This Toyota Hilux Micro Camper Is Tougher than Shoe Leather and Looks like a Million Bucks
Toyota is known for building the indestructible pickup truck. The Toyota pickup truck 4×4 is the seed from which the Tundra, Tacoma, and Hilux all sprouted. Of course, we don’t get the Hilux on this side of the Atlantic, which is a crying shame. The Hilux might just be the toughest of all the current Toyota pickup trucks. Seeing as how the Hilux embodies overlanding for the rest of the world, Japan’s Direct Cars Co has transformed one into a super-cool all-terrain micro camper that is tough as hell and looks like a million bucks.
What is the best truck to build a camper?
As Top Gear showed the world, the little red Hilux they tried very hard to kill is simply the world’s toughest pickup truck. Seeing as campers are only as good as they are tough, the best truck for a camper build is the Toyota Hilux.
“It’s been drowned, it’s been torched, it’s been crashed, it’s been pummeled, it’s been dropped from the air, and yet it’s still running. It’s the Toyota Hilux pickup, the most indestructible car in the world,” Top Gear sums it up.
Let’s take a look at the Direct Cars’ Hilux camper
According to New Atlas, Direct Cars chose not to go the quick and easy route of sliding the camper shell into the bed. Instead, they hard-mounted the camper shell to the bare chassis directly behind the cab. It officially calls its creation the BR75 SUV Adventure Camper.
Direct Cars wanted to call it an SUV to distinguish between a normal pickup truck with a camper attachment and a full pass-through cab to a camper rig. Direct Cars gave the Hilux camper a pop-top roof and a high alcove sleeper roof.
Toyota Hilux camper interior
The interior of this Toyota Hilux camper is stunning. There is no shortage of sleeping room thanks to the camper floor quickly transforming into a second double bed. Thanks to the roof layout, the Hilux camper sleeps five people.
The Toyota doesn’t offer a full kitchen. Instead, it splits the space with the living room and bathroom. While this layout might not appeal to all campers, New Atlas notes that this makes room for one of the best bathroom designs on the truck camper market. The rear shower opens up to the outside, making it a completely private bathing experience. Although the shower room is amazing, the builders make no mention of a bathroom.
According to New Atlas, the BR75 also includes a 200-Ah lithium-ion battery, 1,500-W inverter, and 200-W solar panel providing power to the portable fridge, LED lighting, water pump, internal and external power outlets, and more. A touchscreen control panel gives campers all the info on the rig and switching for all the electrical equipment. A space heater is also included, and an air conditioner is available.
Campers are never cheap
Direct Cars offers this incredibly cool Toyota Hilux camper in two trims: the “G” trim which starts at $94,725, and the “Z” trim, starting at $83,550.
