Meet Uni: Our 1998 Hilux Camper Build
Last fall we were looking around for a first gen Toyota Tundra to have as a second truck. The idea behind it was to have a smaller vehicle for when we’re staying at our home base that could also be used to help on house projects, to potentially be apart of our developing future travel plans, production projects and shorter trips . We weren’t having a ton of luck with our search until one day while perusing classifieds we found something very different. A Japanese Toyota Hilux!
Us shortly after purchasing Uni!
We have had a soft spot for the Toyota Hilux ever since our trip to Australia where we got to borrow one from Norweld. That one was super decked out and an absolute dream to use. The one we found on Facebook Marketplace was… well it was going to take a little bit of work to get it to be a “dream”. Regardless, we had stars in our eyes and we bought the Hilux.
Uni, our 1998 Toyota Hilux with Super Pacific X1 Camper
Over the course of the last six months we have slowly been working on the Hilux, named Uni, in the background. Slowly but surely she has become quite the little weapon and we’re really stoked with how she is turning out. Below you’ll find a list of what she’s got going on so far.
1998 Toyota Hilux
Since we don’t get the Hilux in the United States, we were pretty unfamiliar with the specs of Uni. She’s powered by a 2.4L diesel 2L-TE engine. Upon further research of this engine, it seems like it isn’t a particularly sought after model. Hopefully she’ll hold up okay with moderate use since we still have our more comprehensive truck, Jolene.
When we purchased Uni she was riding SUPER stiff. To the point that any dirt road was pretty unbearable. Obviously that wouldn’t do so one of the first edits we made was swapping out the old suspension for a new set from Dobinsons. We run Dobinsons on our Toyota Tundra and we love it so this was an easy decision to go with them again for Uni. Thank you so much to our dear friend Chivas for helping me get all of the suspension installed. I couldn’t have done it without him!
The Hilux also came with some huge fender flares. We’re talking, arctic expedition style, monstrous fender flares. That aesthetic wasn’t doing it for us and they were being held on with thin wire (literally they were being used like metal twist ties) so those had to go too. Unfortunately finding OEM fender flares for a truck that wasn’t sold in America is tough for us. So if you know a source, let us know!
After removing the fender flares, the tires were sticking way too far out from the body. The tires were also too big and were rubbing now that we could drive the Hilux off road with the new suspension. We opted for Toyo Open Country A/T III tires for Uni because we find that they are a great balance of performance and practicality. The R/Ts are sweet, but they are louder and don’t have as long of a lifespan as the A/T IIIs. Plus, the Open Country A/T III tires also come in white lettering and we thought it would pair nicely with the look of the rest of the Hilux. We wrapped the Toyos around a new set of wheels from Nomad. We chose the 501 Convoys for their classic look and the white (“Salt”) color. The purple and white is going to be a real vibe on Uni! The offset of the Nomad wheels helped bring the tires in and our poke out is feeling so much better now. We’re really stoked with how this paring turned out!
Super Pacific X1
Shortly after purchasing Uni, we were already day dreaming about what an overland build would look like on this little truck. Because of how small the Hilux is, it seemed like a lightweight wedge camper would be our best bet. Having been in the overland world for a while now, we were pretty familiar with the offerings and we knew immediately Super Pacific was the camper for us. We always loved the design and their unique and clever tent, but through some additional research we grew to understand just how well they are built. Following cues from the aerospace industry, they manufacture their campers with hundreds of rivets and only a few welds. These things are built to last!
The other thing we love about the X1 camper is that it is super modular. There are mounting points all over the place and wire tunnels so that you can truly build this thing up to be exactly what you need. This is something I really love about the Super Pacific X1 and it’s cool to see all the creative builds people in the community are making.
Campers are a big investment, but I did want to mention that if you end up purchasing a Super Pacific camper or tent, mention us (Bound for Nowhere) as your referral you’ll receive $250 in Gear Shop Credit. Pretty cool right?!
Vecel Outdoors Camper System
With the X1 on the Hilux, it was time to start exploring what to do with the blank slate that was our truck bed. We looked at doing something like what we did in our Toyota Tacoma, Lando, but the problem is that Uni’s truck bed is quite short. So if we were to put a platform in that went across the whole truck bed, we would literally be crawling into the camper. We needed to find a different solution.
Enter, Vecel Outdoors. We met Keith a few years ago through the Four Wheel Camper community. Keith and his family had an amazing Project M that he built the interior of after not finding anything already being made that fit his needs. That launched Vecel Outdoors and a few years on, Keith is making camper systems for all the major camper tops.
What we love about Vecel is that they aren’t using any wood screws in their builds. We’ve had SO many of these back out in our Four Wheel Camper over the years that we keep a screwdriver and wood glue in a cabinet for easy access. The designs are thoughtful and they look great. I find that the overland industry is tragically lacking in interiors that are actually pleasant to look at and Vecel has thankfully bucked that trend. The use of quality materials and construction is the cherry on top.
Everything Else
While the Super Pacific and Vecel Outdoors systems are the headliners for the Hilux, there are still plenty of other bits to talk about.
Dometic CFX5 45
The Vecel Outdoors system has a place made specifically for fridges, which is another reason we went with them, so we popped in a 45L fridge from Dometic. It’s always so nice to have a fridge rather than a cooler. Dealing with purchasing ice every few days and having food get waterlogged gets old fast. We’ve already used Uni for several production shoots and having the CFX5 for craft services has been amazing!
Dometic GO Hydration Water Jug 11L
Super Pacific makes a ton of accessories to help customize your camper and when we were exploring the show room, their mount for this water jug really caught our eye. It mounts nicely and allows us to access water inside the camper or out thanks to the flexibility of the faucet.
Dometic CFX5 and Water Jug
Hest Dually Mattress
We have a Hest in our Four Wheel Camper and it’s the best mattress we’ve ever had. That made it a very easy decision to add another Hest to the Super Pacific X1. The X1 comes with an inflatable Exped mattress but we found the Hest to be quite an upgrade over it. Its definitely a tighter squeeze when closing the camper but so far it hasn’t been an issue.
We’re long time users and lovers of Hest products, if you’re interested in purchasing anything from them use Code NOWHERE for 10% off. <3
Hest Dually Mattress, Pillows, Comforter and Cooling Sheets (game changer in hot temps)
What’s Left?
We are thrilled with Uni so far, but there is still a lot left to be done. Are these overland builds ever really done?
Power System
The most glaring hole is a power source for the camper. We’re currently using a Dometic PLB40 which can power the CFX5 for a few days, but we have to unplug the fridge and bring it to the cab to charge it while driving. The goal for this build is to have a power system that can be pulled out easily if needed so we’re thinking we’ll use something like the Redarc GoBlock for this and run a wire to the camper that can charge it while the truck is running. We’re not sure how much computer work we’ll do while using this overlanding rig, so this could change, but for now we’re thinking simple is better.
Cooling
Uni is an old truck and she definitely doesn’t like big hills on hot days. To really get her dialed in we’ll be looking into a more robust cooling system to keep her happy. A lot more research needs to be done on this one, but if you know of options please let us know!
Fender Flares
As mentioned earlier, we’d love to complete the look of this truck with some OEM fender flares.
Fixing Old Truck Things
If you’ve ever had an old vehicle you know that things eventually break. There are a ton of small things that aren’t quite working right in the Hilux right now that we need to fix, but aren’t crucial. The power window button on the passenger side doesn’t work, the air conditioning is broken and the back up camera stopped working to name a few.
We hope you enjoyed this breakdown of our new overlanding rig, Uni. This little Toyota Hilux has been so much fun and we can’t wait to really break it in and travel with it. Drop a comment below if you have any questions and we’ll see you down the road!