Invisible Truck Camper? Company Says You Can Use Your Inside Rearview Mirror

Alright, so it's a teaser--what truck camper can you see through when its on your truck bed? We haven't found one, but the Quicksilver is an interesting approach to truck camping. Think in terms of a "pop up trailer" on your truck bed.

Built by Livin' Light Recreational Vehicles out of (where else?) Goshen, Indiana, the Quicksilver truck camper is mostly aluminum and composite based, making it light enough to throw away the corner jacks: It's said two folks can lift even the largest Quicksilver onto a full size pickup truck bed. It'll probably still require the same two folks to lift the smallest onto a suitable compact trucks, say a Ford Ranger. Since specs indicate the camper scales in at 440 pounds, our money says have an ambulance on stand-by the first time you try and slide it in the truck bed with two.

How many sardines can you pack in Quicksilver? Livin' Light says you can sleep up to four, and when not otherwise engaged in snoozing, occupants can sit down to a meal or a game of cards at the dinette table, or warm themselves by an electric heater. The heater isn't included, but the place to plug it in, is.

Obviously built to fill a niche, the Quicksilver may be just the thing for young "have pickup, will travel" family. You can find out more about this new character by visiting the company website. And about those "see through" issues? With the camper set in "go" position, it's said to sit low enough, that yes, you really can see through the rear view mirror.

Dodge Ram for 2009 - Spring Loaded?

No, it's not a new ploy toward greater fuel economy, don't think in terms of wind-up-trucks. Rather, Dodge has announced that it's 2009 model year Ram pickup truck will come--not with the usual leaf springs--but coil springs for rear end suspension.

While the company argues that the suspension system has been completely redesigned for good handling, some truck camper owners are reacting with suspension suspicion. Said one in a popular forum, "Many people buy trucks only for that truck 'look,' not the capabilities of a truck . . . These trucks are going to be marketed to that crowd, the boulevard cruisers."

Indeed, it's a purty small truck camper that can comfortably be toted on a 1/2 ton truck. We tried in years ago, beefing up the existing leaf springs and "porpoise-ing" around the countryside until we finally broke down and moved the rig onto a 3/4 ton unit.

Nevertheless, there is a review, including an interview with a Dodge suspension engineering team member found here. Really, this all goes back to the simple rule: Make sure you have enough truck to support the camper you want to tote. For a fuller discussion of that topic, check out an earlier post on this blog here.

Hey, on while we're on the subject of truck campers (aren't we always?), don't forget to read John Steinbeck's Travels With Charley, the definitive truck camper travel story, written early in the truck camper era. Check it out on the RV Bookstore.

Photo: kevin on flickr. com