Hi stevef,
I've looked into this a bit and others on the forum have as well. I'd suggest a search using the keyword 'camper'. I assume you mean a slide-in truck camper and will respond based on that.
One of the biggest limitations of the Tundra in this regard is the relatively low payload rating for the 4x4. I have a '01 4x4 Limited and its just over 1,400. There are a several good forums out there on truck campers and one of the hottest topics is whether it is safe and advisable to exceed your GVWR. Some feel you shouldn't while others feel wide safety margins are built into any truck and exceeding by 10 or 20% is acceptable.
I wanted to put a truck camper on my Tundra and found that the only option to stay at my GVWR when the camper was 'wet' (full of water and propane) was to only consider a pop-up. There are many brands out there and they weigh from 700# for a Four Wheel to 1,500#+ for the heavier ones. Unfortunately, I didn't like the idea of having to raise and lower everytime I wanted to use or the ability to 'camp' in a populated area.
I then looked at the lightest hard shell campers out there. Two are made of fiberglass: Northern Light and Bigfoot. Only Northern Light makes a short bed camper and the purported weight is a about 1,000#. The model is called 6'10" reflecting the length of the floor. It has a small cab-over bed and interior height is 5'11" I think. If you are tall you might feel a permanent crick develope in your neck. This camper is actually a little small in width for th Tundra as its made for smaller imports.
The other thing to remember is that any camper over 1,000# has to be combined with the weight of passengers, fuel, tie-downs, air bags, sway bar, bed mat and all the fun stuff you put in the camper. I would think this would put it well over the GVWR of the Tundra.
What did I do... I bought a hard shell fiberglass that is no longer made by Bigfoot. Very similiar to the Northern Lite in size and weight. It has fridge/freezer, 3 burner stove, heater, dinette and cab-over bed. I have weighed my truck and exceed GVWR by about 500#, or 8-9% when fully loaded. I have installed the Hellwig rear sway and air bags to keep the truck level when loaded. Of course any camper I considered was non-selfcontained, meaning no toilet, shower or holding tanks. That really boosts weight. I wish I was under GVWR but this was the best I could do with what I wanted.
I have links to the forums I mentioned and campers on a different PC. If you are interested I can post. Sorry for the long-winded response.
|