Spring Plans for Taco Build

Saguache

Adventurer
Howdy folks,

This weekend my wife and I went on a short trip from Gunnison to Vail and as things often work out we got some time to discuss vehicles. Conclusion; my van will always lack a few things she'd really prefer in an overland vehicle capable of supporting her on extended trips. Thus I'm in shopping mode (for a new vehicle) which will provide for the above.:Wow1:

My current list looks something like this:
  1. Toyota Tacoma Double Cab
  2. Toyota FJ
  3. Jeep Wrangler Unlimited
  4. Defender 110

I've owned 4Runners and Tacos in the past and I really love these vehicles, plus with a truck bed there is the possibility that I can:
  • Pull a trailer
  • Find an insert that won't break my bank for the foreseeable future
  • Mod to my hearts content

Can anyone make a suggestion or point me in the direction of some insert ideas that would fit in a Double Cab bed?
 
A lot of what you're looking for is available, but it depends on what you want it to do and largely on what your budget is.
The fact that a D110 is even on your list tells me that your budget has more zeros in it than mine does......

At any rate, thinking Toy-related: which gen Taco would you be looking towards? The reason I ask is this- only the 2nd gen Tacos, (the current gen) were offered in a long-bed option which would give you a little more versatility than the short bed or the FJ. However, lots of folks seem to enjoy the trailer option where you can just hook up and go without carrying an insert or a RTT around on a daily driver.

All that to say, the more specific you can be, the more helpful our comments will be :D
 

Saguache

Adventurer
I have a variety of uses for this vehicle and it needs to be able to function well in each of these areas (perhaps with minor modification between uses). It might help to recount a little bit of the back story as well since this isn't my first attempt at making the "perfect" solution for all my and my family's needs.

I've been teleworking for a large software firm in the Pacific North West for about six years now. I recently moved my family back home to Colorado and periodically I'm required to travel back to the office for a week or two. While on these outings I usually live out of my vehicle (its cheaper and I'm not tied to a location so I can enjoy my evenings traveling, hiking, etc). In 2009 I bought a 1983 VW Vanagon to serve as my tele-living solution while in the area of the office. I've been working on this vehicle ever since and while its comfortable and gets the job done its not 100% reliable. Since purchasing it I've replaced the engine (1.6l NA diesel for a 1.9l NA diesel), rebuilt the trans-axle and fuel pump, replaced or repaired many of the drive train and suspension components, added a TimberTech high top. As you can imagine I really love this vehicle and I left a significant number of knuckles on sharp edges working on it.

That said, its never going to be comfortable enough for anyone but me and its only getting older. My wife would really rather that had something with climate control (heat and A/C) and something that I didn't spend so much time repairing (sometimes on the side of the road). She also really wants a portable bathroom (toilet/shower/sink). I can't blame her for wanting these things, in addition to the trips I'm compelled to take to stay employed I also like to drag my family all over the place. I have fantasies about leveraging my work situation to allow us to travel over great distances for long periods of time and while I'm ok sponging down in the backcountry of above the arctic circle I can see how having a hot shower might be nice.

One of the things I've thought hard about is the need for 4WD. Overland to me is greatly expanded when your vehicle has the ability to crawl into some really unique and unexplored places. The van has good clearance and great torc which means I can get it stuck in places most people wouldn't take a normal 2WD. Not enough to get me around the Alpine loop or along the White Rim.

Extended Trips, Light Comfort: Lots of these trips and its usually just me or me and the dogs. Often a mix of urban locations and remote destinations. Bathroom amenities are not required although they would be nice. Organization and utility are my most important requirements. I've imagined a Taco (or something from that list) with a short bed, and a bed shell with the Autohome Maggiolina I already own mounted on top of the shell. Inside the bed I'd build and install gear boxes with roll out kitchen (water, marine stove, the basics). Maybe a Fiamma awning for a little more living space when camp is deployed.

Shorter Duration, Heavy Comfort Trips: Many trips like these, but they are spaced out and less frequent than above. Vehicle centric independence is nice to have, but services are generally available. Usually the whole family is coming on something like this, which may be to a destination or an event. If the Extended Trips, Light Comfort vehicle was in place I'd probably be looking for a trailer which could supplement my family's needs. I think this is more inline with what she's thinking anyways so perhaps the idea of an insert isn't really qualified as a need. The advantage to this is that we'd only ever have to pull the weight of the comfort solution when it was called for. The disadvantage is that we'd be pulling something, often over long distances, every time we chose to take it.

Longer Duration, Heavy Comfort: Only in the wishing/planning stages for something like this. Potentially remote locations/destinations. Because I really don't like to pull something, especially over long distances, it makes sense to consider options for inserts which meet the comfort requirements mentioned previously. There is a lot about this kind of trip that I have not decided on yet (who comes, where they'd go on route and in camp, what level of comfort is really necessary and what level of independence is desired), but it would be great if the same vehicle worked for this as much as any of the other types of trips.
 

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