Bakkie Mate Is How a Truck Camper Is Supposed To Look: Lands South Africa on the RV Map

Folks, this is the story of the Bakkie Mate, a slide-in camper built for various trucks. It's designed by South Africa's Stealth Caravans, a crew on the market since 2018. Sure, it's a young team, but the fact that they were able to secure a place among already-established industry giants means something. As for the Bakkie, it'll tell you all about how this crew likes to roll and what to expect.

Let's start off with the most important aspect of any habitat of this type, cost. According to Stealth Caravans Facebook page, a Bakkie starts at around 200,000 South African Rand. That's the equivalent of a tad under $11,000, the sort of price that's sure to get your attention. Heck, it got mine!

Now, Stealth Caravans didn't work alone to build the Bakkie; they had help from a long-standing partner. Profibre is responsible for the molds and GRP composite panels that make up the Bakkie, and yes, they're South African too. But it's important to note that Profiber has been messing around with molds, panels, and other composite constructions since the 1990s; you're in good hands.

For example, the walls of the Bakkie are all one-piece, or at least; it appears that way; the manufacturer's website does not mention the building process used to create each unit. Then there's the roof. While driving down the road, the Bakkie will assume its traveling position with the top down. Once you've reached your destination, this section of the camper lifts to create ample headroom inside. This also allows you to access the cab-over bedding and offers a sense of space without the aerodynamic downsides of a solid-shell unit.

Another benefit of such a camper is that it utilizes an already-present vehicle, your truck. This means that you can simply pour most of your cash into your favorite four-wheeler, and once the suspensions and engine are up to your adventure standards, slide in the Bakkie, and off you go. You won't have to worry about dragging a travel trailer behind you or wonder if that next riverbed will be crossable. If your truck can do it, the Bakkie will be along for the ride. You will, however, need to adapt a bit to your vehicle's new driving dynamics. But, coming in with a weight of 500 kg (1,100 lbs) dry, it should be easy.

Now, one thing you need to consider about a truck camper is the limited space to fit the systems necessary for survival in the wild or on the road. This means that features like showers and full galleys are only sometimes present, which is true for the Bakkie. Hey, there had to be a tradeoff somewhere. With that in mind, the interior of this unit only offers a few basics like storage space, cabinetry, a wardrobe, shelves for smaller goods, and a dinette. Sure, we can take in things like LED lighting, a pressurized interior, and a few others, but the galley and bathroom setups are all outside the unit.

And this is where we can define just the sort of human that would use a Bakkie, the raw, outdoor-oriented, flint and knife kind of person. This is because the interior will mostly be used for nothing more than eating, sleeping, and afternoon siestas. But, outside, you'll be a guest in a 'living room' dubbed the great outdoors. It's here that you'll be able to cook up a meal using the lateral galley found behind that port side hatch, and on the other side, you'll be able to arrange a shower tent, but you'll need to bring a porta potty.

Furthermore, as standard, the Bakkie can only accommodate up to 40 liters (10.5 gals) of freshwater, so you'll need to bring along more if you plan on longer trips. This brings me to my next point, the electrical system. As standard, there's a 105 Ah battery and a Victron charging system. This means you'll need to dish out some extra bucks for solar panels, inverters, and anything else you may want.

Once you've done all that, the result is a mobile home that you can take anywhere your truck can go, and that's just beautiful. Imagine not having to stop and live in often over-crowded campsites but on the edge of some canyon ridge overlooking the desert below. Maybe you're picturing yourself on the edge of some hidden beach. Heck, why not stabilize your unit, unload it, and explore even more from the comfort of your truck?

Wherever you see yourself, a slide-in camper is a solid and affordable option for mobile living, if only for shorter periods of time. Well, the Bakkie Mate has all the necessary systems and spaces needed to get out there and see as much of this wonderful experience (life) as possible. Just watch out for those shipping fees, wink-wink.