FOUR WHEEL CAMPER (FWC) THREAD!!

Yeah, hot shower water bloat!

 

Touche

 

Woahh that’s crazy! No problems with this much weight in when you take on a few obstacles when you’re off-roading?

 

None yet and I’m definitely not a mall crawler. Lol

zoom in upper right

 

Whats your suspension setup? Im thinking of going with the dobinson full 3 inch kit and the 1000lb leaf pack in the rear. And already have air bags. But really dont wanna wheel the rig to much until i get Atleast a heavier leaf pack.

 

We initially installed at the recommendation of our builder extreme duty Dobinson springs (model # L59-176-R) which Are not even an option for Tacoma's and are designed for the 2,000 lbs loads on a Hilux aren't cutting it.

What we learned from this I think for you is to not do your expensive spring upgrades until the truck and camper are finished, then weight each axle and then see if the very good and cheaper Dobinsons or others willwork or then go for a custom spring setup. In the meantime you could temporarily install a add-a-leaf and/or airbags. Our custom Deavers were only $200 more than the Dobinsons



Theres 10 leafs in there! Also a good view of the rear sway bar

 

where is that? Beautiful.

 

I bought OME CSO47R 16 leaf pack removed one leaf and added 2

$77 D29XL Leaf Spring

D29XL add a leafs to each side plus air bags(great for removing all sway), started w Toytec 2.5 boss lift w 700lbs coils in frt and TC UCA’s. They did me well and had just started getting a oil seep after 100k on them! Being in Az rt now and can’t have down time I’ve stepped up and bought ADS suspension in Tucson w custom rear valving and again 700lbs coils. The ride so far has been real nice!

In the Canadian Rockies, Mt Canoe British Columbia.

 

Damn... if I ever do one of my dream trips (drive to Alaska and back) that will be a place I stop. Out of this world beautiful.

 

Great bucket list items! Make sure the weather is in your favor.

Also wanted to note that the 16 leaf pack is 8 per side. When you do lift make sure you drop the frt differential, shim the carrier bearing and angle shim the rear differential. Cradle the air bags and you can place the schrader valves holding up your rear license plate for easy access. Do the EGS bearing upgrade on the front differential... don’t know what toyota was thinking.....? And possibly think of lenghthing rear SS brake hose.
Cheers!

 

I found a killer deal (in my opinion) on a older (90's) model FWC and I'm really tempted to go snag it and turn it into a lil side project for my daughter and I to be able to safely camp/use while we begin to renovate/update the camper. The catch is, I have a DCSB & from the measurements sent to me by the current owner, it looks like the camper is going to stick out past my tailgate more than I'd prefer (visually at least).
From the board and people that have experience with these campers... do you think I should just jump on it and give it a try? Or maybe just go with a camper shell and the EZ Lift setup with an attached tent off the back of the bed to make room for daughter, dogs, and random sh!t?
Any info is greatly appreciated and I look very forward to hearing back some opinions. Thanks in advance!

 

DO IT!!!

Im guessing its an older Fleet. FWC didnt start making extra short campers until relatively recent times. Older Fleets are even longer than current Fleets. Im not sure Id want to run it on a short bed. It can be shortened but its A LOT of work. I think I saw that you are in Texas at the moment. How cheap is it? Ill buy it if you dont!

 

Right on thanks man! He will let me have it for $1,800 because its through a family friend but if I don't get it he was going to list it at $2,500 which is what initially caught my attention because I though that was a pretty good deal.
I see you are in Phoenix. I recently moved from Scottsdale to central texas and go back to visit so I could possibly get it for you and bring it with me if you were serious about this.

 

If you decide against it let me know and send pics/info. If you have more questions, ask away.

 

For sure man! The pix are on my other phone so when I get back to it I'll PM you the pix/info I have on it. I'm really 50/50 on it right now but... damn in want it lol. Then my voice of reason steps in and says I wont like how goofy it could potentially look. If you'd help out with a lil gas money though I'd seriously drive it out there with me if you want it.
Hell out there you could prolly just post it up for sale and make some cash if you ended up not liking it. When I find used ones for sale I get blown away by some of the asking prices so they must be a solid product.

 

Hi, is this something a DIY can do ?, thanks

 

Yes you can, but so much easier with a lift.

 

Hello- I’m considering buying a 2018 Fleet side dinette to put on my 2018 Taco 4D off road long bed. Listed dry weight of the Fleet gets me pretty close to GVWR. Add me, my wife and two kids (8,4), and we’re over. Planning occasional use without too much rough terrain.
my questions: in addition to firestone airbags I’m planning on adding, any specific suspension modifications? Is the Taco going to be able to handle the weight?
Sorry for such a newbie question. Just getting started!!

 

You're definitely going to need a very strong suspension to support that, as well as the airbags. You wouldn't want to have an airbag issue and rely on the stock suspension to keep you going.

Which dealer are you looking to order through? I'd suggest you talk with them about what suspension they offer to offset the added weight of the camper. FWC might also be able to give their opinion on weight ratings too and whether or not that's a good/bad idea to add that to your Tacoma.

I know out on the East Coast, Mainline Overland generally uses Dobinsons suspension for upgrades. While it's not an official GVWR upgrade on paper, it definitely supports the weight.