our new tiger 4x4

[lqhikers]

more mods on our tiger

I was laying on my creeper under our tiger (don't we all spend time underneath our rigs?)and saw a big open space
could not let space go to waste so after measuring i found there was room to add a storage compartment that was 30"
deep,and if section was tapered,due to truck frame intruding it would fit.
did mock up with cardboard had to build in two sections to install.
built it out of 1/2"plywood painted inside and out.
due to it being within 4" of muffler i added a heat shield with 1 inch space.
door is framed in alum angle and is kept closed with 2 mag catches.
this might work for other tiger owners.our truck is a 2012 reg cab 4x4 chevy, so do not know if fords or dodges would have
a open space.

Les,lqhikers

 

[lqhikers]

more tiger mods

Since the battery compartment was a hassle to get into i decided to redo what should of been done at factory.
first i removed panels under sofa,they are held together with screws that can only be accessed from the inside.
i relocated the 12v outlet and 110v outlet to the one panel that had the propane detector mounted on it,doing this made it possible to re-route wiring
so when i unscrewed 4 relocated screws to the out side the panel then can be removed to give room to get into the battery compartment.

the factory does not leave the access clear you have to cut out a piece of the vinyl and remount the water pump.
doing this leaves a small gap in the floor where vinyl was removed the second piece of metal (alum) i added covers gap
and is not noticeable when everything is back together.
now i can reach the batteries by removing the 2 screws that the arrows point to.

i also used this area to mount a small inverter to use when needed.

hope this helps other tiger owners unhappy with battery access.

Les,lqhikers

 

[lqhikers]

and a couple of more mods.

solar controller is mounted under cabinet above counter top area,wiring is through roof to controller then routed
through cabinets to battery compartment,simple and easy to service.

we removed rear cushion on sofa (did not use it).mounted 4 brackets makes ideal travel storage for 2 chairs and our small alum fold up table.
they stay clean and do not rattle.

and of course everyone needs quick access to your wasp spray and bear spray!

and that is the update on our latest mods.

Les,lqhikers

 

[suntinez]

I was laying on my creeper under our tiger (don't we all spend time underneath our rigs?)and saw a big open space could not let space go to waste so after measuring i found there was room to add a storage compartment that was 30" deep,and if section was tapered,due to truck frame intruding it would fit.

did mock up with cardboard had to build in two sections to install.
built it out of 1/2"plywood painted inside and out.
due to it being within 4" of muffler i added a heat shield with 1 inch space.
door is framed in alum angle and is kept closed with 2 mag catches.
this might work for other tiger owners.our truck is a 2012 reg cab 4x4 chevy, so do not know if fords or dodges would have
a open space.

Les,lqhikers

Smart - I'll be diving back under mine now to see if that space is available on my Ford. It's such a big step up, I should've thought to look there before.

With the directly in front of the door location, it's a great space for storage. I recall someone (Lance?/aka NoNeck) building storage compartments into the floor of his CX, but his access was through the standing surface inside so a bit different. Beautiful craftsmanship as usual.

Thanks for the updates and pics of your electrical/solar setup. I really wonder sometimes about the folks who design these things - and Provan is admittedly much better than most. Do they never break down? Do they never need service in the field? Anyhow it looks like you've solved your battery access issues in style, appreciate you sharing the solution - food for thought as I ponder my own.

I really like the smaller rear window on yours, much better than an all-the-way across one which is then covered by a "waterproof" bathroom curtain.

Enjoy ...

 

[DiploStrat]

Really nice work!

 

[mudmony]

I love that you are out enjoying...while others here spend countess hours ( in other threads) and try to determine if this would be the proper vehicle for this application. Some talk and some do...good luck

 

[Overland Hadley]

Thanks for the updates Les.

 

[lqhikers]

thoughts on tiger

since returning from our last trip i've been thinking why do i seem to like this
rig as much or more than some of my others and have come up with some ideas.

1. the lay out is just about perfect for 2 people,to much for one,not enough for more than two.
remember the rig we had before was a ford van with pop top,perfect for one too tight for two if
you plan to spend long periods on the road.

2. even though the milage is lower than any of our other rigs by 4-6 mpg the trade off for space
and comfort makes up for it.

3.being able to customize to our wishes at time of ordering let us have a set up that we wanted not what some one else thought we
needed. this includes being able to order the truck set up as we wanted (as i have stated earlier we wanted the most basic truck to
begin with,with all bells and whistles deleted.)

4.if you have not driven or been on/off the road in a current tiger you will be as surprised as to how tight everything is,i do not
know how the extended cab or crew cabs feel but would think they might feel a little looser. have nothing to base this on.

5.size is deceiving on our last trip we covered some of the same backroads,4x4 roads,forest roads,etc that we have in the past taken
our vans,toyota/with fwc/toyota with slide in six-pac camper/vw vans and had no clearance,departure angle problems different from
earlier rigs,on the size question the tiger is only 9" wider than a full size fwc with jacks.

6.and so far the very best thing about the tiger is the side door! after having spent years traveling the back roads of ca,nevada,idaho
you will know what i mean when i mention how very,very dirty(silt,alkali,etc) the rear of your rig gets plus there is no way(yes i know about closing all the
windows and turning the blower on high) that you can keep the crap from getting inside! this alone keeps the wife very happy,which keeps me even happier!.

just my thoughts on our bengal tiger.

Les,lqhikers

 

[ersatzknarf]

Hi Les,

Wow. Can't thank you enough for your observations and sharing so much about your Tiger.

(thanks also for the details on the battery access )

A lot of what you wrote really helps. #6 made me smile

My wife and I had a chance to talk about about a few things over a camping trip we made over this past long weekend (well, took a vacation day...) and she is really getting wound up about having an rv. I let slip a bit about the Tiger...

The more I try to keep telling myself that a rover can make a good camper for us, the more and more I realize that the Tiger is just a great, great solution for two people to be able to get away.

Please can you tell us a bit more about how you ordered the truck part of the camper ? I am interested in the "WT" (?) option, which I think you chose. However, the Chevy website was not much help at all

Also, was there a reason that the Chevy worked out over the other two choices, may I ask ? The Ford seems like it would be good, too. The Dodge unfortunately only seems to come as a DRW, but if I understood the Tiger brochure correctly, that can be converted to SRW, but of course it all adds to the cost :smilies27

I will admit here that I prefer diesel power (whenever possible) and liked the thought of the Cummins, but really haven't found any good comparison of the latest big three 1 ton trucks (never thought I would even ever consider one ! :Wow1: ).

Anyway, wanted to thank you (and Suntinez & Esmi) very much for fueling a dream that maybe might someday be a possibility :sombrero:

Please keep up the good work !

Awaiting the next installment, please ! :coffeedrink:

 

[lqhikers]

motorcycle carrier.

Just a quick picture of the carrier we use on the tiger.

i did a kick up on bracket so the departure angle stays the same.

Les,lqhikers

 

[wmccluan]

How long a wait?

I'm interested in a Tiger Bengal, and wonder how long it took between signing the contract/deposit and delivery. Thanks!

 

[lqhikers]

our delivery time

the build time was approx 6 weeks,but since we ordered our truck from the factory to our
specs instead of buying a truck off the dealer lot the time will very depending on truck build
time..

i think the truck build time was also about 6weeks.

i would say that if you spec ordered a truck near the model change over it would be longer .

also the estimated time by Provan was as promised to the day!

Les,lqhikers

 

[Mark Harley]

I have a 6.0 in my 2500HD crew cab truck.
The one item I can recommend for added fuel milage and a couple more
horse power is an AIRAID intake kit and filter box.

I was skeptical about their listed results but I can say it does help.

I also like the simpler functions, crank windows, vinyl floor, manual door locks, manual mirrors, and I wish I had standard shift.

Great rig. Keep us posted on your travels.

Mark Harley

 

[sourdough]

You have a very nice rig :drool:and thanks for posting your experiences with it. I like your logic about simplifying and deleting some unwanted packaged options. I was wondering if you have any regrets having a reg. cab vs extra cab or the gas vs the diesel motor option? I am leaning toward the reg. cab but with the duromax/allison option. I am leaning toward towing a small enclosed trailer on longer trips.Having no experience, your insight would be appreciated.

 

[lqhikers]

sourdough;

we went with gas engine as we will never put the milage in that the added cost of diesel
might warrant.

as we knew what we wanted we have no regrets about reg cab,again we use ours off the road a lot (4x4 trails etc)
so we wanted to keep it as short as possible.

when we picked up our tiger at the factory we towed our toyota sedan back home,towed
with no strain did not even effect gas milage.

i gave up a long time ago having to have the "most horsepower,etc" so do not need to boost my ego
by driving a diesel!

as i have said in the past if i towed heavy trailers etc i would have a truck just for that.


the tiger is to us a get away toy that we enjoy the more we use it.

it now has just passed the 7000 mile mark since picked up april 2012 .

no problems,no regrets.

Les,lqhikers