Before you build
What owners wish they'd known.
Smart is the essentials at a lower cost.
Tires & Suspension
All terrain tire, 265/70R17 standard load. 14/32 tread, three peak snow rated, with a 65,000 mile tread warranty.
Glovebox sized inflator for topping off tires and airing back up after a trail. It clamps onto the battery, and comes with a pressure gauge, an LED work light and a brass twist-on chuck.
Recovery & Safety
Traction Boards
X-Bull Gen 3.0 Recovery Traction BoardsTire Repair
ARB Speedy Seal Series II Tire Repair KitNote: Boards and a tire repair kit handle almost anything. Skip the winch early, it's the most regretted buy.
Sleep & Shade
Bed rack for a 2005 to 2022 short bed Tacoma built to sit level with the Prinsu cab rack, rated 700 lbs parked. Aluminum, bolt-together, mounting at the bed rail stake pockets with no drilling.
Cab rack for a 2005 to 2023 Tacoma running a camper cap, rated 300 lbs moving and 600 parked. Aluminum, sold in six widths from 16 to 42 inches to match the camper, mounting to the factory front and middle roof points with no drilling.
Entry-level softshell for two to three with the mattress included. 600D ripstop polyester with polyurethane impregnation on anodized aluminum poles over a 1 inch aluminum and polyurethane sandwich base, opening to 95 by 56 inches with 51 inches of headroom. 118 lbs.
Wraparound shade down the side of the vehicle and around the back, 132 sq ft of it, reaching 78 inches out. The canopy is 280 gsm ripstop polycotton, UV50+ with a 2000 mm waterhead, and the case packs to 86 inches closed. Support poles are optional in Rhino's own instructions, wanted in wind or rain. Sold in left and right hand versions with a matching wall kit, under a one year warranty. 69.9 lbs.
Power
Power Station
EcoFlow DELTA 2 Portable Power StationNote: No wiring and no install, you can pull it out or top it off at home. The catch is capacity, run a fridge hard for a few days and you'll be chasing sun or a plug.
Storage
One large drawer under a load floor for the 2005 to 2023 Tacoma bed, rated 1,000 lb on the deck. High impact polymer resin co molded to a steel subframe, weatherproof, sold for the 5 foot and 6 foot beds.
Food & Water
Single zone fridge freezer, 45 liters, that cools to 0 F, rated 55 W and 0.347 kWh a day in the maker's lab test, on a Secop compressor with three stage battery protection. Runs on 12/24 V DC or 110 to 240 V AC, with a 5 year compressor warranty and 1 year on the rest.
Note: A powered fridge skips ice and meltwater, worth it past a few days out. It runs off the power system above; a cooler is cheaper for weekends.
Slide that fits the ICECO VL45, VL35, 45Pro, JPPro and APL35 fridges and extends 52.7 inches at full pull, with four tie down straps included. 28.1 by 18.4 by 2.62 inches closed. Mounting screws are not included.
Note: On the open-bed Smart build the fridge rides exposed on a locking slide. A quality 12V fridge handles rain and dust fine, and the Decked drawers keep the rest of your gear locked and dry. Add a fridge cover or cable lock for dusty or high-traffic spots.
Lighting
Lantern on folding legs that runs on its 2,600 mAh rechargeable pack or three AA cells when that is flat. 250 lumens, 24 hours on high and 150 on low on the pack, 18 and 120 on alkalines. Dimmable, rated IPX4, with a USB port to charge a phone. 12.1 oz.
Looking for camping accessories?
Owner-recommended gear that rounds out your setup.
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