Toyota Is Turning a Tacoma TRD Sport Into a Truck Camper for SEMA, Names It the Tacozilla

Back in the 70s, the Japanese automaker partnered with an RV company called Chinook to create one of the most popular campers on the market at that time: the Toyota Chinook. Originally, the vehicle was built using a Toyota pickup chassis with an added fiberglass shell in place of the truck bed that featured an attractive retro styling.

The motorhome sold like hotcakes back in the day, as it proved to be a performance monster: it was a pocket-friendly compact home on wheels that had great fuel efficiency. Even though the production of the Toyota-Chinooks ended decades ago, the popularity of the RVs has increased over the years.

And now, when the camper craze is higher than ever, Toyota is bringing the iconic little RV monster back, but with a modern twist. The aptly named Tacozilla will be reborn from a Tacoma TRD with an off-road style.

The company has already started work on renderings and has designed the layout of the RV. Compared to the classic Chinook, the Tacozilla will have an improved shape, with rounded edges. Inside, the camper will offer a sleeping area above the cab, a small kitchen, and even a sink and a toilet.

There’s one big challenge that the team from Toyota has to tackle, though: where to fit all of these. The automaker is working with limited space, but it hopes to make it at least “half as cool as the original Chinook.”

For now, the Tacozilla is just a concept design. However, there are still more than two weeks to go until the SEMA Show opens its gates (November 2-5), so we’re expecting to see the Tacoma-turned camper in its full modern-classic glory just in time for this year’s big event.