Kimbo Camper BS and Mods

No worries @SnowyMtn. Glad to help.

 

Cleared the door no problem! And we don’t use the stove unless it’s winter when we don’t use the washing anyway to all worked well

 

Issue with felt liner coming off- What have you guys used to glue it back? Spray or a paintable glue I’m thinking of searching headliner adhesive.

 

I just got back from my first trip out with the OME MT64 heavy suspension kit. First impressions are very positive; it's a massive improvement over stock suspension. My trip was about 725 miles on mixed terrain, including pavement, heavily rutted and rocky forest service roads, washboarded desert terrain, and sections of deep sand.
Starting with city driving, it's a night and day difference with speed bumps and potholes. What would have otherwise launched the rear axil into the air on stock suspension is instead dampened amazingly well, significantly better than the stock Tacoma and nothing in the bed. No more BANG when a rear tire unexpectedly drops into a pothole. Cornering and side to side wobbling is also instantly, appreciably better. If you jimmy the steering wheel back and forth a little you'll notice that initial lean, but within about a second or two the oscillation will have completely stopped. On relatively good roads, the ride occasionally feel a little firmer, but not much. Similar to additional ~5 psi in all your tires.
Regarding off-roading, washboard roads feel a bit better. It's hard to say because it's difficult to have a good baseline on washboards. Perhaps the familiar roads were just exceptional bad due to the previous week's Memorial Day traffic. TBD on washboards, but an improvement nonetheless. Where things really shined was on larger dips and unexpected bumps or large rocks. The large travel, improved dampening, and more appropriately sized leaf springs seemed to eat up bumps and dips like it was nothing. Rocking and swaying during light rock crawling is far less of a butt-puckering experience. The new suspension has vastly increased my driving confidence in gnarly terrain.

In terms of fitment and ride height and things like that, there is significant rake when the Kimbo is off the Tacoma. I was ok with this and was prioritizing things for the Kimbo. I had the front springs installed in the default position, which I believe is a ~1.5" inch lift given no additional weight. If I wanted to, I could have that raised to level things out a bit more, but I'm in no hurry because I've heard that OME leaf springs can settle a bit over time and that a slight rake may be a slight squat in about 6 months. Currently, with the Kimbo on the rake is closer to factory — like 3/4 to 1 1/2 inches depending on if the Kimbo is empty or loaded with water, gear, etc. Some of that height may be from my airbags, but I'm running them close to to minimum psi. I may not even need the airbags anymore, but I'll need more time to determine that. So, in general I'd say that I'm getting a little more height than I anticipated (and wanted, frankly), but I'm getting used to it and the improved ride is definitely worth it.

The installation was a bit rocky. This is still a relatively new product and this was my local shop's first time installing it. They had to go back and forth with ARB quite a few times with support tickets and calls just to figure some details out. It was less of a "complete" kit than anticipated. They had to get a spacer for the front sway bar as well as well as a couple other things I can't quite remember right now. They called around to some other shops in the area including folks that spend a good deal of time on Tacomas and no one else had experience with this kit either.

Here are some pics that should give you an idea of the lift height. FYI I'm running stock tire size on 16" wheels.
Fully loaded:


The large rake when unloaded:


Mostly empty Kimbo:


Rear:


Front:


Hope this helps someone. Let me know if you have any questions.

 

Hey everyone! I picked up my Kimbo (#91) a few weeks ago. I lived in a Jeep Wrangler for 2 years, and then a self-built promaster for 2 years. This feels like the PERFECT middle ground between comfort & capability.

Has anyone written up or photographed a SMAD Fridge removal process? I'm itching to get that thing outta there and replace with a 12v dometic. Thanks!!

 

Greetings Kimbo Nation!!

I have been following this Kimbo thread for many years now and have been dreaming of owning a Kimbo one day myself as well.
The time has come that I am looking into buying a camper and a Kimbo is in serious contention.
Thing is, I live in Vermont, which is pretty far away from Washington state.
I would really like to see a Kimbo in person before committing to such a big purchase.

Wondering if anyone here has a Kimbo and is located in the greater Northeast region (or even a bit further away)??
If so, I would be eternally grateful if I could come see your Kimbo and check it out.

Thanks so much in advance for any considerations!!

 

I am located ivo Gettysburg, PA. You are more than welcome to check out my Kimbo.

 

Thanks so much for your response!!
Much appreciated!!
I will send you a personal message to discuss.
Thanks!!

 

Hey folks,

For anybody out there that is considering a Kimbo, I still have my loaded 2023 model for sale. I’ve reduced my price to $45,000 CAD which is equivalent to about $32,500 USD at today’s exchange rate. Big savings compared to ordering brand new!

Hope you’re all having a great summer!

 

Well it came closer than I thought but still no dice on the cyber Kimbo

 

Anyone have any pics/experience with a new gen 4 Tacoma?

I'm waiting on a 6' version and wondering how my Kimbo will fit (unfortunately the 6' beds have been slow to the market). Airlift has also been slow to release there Loadlifter 5000 for the new 24's as well (I have them on my 23 Tundra and I'll definetly going that route again).
Thanks

 

No pics yet, but I just got a 4th gen 2024 TRD OR 6' bed. And I have ordered a Kimbo (#519). Seems to be a large backlog with Kimbo, so 519 won't be ready until Dec. I also own a 2021 3rd Gen TRD 5.5' bed but use it for other functions, so it won't be carrying the Kimbo. For the 2024 4th Gen I am getting E-rated Toyo Open Country MT tires installed. I couldn't find any airbag solution like Firestone Ride Rites for the 4th Gen; nothing is available yet. So I am getting the Timbren SES Truck Camper rubber springs: https://timbren.com/products/torttndr-toyota-tundra-2022-2023-rear-kit I plan to have the Kimbo loaded almost all the time, so the Taco will be sitting on those Timbens 24-7. I went with the 7000 lb payload Timbrens vs the 6000 lbs, and based on my detailed spreadsheet calculations of payload weights I will be right at max load GVWR all the time. Also, based on height measurements, the 4th Gen needs a platform to get up above the roof and radio shark fin, plus the higher bed rails. So I ordered Kimbo's short height storage platform 5.5" (172 lbs). Unfortunately there's not a lot of things that can be stored is such a short platform, but I didn't want to take on the extra weight (191lbs) and height of the Kimbo 7 5/8" storage platform. And I wanted some storage vs just a wood pallet. Finally, I got a .5" rubber stall mat from my local farm store. So at this point I 'think' all the boxes have been checked to prepare for the Kimbo on a 4th Gen Taco, and I'm just waiting for delivery. BTW --- I soooo love the 4th Gen over my 3rd Gen. That 4cy turbo seems to have a lot more power and getup than the V6. And the seats rock! With that said, the wheel base of the 4th Gen is a lot longer and still trying to get used to it.

 

Thanks JackKester, The Timbren option looks promising and going with the Toyo e-ply tires should help with payload and durability ( I have e-ply Michelin Defenders LTX's).

The Loadlifter 5000 has a internal jounce bumper and it super easy bring air pressure up to get a lever ride . I just hope that they offer the 24 Tacoma offer soon.
https://www.airliftcompany.com/shop/88383

Hopefully we'll see some other Gen 4 options for Kimbo fitment as folks get into there new gen Tacoma's. I'll be interested in seeing the Kimbo 5.5" storage platform

 

Just noticed your battery/power unit - is that a server rack battery?

 

Hey all,

I've been having airbag issues and wanted to check with this community to see if others have had a similar experience. I assume like many of you, when I get my camper I took the Kimbo teams recommendation and had rear airbags installed and upgraded to e-rated tires. I went with Air Lift, had a pro install them, and they were working great.

However after a few months of what I could consider normal use, I discovered a hole in both bags. Reached out to the installer, who I also bought the bags from, and they were able to cover them under warranty no problem. They agreed it was strange that both bags had holes, but thought there might have been a defect.

Not 6 months later and another hole developed, this time on on just one said. I reached out to the installer again and they found this to be very strange, but again agreed to warranty. After getting the bag fixed for the 2nd time I was talking to the technician and he said that airbags on any rig that are driving on rugged terrain aren't ideal. He thinks the issue was caused by the bag being extremely flexed, possibly while driving on a rugged roads. This seemed strange to me. Kimbo's are made to go where other campers can't and they literally recommend this exact setup for offroad camping.

Not 3 months have passed and I now have another hole in my bag. I reached out to the Kimbo team and asked if they have heard of others having this issue and he confirmed that airbags should have no problem holding up to what I'm putting them through and Kimbo has never heard of this issue from others.

I've had my Kimbo for 1.5 years and have had to warranty 3 air bags, being charged labor each time. I live in Colorado. The most recent issue seemed to happen while driving to the DeCaLiBron trailhead. A road that I literally saw sedans on. I hit the roads less traveled, but I don't think I've ever truly pushed the limits of the Tacoma/Kimbo combo. At this point I'm really not sure how this issue keeps arising.

Anyone else have a similar issue?

 

Seems strange indeed - not sure anyone here has gone with the AirLift style bags - Firestone bags seem to be the gold standard.

Depending on the flex (stretch/compression) anticipated, some have gone the extra step to run lower cradles that essentially unhook the lower part of the bag so the bag won't be stretched beyond it's limit (possibly causing a tear) when getting into deep rutted terrain.

Couple of questions:
What does the hole look like? is it a tear, wear hole, rip, melted?
Does each failure look identical? Same spot on the bag, same type of hole?
What pressures are you running? Min/max - for reference, I run between 45-55lbs with the Kimbo on and 10lbs without the Kimbo (I run Firestone bags).

 

Thanks for the response. The AirLift bags were a recommendation from a less than informed technician in Dallas, TX. I have since moved to Denver, CO were off-roading is a religion and the technician I have been talking to here agree with you 100% that Firestone is the best bag for this application and has no idea why they recommended AirLifts with no lower cradles.

All that being said... making the switch to Firestone and adding the lower cradles. I'm going to just accept the fact that the AirLift bags weren't right for this application... but to answer your questions....

-Looks like more like a tear than a wear hole or melted. One could argue that it could look like a puncture hole as well. Honestly can't recall what it looked like before.
-I wouldn't say identical but somewhat similar spot. About an inch difference in location.
-I was running at 55-60 with the Kimbo fully loaded. I almost never take the Kimbo off.

I appreciate you helping me think through the troubleshooting! After talking to Kimbo multiple times and others.... I'm just going to pay the money to get some really good airbags.

 

One other option to consider if you're planning to keep the Kimbo on full time is the heavier leaf spring option - there are a few on here with them. I have no experience with heavier springs...my Kimbo comes off and on once/twice a week or so which makes the Firestone airbags the perfect fit for me.

 

Just curious what everyone is using for airbag inflation? The onboard airbag compressors seem outrageously priced to me... so I am currently just manually inflating them with a bike pump haha. Anyone come up with a clever solution to this? It would be nice to be able to inflate/deflate them from the cab and see current air pressure.

Also Kimbo #480 Received this summer but have not been able to do any camping in it yet.

 

Nothing wrong with the bike pump! I've just been using a mini bike pump for a year with zero issues.