good cars to go camping in?
Posted: June 23rd, 2011 | Author: | Filed under: Q & A | Tags: camping, cars, good | 7 Comments »i like to camp a lot and drive across the country but im yet to find a good car meant for long distance driving and fun to camp. i want a car that has somewhat of a big bed like a truck. i really like the hippie vans but dont want to feel like a bus driver in it. please help me
The Volkswagen Westfalia is considered the epitome of camper-vans. No longer manufactured but there’s a large and devoted fan base keeping them alive. Sportsmobile (http://www.sportsmobile.com) converts full-sized vans into self-contained campers. Earthroamer (http://www.earthroamer.com) does the same with pick-up trucks and 4-door Jeep Wranglers.
Any pickup truck with a six-foot or longer bed and cap would be a good choice. Or you can go the slide-in truck camper route. If you’re not intending to sleep inside the vehicle, then a mid-sized pickup with a cap (Ford Ranger, Toyota Tacoma) with a cap would get decent fuel efficiency and give you plenty of space. 4WD would be nice for driving back country.
Lots of people customize their Jeep, Toyota, Range Rover and other SUV’s and Pick-Ups with cabinets, refrigerators, stoves, water containers and extra batteries, sometimes a roof-top tent, for expedition-style camping. Check out Expedition Portal (http://www.expeditionportal.com) for examples.
If you’re firm on sticking with a car-like vehicle, then a Volvo XC70, XC90 or even V60 or V70 would give you a longer bed-like space in the back. The Subaru Outback and Forrester are also good choices, though I think they are shorter than the Volvo’s. Then there’s XUV’s from most of the manufacturers. The Honda Element might be of interest as well.
I drive a Toyota Matrix. It is the hatchback classification of the Corolla. I am confident in even the least expensive of Toyotas, I believe they are safe cars and built to stay together. I was in a bad accident with my Matrix and things could have been a lot worse had my car not resisted impact as well as it did.
Anyway this is a very aerodynamic car, it is a rather small car too. I get about 27 mpg (not loaded down but still not bad) and have had it almost 5 years now with nothing but routine maintenance and a flat tire. On the other hand…my Matrix is a four door and has a back hatch, for good access all the way around, and it has flip down back seats, for tons and tons and tons of cargo space. You can’t make it into an RV or anything…but you can haul plenty of camping gear and go a long ways with it. And in an emergency you can scoot everything over and sack out in the back to stay dry or get warm…or get cooled off.
I don’t know about other brands of cars but there is a lot of these now…I heard that the Pontiac Vibe is pretty much the same car, made with the same parts. Anyway that is my recommendation…a small but roomy car, or a small SUV.
get the truck because you can just throw every thing in the back.
They are not made anymore but when you find a good one it will hold it’s value and what I am talking about are Toyota truck based campers they were made in a couple of dozen different types and models and the all time most favorite is the shorty Sunrader in 4wd these still command $15,000. price tags. I had a Dolphin Toyota camper for 2 years and sold it for what I paid for it at $5000. They made them from the late 70′s to 1993. A healthy 1993 dolphin will command $10,000 a good fixer could be had for around $5000. Here is a link with tons of info and pics from all kinds of folks in the know,
http://autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/toyota-campers/
You also should compare car insurance quotes for cars before buying one, for example here – carquotes.fateback.com
Get a pickup truck with a cap on it. You can carry just about anything you want or need and if you want you can sleep in it. If it’s raining, you don’t have to set up the tent.
Dodge 200 travel van…….pick one up cheap that was made in the late 70′s