By Robert Emslie
Bear Grylls may like to quench his thirst with a nice hot cup of his own frothy urine, but for me, roughing it means the hotel doesn’t offer HBO and room service ends at 10:00 pm. I mean really! I’m sure that most of you fall somewhere in between those two extremes, and while camping for you may involve a tent and possibly a spot by a lake, there is much appeal to simply using your car as your home away form home. But what car would be the best at the task?
Camping in your car is great when you’re at the track, awaiting promised space aliens, or simply as a place to get away, say if your undesirable and extremely gassy ne’er do well brother should show up unannounced. The main functions that a multitasker auto must provide for car camping are a reasonably comfortable place to sleep, room for a few days belongings, and perhaps room enough to change your Underoos in privacy, should you not want to share that level of intimacy with neighboring campers. Oh, and it should be easily convertible to road-going form at a moment’s notice, you know, in case of bear attacks.
Do you car camp, and was that functionality a consideration when purchasing your vehicle? If not, and you were considering a trek in which your ride was also your motel, what would be your first choice?
Image source: Camping Cars
Jeff Glucker
I choose this 1958 Ford Country Sedan Do-It-All Deluxe.
<img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4109/4994664933_fe2c5ce31a.jpg"width="500"/>
You know your car is a serious land yacht when it comes with it's own life boat.
Renault Twingo, built in bed FTW!
<img src="http://fotos.miarroba.es/fo/85ab/1B50AF3E3A24504556801E50455632.jpg">
Been there, done that, absolutely fantastic! Growing up, my mother had and destroyed a couple of Twingo's. Very versatile, reliable and fun cars – sunroof ftw, too!
<img src="http://www.slidingragtops.com/uploaded/images/twingo118.jpg">
Like the Fiat Panda 13 years before.
<img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_CjtWge34hfs/SmCt9sI1B6I/AAAAAAAAASA/7AF8tRJCZUs/s1600/Fiat+Panda+45+1984+Interior+Usage.jpg" width="600">
Like the VW Type 1… 26 years before that
<img src="http://www.thesamba.com/vw/archives/lit/reprint_54oval2001german/page5.jpg" width="600">
And Volvo ten years before that: http://img.docstoccdn.com/thumb/orig/72505546.png To answer the question, the back of the Amazon wagon makes a great sleeping area.
What a silly question. The answer is obviously an AMC Hornet.
<img src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8150/7339755356_24dfc2ef9b_o.jpg" width=500>
Or a Nash.
<img src="http://forums.aaca.org/attachments/f157/39767d1256834901-fs-nash-twin-bed-mattresses-bag-100_0845.jpg" width=500>
AMC is the correct answer in so many different ways.
<img src="http://www.arcticboy.com/media/strange/penthouse.jpg">
A van. For waterside camping, in a long term situation.
<img src="http://www.operatorchan.org/v/src/136661352079.jpg">
Eww.
<img src="http://universalspectrum.org/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=253&d=1337242735">
Why not GTO?
<img src="http://www.motortopia.com/files/4859/album_1974_pontiac_ventura_custom_hatchback/4602ea32332d6/tent_on_gto.jpg" width=550>
http://hooniverse.info/2013/05/17/hooniverse-obscu…
Why not, indeed.
Volvo 145 Express. Because.
<img src="http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6063/6056226817_e209f4929f_z.jpg">
A camping troll would have to have an eye on endless possibilities that a Trabant may offer:
<img src="http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5036/7422829912_a900956ecd.jpg">
Boring answe is a late-model Town & Country – fold the seats down, you've got a 4×8 floor to toss a couple air mattresses in, tinted windows for privacy to change in, available DVD players for a night's entertainment, reasonable fuel economy, and if you need to haul people around, collapse the air mattresses, toss them in the centre bins, and go about your business.
That said, I slept in my old Honda Civic between shifts many times.
Plywood roof rack, with hammock doing double duty as cargo net, makes all the difference.
<img src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-zgEA9vgZiqc/TGQlVRrKS7I/AAAAAAAAASg/pqY7CkxQ4Kc/s800/2010-08-10%252017.02.00.jpg"width=500>
I agree; I've used my van for camping before. Usually setup a 5 person tent outside the side door using some tarps and creativity to store all the stuff the mattress takes up in the back. Also have some curtains that suction cup to the windows, and a divider that hangs behind the front seats.
Can only really fit yourself and one other person, since fitting a mattress means pulling both rear seats.
My FC Econoline. With the storage platform I built in, a queen mattress fit nicely. Brew up your morning espresso on the steel top of the mid engine cover, and enjoy breakfast without leaving your bed.
Lately, I've been thinking something like this. I could leave all my camping and fishing gear inside and not need to pack every single trip. A quick stop at the supermarket for beer and food and I'm rolling.
<img src="http://goo.gl/dSmi2" width=450>
full size van absolutely gets my vote. I have attempted to camp in a minivan also, it sucks. you have to basically throw everything outside the van or into the front seats if you want room to lay down and sleep. which is probably also the case with all the car-based tents here.
If I'm ever going to convince the wife to go camping, it will have to be in something like this. You can get a built in espresso machine!
<img src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7441/8759318268_a2287f4089.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="GXV Pangea-LT">
Gotta be my '98 Subaru Outback. Lots of room for a bed, all wheel drive, OK ground clearance, and not terrible gas milage! That, and it was the most comfortable car to drive that I've owned. Long road trip? No problem!
Volvo Duett,
<img src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/14/Volvo_Duett.jpg" width="600">
Volvo Amazon Wagon with roof rack
<img src="http://www.classicandperformancecar.com/front_website/octane_interact/modelpicture.php?id=7504" width="600">
or the earlier mentioned 145 Express
<img src="http://www.lilltroll.com/Veteranlastbilar/Nr%2033/images/DSCF0246_redigerad-1.jpg" width="600">
I like the way you think. Honourable points for offering several choices to the insecure public.
K-5 Blazer Chalet.
<img src="http://bringatrailer.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/04/1976_Chevy_Blazer_Chalet_Brochure_1.jpg"width=500>
This was a factory option.
I did camp many time in my regular K-5 Blazer. Unbolt the rear seat, toss it next to the campfire for a couch. Flip the passenger seat forward and add some foam blocks to level the rear floor, inflate air mattress and cover windows. High, dry, and warm. I usually pitched a tent to store all the crap I would bring along.
I've done the same with mine quite a bit, except I usually sleep in the tent and leave my crap in the Blazer. But it is a good platform for sleeping inside, too.
I have owned and camped.in a K-5 I thought it was exellent and no need for a tent. That is untill I bought my 86 suburban, I built a raised floor over the rear wheelwells and put a double mattress back there and still had both bench seats and under the platform for stuff and a blanket in the front footwell for my dog. I towed my racecar three hours from home for a late season race(beginning of october) with this setup and stayed warm and dry while everyone else in tents (they all laughed at me that night) where damp and cold. Man I wish that thing had'nt been stolen. I miss the utility and the great fuel milage. I dont know where the pics got too or I would try to post them up.
I've never heard the words great fuel mileage and Suburban in the same sentence before.
6.2 diesel 2wd. My avarage fuel economy was 19 mpg, mostly with a heavy when empty loaded 18' equipment trailer hooked to the thing. In the 28 months I had it before it was stolen I can count on both hands the times it didnt tote that trailer. One vacation (1000 miles) I averaged 22 mpg with a high of 24, I thought it was great for a 5500 lb or so tank with an enimic 6.2 with around 500k miles on it. I miss that thing like I have said before and would love to still have it gutless 6.2 and all.
I didn't know the 6.2 would do that well. That's pretty impressive.
Yep it was surprising. My volvo 850 after only managed 23 mpg and maybe 25 downhill with the breeze.
Yep, the 6.2 was designed to be a fuel miser.
It's super-gutless, like not even in a lovable low-end diesel kind of way. It makes like 250lb-ft of torque, stock. Basically on par with the current TDI VWs (as in, Jetta).
That said, your friends at Banks can wake it up a bit.
As much as I dislike Saabs, I always thought this was a neat idea.
<img src="http://i659.photobucket.com/albums/uu319/harrythehat/harrythehat2/feat10saab_tent.jpg" width=650>
That was going to be my answer as well. FWIW these are more capable then you think, check out http://dreamtrip.se for the story of an overland trip to Malaysia in a 900 with a Toppola.
Am I sober?
I drove this one to Death Valley, Yosemite, Tahoe and Arizona. There are actually quite a few of these conversions out there.
<img src="http://www.instablogsimages.com/images/2011/04/05/custom-cadillac-camper_rL44d_52.jpg" width="600">
HCOTY Nominee. Also, 2CV IN THE BACKGROUND!!
<img src="http://www.tanshanomi.com/temp/kaiser-vagabond.jpg">
If there are lots of bugs or rain where you camp, Kaiser Vagabond is NOT the correct answer.
<img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-bF3C0j5A6oQ/Ta2zgeVoleI/AAAAAAAAA3Y/vFk5LtK9F-U/s1600/mini+home+kit.jpg">
I've slept in the back of my '06 Explorer with the back seats down twice. It's actually not too bad. I had my Thermarest, which supplies a surprisingly good sleep. It was a bit tight with my friend beside me, but we survived.
The prospect of sleeping in your own car is pretty cool, if you ask me. I guess it kind of validates the utility of the car.
I've also looked at tents that you can get for any SUV that extend out the back, but in the end the cost of them just doesn't make much sense over buying a regular tent.
A guy near my house has something a little like this:
<img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3003/2859152310_824d2dc084.jpg">
It seems pretty sweet.
Second answer is less practical than my first, but far more AWESOME.
Citroen Traction Avant.
<img src="http://static.flickr.com/68/211614344_1b18761ee1_o.jpg" width=500>
VW Westy, hands down. http://roadtripdog.deviantart.com/art/1975-VW-Wes…
Corvair Greenbrier camper. It's better than a VW bus… <img src="http://www.curbsideclassic.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/Corvair-GB-camper-1.jpg" width="600">
Source: <a href="http://www.curbsideclassic.com/curbside-classics-american/curbside-classic-1963-corvair-greenbrier-gms-greatest-hit-6-we-dont-want-a-better-vw-bus/” target=”_blank”>http://www.curbsideclassic.com/curbside-classics-american/curbside-classic-1963-corvair-greenbrier-gms-greatest-hit-6-we-dont-want-a-better-vw-bus/
Suburbulance!
<img src="http://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/MTIwMFgxNjAw/z/deEAAOxy8g5RmZLy/$(KGrHqR,!qYFGTwpE5COBRmZLyRtZQ~~60_3.JPG" width=400"><img src="http://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/MTIwMFgxNjAw/z/sUsAAOxyu1FRmZMU/$T2eC16VHJGgFFmyUS,W)BRmZMTwdVg~~60_3.JPG" width=300>
^^^Just sold for $7500.
May I submit "Surbambulance" or consideration?
This is what my wife and I used for a number of years.
<img src="http://i394.photobucket.com/albums/pp29/mckellyb/f_17436844_1-1.jpg" width="400">
We still have it, but it needs a bit of plumbing work after getting stuck in single-digit Fahrenheit temps for a few days, last year.
Not a car, sure, but can be driven with the same licence obtained using a '77 Pinto.
I'd use it to commute, if I had to.
i got worried for a minute. i went through like 40 posts before i saw a Westfalia. BAM!
<img src="http://www.favething.com/uploads/images/main-fave-images/modern_reinterpretation_of_the_classic_vw_westfalia_camper_van-2.jpg">
One should always display excellent post-modern camping design taste by bringing along the specially-lightened Breuer chairs.
<img src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7162/6442297729_e8ac344f42.jpg" width="500">
I really should track down a roof rack.
A roof rack to put it on, or to put on it? 🙂
It's weird to see one that isn't in that green.
Oddly, I'm pretty sure that green is making some kind of comeback. I think Hyundai's Misty Green is a relatively classy variation on the theme.
The other green ones can be weird, too….
<img src="http://p8.storage.canalblog.com/84/10/568981/83383353_o.jpg" width="450">
I have slept in an '89 Probe, a '90 Econoline Conversion, a '95 Maxima, and an '06 X3. The Econoline was obviously the most comfortable. I think the X3 was second, aided by the sunroof that could be popped open but still had a screen for bugs. The Probe had a surprisingly large and flat floor with the seats folded. Maxima was pure misery, but it was an emergency situation when our tent was carried away by strong winds.
Hard to beat a conversion van without going full Winnebago. Privacy curtains and blinds, screen windows for ventilation, lots of lighting, TV, and a rear seat designed to be folded into a perfectly flat bed. Plus, there's still plenty of room for your gear.
Nobody has said 80 Series Land Cruiser, yet? Impressive amount of interior space for a vehicle with such off-road capability, so it can get you, your friends/family and all of your gear out into the middle of nowhere with relative ease. For my camping needs, it is pretty much the perfect vehicle.
<img src="http://imageshack.us/a/img802/7435/phototg.jpg">
+1 for the mountain bike.
Dormobile? Apparently they converted a lot of vans in UK. I envision the idyllic English picnic in one of these.
<img src="http://www.dormobile.org.uk/Images/caporthole.jpg">
How about a Prius?
<img src="http://www.autoevolution.com/images/news/toyota-prius-camper-van-photo-gallery-41922-7.jpg" width="600/">
Then again, maybe not.
We had something similar to this growing up, 1974 Dodge maxi-van with a pop top TEC camper conversion.
<img src="http://www.poptopvans.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/image1-300×168.jpg">
Before that it was a'72 Chevy window van that Dad built a table/bed in the back.
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