Modern Buggy Adding Truck Campers to its Model Lineup – RVBusiness – Breaking RV Industry News
EDWARDSBURG, Mich. – When Earl Williams purchased Modern Buggy RV in February 2022, he set out to build one of the most affordable overland trailers in the market.
Williams had been in the supply side of the RV industry for 30 years, including 10 years at Patrick industries before switching to the OEM arena and it didn’t take him long to realize that there was a robust market for small, off-grid type travel trailers.
Along came the the Mod-Bug lineup: all of them sporting high-end components, and lightweight, composite leakproof construction.
Now, he’s taking that same formula to truck campers.
His first model is aimed squarely at the Ford Ranger, Chevy Colorado, Toyota Tacoma, Nissan Frontier, et.al. crowd.
“The direction we’re going is like we did on the Modern Buggy,” Williams told RVBusiness this week. “The plan is to be the lightest guy out there.”
Williams said at a recent show in Portland, “I’m staring at Lance Campers and Palominos and all these units that are freakin’ heavy. You need three-quarter tons, you need dualies or a super-heavy-duty half ton to haul some of these. So, I just think there’s a big gaping hole of opportunity for a good lightweight.”
The first unit Mod-Bug produced – and the first that will eventually reach the market – barely touches 1,000 pounds, Williams said, adding that the truck campers will employ the same techniques used in his travel trailers – composite flooring and one-piece composite and Azdel walls and ceilings.
“Just lightweight and as waterproof as possible,” he said.
Research he has done has him convinced he is on the right track.
“I was at PleasureLand (PleasureLand RV Center, West Salem, Wis.) a couple of weekends ago working a show there at a new dealer we added,” he said. “They were saying how cyclical the RV industry works. At one time, truck campers were booming, pop-up campers were booming and they went away. Now they’re kind of making a resurgence. But some of the major inherited problems with truck campers are a lot of roof leaks. And they asked, ‘What are you doing to prevent that?’ and that’s why we’re staying with Azdel composite, one-piece roofs and ceilings so that there’s not any place where water can migrate into the unit.”
Floorplan No. 1, the smaller unit, features a bed over the cab with a dinette below it using a table that can fold into a small sleeping surface. A microwave and stove, LP furnace and AC are included. This unit won’t feature a wet bath but will have a self-composting toilet. An outside shower with a small water tank will allow campers to rinse off, much like as in the Little Buggy travel trailer.
Floorplan No. 2, even though larger, will be half-ton haulable and will feature the same cabover bed as virtually every other truck camper on the market. On the right as you enter the rig will be a sofa that folds into a bed. A larger cabinet and sink area will be located in the front left corner. Plans include pantry storage, a larger refrigerator and a wet bath in the back left with a shower and toilet.
“We’re shooting for it be right at 1,800 to 19,900 pounds,” Williams said. “Everything else I’ve seen has been 2,500 or 2,600 pounds and again, you can get that on a half ton truck, but now you load in your gear, you fill it up with water. Now all of a sudden, you’re over 3,000 pounds and you’re making that half ton work. So we want to come in at least under the radar enough that you can comfortably put that on a half ton.”
MSRPs for the small unit should come in around $19,000 and $27,000 for the larger version.
“Sometimes people look at small units and say, ‘Man, why is that more than a 27-foot travel trailer?’ Well, that’s stick-n-tin with OSB plywood on the floor. There’s no comparison. It’s a different kind of construction,” he said. “I don’t want this stuff coming back. I don’t want 15 calls a month for roofs leaking. I’m trying to build these as good as I possibly can.”
He said today’s consumers are looking for better products and better components with less hassle.
“Quality. It’s been said forever, but I think as the industry shrinks up for various reasons – interest rates, fuel, confidence – people now are a little bit pickier. They want a camper, but man, they want something they won’t have to keep dumping money in,” Williams said.
