New Alu-cab Khaya Camper for sale in US - details with pricing now available

[RoninWanderer]

I'd love to hear about what options you got and what you learned researching them. I'm close to making my order and just going back and forth on some of the options. That's great that yours is on the way!

Hi @JP-ADV It was maybe a year of researching the Khaya and other options and bugging the crap out of @rino before we decided on this setup. Even then, we added items and made some changes after the order was placed. At the end of the day, I have every option they offer and even made a couple of additions/upgrades to the camper. I'm pretty sure my Tacoma/Khaya combo will be unique here in the US and should be extremely capable and really comfortable at the same time ??

The total price of the Khaya fully-loaded was a little more than some other options we looked at, but we felt that the durability of the design and it's compact and lightweight structure made it the best choice for strenuous off-road use. The exterior access boxes were a huge selling point for me. Also, many other campers in this space do not accommodate for recovery equipment, some don't even have a place for an oversized spare tire! Traction boards, hi-lift jack, spare tire, etc are necessary for what we want to do and a well though-out camper should account for that. The Shadow Awning design was very well-reviewed and we added the room annex to enlarge living space in colder weather. The heater was added at my wife's request and I'm sure I won't regret that decision. We want to be able to camp year-round and currently live in Washington state. We wanted to be able to be self-contained in the backcountry for 2 weeks without resupply, so the shower was nice addition, solar charging was important (we upgraded to a 200w system, ask Rin about it), and the fridge/stove/sink combo would be important. I should mention, we have a 2.5 year old son so dirt happens and we have learned to value some convenience in life!

I went back-and-forth on the kitchen kitting set, as we already have a lot of the contents from our normal camping setup. In the end, I opted for it mostly because of the built-in organization that comes with it. I didn't want all my things flopping around the bottom of the boxes, especially kitchenware. With that kit you get a lot of little shelves and straps that secure everything up against the wall. We also added the Wood Box 2.0 for extra storage and a place to literally put firewood and dirty equipment. Adding the jerry can holders on the side allowed me to carry the extra fuel I needed to get my range up to the point I wanted. After the truck was built-up, my range dropped substantially....so I wanted at least 10 gallons of extra fuel.

Once the camper arrives and gets installed in late March/early April, the truck goes back into the shop to have the final bits of work done. After that, I'll update my build thread (see signature) and post a ton of pictures. I'll also do a video walk-around of the entire setup and put it on YouTube.

Let me know if you have any other questions!

 

[JP-ADV]

That's a great setup, Ronin. I also briefly checked out your Taco Tuesday build. Nice rig! Mine's a 2010 also, but Access Cab. I meant to reply earlier, but yesterday some drunk smashed into the rear of my truck and mangled the tailgate and bumper, so I've had to put off my Khaya shopping for a couple of days while I try to sort that out. Getting back on track now.

I think my Khaya spec is about the same as yours, minus the solar kit and the wood box. I also think I'm going to pass on the $800 table and the Kitchen Kit. If the table were closer to $200 I'd go for it, but I don't see why it's so expensive. There are some things in the Kitchen Kit that are appealing from an organizational perspective, but between me and my dog I think most of the utensils, cups, etc. would go unused or I'd be substituting some things anyway.

I imagine at some point I'll want the wood box once I've taken the camper out on a few test runs and determine if it might be useful. Like you, I do want some extra fuel capacity and have not yet figured out how I'm going to accomplish that. Did you come across any ideas other than the wood box setup to accomplish this? I may look into fabricating a jerrycan mount to go on the back of the camper somewhere.

Does your solar setup have two 100-watt panels hard-mounted on the Khaya roof? Does it just connect right up to the Khaya's electrical system or is there extra equipment and battery(s) involved? Hopefully that's not too dumb of a question -- I have zero experience with solar.

 

[RoninWanderer]

That's a great setup, Ronin. I also briefly checked out your Taco Tuesday build. Nice rig! Mine's a 2010 also, but Access Cab. I meant to reply earlier, but yesterday some drunk smashed into the rear of my truck and mangled the tailgate and bumper, so I've had to put off my Khaya shopping for a couple of days while I try to sort that out. Getting back on track now.

I think my Khaya spec is about the same as yours, minus the solar kit and the wood box. I also think I'm going to pass on the $800 table and the Kitchen Kit. If the table were closer to $200 I'd go for it, but I don't see why it's so expensive. There are some things in the Kitchen Kit that are appealing from an organizational perspective, but between me and my dog I think most of the utensils, cups, etc. would go unused or I'd be substituting some things anyway.

I imagine at some point I'll want the wood box once I've taken the camper out on a few test runs and determine if it might be useful. Like you, I do want some extra fuel capacity and have not yet figured out how I'm going to accomplish that. Did you come across any ideas other than the wood box setup to accomplish this? I may look into fabricating a jerrycan mount to go on the back of the camper somewhere.

Does your solar setup have two 100-watt panels hard-mounted on the Khaya roof? Does it just connect right up to the Khaya's electrical system or is there extra equipment and battery(s) involved? Hopefully that's not too dumb of a question -- I have zero experience with solar.

Thanks! The Access Cab is great for one or two people. Longer bed, shorter wheelbase! Sorry about the accident man, that sucks. Hopefully a quick fix!

Yeah, if it were just me I would have simplified some of the items. I've seen the table in-person and it was really well built and the storage underneath the overhang was awesome. That's one of the things I really liked about the Khaya is that Alu-Cab has thought through all the little organizational details that I really appreciate. I'm really into having a secure place to put everything. The kitchen kit was largely because I like to cook for my family when we are camping and we go all-out sometimes , but if it were just me, I'd be using my tiny titanium backpacking stuff... ?.

Originally, my plan was to attach a single jerry can or a 2gallon Rotopax to the rear of the camper. There is a space to put one on the driver's side back-end. But, we ended up deciding to mount an additional propane tank there to power my Skottle and I had also realized that I would need at least 10 gallons of fuel to get the range that I needed. Conveniently, Alu-Cab announced the dual Jerry Can mounts to the Wood Box and that seemed like the perfect solution. I'll be removing my Prinsu roof rack in a few weeks and selling so we can put on the Alu-Cab Load Bars. It gave me the 10 gallons I needed and allows me to have an extra propane tank near the galley box. Definitely look at the metal panel on the rear, there some good options for attaching fuel there if you are not using it for propane!

I don't know a damn thing about solar or even much about electricity! I've been on a binge-learning spree over the past few months. There will be two 100-watt panels mounted to the Khaya's roof in-between two Load Bars. I have the full electrical system so it just wired right in. I have a total of 3 batteries now (2 in the truck, one in the camper), solar power and we can plug-in at bigger campgrounds that offer that. @rino and @Mudrak Custom Cruisers were really helpful in figuring all this stuff out. Especially since some of my options are not listed online anywhere yet. For instance, where does the hi-lift jack go? We now have a solution for that! ?

 

[JackAttack13]

Anyone put one of these on the new Diesel Colorado ZR2 Bison? I think this could be a perfect combination of offroad capability from the factory an fuel economy that cannot be beat in any that class of truck.

 

[Jon Nelson]

Anyone put one of these on the new Diesel Colorado ZR2 Bison? I think this could be a perfect combination of offroad capability from the factory an fuel economy that cannot be beat in any that class of truck.

I have added up the weight and researched specifications. I can’t come up with weight totals that are anywhere close to what a ZR2 Diesel Bison can carry according to the GVW sticker on the truck’s doorframe. I wish that I’m wrong....

 

[JackAttack13]

I have added up the weight and researched specifications. I can’t come up with weight totals that are anywhere close to what a ZR2 Diesel Bison can carry according to the GVW sticker on the truck’s doorframe. I wish that I’m wrong....

I have learned that you basically have to ignore any of the Payload recommendations for any of the midsize trucks in order to make these campers work. Scary part is if you need warranty work on the drive train, Chevy will definitely give you hell on honoring the warranty when they find out you are over Payload. Fortunately, the AluCab setup claims that they are sub 1k dry and around 1k loaded, so with a max payload of 1100 lbs according the their website, you might be a bit closer then the Norweld / Fourwheel Camper setups which blow the payload out of the water. Another thing to consider is that if you use a factory built rig like the ZR2 you will not need to add heavy items such as steel bumpers, sliders, and skid plates as they come factory equipped.

 

[life_w_vagabonds]

I have learned that you basically have to ignore any of the Payload recommendations for any of the midsize trucks in order to make these campers work. Scary part is if you need warranty work on the drive train, Chevy will definitely give you hell on honoring the warranty when they find out you are over Payload. Fortunately, the AluCab setup claims that they are sub 1k dry and around 1k loaded, so with a max payload of 1100 lbs according the their website, you might be a bit closer then the Norweld / Fourwheel Camper setups which blow the payload out of the water. Another thing to consider is that if you use a factory built rig like the ZR2 you will not need to add heavy items such as steel bumpers, sliders, and skid plates as they come factory equipped.

2019 Ranger 1600# payload. Order my Khaya a month ago, still truck shopping.

 

[m.reed.1]

Just to resurrect an old thread, anyone know of a used Khaya for sale?

 

[RoninWanderer]

Just to resurrect an old thread, anyone know of a used Khaya for sale?

Yeah, mine is for sale in the classified section.

 

[RoninWanderer]

Just to resurrect an old thread, anyone know of a used Khaya for sale?

Alu-Cab Khaya Prime 2-person Camper in Black - SOLD

Neat camper, but I think your dog is cooler :) Shiba Inu? Yep! 14 years old and bat ******** crazy but she’s a great dog.

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