness dude,
  I’m Right there with that first paragraph not being able to find a truck camper that fits a midsize truck.
  I own a ’73 Ford Courier (Mazda) and while they Did in fact make campers to fit my exact truck…
  These small lightweight truck campers more scarce than Dodo birds nowadays.
  If you do find a lightweight truck camper to fit a midsize truck they want an arm and a leg for an unusable study in water damage.
  I got took by Glen-L too, unusable/incomplete plans, which can’t even be returned once opened.
  But which have to be opened to see they’re incomplete.
  And nobody offering a camper states the foot box dimensions, or weight.
  I don’t know what they’re thinking.
  Thanks for posting this.
  Your friend in frustration,
  JCB

  Reply

  • Jason,

    I can hear your frustration loud and clear. Obviously, I can relate to your truck camper treasure hunt, but trust me you there is a small truck camper out there for you somewhere. You might have to broaden your search radius, or do what I did and modify another truck camper to fit your midsize truck. Almost all of the popup truck campers are light enough, and very easy to shave a corner back to fit your truckbed dimensions.

    Regards,
    Adam

    Reply

• I’m building one right now for my 2018 TRD off-road. I weighted a piece of 2×4 and 3/4 plywood. Then I searched online and my calcuations were about the same as what I found from wood manufacturers whereas 1 cubic inch of plywood or spruce is rougly between 9 and 11 grams, regardless of the type (2x4x8 or x12, 2×2, 1/4, 1/2″, 3/8″ and 3/4″ plywwod). So it’s about all the same by volume.

  Camper exteriors use Filon material which is a layer of fiberglass weighing 340g/sq ft. This is the same weight as one sq.ft. of 1/8″ thick Line-X at rougly the same price of 12-14$/sq.ft Canadian funds. Turns-out Line-X is way more stronger and same price as Filon.

  My walls are 1.5″ thick where I will put 1.5″ pink foam and coat both sides with 1/4 Lauan (sort of plywood used in trailers).

  Then I made an Excel spreadsheet that calculates the cubic inches of the wood I have used for the shell. So far, the shell is almost complete – into which I will be able to fit a full queen-sized bed mattress (lightweight foam) in the cab – and I can still lift the shell from the sides and back. I’ve calculated that the whole thing should weigh hopefully less than 500 lbs. Line-X will add around 200lbs. The corner jacks are 50lbs each so I may not carry them with me while we camp. I will also remove the tailgate (60lbs).

  I called my local Toyota dealer and the service guy didn’t even hesitate to tell me to use shock “balloons” if the payload exceeds 1000lbs but I want to avoid exceeding the max payload.

  Overall so far, the wood , screws, glue and foam was less than 1600$ and in a week, the shell is almost complete. I will be ordering awning windows of Alibaba at 60$ USD each (qty 10 + 120$ USD shipping to Canada) instead of 450$ each like the local RV shops. Quality seems nice and at 60$, the price is for any size. The window includes blind and screen.

  Enjoy and good luck!

  Reply

  • Thanks for sharing Ben! Sounds like you’ve started a wonderful build. Hope you keep us informed, and would love post your photos if your willing to share.

    Regards,
    Adam

    Reply

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