The Ford Maverick has been on sale for less than a year, so the aftermarket scene is just getting into its groove. Until now, Maverick owners who wanted a compact pop-top camper needed to settle for a universal-fit rooftop tent, which isn’t great. This has changed thanks to Go Fast Campers’ Platform Camper, built specifically for the Maverick. The Platform Camper costs $7,700, and if you pair this with the base price of a new Maverick, you’ll be sleeping under the stars for $28,695.
When you pop the camper, the living area is 7 feet, 5 inches, which is the main benefit of choosing this over a generic rooftop tent. That’s a considerable amount of real estate when you consider it fits in the Maverick’s 4-foot-5-inch bed and raises the truck’s height by just 6.5 inches when closed. The Platform Camper adds a 50-by-90-inch sleeping surface to the Maverick’s bed and comes with a two-layer foam mattress. You can transform the removable modular floor from a sleeping surface to bunk beds or a standing desk.
This unit weighs 255 pounds, meaning you’ll have 1,245 pounds of the truck’s payload capacity left to play with. It also doubles as a roof rack and supports up to 500 pounds, and according to GFC, it’s the strongest roof rack on the market for a Maverick. You can even open the camper when there’s up to 75 pounds of cargo still on the rack. There’s also a honeycomb composite roof that lets in diffused light, and the structure is designed to reflect the sun’s rays while insulating the interior.
The frame consists of pressure-formed aluminum tubes that are bolted to aluminum nut plates, while the hinges, latches, and components in the frame are machined from billet aluminum. “(The) Platform Camper,” GFC explains, “is able to support those high loads thanks to a tubular-aluminum space frame construction that distributes loads evenly across the entire length of the Maverick’s bed rails and won’t wobble, even while loaded up and driving off-road.”
If you’re planning on turning your Maverick into a hard-core overlander, this could be the camper for you.
On the face of it, that seems like a good price for a new truck you can comfortably camp in. Especially when you consider the price of the truck and camper is less than the average transaction price for new cars these days.
If you put your order in today, your Maverick Platform Camper could be ready in about eight weeks. You can go to Bozeman, Montana, to have it fitted there, or opt for white-glove shipping and have it installed in your driveway. While you wait, why not pick up a few things for your next overland adventure? Anyone who’s going on a Bear Grills-style camping experience should arm themselves with a Jackery Portable Power Station, Smittybilt X20 Winch, Zoleo Satellite Communicator, and Lifestraw Water Filter.
What are your thoughts on this conversion? Will it be a sleeper overlander platform?