Outdoors

Hogzilla 4x4 expander truck camper doubles in size via sliding bedroom

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The Hogzilla 4x4 Xpander Canopy turns a small pickup truck into a large base camp
Modular Adventures
The Hogzilla 4x4 Xpander Canopy turns a small pickup truck into a large base camp
Modular Adventures
What looks like a regular truck canopy on the road slides out into a full-fledged camper upon arrival
Modular Adventures
The available aluminum gullwing bedroom hatch door provides a little extra stoutness to the rear sleeper pod
Modular Adventures
The passenger-side front canopy is dedicated to outdoor cooking
Modular Adventures
Modular Adventures offers a fully loaded package complete with dishes and utensils
Modular Adventures
The slide-out bedroom offers a near-queen size bed that can serve as a breezy day bed with the fabric walls dropped
Modular Adventures
Flat water tanks stored neatly against the interior canopy wall
Modular Adventures
Side ladders access the bed pod, and the available privace tent hangs from the awning
Modular Adventures
Driver-side electrical hardware integration
Modular Adventures
The available 270- and 180-degree canopies zip together to create wraparound coverage
Modular Adventures
The rear bedroom includes PVC and mosquito mesh sidewalls
Modular Adventures
A cozy outdoor getaway
Modular Adventures
When it's all packed up, the Hogzilla Xpander works like any other rugged canopy so the base pickup is able to travel off the beaten path
Modular Adventures
Modular Adventures shows the original Xpander Canopy and the Xpander Mini (left) at the recent 2024 Caravan Show
Modular Adventures
The empty Hogzilla 4x4 Xpander Canopy waiting to get filled with all types of cooking equipment
Modular Adventures
Xpander Canopy closed up and ready to drive
Modular Adventures
The Xpander Mini works with a stock pickup truck, sliding out to offer a kitchen and work/dining space
Modular Adventures
Like the original Xpander Canopy, the Xpander Mini slides off the back of the truck
Modular Adventures
The Xpander Mini fits neatly inside a basic pickup truck cap
Modular Adventures
Xpander Mini kitchen
Modular Adventures
More work space and serious storage on the other side of the Xpander Mini
Modular Adventures
The Xpander Mini hides a folding table down low
Modular Adventures
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That's right, the freakin' HOG ZILLA. It's a pickup camper like no other pickup camper we've seen before, a straightforward flatbed canopy on the road, a blown-out-the-back, multi-room indoor/outdoor living complex when parked on a flattish patch of wilderness floor. Developed by South Africa's Modular Adventures, this exploratory strongbox will fend off rhinos, thicket, wetlands, lions and other gauntlets of the deep-African wilds before taming that foreboding backdrop into a snug, scenic encampment.

Hogzilla 4x4 operates as a spinoff brand of Modular Adventures, and Xpander Canopy is the name of its truck camping system. The canopy sort of ties together two of the more extreme camper concepts we've looked over in 2024: the expandable Berg CX6 caravan and the Inkunzi Land Cruiser camper. All three products are of South African descent, bringing a distinctly rugged and flexible slant to the forefront of off-road adventure.

When it's all packed up, the Hogzilla Xpander works like any other rugged canopy so the base pickup is able to travel off the beaten path
Modular Adventures

Unlike the CX6 or Inkunzi, the Xpander's main canopy body isn't made to live in so much as carry essential gear. It's the slide-out rear bedroom that makes it a livable all-in-one camper, relying on a skeletal frame design to fit around the canopy guts when closed. The bedroom pulls out and sets up in a matter of minutes to give nomads the respite of a 78 x 56-in (198 x 143-cm) double bed.

That's not quite the full-blown South African king offered inside Berg trailer's slide-out, but it's a few inches shy of a queen – plenty of space for two adults, and maybe a child or pet. The aluminum frame surrounding the mattress is filled out with reinforced PVC canvas walls and mosquito mesh to make a weatherproof bedroom pod. There's also the option of adding full-length aluminum gullwing doors to increase the protection level against the elements and creatures of the night.

The rear bedroom includes PVC and mosquito mesh sidewalls
Modular Adventures

The main canopy up front comes ready to be stuffed with kitchen gear, starting off with a fridge slide fit for models up to 80 liters. That slide is capped off by a drop-down stove table and dry food storage shelves. A larger drop-down worktop is available right next to the slide, setting up below the cutlery drawer, slide-out pantry and fixed shelves inside the canopy. Also stored inside is a pair of 40-L water tanks secured neatly against the wall. A microwave can be added optionally.

The passenger-side front canopy is dedicated to outdoor cooking
Modular Adventures

The other side of the canopy is dedicated to utilities and open storage. It comes stocked with a 6-L gas water heater and 100-Ah lithium battery and has loads of empty upper and lower storage space, including a large platform drawer.

Hogzilla tops the canopy with a pair of racks, one directly on the roof of the body and one that extends over the truck cab. A combination of 270- and 180-degree awnings swings out to provide shade from just outside the front passenger-side door, over the kitchen, around the rear bedroom, and clean to the righthand driver's side. An available privacy tent hangs down from the driver-side awning for use with the water heater-connected outdoor shower and available portable toilet.

The available 270- and 180-degree canopies zip together to create wraparound coverage
Modular Adventures

Pictured on the back of a Toyota Hilux, the Hogzilla Xpander is designed to work with the full gamut of South African "bakkie" (pickup) models, Hogzilla 4x4 says, including single-, double- and king-cab configurations. It mounts to an included flatbed and can be easily removed whenever one needs the bed space back.

The Xpander Canopy launched last year and is available for order now. The most basic configuration with just the flatbed, empty canopy, slide-out bedroom with mattress, lifting jacks and rear spare tire carrier starts just under R220,550 (approx. US$11,775). A fully outfitted model with the two awnings, fridge slide and kitchen storage, Cadac dual-burner stove, dishes and cutlery, fresh water storage, 100-Ah lithium battery and electrical hardware, LED lighting and water heater comes out to R378,550 ($20,200), as per a pricing quote we requested. Those prices, of course, do not include the pickup truck, which the customer supplies.

The Xpander Mini works with a stock pickup truck, sliding out to offer a kitchen and work/dining space
Modular Adventures

If the full-blown Xpander Canopy looks a little too big and intimidating, Hogzilla just introduced the Xpander Mini at the Caravan Overland Show this past February. The Mini is more of a slide-out kitchen and utility setup, not a complete camper, and fits inside a stock pickup bed, protected by a basic cab-height truck shell. It includes a mini canopy-like setup with slide-out stove, fold-down worktops, pantry, general storage and fridge slide, all atop a heavy duty sliding tray. The Mini lacks sleeping amenities so would work best with a separate tent or as a daytime tailgate/picnic solution.

Source: Hogzilla 4x4

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