Can't Full Time Truck Life? How about a Sabbatical?
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This truck is called Bruno and lovingly inhabited by Benni, Inga and she-dog Bonnie. This couple from Germany took a one-year sabbatical in order to travel and live full-time in their truck home. They already traveled around Europe for the previous 10 months, a sabbatical they had to rigorously asked for in their respective company. It took both of them several months to discuss one year off with their superiors, but eventually both got it approved. Even though their companies had never done this before, as Inga and Benni had the courage to ask for it, they were open for discussion and found a solution.
During their first holiday in the USA, they rented a van to travel with and liked it so much they decided to get one for themselves. They got Bruno, a Toyota Land Cruiser from 1992, for 19K, spending another 18K on the build. The truck is five meters long, three meters high and 2.5 meters wide. They put one heavy spare tire in the front, as well as some working tools, in order to get as much weight to the front as possible. Benni mentions that the main disadvantage of the short wheelbase is that most of the weight lies on the back axle, leading to the front tires losing traction sometimes.
On the truck side, the couple installed some foldable sandboards, which they can use as an outdoor table, 20 liters water canister and a small shovel. At the back on the bottom, they installed a storage box where they put mainly outdoor gear. Even though it puts additional weight in the back of the vehicle, it is an essential space. On the rooftop they installed a total of 200W/h solar panels. Additionally, they got a lithium-ion battery of 80 AMP/h. Their bathroom? A pumpable pressure shower by Quechua holding eight liters of water, just enough for two people.
The inside of Bruno is compact but super comfy. The entrance door holds a small cabinet with a mirror on it and most of the couple's bathroom products. In order for it to hold on the door, they installed an extra layer out of wood - which also looks much more beautiful than the grey plastic. Their tiny kitchen holds a Dometic refrigerator which they run by gas, but which can also run by battery or shore power. Their tiny gas stove also runs by gas and Inga mentions that outside of winter and without heating, 11 kilos of gas get them through two months. Despite the small size, everything fits into the kitchen: appliances, spices, knives and cups are all cleverly stored.
Directly beside the tiny kitchen is the living / dining area. Underneath the bench they store a 40 liters tank with drinking water and beside it their lithium battery. The table can be folded down and turned into a guest's bed. All of the wooden interior was already there and Benni and Inga sanded it down. Their bedroom consists of a cozy cabinet that basically lies above the driver's cab. It is 1.40 meters long and 2 meters wide and decorated most lovely: fairy lights, a world map on the wall and small foldable table on the side. The curtains between the bedroom and the living area prove useful especially in winter, when they don’t heat while sleeping and hence keep the heat inside the bedroom. A clever hack to save some space: Inga filled all of their pillow cases with things like jackets, sleeping bags and laundry.
There used to be a chemical toilet in the truck, but as neither Benni nor Inga liked it, they removed it and turned the spot it stood on into storage space. In general, their whole space is well organized and the closets give enough storage space.
"Every way of life and every situation you are in demands something new or different from you. Living at home in a flat gives you different challenges than living in a van. Some challenges are the same and others you didn't quite see coming. If you have a friend who has a van, you can borrow it for a weekend or even a week, or rent a van and see if you like it or if it is not your thing. There are so many different choices you can make and you have to know what you want. But we guarantee you will never make the perfect choice: there's always something you would like or something that you don't need or something that doesn't work the way you want it to, but you just have to try it out and work around it.”
