Turn Your Pickup Into a Full-Featured Overlander with Alu-Cab’s Canopy Camper

By Mike Richard Published April 21, 2021

Long before social distancing became a fact of everyday life, many of us appreciated regular escapes from civilization. That’s why overlanding has exploded in popularity in the last decade. Unfortunately, when you factor in the required gear, technology, and a properly outfitted vehicle, it can prove to be a rather expensive hobby. One clever outfitter recently announced an affordable solution designed to convert most stock pickups into full-featured campers.

The Canopy Camper from Cape Town’s Alu-Cab is a plug-and-play camping solution that slots neatly into the bed of many popular pickups. The modular design features a sealed main area that can be used to stow cargo or as an extra sleep space. All three access doors — an easy-access vertical door at the rear and one on each side — are weather-sealed to protect the contents or occupants from sand, dust, and rain. The entire area is lockable from both inside and out. A heavy-duty, swing-out hinge at the rear is capable of mounting up to a 33-inch spare tire. The interior is lined with storage pockets for easy organization of camping gear, tools, and vehicle maintenance equipment.

1 of 5

Alu-Cab canopy camper — Alu-Cab

Alu-Cab canopy camper — Alu-Cab

Alu-Cab canopy camper — Alu-Cab

Alu-Cab canopy camper — Alu-Cab

Alu-Cab canopy camper — Alu-Cab

Atop the Canopy Camper sits the main sleeping quarters — a pop-up rooftop tent made from dual-layer, UV-resistant canvas. Inside is a massive space with a 100 x 54-inch two-piece elevated mattress setup. The bedding remains in place whether the pop-top is up or down, making for easy setup and breakdown at camp. An integrated rack system also maximizes roof space for attaching a solar-cell system or stowing bikes, kayaks, and other outdoor toys.

Recommended Videos

The Canopy Camper is among Alu-Cab’s newest products. However, the company has hand-built some of the most rugged, canopy-style campers and related add-ons for the overland market for years. Tough enough to handles conditions from the Atlantic Coast to the African bush, all are designed and tested in South Africa’s notoriously harsh weather conditions.

Pricing for the Alu-Cab Canopy Camper depends on the vehicle model, though most start north of $9,000. It’s compatible with more than a dozen truck models from Chevy, Ford, Toyota, and more. All are built to order direct through Alu-Cab.com.

If vanlife is more your speed, the PlugVan module converts most vans into full-fledged campers in about five minutes.

Contributor

Mike Richard has traveled the world since 2008. He's kayaked in Antarctica, tracked endangered African wild dogs in South…

Auto

You never know when you’ll need a tire inflator — grab one for $39

The Craftsman V20 Cordless Tire Inflator on a white background.

Whether you drive a car or ride a bike, we highly recommended you have a tire inflator among your tools. If you don't have one yet, you should check out Amazon's offer for the Craftsman V20 Cordless Tire Inflator. Originally $49, the helpful gadget is down to a more affordable $39 following a $10 discount. You'll only be able to take advantage of this bargain for a limited time though, so if you want to buy this device at 20% off, you're going to have to proceed with your transaction for it as soon as you can.

Why you should buy the Craftsman V20 Cordless Tire Inflator
It doesn't matter if you're dealing with car tires or bike tires, you'll be glad you have the Craftsman V20 Cordless Tire Inflator when you need it. It's a battery-powered device, making it very portable as it doesn't have to be plugged into a wall outlet to work. If you own other tools in the Craftsman V20 system, their batteries will be interchangeable in case you need to swap them around.

Auto

These are the most reliable used cars according to Consumer Reports

Consumer Reports' most reliable used cars

2019 lexus es review 350

With the cost of a new car hovering around $49,000, more and more people are turning to the used car market to find their next ride. Seeing this trend, Consumer Reports has turned to its members to survey owners of 5- to 10-year-old vehicles to find out which brand of used car is the most reliable out there. Recently, Subaru won CR's most reliable new car brand, but (spoiler alert) it did not emerge victorious in the used car contest.

More than 150,000 vehicles ranging from model years 2015 to 2020 were surveyed. Reliability was calculated after studying twenty potential problem areas for each brand's eligible vehicles and assigning a weighted score to each category - the bigger the problem, the lower the score. Consumer Reports only used brands and models for which it had at least five years of data.

Auto

Remember the RB Honda F1 team, now they’re called Racing Bulls

To team owners and sponsors, the name and naming rights are a huge deal.

Visa Cash App RB Honda F1 race car on the track.

Formula 1 race car drivers that changed teams weren't the only transition at the end of the 2024 F1 season. RB Honda also announced that the team would henceforth be called Racing Bulls. This was not the first name change for the Red Bull organization's second team in the F1 roster of ten teams, and it likely will not be the last.
The history of the Racing Bulls team name

Team names may not seem a big deal, but to team owners and sponsors, the name and naming rights are a huge deal. Red Bull Racing bought the former Jaguar works team and began competing in the F1 World Championships in 2005. In 2006, Red Bull bought the Minardi team, headquartered in Italy, and renamed it Toro Rosso, which is Red Bull in Italian -- and Spanish. The current HQ is located in Faenza, Italy.