The Honda Fit Build
Back in 2017 I moved from my home state of Massachusetts to Arizona and shortly after built a small truck camper in my Ford Ranger. It was nothing more than a platform with a few storage compartments underneath and an air mattress on top. Fast forward to 2019 and the engine blew, so I bought my Honda Fit for $2000 with intentions to fix the truck later when I had the time, two years later and it’s still dead in my driveway. In April 2020 I sort of lost my mind and started car camping to stay sane, about two months later I adopted River and within a few weeks decided I needed a better sleeping setup if more adventures were to be possible.
The ole Ranger truck camper
An idea was born, well, seen on youtube really. I had seen a handful of subaru outback campers and wanted something similar, a fairly wide sleeping platform with storage underneath and a shelf on one side. I enlisted the help of my dad, a carpenter who is super talented and has all the necessary tools and knowledge. Initially we built a simple setup that worked out great and, it only took us 5 hours and about $125 to build. I’ve since added some hooks for a nice “walk up” closet, an upper shelf for all my coffee and snack supplies, a small cabinet with a drawer, a spice rack, and a few little extras here and there.
Living in such a small space means organization is absolutely key. I use a combination of packing cubes, stuff sacks, and gear ties to keep things tidy. It’s also helpful that I don’t own too much stuff, I have a seperate gear list that details almost everything I have in the car with me. Part of staying organized is also staying clean and tidy, I’ve never been one to care about dust in my car or dirty floors but now I’m rather crazy about it, sleeping in a sandy bag isn’t fun! In addition to all of that, I try to buy smaller versions of things instead of full size because every little bit helps in such a small space. And if it’s in the car it should either have multiple uses or be essential for my life and enjoyment. I carry a small tool kit with sockets, wrenches, pliers, etc. catering to my car specifically, not too many extras. A bag of various nuts and bolts along with mechanics wire and duct tape are also very handy to have and can get me out of most situations. All of it fits into a small tool tote so there’s no messy tools laying around and they’re very easy to find. Having items that nest together is great too, things like my Stanley cook pot set and the Jetboil Stash save plenty of space without compromising function. Of course there are a few bulky single purpose items that I carry and likely always will. My floor jack is heavy and annoying to carry but absolutely necessary, along with things like; dog toys, cooler, camp chair and table, etc.
Initially the build had a spot for a 6 gallon aqua-tainer which was super handy and mostly convenient, but it took up too much valuable space and had to go. So now I use a few 1 gallon water jugs instead because they fit much better and I tend to drink more water if it’s easier to get to, but more on all that in a minute. We also built a spot specifically for my GoTreads that’s quick and easy to get to from the back hatch, I don’t use them often but when I do, I want immediate access to them. I use them more as leveling blocks as opposed to a recovery solution, I try to be extra careful where I’m driving so I don’t get stuck in the first place. Nevertheless I have used them in some hairy situations and am eternally grateful for them. From the start we knew the cars shape would leave a small gap at the back which fits my small camp chair and ENO single nest hammock perfectly. An empty space in the corner has been a great spot to house my kitchen cleaning kit-that kit consists of a small bottle of soap, a sponge, an MSR scrubber and a small dish towel all in a gallon size plastic bag. The same space on the opposite side has been perfect for a few things; a one pound propane can, my REI flash 18 pack, a few reusable shopping bags, and it’s still up in the air as to what may actually be there. Back to the loss of the aqua-tainer, so first I added a small shelf sorta thing above the water jug to hold spices, coffee, and snacks I wanted easy access to. But that proved to leave me desiring more space, so the next step was to decide what needed to be where, and having all the coffee in one spot, all the spices in one spot, and all the snacks in one spot was the goal. So began work on the cabinet, after butchering the crap out of it myself, I called on my dad once again to fix it, and fix it he did. Had I planned things out better we would’ve saved on wood and weight but now I know for the next one. The two main points of focus for this cabinet were; a door to close off the contents and keep them neat, and it needed at least one drawer(initial plan was two but I ran out of time). This thing has been such a great component to the build, the benefit I never even thought about is how cool and dark it stays in there so I can have sauces and such staying fresh instead of getting baked in the sun all day. Having a drawer to hold fishing gear has been great and when I do get the second drawer added it’ll also be quite useful in keeping various adventure snacks tidy, all my bars, gels, fruit snacks and stuff in a convenient spot. At the bottom we made a small “spice rack” and that has been absolutely ideal. My only gripe is that it's about ½ an inch too skinny to fit some spice brands, but I’m still quite happy with it and the 6 spice jars it’ll hold. I still have the top shelf and that is now solely used for coffee stuff, I have a travel aero press, a real coffee mug, sugar, grinder, and of course the coffee. There’s also a few kuju backpacker coffee pouches for when I don’t want the full aero press, and those things are freakin awesome!
The entire sleeping platform folds up at once, and the reason it’s all one piece is so the sleeping bags all go up at once instead of getting tucked in between and possibly damaged. I’m able to put SO MUCH gear under there it’s crazy. That’s where I keep all the tools, fluids, spare parts, work gloves, etc. There’s also plenty of space for a folding table and Coleman two burner stove, extra shoes, bulky clothes like jeans and snow gear, snowshoes that I refuse to get rid of but also hardly get to use, extra fishing gear, and all the dog stuff.
The first half of this post was written about a month ago, and now I have a Toyota Tacoma. I do currently still own the Honda but may sell it, either way the vehicular camping will still continue, it just might not be in the Honda. Stay tuned for the upcoming Taco build, I spent 3 of the first 4 nights I owned the truck sleeping in the back seat as I travelled through; Crown King, Prescott, Jerome, Williams, and the Mazatzal wilderness of Arizona, and I now know I need something better to sleep in!