Sleeping in the car

[Bob]

So, when I got to Ocala National Forest, it was dark, wet and slightly rainy. I knew that might be the case, as I thought if that happened, I would test out over-nighting IN the car5. i have never done this before.

First - the car: A 2014 Toyota Rav 4. So a 4 door Hybrid SUV with rear seats that fold down. Here is what I doid:

1. Folded down the larger half of the rear seats, placed object underneath to elevate a little.
2. Placed a sleeping bag down for padding
3. Placed second sleeping bag down to sleep in. Used my poncho blanket for a pillow.
- wore sweat pants/shirt, my usual camp pajamas.

Lessons learned

#1 The rear floor of the car is hard and uncomfortable. My shoulder hurt, my hips hurt, back generally uncomfortable, even though length was good.
During a mid-night pee break, I switched to a reclined front seat with a sleeping bag for a blanket. Much better!
- easy to on/off AC-Heat-Lights-Engine
- Places to put stuff

#2 Even a small ventilation crack in the windows made the car quite cold inside. That said, running the car for a few minutes warmed it up nicely. Engine off, a quick window up-down, and comfortably back to sleep. Rolled windows up after moving to front, kept AC outside circulation open. It was not too stuffy at all.

#3 I had things organized OK, but for future efforts, I will spend much more time putting gear in key places / thinking it out a little better. Again- this was an "impromtu trip.

* The key thing I think I would do to make this a "regular" sleeping quarters would be a small AC air pump and a small inflatable mattress. The AC pump is on my to get list anyway. Other than That I kind of liked it.

[tom mac]

Use to do camping , esp with the MC trips...
One time it was a rainy weekend away, got home and threw my bag into the trash.. never again, getting to old to sleep in an uncomfy location.
After all, it was supposed to be fun!
Sleeping in the car sounds like the same.

I still go away, but always look for at least a basic cabin to sleep in.

[JDH]

One of the best things about my 02 Suburban was that a full sized memory foam mattress fit in the back with the middle row of seats folded down. Insulated me from the floor and smoothed out the ridges.

[bdcochran]

Good idea. My son has a warehouse business that keeps him on the road a lot. He sleeps in the car rather than paying for a motel. Over time, the savings have piled up. He carries a sleeping bag.

[Mac66]

Spent a lot of years sleeping on the floor of my van. Eventually got a Thermarest inflatable, backpacking pad to sleep on, then a cot to put on it. They work well.

I never actually lived in my van though. Camped in it a lot.

[David]

We use to have a member on the old SEP board that lived in his truck for like a year and a half to allow him to catch up on his debts. From what I remember it worked out for him.

[bdcochran]

My kid economizes to the point of putting other people to shame. Not married. He has two warehouses. He converted the back room into a bedroom. He drives extensively on buying trips up and down the coast. So, instead of staying in motels, he sleeps in the car. The savings pile up.

[Mac66]

A bit off subject but.....There's a movie on Hulu called Nomadland. It's about a woman who lives in her van. She's on the road after losing her husband to cancer and her job & home when her employer closed down and the company town shut down as well. A little bit of insight into a sub culture of people who live in vans, RVs, campers etc and follow seasonal jobs. It's kinda interesting if not depressing. Based on a book if you'd rather read it than get Hulu I just found in on my local library consortium for downloading both ebooks and audio book format.

Since I brought up the book I'm now about half way through it. It is interesting that the book is pretty much about a bunch of people who were forced or chose to live in their vehicle due to the collapse of the housing market/recession from 2008- 2016 or so. Wait, wasn't Obama the president then? But the author doesn't blame Obama. Instead she blames America, white privilege (even though most of the van dwellers are white and poor, I'm still trying figure that one out) and corporate America. It's a sad, sad tale of woe as they are exploited by companies who hire people who travel around. America failed them even though most are privileged white people who are basically led dysfunctional (clueless) lives before being forced into their van. The saving grace is that they find camaraderie with other van dwellers. I had to stop listening to it. Too lefist, progressive BS. And btw, there is no main character in the book. There are some reoccurring characters but the movie made one up as a conglomeration of several people and chose to focus on her story.

Was on a trip up to my new house and the only thing to listen to was this book so I finished it. It does give one insight into a little known part of America. I think the film was better in that it doesn't talk about the politics, just follows the main character around the country.

[David]

I wish I could remember our former members name. Unfortunately he wasn't able to follow us over from the old board. IIRC, he lived in his truck for quite a while to get caught up on bills and such and I think it paid off for him.

I didn't live in the car but I have slept in my car once during an SEP outing. Started pouring which I didn't mind but quickly found out the rain fly was too short and I started to get wet. Then the lightning started and since I'm allergic to lightning I slept in the car. It worked but then it was just a short term thing.

[aerynsun]

Many youtubers can be found that live in vans and such.

There are also many small TT with all the modern convivences and you don't need a RV site.

https://nucamprv.com/

You can also find plans to build them yourself.

Sleeping in a car in a pinch is OK. But if you don't have to why deprive yourself?