Beat vehicle vote. Truck, SUV, MiniVan?

That van rocks, very nice setup.  It would be nice to have the moving room to dress and operate in the van.

I switched from a Toyota 4x4 extended cab to a GMC full size with a camper and racks.  I hunt a lot so need the 4x4, but it also comes in handy for driving on the beach.

I like the camper for sleeping, hauling gear and keeping everything a bit more secure.  I have Thule roof racks which are great, but I do carry a small step stool to ease loading.  I need to get a hullavator!

The full size truck actually gets the same mileage my toyota did (17-18).  I sure do miss that little truck though! 

I do think a pickup is more multipurpose.  I have camper jacks to take the shell off when I want to haul more, but really it is rare I need to remove it.

Matt

 

  Saw a video on NWKA while up I was up in Oregon, This guy mounted a small ATV winch on his camper shell to haul his kayak up an onto the roof of the shell.  He drove a Toyota pickup.  Sadly, as the days go by, (Not getting any younger) my OB seems to get heavier and heavier each time I heft it up onto my campershell. (About 7' up) I've seriously thought about getting a small winch from Harbor Freight (sale @ $49) replacing the steel wire rope with some nylon and coming up with a bracket to mount the winch temporally for loading / unloading my OB. 
     If I could figure out a nifty pully sustem I could use the 12,000 lb hydrolic winch installed in the bumper of my truck to hall it up!

Thule Hullivators.  Not cheap, but they work.


Sent from Martin's iPad using Tapatalk

I have a Tacoma, and I love it. The only thing I think I might do different is have a shell on it so that I could sleep in the back.

I realized the trick is to not put your yaks on your rig.

I bought an old boat trailer, shortened the tongue, did a little welding and painting, and now I have a yak, surfboard, mountain bike trailer.  The trailer stores the yaks (they're locked on) when I'm not using them.  It's lightweight.   I usually tow it behind our CRV, which has all wheel drive, gets good mileage, and I can sleep in the back.

Towing yaks on a trailer really increases your gas mileage over putting them on top, and it frees your car up to be a non yak vehicle when you need it to be just a family car.

The great part is that I can haul all kinds of stuff around now (like yard waste and wood) with our family car.

If I tow it behind my truck, it doubles the carrying capacity.

 

The only man van I'd drive.....






The DaveW version....

DaveW .....this ONE is for U =

Hi all, i am new at this posting thing but a kayak should be as long as the car. being fairly new at this kayak fishing i haven't been into posting but i apperciate all of the info everyone offers.

IMO...hard to beat a 4 cyl Toyota Pick up with a camper shell + thule racks.

This.  2wheel drive=easier to load. 

Well it's not a beater but it has been beat. When my business was booming I would get a new truck every year and roll my current one over into the fleet. Things are way different now...wish I had treated this vehicle better in the early years...now it has to last awhile.

The Gem Top and lumber racks have been on three trucks so far and are showing there wear. My office manager called me an "old man" the day I bought the shell as per her "only old men have shells on their trucks". Funny thing is she bought one soon after for her truck. The security of a shell a real plus when you park a truck in the places we have over the years. A real bonus is being able to bring the dog almost everywhere. The downside is having to sleep the dog while camping....Red Dawg is a bed hog!

"White Lightning" is the name a fellow NCKA'er nicknamed my truck a few years back....

IMO...hard to beat a 4 cyl Toyota Pick up with a camper shell + thule racks.

This.  2wheel drive=easier to load. 

I've been using a 1999 mazda Bseries (ford ranger ) 2wd for the last few years and it's been a great truck. 20+mpg,
lots of cargo room, and I put yakima racks on the shell. Just got new struts on it & its running like a champ.

Pickup with a shell.  Your stuff is secure in back and can be thrown in there dirty, and you have a place to crash if you want. 

The only man van I'd drive.....






The DaveW version....

That VeeDubb is so far out it's giving me a flashback, dude.......whoh.

Mooch is that other VW for real? 

Mooch is that other VW for real?

nah, just a concept vehicle.


*Regarding truck with lumber racks. From my previous experience (had a Tacoma with lumber racks)...I noticed significant wind drag as soon I had it installed. IMO, it's overkill if your only have one kayak to haul around. The Thule racks will do fine with 2 yaks at the most - you just need to get the longest bar they have. I would also suggest that if you get a shell, to have them factory install the racks so if anything goes wrong, they will cover damages.