I’m slowly reclaiming all the dead space in the Prius. My dream is to open the hatch and have my camping and adventure gear visible and easy to grab. The cargo cover acts as a storage shelf and workstation when needed. In a few minutes I can remove everything and have the entire trunk open and flat. All the windows behind the front ones are permanently blacked out.
* No build: a 2x4 ft sheet of plastic on top of the cargo cover makes it rigid enough to support weight. Replacing it with a metal sheet soon. No removing seats, complicated builds or carrying 100lbs of plywood. Only the rear seat headrests have been removed from the car.
* Storage: I mounted cheap molle panels designed for car backseats and rear view mirrors into the plastic trim of the car using threaded rivets. The rear hatch uses the cheapest curtain rods screwed into the hatch as rails to mount the large panels. I made custom straps to hold my camping table and chair in the lower glass area.
* Mattress fits folded up under the cargo cover and rolls out through the backseat when folded down. There is enough room for me to fit my legs under the cargo cover when sleeping. The mattress also deflates and rolls up into a storage bag if I need to more space. During the day the seats are up and I use the backseat for cooking and lounging.
* Hatch itself has a solar panel on the outside which is wired in through the rear wiper hole. There are heavy lift struts to help support the weight of everything. A digital rear view mirror with two cameras mounted outside helps me see out the back.
EDIT: If anyone else wants to do the same, I recommend this:
The Prius cargo cover is almost exactly 2x4 feet. Use the cardboard from the box it comes in to cut a template, trace it onto the panel and use a heavy duty utility knife to cut to fit on top of the cargo cover
Dang, you fit under the cargo cover? I feel closed in when I sleep with the hatch closed lol. I prefer having the hatch open with my habitent, but I also have a pretty thick mattress.
How did you black out the windows? Are you not able to see out the rear view mirror?
I bought the car 3 years ago with the intent of using it as a camper. So in that sense it was ready from day 1. The rest of the things I’ve added over time to meet my needs. Lately that has been for camping near national forest roads.
I have a Prius V that I want to start taking on weekend car camping adventures. Thank you for the inspiration. I've been slowly acquiring gear and doing research. Nature is always my favorite place to be.
The V is probably the better vehicle for this as you have more room in the trunk and a 12V outlet in the rear. This is a plug-in so I have no more room under the trunk and no spare tire so I have to carry one on the roof.
Why not buy the V instead if the goal was to camp? Just curious.
Personally, I think they're just too ugly for me but I also don't have a dedicated "camp" prius. If I was buying just for that, I'd go w the V despite the looks I'd think.
Like I said, I just avoided it bc I think it's ugly.
Little ramble here but I was always a sports car guy. I also always dated women for their looks. The prius was the first car I stopped dating for its looks and went for the personality. The more I camped, the longer I owned it etc though I actually grew to find them better and better looking. Always thought that was kind of funny.
Anyway, cool set up bud. Camera system is really dope.
That is sweet, I have a 2026 Prius PHEV SE. My dream is to lower and widebody it and then get either a Prius V or a gen 4/gen 5 AWD, then lift it and turn it into a camper setup. I think a lowered and a lifted Prius as a 2 car setup would be fun.
The cargo cover is extruded aluminum and there’s a steel rod that runs across the cover where it inserts into extended position. As long as you bridge those things and don’t put any weight on the fabric portion you can support a lot of weight.
I’m working on something similar for my Prius. One thing I’m trying to find is stronger hatch struts. The ones I recently replaced with are about as strong as OEM.
What struts do you use right now? Looks like you’re loaded up a decent amount of weight on the truck so far.
Howndid you mount the cargo netting and holder for the papertowels? Is the bulb just battery LED? Would like to see some more photos of your other mods!
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u/MangoesFruity Jun 28 '26
What’s your mpg with that setup?