The Official Prius Camping and Road tripping Thread

Rear Hatch Remote Switch Mod...and other useless info...

This past weekend we purchased a 2012 "v" for my daily/weekly driver. Suddenly we're talking about Prius camping. Camping??? We own a 40' Allegro Bus, two different travel trailers, a micro camper...sailboat, 5 tents and hammocks. For us...camping is not a problem...and is certainly something we enjoy and thankfully have lots of toys and options to serve our camping needs. I mean...really...if you're comfortable sleeping what difference does it make where you're at or even what you're inside of. Good sleep is the key. But, regardless of what/how you are camping it is always a compromise of some sort. As we slept our first night in the Prius (bringing it home after the purchase) did bring on some complications...but soon we had a workable (but temporary) solution to our Prius bed. I had to laugh at Kathy because her attitude has always been amazing and she is very flexible when it comes to dealing with situations where things are not the best, etc, etc...

We did manage to sleep through our first night in the Prius. It was fun...and after 30 years it is nice to enjoy the smiles, laughter and happiness an amazing life partner can provide. I am blessed. But...............I digress...

One thing I became aware of is that there is no way to open the rear hatch from the inside. Old guys need to get up during the night...and going out the open hatch appears better than sliding out the door (when the bed is made!). Upon returning home I began to look at the wiring for installing a remote rear hatch switch. I could not find anything anywhere regarding how to do this. So...it was time to go exploring. The mod was finished in about an hour and is working great. I wanted to share this mod with you.

 

Nice mod! I did once look up the wire routing for a friend who was using his Prius liftback for Lyft ... would allow him to let his riders get their stuff in and out of the back without having to go around. Would have mounted the button on the dash in one of the existing switch blanks. I don't think he ever did the mod though.

But it turns out there is a way to open the hatch from the inside anyway. From the owner's manual:



It looks even easier in the v than the liftback; in the liftback you have to pull up the deck board to reach it.

 

I get it lol, because I've been there done that!

 

I have finished my camping mods for a two week trip (leaving in the morning). Everything is packed and I have made a few mods that I hope will work out. If they do, I will be taking pictures and video. Praying for safe travels!

 

UPDATE... The rear hatch will NOT unlock if all the doors have been locked using the lock button on the drivers door. However, if all the doors are locked manually (one at a time...so to speak), then the mod words perfectly. I was not aware of this anomaly when I shot the video as all the doors were unlocked when testing. Thanks!

 

For speed, try this.

Lock all doors with the lock button.
Manually unlock the driver's door.
Open/close the driver's door
Manually lock the driver's door

See if the rear hatch unlock will work.

P.S. Save travels!

 

Prius Camper Bed Deck & Refrigerator Install

This is a 12 minute video that shows details about the prototype bed deck in our Prius as well as the frame and install of our new Alpicool 30 quart refrigerator-freezer.

The Alpicool is compressor driven, 12/24/110 volts. At 12 volts is uses between 3 & 4 amps. It can cool down to -4 degrees! So far we have been very happy with this. This install will get it up out of the way and still allow us to have foot room underneath.

We will be installing a 2" lift kit and rear air bags to the Prius. That will be a bit better for most Forest Service Roads and will help offset using the Rolla Adventure box on the rear!

Link to YouTube Video:

 

I just got back from another extended trip in my Prius. Seems I always think of something that would make things better on each trip. This trip I did away with the Coleman "Slim Twin" air bed in favor of a Tri-fold 75x25 inch memory foam mattress I bought on Amazon. It was much more comfortable and quick and easy to set up. Several places I stopped at, the mosquitoes were awful. Most times I tried to make the conversion from driving to sleeping without getting out of the car. One problem I was having was sliding the passenger seat forward. When I reached down and pulled the bar at the front of the seat, i would be in such an awkward position that I could not slide the seat fully forward. This trip I attached a lanyard to the bar and now simply pull on the lanyard and then slide the seat forward.
Also this time I thought to shut down the Prius and then put it back in Ready mode so I could test fuel consumption for the night. One night I used 84 cents worth of fuel and another night it was $ 1.24. Gas was costing between 2.79 and 2.69 that portion of the trip.

 

Really nice design and workmanship on that backseat mod, sir. Trivia: those 45 degree mating joints you made are called "French Cleats".

 

Interesting.

So conservatively speaking, that's approximately half a gallon of gas. Could you please indicate how many hours of READY mode? Also, could you indicate the approximate exterior temperature and climate control setting as that would influence how often the ICE has to run.

I'd like to get some data points on this. In pretty hot weather, I think I'm using closer to a gallon for eight hours with the Prius set to a comfy 72 degrees.

 

I would think that the engine cycling on and off would make for a long night.

 

That's why earplugs exist.

Also, I'd rather it be occasionally noisy then oven hot or freezer cold.

 

Ditto. I also have a USB white noise machine.

Setting the parking brake helps a lot with the jarring of the ICE starting. I currently let the car roll, engage parking brake, then put in park and turn off. Seems to load the suspension or something which makes the car more stable.

 

I am guessing running the A/C all night lets the battery discharge to the pink zone, right? Then the ICE cycles as needed to keep the a minimum charge on the battery, always staying in the pink I think.

I've never run mine all night, but I know that when I am running around town, and the battery goes into the pink zone with A/C running and I stop at a light, the ICE often cycles on/off to maintain the battery charge. IIRC, the battery stays in the pink zone.

My question is if this type of charging condition adversely affects the battery life.

 

Since we started playing with the Prius v for camping, we have spent 14 night in it over the past several months. The starting of the engine still wakes me...but it no longer bothers me. Somehow I mentally acknowledge it has started and my brain just ignores it. No different than living next to a RR track!

I have been busy with installing a heated water system for showering, dishes, etc. Almost finished. I will post a new thread with video when done. Today I pulled the front struts to install a 40mm lift kit. To my dismay, one of the front shocks had a slight oil leak and the bellows on both of them was trash. The sway bar link end boots were also open and the joint was dirty. So...all new shocks, struts and sway bar links ordered. Once complete I will finish this off with air bags on the rear to help support the weight I am carrying on the hitch. More later!

OH...Oldwolf... Most of the Prius taxis in large cities run continuous, sitting or rolling. Most of those have 300k plus miles and the majority are still on the original battery. I feel the Prius is smart. It takes care of itself and provides the charge it needs to remain stable. So personally...I don't fret of it. According to my TechStream, the ICE generally starts around 40% and runs till it hits 50-52% and shuts down. This only takes a few minutes. On the highway, my system charges to about 68% max in normal highway driving. (unless I am going down a long hill). The Prius does not charge to 100% contrary to popular belief...unless you are force charging...like coasting down a hill, etc. The charge indicator really doesn't relate to 0-100%. It basically just gives you a visual reference of a non-specific state of charge. It reminds me of a bad oil pressure gauge. You know there is oil pressure...you are just never really sure what it is!

Hope that helps.

 

I recently converted my 2014 Prius into my full time home. Here are a couple videos if anyone is interested

 

Hey all, long time viewer first time poster. I've used the information from these forums to build my own prius into a camper which I'm now unfortunately selling due to having to go back home to Australia. If anyone is interested in purchasing a ready-to-camp 2013 Prius Two the link is here:

 

Hi!

I am moving about an hour outside of mobile in a few months.. I know this thread was a while ago, but would you ever be willing to be commissioned to make another one of those beautifully designed bed decks? Pretty prettty please!

 

whats your shower setup like? I have a jerry can I make into a pressurized water heater with heating element.