Newbie - Ford Raptor + Cab Over Camper A Good Option?

[GarrettRSmith]

Hello Everyone,

I am new to the site.

I got a teaching job at a university that requires me to be onsite every other week so that I can teach in-person. Because I currently live in a high-priced ski resort town in Colorado and the university is located within close proximity of another high-priced town, my wife and I are looking at trucks/cab over campers to camp in when I have to go to campus. We would also use it to camp at other times and I also do field research that is generally located in the mountains, up and around some of our mountain passes. Nothing too crazy, just a lot of Forest Service roads that sometimes do get narrow and/or washed out depending on the amount of rain we get in the region.

Our neighbor has a 2013 Ford Raptor that my wife has somehow fallen in love with that he would sell to us at a reasonable price. I am just starting to research their capabilities to have a camper in the bed, but thought I would reach out to the board and see if anyone can provide some basic insight on if this is a terrible idea from the beginning. I have looked at the Four Wheel Camper Project M campers but that is a no go from the wife since it does not have a table, fridge, stove, etc... She wants all the creature comforts in the camper but I am not sure that is feasible with a Raptor since it seems to have both a smaller bed and a lower payload size.

As I said I am just wrapping my head around all this but please let me know if there is something better that might fit our needs.

 

[Deleted member 9101]

Raptors are great trucks....just not for heavy campers. I'd get a 1 ton gasser and a camper that makes the wife happy.

 

[Redline61]

Agreed with ecoboosted, if you want a large camper move on. My Raptor was a ton of fun but it didn't like weight in the bed. Sure you can add airbags, or new leaf packs but you are compromising on what the truck is meant for. If you are going to go light then a Raptor will be fine but if you want anything bigger than the smallest four wheel camper I would and did move to a 2500 or bigger. I miss the ride but it is night and day the difference in how the 3500(single wheel) hauls weight compared to the Raptor.

 

[GarrettRSmith]

Thanks for the responses.

I figured that if we got something like the Granby, with all the creature comforts that she wants that a Raptor would not be the best option. We also have two pups that would be coming along so it needs to be something that is comfortable for all of us. I think that the appeal of the Raptor for her is that it has leather, sunroof, etc... (she currently drives an Audi Q7 and I ride my bicycle everywhere) and that our neighbor is willing to let it go at a reasonable price and keeps bugging us because he is moving and does not want to take it with him. I do not want to mess with the suspension or anything like that as that just seems like a lot of extra work if something out there would work from stock.

We just started down the road of looking/learning about pickup trucks and have a lot to learn. I am also hoping that used car prices will eventually correct themselves. All trucks in our neck of the woods have 200k+ miles and the prices are still in the 20-$30k range. I guess that speaks to how long trucks last.