Quick Camper 2021 Review

Slide-on campers are a relatively small part of the RV industry but there's a surprisingly wide number of offerings on the market for this compact and versatile camping option.

The latest to arrive is the Quick Camper, a powered pop-top, solid roof and walls slide-on that in base form weighs less than 480kg and can be fitted onto most cab-chassis-type one-tonne utes.

While the Quick Camper isn’t the first slide-on with a pop-up roof, it's one of very few that features an entirely solid-wall, pop-top section that lifts with the assistance of electric motors. There's no canvas in the set-up.

The Quick Camper 1.8 slide-on starts at $34,900 while the 2.1 (as reviewed with options) is $38,000. Options fitted to this example include the Bushranger awning on the nearside, a shower rose and a Thetford cassette toilet.

The cassette toilet is a no-cost option. If you elect to not have the cassette toilet then you get drawers and shoe storage in its place, with a portable toilet housed under the dining seat.

Equipped for bush camping

The Quick Camper 2.1 comes fairly well equipped for remote bush camping, with 200 watts solar panel fixed to the roof, a 10-litre Duetto 12v/240v hot water service, 120A/h lithium battery, 70 litre fresh water capacity with lockable filler cap, a stainless steel sink and 12v water pump. 

While there are a couple of extra-cost internal cooking options (where the cooker is mounted to the rear bench), none is standard. According to Quick Camper’s founder Jim Storey, that's because most buyers prefer to use their own portable cooker.

They also prefer to cook food outside with a compact butane stove, for example, rather than have problems with cooking smells a fixed cooker mounted in the camper can cause.

The Quick Camper slide-on is available in four layouts across two overall lengths (1.8 metres and 2.1 metres), although custom-build options (for larger platforms such as an Iveco or Isuzu cab-chassis light trucks) can be built.

The layouts are either east-west double bed with rear-door access, or north-south queen bed with nearside door access. The camper reviewed here is the 2.1-metre north-south queen bed nearside door layout.

Right ute for the job

The Quick Camper 2.1 comes with legs, which you can raise or lower manually – however, many will choose to use a portable electric drill to make the winding operation less tedious. There's also a $2300 electric leg option available.

The Quick Camper will fit on the tray of most one-tonne utes, whether it’s a single-, extended- or crew-cab. This includes popular models like the Ford Ranger, Mazda BT-50, Isuzu D-MAX, Toyota HiLux, Toyota LandCruiser 79 and Volkswagen Amarok, among others.

The ute has to be prepared with the right tray; like almost all slide-ons, the Quick Camper can’t be fitted to a pick-up tub, so a tray has to be fitted instead. Some care needs to be taken to select the right tray for the job too; aluminium is better for lightness (to impinge less on payload than a steel tray). If you’re intending to buy a slide-on but don’t yet have a ute tray, the manufacturer should be able to advise on which suits best.

Despite its powered roof and solid wall construction the Quick Camper is competitive on weight. As reviewed, it weighed 501kg, while starting dry weight for the base camper is less than 480kg. While you’d have a remaining payload of at least 300-400kg for most dual cabs, it's worth considering a GVM upgrade if you don’t tend to pack light.

The reason for the pop-up roof is not only to have a lower profile when driving, but also to save on fuel compared with a full-height rig. Quick Camper says that the laden camper adds about 20 per cent to touring fuel consumption with, in this case, a Volkswagen Amarok dual cab ute.

Outside features

Starting with the external features, on the nearside front of the camper is a lockable hatch that contains the 10-litre grey water jerry with a small amount of storage around it (grey water can be made to drain externally if you wish). A neat feature is that there's a grille rather than a solid rear wall, to allow better ventilation to the rear of the fridge.

Further down is the two-piece, security mesh entry door and at the rear nearside corner, the lockable hatch for the toilet cassette. There's no coach light on the nearside wall, however, which would be useful at night.

On the back of the camper is a large lockable hatch that reveals a large compartment. The void is an L-shape, with a tall space at the door that's reduced further into the space. Some lighting inside this storage locker would come in handy too.

Up front, one the offside wall are two hatches: the rear one provides access to the same comportment as the larger rear hatch, while the front hatch contains the hot water unit.

A really neat and clever storage solution is on the front peak of the camper: a ‘tunnel boot’ that goes across the width of the camper and is sealed off by round twist caps at each end. It's a good spot for storing awning poles, fishing rods or other long, skinny items.

Setting up

Setting up for camp is pretty easy: first up, release the front and rear retaining straps. You then need a portable step ladder to access the fit-out. The step ladder shown in the photos is not the standard offering: Quick Camper offers either fixed concertina steps or Little Giant Safety Steps.

With the nearside access door opened, you power up the roof via a rocker switch located in the hatch under the sink. This raises the roof section 65cm, and takes about half a minute. Then swing up and secure the hinged upper door section, and you’re good to go.

The only other set-up chore you may want to do is to fit the window curtains, which are located with magnetic strips. The reason they're not fitted with curtain rails is the limited space between the camper walls and the pop-up roof walls. The glass entry door, while having a heavy tint, misses out on a curtain.

Interior living

There's plenty of headroom in the Quick Camper 2.1, even over the front north-south queen bed where you can sit up in bed with headroom to spare.

The walkway at the rear is a bit tight for two people to pass but otherwise there are no complaints; the dinette is roomy enough for two to sit comfortably and accessing the bed is easy.

There are multiple cupboards under the opposing benches at the rear of the camper, and plenty of bench counter space for food prep.

Storage for clothes and knick-knacks is ample with three deep bins on each side of the bed. These can be accessed even when the roof is lowered for travel.

Shower and toilet

While the cassette toilet is easy to access once the hinged bench is swung out of the way, the shower found in the same corner is a bit unusual. There's no wet area in the camper, and so you’d have to extend the shower rose to outside the door to use it without spraying water inside the fit-out.

At least there's the option of having Quick Camper fit a drain to the floor, although that requires drilling a hole in the tray and if you’re inclined, to fit a grey water tank underneath.

Adjacent to the nearside wall near the entry door are the various power switches for the lights, roof hatch fan, hot water service and so on. Above that is a read-out for remaining battery, water tank level, solar or DC-DC charging, temperature and air pressure, while below are USB and AUX ports.

Summing up

While it’s not perfect, the Quick Camper 2.1 is a clever design with its roof set-up while retaining the lightweight advantages of a slide-on camper. It's just the ticket for those who like to bush camp with the minimum of fuss.

How much does the 2020 Quick Camper 2.1 cost?

Price: $38,000 (as reviewed)
Travel length: 4100mm (including vehicle)
Body length (open length): 2100mm
External body width: 2040mm
Travel height: 1620mm (2070mm with roof raised)
Interior height: 1940mm
Tare weight: 501kg
ATM: n/a
Body: Foam core fibreglass with aluminium subframe
Fresh water: 70L
Battery: 120Ah lithium
Solar: 200W
Air-conditioner: Optional
Gas: Optional
Hot water: 10L 12/240volt
Cooking: Optional LPG or induction cooktop
Fridge: Bushman 12v/24v 85L fridge/freezer
Microwave: n/a
Toilet: Thetford cassette
Shower: External
Lighting: 12v LED
TV: n/a
Options fitted: Awning, shower rose, (no cost) cassette toilet
Supplied by: Quick Camper, Hornsby, NSW