The Drifter - Specs and FAQ

Thanks for the info!

 

I used minimal expanding spray foam and a lot of care to fill the inside of my tailgate. I did it for rigidity since I mounted a 10 lb propane tank on the back of the tailgate. I left two weepholes open and was careful not to get it around the linkage or backup camera.

As a side note, when I replaced the factory speakers, I used automotive 1.5" Thinsulate with 3m spray adhesive to insulate the inside of the Tundra doors. I noticed a big difference in the sound of the stereo but even more so, the AC doesn't work as hard and the Toyo MT freeway noise is significantly reduced. You could do this on the inside of the tailgate as well. R-vale is 5 for the 1.5" and the Thinsulate is hydrophobic, meaning it doesn't hold water.

 

So we did some insulation in the tail gate as well and it helped but not all that much. The biggest help was the window insulation for the fold down and hatch. We run a 2Kw webasto diesel heater and at -20c it will keep the drifter at -5ish with the window insulation on and our makeshift tent insulation (moving blankets with velcro along the top its junky looking but it helps).

We took a FLIR from work and the heat loss before insulation from the tail gate was marginal compared to the heat loss from the windows and air gaps (yes I know I know they even gave me some extra seals to do around the tail gate so I've no excuse) once we put up the window insulation and stuffed some blankets / towels into the tail gate gaps the heat retention improved drastically. We then insulated the tail gate and it helped but again was marginal at best.

Our biggest help was an insulated window cover and closing the air gaps. Now if we'd bought an insulating cover for the windows it would probably be better but we made ours and again not winning a beauty contest but it works.

If your already insulating the camper the tail gate is easy to do but is not gonna help much compared with the other mods.

Hope this helps and stay warm (look at a diesel heater makes a HUGE difference)

 

Not sure if you mean the Super Pacific or the Vagabond, but FYI the Super Pacific lead time is about 6 months. People who ordered during the July roll out are receiving theirs now. I ordered in November and am scheduled for April. Of course this is a "we'll see" but that's the info I have.

Also, apparently the Alu-Cab has a short lead time, and there's another new one (can't remember the name) that apparently has a short lead time, but neither of those will fit on my 1st Gen. No, I don't want to sell it.

 

They must of removed it from their website but at the time of my comment they had a banner on their page stating orders places today will have an estimated start time of summer 2022

 

That's weird. But who knows really. I'm following a Super Pacific thread and there are currently some delays for truck models other than Tacomas. The whole wedge camper arena is plagued with delays. Very frustrating.

 

Definitely Frustrating, glad to see that vagabond is getting back on track too. I gotta make the drive down from Alaska so timing for my drifter being done is crucial hahaha.

 

What if you ferried down and then drove back up? Or ferry both ways? I have heard you can get a temp style visa to get through Canada if needed but with limited timeframe to make the trip and I have always wanted to do the ferry from Haines down

 

I wouldn’t mind a ferry if it didnt cost a small fortune to do so. Last i checked it was nearly 6k round trip

 

So the end seals on the hatch lasted one month in the Minnesota weather and fell off. There was a hole on each end to begin with now its even bigger. I tacked the rubber back on so you can see where it goes.





I plugged the holes with shop towels so that salt and water doesnt get in there for now.



I think I can replace the long rear seal and cut it such that it extends all the way out on each end. Does anyone have a part number for the seal that VO uses? (The truck was washed on Friday)

 

I took these off permanently because I wasn’t sure they did anything.

 

This is pushing me towards the nomad.... And kinda towards an F150 (Looking at that, Ram 1500, and Tundra to replace the Taco)... Is that the grey or black powdercoat? And what motor did you go with?

 

I had a Drifter on my '15 DCLB supercharged Taco before selling both and getting the F-150 and Nomad as my family grew from one to two kids and we needed more space for 7+ nights camping in Baja. I couldn't be happier with the choice. The additional space is really nice to have and the platform supports the wedge really well.

The Nomad is black powdercoat.

I went with the 5.0 V8 as the truck will eventually get a Whipple supercharger thrown on. If you can live with 475whp on 37s then the ecoboost is the best path.

 

Mine has held up fine. I think I want that rubber piece so small critters do not enter the cab. I even took some rubber seals I used to seal up the tailgate and suck them into various areas around the edge. I put silicone caulking inside for good measure.

Doing all this and of course more. I do not get much dust instrusion.

 

Any of your 2nd gens have the KB Voodoo tailgate cap with a Drifter mounted? I haven't installed mine yet and would like to see some photos before I start the project and may have to adjust/change out the seals on the rear window.

 

Can someone with a 6' Drifter and a fan tell me the dimensions of the real estate in front of the fan? Have a couple options for solar panels and not sure what'll fit best. 42x51 or 80x27 230watt.

 

FYI - The roof / top portion of the Drifters are all the same.

 

I assumed but wanted to clarify just in case.

 

I’d also like to know the measurements of the roof with fan to get an understanding of what solar panels will fit. Maybe my Google-Fu is poor, but I couldn’t find it in this thread.

 

I know I've asked a lot of questions lately. I have one more question about OUTDOOR lighting.

I see a new option for the drifter/nomad is having rigid lights or something installed on the outside? How much does this cost to have Vagabond install these? Do they change colors to limit the amount of bugs that are attracted to them?

My original plan is: I will have the alucab shadow 270 awning... I was going to get LED strips and line the rails of the awning with them then figure out a way to connect it to my goal zero yeti 1400.

Anyone with experience, would the LED strips be plenty bright enough for nighttime activities such as cooking and tinkering with gear? Or do you think I would have to do the strips and the vagabond lights?

I'll be living out of this thing for 5-6 months out of the year and a decent amount during the winter, so just trying to figure it out.

Thanks in advance