From the start, we wanted to be able to spend most nights sleeping in the Jeep Wrangler we already had, while also storing everything we need in or on the car.
When we started looking for ideas on how to make that work, I was surprised by how difficult, expensive, time-consuming, and permanent most of the modifications I found online were.
So I started piecing together my own overland setup, with these criteria:
1. My Jeep
I was set on making this work with the Jeep I already had, rather than buying a van, RV, bus, bigger SUV, etc. because:
(a) We needed something that’s capable off-road, so we wouldn’t be confined to, you know, roads and stuff.
(b) Since I was only months away from setting out on this trip, I didn’t want to have to sell an additional vehicle at the last minute or have a bus or van as my daily driver to work for 6 months.
(c) Most importantly, I really like my Jeep, and didn’t want to sell it.
2. Cheap
I’m all for spending money on good gear when it matters, but parts get pretty expensive, especially the ones that come from aftermarket catalogs and specialty fabricators. And so many of the write-ups I see on Jeep forums involve spending thousands of dollars on a modification, which really adds up after a while. So I wanted to be frugal and DIY when I can, but spend the money when it’s worth it.
3. Quick & Easy
Working a full-time job with a long commute, and having pretty busy weekends, I didn’t have a lot of time to devote to working on the car. A lot of ideas I found online sounded good, but would have taken way more time than I had. I needed stuff I could do in short bursts in the evenings.
4. Temporary
I’m already at well over 100,000 miles on my Jeep, so whenever possible I want to avoid permanent modifications that I can’t transfer to a new Jeep sometime in the future (as well as anything that would hurt resale value if I decide to sell this one). So no welding to the frame, for example. Also, no welding (see point #3).
5. Flexible
I didn’t want to sacrifice flexibility on the roadtrip; the Jeep still needs to fit in a normal parking space, have a working back seat when needed, be secure enough to leave parked in the city, etc. Basically it needs to be able to convert back to car mode really easily.
6. Inconspicuous
We need to be able to sleep in the Jeep without looking like there’s someone sleeping in the Jeep. For camping at a campground it doesn’t matter, but I want to be able to park in a parking lot or on the street without being obvious.
