<82”?!

Hi all— I’m on the market for a 3rd gen, in hopes of installing a pop-up truck bed camper on the back, but my garage ceiling is waaay low — 82” — so I’m trying to determine if this would be even possible. I know the height of the camper I want to install, but I still need to determine the height of a standard 3rd gen truck bed from the ground. Can you please let me know the distance from the ground to the bottom of your 3rd gen truck bed, so I can better crunch these numbers? I realize these measurements will be variable, depending on tire size and other aftermarket installs, but I’d still appreciate your help. Thanks in advance! —Sam

 

82" is more than enough for the tacoma.

my garage is 77", my truck clears by about 3"

 

Thanks for your reply! My goal is to install a pop-up camper in the truck bed, which will add to the overall height of the truck, possibly well over my 82” height limit. Can you also let me know the height of your truck bed from the ground, so I can better crunch all these numbers?

 

If it's a "pop-up" camper you're going to install why are you worried about height?
Or are you talking about if you can raise it up in you garage to work on and fill it when you're not actually driving?
Maybe you should worry about the height of your garage door too?

 

The height of the pop-up camper, when closed, is around 62”, and my garage only allows for 82”, so I am increasingly concerned that this is not going to work. Unless I can find a truck bed camper whose closed height is not so darn tall! But again, the crucial measurement that I need at this point is the measurement of a third GEN truck bed bottom from the ground. Thank you!

 

Also consider the depth of your garage. A Double Cab Long Bed is too long for my garage.

 

Done and done — thank you!

 

my unmodified, but geared-out trd sport long bed measures 50" at the front of the bed from the ground, and 50-7/8" at the rear of the bed. brand new, showroom-fresh/unladen, i would plan for 52-53" rear measurement to fully account for various outfitting options.

 

I think he needs the bed floor, but I'm not sure.

 

good catch, i thought he was looking for the bed rail height-- much easier to measure!

my bed floor measures 32-1/2" at the rear of the truck

 

This is SUPER helpful. Thank you! But also a bummer: If we can assume that 32.5” is the standard height of a 3rd gen truck bed floor from the ground (and please correct me if this is not a safe assumption), this that any truck bed camper would have to be no taller than about 50” to fit in my garage. I don’t even know if a low profile wedge style pop up would work here.

 

Give us some more info. Name and model of the camper would help.

Also, is your ceiling 82 inches, or is that the door to get in? You also need to account for any angle changes that may increase/decrease the clearance.

 

Thanks, everyone, for your help. The camper I’m eying is a Caribou Lite 6.5. When closed, it’s about 62” tall from the bottom of the truck bed. The trouble I’m having is that my garage door is plenty tall, but the ceiling above my parking spot is only 82” from the ground (due to some duct work that can’t be moved). I’m determined to go with a 3rd gen Tacoma — best of the best — so I think my only option is to find a camper no taller than 50”, but I don’t even know if anyone makes these!

 

Does it have to be a camper, or would you be willing to do something like a Go Fast?

 

I should clarify, most in bed campers are generally too heavy for midsize trucks if you want to stay within your payload ratings.

See here.


Unless you are going to be the only person in the truck and have absolutely nothing else in it, you're going to be over payload in anything but a 2WD low trim truck. The numbers below are also the brochure numbers, so they are as optimistic as possible. If you add mods or options, that payload rating starts dropping.

 

^ @50Buck is right.

the camper is heavy and your truck will sag.

if you really want camper, then consider to look up a TruckHouse at www.truckhouse.co. These truckhouses are pricey.

Also try to find small camper that has half of payload. So you should be fine.

other option is get full size truck that can carry heavy payload camper or trailer.

 

Thanks for thinking through all of this with me, y'all. I've crunched and crunched these numbers -- height, payload, center of gravity -- and I think you're right: If I'm going to stick with a Tacoma, I'll probably need to go with a lower profile, lighter weight camper option. Go Fast is a good option. I like Harker's EDC camper as well. And both more cost effective: easily under $20k for a completely tricked out camper. And damn, that TruckHouse -- what a great rig! Back to the drawing board . . . And with much gratitude for you all helping me make sense of all this (read: get back to reality). Hahaha.

 

Well Samuel McCormik, if the pop up camper is 62" when closed and your ceiling is 82" that only leaves you with 20" of play room, now I know that you know this but take a second and put a tape measure on the ground and pull it up 20 inches. Does that look like the average height of a truck bed to you? I mean, that's comes to just below my knee.
It seems about right for a lowered truck or the trunk of a compact car in my mind.

 

A more budget friendly option that will definitely fit would be a setup like what I have. Bed rack that is below the roofline, and then a RTT on it. I didn't even take a hit to mileage because if where it sits. True, it's not enclosed like a camper, but hard shell RTTs set up quick and are great for sleeping in the woods. If you want something to sit in, not so great, but that's not the point of camping for me.

 

This kind of pop-up easily fits in a low ceiling garage.



And here's a bonus: my truck bed is usable on the weekdays.


Jus sayin