Kimbo Camper BS and Mods

Kimbo spotted in the wild (sort of)

 

Thanks! Radiant heated floors and a wood stove should make it pretty easy! I’m actually more concerned about cooling in summer haha.

 

Well folks, gonna post the ad here in case there are any Canadians contemplating a Kimbo purchase. I’ve just listed mine for sale. This is a good chance to skip the line and save some money compared to buying new. Especially with how poor the Canadian dollar is doing right now!

https://www.kijiji.ca/v-travel-trai...rlanding-2023-kimbo-6-truck-camper/1690977461

 

Just a heads up to those in the Pacific Northwest - the Olympus Rally is taking place this weekend in Shelton!!

https://www.olympusrally.com/

We'll be there supporting the racers and taking as many pictures/videos as possible and sharing here:

https://www.instagram.com/1mudflapp/

 

I'll be really curious how this works out for you, @Profloundering . I've been interested in creating some kind of air dam since not long after getting the Kimbo. Maybe this topic has already been discussed at great length here, but I've been away from the forum for probably a year or more now. My idea has always been to add something between the Kimbo and the cab that would divert air to the sides, with all the obvious challenges involved with that. Maybe I'll actually take a stab at it this year.

 

Post #2059

 

Hey Kevtron - there hasn't been any discussion yet on this topic (although I could have overlooked something at some point). I'm in the design stage ATM, looking to mount the unit to the cab at the roof rack mounts and then have a skeletonized to support the air dam. I hope to keep the Kimbo aluminum/rivet aesthetic but the initial draft will likely be a hack job...let me know if you make any progress on yours, it'll be interesting to see different takes on this. I'll post when I have something started for feedback.

 

I've snooped around on other slide-in camper forums to see what I could find. There are some interesting solutions out there, but they're all trying to accomplish the same thing. From what I've read from the people who have done these kinds of modifications is that they're unsure about how much it helps with drag, but it provides noticeable noise reduction. But that alone is probably still worth it for me.

 

Well, at 60k+ miles and 3 years of continuous Kimbo load, my Tacoma is really saggin' in the rear. The airbags help keep the ride level but the leaf springs look to be toast. So I'm looking into doing a full suspension kit replacement for the OEM parts. I remember that at least one of you had the OME Dakar heavy leaf spring set, but I can't remember any other suspension or shock details, and it's not easy scanning 114 pages . What are people running these days?
I'm looking into installing the relatively new Old Man Emu MT64 heavy suspension kit. It seems like it's purpose built for these kinds of heavy loads + off pavement driving. I'm new to the world of suspension and whatnot, but I feel like I've heard a lot of good things about OME, especially pertaining to the kinds of national forest roads I frequently find myself on. I'd appreciate any thoughts, anecdotes, snide remarks, etc.

 

Kimbo folk, particularly those mounted on Toyota Tacoma. If you have weighed your rig respond with any info you have for
1. Unloaded Tacoma front axel weight, rear axel weight, and total weight
2. Kimbo, passenger, and gear fully loaded front axel weight, rear axel weight, and total weight.
Interested to compare with my 2022 Tacoma TRD off road.

 

No kayaks. Just an inflatable paddle board.

 

Tires…
What E-rated tires on Tacoma have you used that are quiet on pavement, not overheat at 60-70 mph, carry Kimbo load, able to handle rough forest dirt roads?

 

I’ve been really pleased with my Toyo AT3. Taken them on just about everything. Never had a tire overheat but don’t think I’ve come close with these. I can see my pressure and temps while driving and during highway driving in the summer I don’t notice anything out of the ordinary. Being E rated I’m sure they could take more that what I’m giving them with a Tacoma.

 

Trusty BFG K02's over here - seem to be very capable and don't have the mud truck drone, very happy with them and would likely stick with them when they wear out. There are many choices out there these days and now they just came out with the K03's. I was very happy with my cooper tires in a previous build but they were not the "E" rated versions and the build was lighter.

 

I currently have the Cooper AT3 LT tires and they've worked fine for everything I've used them for. When it comes time to replace them I might switch to the K02 or K03 for slightly better side wall protection.

 

Just got back from the first camp trip of the spring/summer. Easy camping on the Green River for some incredible fishing. Had the wood stove going one night with big temperature swing the next day needing no heater. Crazy storm rolling in now with snow. Camping would have been fine but the fishing not so much. The camper is running great and finally took off the legs. Looking forward to bike season now!

 

Nice! we have a decent trip planned for next month; redwoods/south central idaho/Mack CO/Laramie WY/Boise-Sandpoint and then trying to hit the NWOR in Plane, WA to finish up the loop. Looking forward to getting out and about!!

 

Quick update from my post last week: I've ordered the Old Man Emu MT64 suspension kit and will have that installed as soon as the shop can get me in. I have no intention of selling the Kimbo or getting a new truck any time soon, so I figure it's a pretty reasonable investment, both for the truck and for me.

I'm planning my first biggish camping trip at the end of this month. The goal is to head up to White Pocket in northern AZ, Grand Staircase-Escalante, and probably Capitol Reef. Should be the perfect test for the new suspension.

 

has anyone installed a 270 batwing awning such as this? I'm thinking I'll have trouble with it clearing the door and chimney but hoping it could be installed high enough to clear both. Kimbo said they haven't had very good luck with this style.

270-xt-awning-mk2

 

SUMMER CAMPING and A/C recommendations???? I didn't get the air conditioner option with my Kimbo but would like to do some kind of retro fit now....I'd like to run it off my batteries or an additional goal zero if possible. Any thoughts??? Thanks in advance!!