ONE YEAR review of the Overland features of my Jeep Gladiator

It's time to take a closer look and evaluate all the different living systems built into my Overland Jeep Gladiator - what was it like to actually live?

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00:00 Introduction
00:50 Overland Kitchen Kitchen
07:49 Swag for sleeping
12:22 Driving Cabin
17:07 Locking Storage Box
20:22 Canvas Canopy
23:52 Conclusion

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The Camera Gear I use:
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Stay in touch:
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Books I've published about my expeditions around the world:
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❱ The Road Chose Me Volume 2: Three years and 54,000 miles around Africa
375 pages of misadventures, stories, characters, politics and more from driving all the way around Africa!

❱ 999 Days Around Africa: The Road Chose Me
75 page full-color photography book from each of the 35 countries I visited in Africa

❱ The Road Chose Me Volume 1: Two years and 40,000 miles from Alaska to Argentina
265 pages of adventure, inspiration and antics from driving the length of the Pan-American highway

❱ Overland Travel Essentials: West Africa: Myths, Misconceptions and Misnomers
Everything you need to know to undertake your own Overland Expedition in West Africa

❱ Work Less to Live Your Dreams: A practical guide to saving money and living your dreams
The tips, tricks, ideas and perspectives I've learned to save the money I need to live the life I want

#JeepGladiator #4x4 #Overland

[ricoman]

Years ago I overlanded in Africa several times for longer trips, Australia for a few shorter trips and once in India. Sleeping in small backpacking tents on a foamy worked fine, younger bones in those days but even then, 4 to 6 months at a time kind of wore on. Another thing was ants and other insects, mosquitoes and of course, the animals in Africa. As exciting as it was to watch hyenas enter camp within minutes of crawling into the tent, there was always a little apprehension involved. I’ve watched tons of videos of people on their fantastic and envious adventures driving the world and if I had the opportunity to do it today, and cost was secondary, I’d use a Toyota Troopy, with or without the pop top, build it out minimally and use only the lightest weight materials and equipment. Having the internal van like space of the Troopy combined with such a capable machine would be excellent. Keeping the vehicle weight below max is key, a fridge and plenty of purified water. After that I think the key to living on the road is being organized. You will have many things in many storage places in the vehicle but if you know exactly where those things are when you need them you will keep the frustration level to a minimum and enjoyment to a maximum.

[mainelybuds]

I do a ton of research before I start a new adventure. Any adventure.
When I see one of your videos on a topic that I'm researching, I smile because I know my work is done.
You tell it like it is, speak from experience, and I trust and value your opinion.
Thank you Dan, Dan the man.

[wesleymcgonagle]

Gidday Dan, longwinded Aussie story, lol. 50+ years ago my Grand Parents sold up everything in Brisbane and moved to Lightning Ridge, NSW to Opal Mine (Crazy Right). anyway my Grandpa was jack of all trades and very inventive, could always come up wit a solution for anything, sometimes it took a few iterations to get it right, lol. So Bulldust out there was horrendous, not much blacktop out there then.
So he had an old International 4x4 Station Wagon and towed a 30' Caravan, that he beefed up of course to handle the roads (More like Tracks). That van always was full of bull dust after every trip that they went on.(Annoyed my Nana to no end) So he got this cylindrical old pre filter fan box (looked like what you used to see on the mudguard on old Landrover's before snorkels) except it had a fan inside it and the dust collector bowl on top. Anyway, he mounted that on the caravan and wired it up to a switch, he would hook up the caravan to truck and turn on the fan, 12vdc powered off the caravan batteries which he connected to the truck to charge the batteries while he was driving (50+ years ago mind you) This would intern pressurise the van with filter air, the air would leak out of any holes or gaps where the dust would normally come in and almost kept the interior dust free. He was always ahead of the game.

[DeanShirley]

"Least amount of clutter, " I think sums up everything you do Dan. Not just the interior but the camp, kitchen, and rig. Less gear; more miles!

[calsurflance]

The real voice of experience. You bought it and used it for a year. Who better than you to review the equipment. You even talked about power and fuel usage. Real world honest review! Well done !👍

[mrickerd]

Dan,

I don't have the exact setup that you are asking about towards the end of your video, but I can share my experiences with what I do have.

Double Cab Long bed (6') Tacoma with an AluCab Canopy Camper. It is a full time house on wheels; it is no longer responsible for regular truck duties.

It is fully dust and water proof, bed and all. This took approximately 20 hours to do, as every nook and cranny is sealed with Sikaflex. This was a massive pain, and required a lot of disassembly, but it is so worth it to never have to worry about water or dust getting inside the camper, even in multi-truck convoys. Also, the ACCC has a rear door, so there is no more tailgate to worry about sealing.

The lady and I do prefer being outside as much as possible. However, the interior of the bed is very easy to spend a long time in. With the tent opened and the bed platform raised out of the way it is a very pleasant place to be, especially if you open the upper canvas windows, as they let a lot of light in. The pivoting bed platform allows us to fully stand up in the back. It even has a smaller pivoting platform (~18 inches deep) at the rear that we use as a standing desk.

I built custom storage that gives us places to sit, and there is still enough room in the rear half of the bed to sit at an angle on the ground, with your legs fully outstretched. The floor has a Bed Rug on it, which is plenty comfortable (think bearing full body weight on one knee without discomfort). A well placed pillow or two gives great back support. It is no couch, but it isn't painful at all either.

I would not attempt to live out of the back of the same Tacoma with only a 5' bed. Three of my friends have this setup with GFC's and it is much too small. 1 foot doesn't seem like a lot, but it makes a massive difference. The entirety of my on-demand water system (20 gallons) and power command center, and some storage, all exist in that 1 ft of space that they don't have.

I also wouldn't bother trying to live out of the back of a camper that either did not lift/raise up (as in your case) or if the upper bed platform did not easily move out of the way. Getting dressed on your knees and butt is no fun, even after just a few days!

Anyways, I'm a huge fan. We are just two years away from going full time in the truck. You were and are a massive inspiration to me. Thank you Dan.

[montechie]

I have an OVRLND on a Gladiator in the US West and Montana Rockies for the past year. The bed IS tight for two when staying inside if the top is down, but with the straight pop-up open you can use the full bed area with ~6'6" of standing room AND the loft area is still usable (can sit upright and work up there while someone cooks downstairs) makes the back huge for two and easy to hangout. HUGE advantage over the wedge styles where it's hard to use the bed area AND stand/move around in the bed. We've stayed in the back working, cooking, etc during some blizzards and torrential rain/wind storms. For living space the straight pop-up > wedge, straight vertical walls are > slanted (Project M/OVRLND vs ATs), and sturdier tent material of the OVRLND/Project M/AT Atlas is > the lighter weight material of most wedges (GFC) for wind/bad weather sleeping, and windows are a must when staying inside vs the coffin like Alu-Cab. Toppers/Campers with the slanted sides like the ATs might allow you to squeeze on tight trails more, but so far it hasn't been a problem for us and the OVRLND. The GFCs are probably the lightest and slimmest profile, but it's more of a "only spend time in it for sleeping" and forget getting much sleep in the wind. Most of the topper style popups are > slide-ins for more challenging roads, tracks, and shelf roads. Even with customizations my OVRLND is ~330lbs, others will be closer to 250lbs.

For dust it's the same story as your canvas topper, the tailgate is the biggest issue. However people are adding marine vents with a basic filter on the front to create a pressurized topper, works like a charm. Some of the Aussie companies do similar with their toppers. (PCOR?)

[slybyer]

I’ve got a Ford Raptor with an AT Habitat. I’ve got it built out to primarily live outside, have a slide out kitchen for example, but climb into the bed to get gear, dressed, etc. Climb into bed through the truck bed. Plan is to have a simple setup built with a plywood floor, and cabinets over the wheel wells for storage (water, batteries, etc.).

[DefenderSLO]

Still love the kitchen.
Cheers Dan. 🍻

[manimalworks]

You need positive air pressure inside the canvas to prevent dust from coming in.

[timewithtofu]

I have a go fast camper on my truck. It’s a live in or live out-type setup. When there’s inclement weather, then I’ll set up inside. Nice weather, then I’ll treat it like you do with your gladiator setup

[ML-wsce]

We use the Coleman aswell and in our opinion it´s the best and reliable burner we ever had. Our main travel destinations are northern Europe and the Alpes and therefore we use a pop up camper van due to the temperatures and rain. For two adults and a dog it´s perfect for us. But as you mentioned it depends on your specific needs. Stay safe all together and have fun on the road, kind regards

[capt.stubing]

dust coming in a tailgate thing. It’s a pickup/Ute thing, they all leak. My RLD topper on my Gladiator has the best dust resolution. It’s a pop up forward facing vent that positively pressurizes the bed and works very well. The bed is to small to sleep in. Considering going to a GFC or Super Pacific topper.

[wildcatoutdoors]

Everyone has different wants and needs for sure. On long term basis i think no interior living is a killer, your wrangler is an excellent set up!

[dlansburg]

I’m in the process of building a slide in camper for my Nissan Frontier, in an effort to eliminate dust and easier to heat

[Rebel.Matt]

Good video Dan, always interested in your logic for your set up. I use the Alu-Cab explorer topper on my Gladiator and can put a RTT on it if I choose. To your point, I don't live in the bed, but live out of it. Yes, the Alu-Cab adds weight but all 3 sides open which gives you access to the entire bed. Because of this, I have no moving parts, no sliders for fridges, just one simple drawer I made. Because of this, I think I save some weight by not having a giant slide out. I also utilize the rear bed as my kitchen and have it set up so that my stove and cooking stuff is right there for use. Finally, because alu-cab uses M8 slots throughout, I have gotten creative with my water pump and some storage spots on the under side of the topper. I'm really happy with the Alu-Cab topper and how I've designed the back without having to spend a ridiculous amount of money

[DriftaholiC]

You need to infect filtered air via a blower to keep the air pressure higher in the bed area.

[yorkchris]

I thought about a roll-up tray with sealed alu-boxes and just a hose out bed, but living for any length of time would be gritty. Canvas is probably okay in winter, but GoFast with RTT might be my preferred.
A lot of nautical similarities when you can batten the hatch and weather a storm in some kind of atrium container.

[k]

I live in the folded up back seat. Gear goes in the bed. But thinking of doing a flatbed + al canopy conversion.

[Malc]

Very good review. I'm interested in looking at the Batwing.