So I've been overlanding and 4 wheeling for about 10 years now. I currently own a 2012 nissan frontier with a camper shell by leer with a drawer system (homemade) with a bedslide on top of the drawers. With the huge increased size and lack of fender body armor I've sustained some body damage, nothing that prevents me from driving buy unaddressed it will rust and frankly just looks unappealing.
Uteltd.com
Hey Triple Deuce,
Im at a similar point in my build but not identical so hope my input will at least be helpful.
Before:
My girlfriend had a very clean Taco TRD that she wanted to kit out to LOOK expo and preform better.
That sounded good to me.
You know, install a sleeping platform, add some cargo boxes, flex the suspension a bit and just use the truck as it was intended/ factory equipped.
Big mistake!
Stuff started breaking, paint started scratching, motor started ticking and in a few short trips she has turned her truck from a really clean commuter into an ugly mess she is ashamed to park next to her bosses new Volt!
*I guess what im trying to say is that ******** happens on the trail, period!
(ie. I was driving on a perfectly safe (but muddy) river trail, reached down to jiggle my sticky Dana 20 x-fer case into gear like i had done thousands of times before and within a heart beat or two wound up launching my J-10 off the river bank and putting my copilots head into the windshield.)
Totaled the front end in prolly 5 seconds.
Unless you have big disposable income for weekly repairs (wrench for 5 so you can wheel for 2) you are better off keeping your daily driver a daily driver.
Install the recovery points, exo-skelaton and 300 gallon fuel tanks on a purpose built expo/overland rig.
On its first day out, its maiden voyage, "roll it off the side of a mountain" just to check out your cage and safety seats. (making a dedicated and disposable expo rig costs less than deprecation on wrecked new truck)
This repair only took 15 minutes to fix but since it was her daily driver we had to get it fixed asap.
After:
Now im building a dedicated overland rig.
Full size Dodge, RTT, ARE hi top shell with matching truck bed trailer and matching ARE shell.
Im gonna keep the build simple and cheap and if it burns to the ground, rolls over or throws a rod at 90 mph, it will scrap out for more than i have invested.
Not saying a decked out 2017 Unimog, ARB expo bumper or axle truss welded in the vacuum of space while on your lunch hour at the jet propulsion laboratory isn't cool, those things are very cool but just a little impracticle.
KISS principal is always best.
Hope that was helpful.
Robert
