(bike bell rings)
Hey guys, I'm travelin' through Southern California
and I wanted to give you some insights,
some perspective
into car-camping
in a Prius.
Now I do a website called electricbikereview.com.
I started it several years ago and when I started out
I was really concerned how am I going to make my
dream come true of working on something
that I felt is positive,
that connects people, it's sustainable and still
make money, have enough, pay for insurance and maybe
even save a little bit on the side.
How was I gonna reconcile those two things.
There are two levers, make more, or spend less.
And so I've done my best to balance those two.
So initially you know I would I've been here before.
I've traveled in this area before because there are
a lot of bike companies and stuff out this way.
And I was thinking well you know I'll do an Airbnb or
you know maybe I can get some hotel rooms,
or rent for a month.
And I actually tried that, I tried to rent,
and I'd lose security deposits
'cause I wouldn't stay there super long.
And even though I'm really clean, I don't have a lotta
stuff, I'm kind of a minimalist.
It just seemed like I was compromising a lot.
And it was still costing me money and that's when
I came up with the idea of well let's try car camping.
You know some Walmarts let you camp out in the parking lot.
I've got a lotta friends that I've made especially now
through the website, who say,
"Sure you can park in my driveway."
And a lot of 'em offer, "Yeah sleep on the couch,
"go for it."
But what I found is sometimes their houses
are sort of messy, and maybe they have cats or dogs.
I'm a little sensitive to cats especially,
and it's not the same privacy that I was used to
and just this sense of peace that I was looking for.
Sometimes people talk and talk, and it's like,
I wanna hang out and be friends, but I'm also
working hard to drive a business here,
to try to create a lifestyle that I can build
over time and that requires some peace and quiet,
getting to bed early.
Not everyone has the same schedule.
So enough about that.
I bought a 4Runner, and it was like a four cylinder
it had like a timing chain and so I was really thinking
like this thing's bullet proof.
It's awesome and it can go anywhere you know,
if I'm driving and I get stuck in the snow or whatever
it can just go anywhere with this thing.
But what I found was that the gas mileage wasn't
super great, and it just wasn't comfortable.
There's a lot of bouncing and my neck and back,
especially working at the computer, sitting a lot,
I just, it just didn't work.
So after a year of doing that I'd
saved up enough money that I bought a Prius.
Now not only does this reflect my values,
the sustainability and efficiency.
But I mean you just get awesome gas mileage, right.
You don't have to stop as frequently at gas stations.
I was constantly worried on these long trips,
there aren't a lotta gas stations in some of these places.
And some of the ones I pass
you know I would think to myself do I really want to
get gas there, you know is that really the best place?
And so I was struggling to balance those two things.
With the Prius, I'm saving time and yes I could have
got a Toyota Echo or a Yaris or any other car,
but this car in particular has the hatchback.
So it's the seats fold down and there's enough space
that you actually can car camp.
I ended up finding a really good deal on this one, used.
It has a solar panel built into the top
and so it runs the fans
when I'm not in the car and that's awesome,
'cause it does get hot, right now it's a little cold.
Again you can see the snow and stuff, it's the middle
of the day it's like noon, and it's decent out,
but it gets, it was below freezing last night.
And I could actually sleep in here and do alright
'cause I have a couple sleeping bags, down comforter.
And the really cool thing about a Prius is that
you can just let the car run all night, run, right?
It, the engine starts, it charges the battery and then
it stops, and then the battery runs basically
air-conditioning or your heater
And I've done that all night before and it used less
than one gallon of gas.
That's like three dollars, it's like a three dollar
hotel right there, if you've got a driveway to park in,
or you're just on BLM land like this.
Be careful, don't get stuck, this is a two-wheel drive car
and the tires, you know they don't have super great tread
or anything, they're not real deep.
They're meant to be really efficient, so they have high PSI.
And as you can see I got a bike rack here on the back
that folds up, and it actually stays pretty well within
the airstream of the car
so I don't lose a lot of MPG's on that.
But when I go review bikes, I can put 'em
on my car and drive around.
You might notice this adopt sticker, and you might have
noticed Jack up here in the passenger seat before.
That is not a real dog, that's just something I got
'cause I thought it's kinda fun, it keeps me company
a little bit, and if I'm parking somewhere at night,
and you know someone sees the car.
I feel like it might be a deterrent against break-ins
or just messing around.
A lotta people think it's real and again you know
it's like I have dogs and it's just kinda company.
Little bit of company but if I need, I can take out
just these few things, I can totally scoot the seat back
and take a passenger with me.
Same thing in the back.
Right now everything is laid down as low as it can be
so that I can see out the back for safety.
And I'm all about safety.
This car does have a backup camera.
Some of the trim on this one was upgraded and again I just
happened to get a good deal on it, used, I bought
it in Texas, it's a darker color, it's a hybrid.
And I think in Texas they're just isn't as much demand
for this so I got a good deal on it you know.
But again I saved up cash I could make an offer.
You could buy a Prius like this, this is 2011.
You could probably get one of these
with higher miles on it at probably in the
seven or eight thousand dollar range.
And there you go.
That's like practically a home.
And if you can save a 1,000 bucks a month on rent,
or something and just use a library or a Starbucks
or a Panera Bread or something to do your work,
this can save you a lot of money.
And it's really not that uncomfortable.
So I was just super excited to share how I've set it up.
So let's jump back in here real quick.
We've got this
Wagan Tech cooler, and it actually has
a built in electric cooler so it keeps the contents
in here at a much lower temperature than the rest of the
car and it just runs off a nine-volt which I've got
plugged in in that center console there.
I can keep my yogurt, I've go some hummus, some of these
microwaveable Amy's meals.
And because it opens at the top like this when you open it
the cold air doesn't escape, 'cause hot air rises.
So this is awesome, I love this.
Around it I've got some granola and some stuff.
I bought these you know Husky liners down here
'cause you know I'm on the sand and dirty areas,
and sometimes it gets, it gets dirty.
You can see the outside of the car.
I like to keep the inside as clean as possible.
Notice that I've got plenty of room here around this vent.
This is to cool the hybrid batteries
so you don't wanna cover that.
So what I end up doing when I'm actually driving like this
is I leave that down here, plug it in and it cools off.
There's some on and off switches down here.
It can actually heat stuff too.
But then once I'm ready to do the bed setup,
I'll grab one of these extra pillows over here,
so this lay it right there on top.
I've seen a bunch of people make these great hanging
things and boards and I've even bought like a custom made
cutout board with these stilts and stuff.
Just that cooler plus a pillow is enough. (laughing)
You know sometimes it's like better to have simple,
flexible solutions than these over-engineered like
precision solutions, and you save money that way too.
So I've got this folding like cot mattress next.
So what I'm gonna do is fold it up,
there we go like that,
and down and you gotta just push it.
Little hard to do with one hand, there we go, awesome.
And then I've got this water proof mattress cover,
like that, and then just a regular sheet.
So you can see with two hands I could get that
figured out a little bit nicer.
Got my sleeping bag right here, like that.
Grab my pillow, put it right here and then look at that.
I mean and the other thing is I would take this out
so kinda pop this up.
Now it's completely out of the way,
and I've got my nice sleeping bag here
with good padding.
And this one it's not super wide I think it's 25 inches
so it doesn't collide with the wheel well there on the left.
And then I bought this, it's not a sleeping bag it's just
a blanket, I really like this thing, tryin' to remember
what it's called real quick here.
This blanket is reversible and a lotta times what I'll do
is it gives me a little bit of extra warmth.
But I use it to cover up my head, 'cause it's really
lightweight, and I don't like wearing those masks.
'cause they just, when you roll around they get
bumped around, but I a lotta times if you're in a
Walmart parking lot or something it's pretty bright.
There's the light outside which feels safe
but then you can't sleep as well.
So this blanket I'll just lay this over my eyes a little bit
and kinda camouflage myself a little bit more like that.
So I might look like this under the covers.
This is actually the top of my standing desk,
and it is awesome so I'm gonna show you that next.
Here's the base, you'll notice that I've got it set up
in such a way that if I get in a car accident it's
not gonna come flying through and decapitate me
or knock me out or something.
I put it down like this,
then I take this top part like this.
And look at that I can set this on any desk at like
a friend's house or even at a library,
and now I can use kind of a standup desk,
and I much prefer that to sitting down.
It just lets me relax my arms a little bit more,
it's more ergonomic.
I have a special platform that sits on it,
a DJ stand basically and I have my laptop and it's
just, it's wonderful.
I have room for my mouse, room for my keyboard,
but again when I'm driving I keep it out of the way.
I wanted to give you the full impression
of what the standing desk looks like.
So here it is, completely set up.
There's that DJ stand I was talkin' about.
Got my laptop, ergonomic keyboard, adjustable height.
This is really the key.
And then just a kind of a standard, cheap table
from Walmart that goes completely flat.
And most importantly this little comfort stand here,
'cause when you're standing for a long time it can
get you know your feet and your knees and stuff.
Got a few things layin' over there.
It's just an Airbnb, you know it's really nice to
be able to lay the foam mattress out a little bit.
This is actually a fold out couch,
but it's less comfortable 'cause you kinda
sink in and it's just uneven and stuff.
And that's all the space I take very clean tidy
gives me a chance to do my laundry and most importantly
use high-speed internet because I'm uploading those
electric bike reviews and shooting on the go.
So sometimes this is really the best way to do it.
And then I'm not intruding too much on my friends,
but thanks again for all those people who have let
me hang out a little bit.
And here's a quick look at my food, got that cereal again.
And some nuts and berries, some fruits, fruits are great.
Quinoa, much healthier than rice, great protein.
A little bit of organic protein powder over here.
And some oranges, and tortilla stuff.
In the fridge, got the yogurt, bunch of spinach,
celery is a awesome snack, dip it in hummus.
And then I frequently make a big thing of beans
and do almond milk.
And then I'm able to make burritos and stuff like that
without going out to fast-food all the time.
Another fun snack is just some healthy popcorn. (laughing)
So yeah that's how I keep it you know
affordable
but healthy.
I don't wanna gain a whole buncha weight
and be breaking out from eating greasy fast-food,
and I'm just not a fan of that model.
So I know this is a bit off topic, but I think eating
and having foods that are more nonperishable which
tend to be more like vegetables and stuff it's good.
And it's important for when you're traveling and you're
already exposing yourself to maybe not the best sleeping
pattern every night and things like that.
Over here on the left you can see I've got my just a basic
suitcase, got some extra files,
some extra shoes.
And down here I have a whole bunch
of just kind of safety gear.
So here's a look in the extra storage.
Got a hat, don't wanna get skin cancer.
Some of these reusable bags for sustainability.
This is a foldout solar panel which can charge phones
and things like that.
I got bottles, hats, raincoats.
I even got like a kind of a jumper thing right here
so that if my car battery dies when I'm far away
from other people I can do that.
Some knee stuff, some extra cables, hiking poles,
first aid, one of those hand crank lights.
Just a ton of stuff, bungee cords, extra long cables,
jumper cables, pocket mask if you need to do CPR.
Goggles this is from Burning Man awhile back, and umbrellas.
And then this yeah I've got an inverter here,
and I'm actually wired in directly
from my Prius battery over here.
I might show that because it allows you to pull more
watts and not mess up the circuitry on your car.
So yeah, let's move to that.
'Kay I got the cargo tray out,
and you can see my spare tire.
Got some big time duct tape, also some binoculars over here
those could be useful, and then candle and mirror.
You know just that survival camping stuff.
Now this is what I think is really interesting,
take this cover off, and you can see the Prius battery.
It's actually in the trunk instead of under the hood
and so that can be kinda confusing sometimes.
Of course there's the big hybrid battery but that's
really separate and the
starter battery is actually kinda small.
So they go out they seem to go out more frequently
than on some other cars.
In any case, under here you can see that I tapped into
the positive and negative prongs and then I've run some
of my own cable up here with a connection point.
So I can actually connect to that with my solar panel
and charge my car battery or I can run one of those
inverters so I can get 120 volts out and run a power
tool or run my cooler, or really just anything.
Another choice accessory is this thing right here.
That is a dash cam and it actually taped over the LED's
a little bit 'cause I don't like 'em in my eyes.
And I've you know kinda wired it in and run everything down.
You see I've got the plugs all set up there.
And then bunch of plugs here, I really like that
they've got several outlets on this car.
Anyway this thing records all the time
and it just kinda loops
and I can press this button too,
to mark sections and basically
if there is an accident if something happens then I'll have
video evidence and so I'll be able
to move through the court system better
or defend myself in court.
So it's maybe worth thinking about there's a buncha
dash cam options I've got one in the front,
one in the back, also some security devices in the car
so I'll get like a text message if someone is messing
with my car and just a regular alarm.
I don't have too many valuable things in here,
and I'm often close to my car or sleeping in it,
but it's just kinda nice to have that level of security
if you're treating this more like a home.
I also have this nice little mat that covers the dash
so it won't crack over time and it's nice to just
you know put stuff up here.
Oh, and these do you see these?
These things really make it nice to put your arm down
on the door, 'cause this is actually kinda hard,
like they are parts of the car that are a little bit
you know maybe not quite as nice.
And then I love this little holder here.
I put my cellphone right there I can still do everything
it stays out of the way, but I use that to navigate
'cause I'm constantly relying on GPS when I travel,
and I can charge it and everything.
If you're gonna camp you might as well make this
an awesome setup and one of the ways
that I've done this is I got this head rest holder.
It's very adjustable it can swivel in and out,
and I got my iPad there so I can sit here or take a
passenger, I would probably put that away if I had
a passenger though, and I can enjoy a movie.
I can actually put my laptop there and look at the screen
and just hang out here again, in a parking lot,
at my friend's house.
I can catch up on stuff, I could even do email.
It's a pretty nice setup, and there is enough room
down here I've got my little
goodie bag with some granola bars.
Right now I have some extra bags and stuff.
This isn't usually like this.
And I got another bracket here that I can attach
I can actually lay down over here and then have my iPad
right above me and just lay down and watch the screen
while I'm chillin', while I'm chillin' out.
That's really awesome.
Another quick call out I got a range extender 'cause a
lotta time I'll go to people's houses and I can plug
that in and extend the range
out to my car or into a spare bedroom or something.
So just wanted to call that out,
this is like my little entertainment area.
You really don't have to get a gigantic trailer
or RV to enjoy yourself, and being able to have a
gym membership like 24 Hour Fitness or whatever travel
all over the country, I can shower, I can shave there,
I can enjoy myself.
I don't need to take that with me, I don't need to have
a bathroom with me and using this car means I can
park in really any parking spot anywhere.
I can go into parking garages.
I don't have to worry about going through drive-thrus
and breakin' somethin' off.
Even with a bike on the back, I'm not gonna go into a
garage and accidentally decapitate my car.
Those are all considerations that went into this purchase.
Yes you give some things up, and you know I've had to move
a few things here to clear out that seat,
but there's plenty of room there.
The bed is almost completely open still,
so it's very doable.
Okay so here I am in the car, ugh, kinda all the way in.
Just wanted to give you some idea of what it looks like.
Course the trunk's open and they actually sell
a really cool Prius tent thing
that just sort of hangs down if it's hot out.
Of course as I said before it's been really cold lately
and so this is good for me, I know I can stretch.
I'm 5'9", I can get to the front seat if I need to,
you know if the car is running I'm actually using it
like a generator for heat or cool, but I usually don't
do that, I usually just do fine with those extra blankets.
I'll go ahead and close the trunk now.
It's got these nice handles reach up like this.
(trunk closes)
There we go,
and there it is again.
You know I've got shoes on and I'm still able to fit.
As you can see here it's pretty comfortable.
I, you know, it's easy to hit your head and bump it
but you got these handles to help you out when
you're gettin' ready to exit.
Here's the door handle just pop it open like this.
So a lotta times in the morning I'll just kinda
scan around make sure that I'm not gonna disrupt anyone.
Turn myself sideways like this, pop right out,
and there we go.
And again this car is just so stealthy
because it's nice.
You know I keep it nice, I wash it, I wax it myself.
I keep it tuned up, I expect it to go just forever.
They're very, very efficient because it uses
regenerative braking the brakes really
don't have to be replaced very often.
It uses a continuously variable transmission so that's
really smooth and again very efficient.
Yes you're paying a premium because it's a hybrid and stuff,
but now that we're onto the next generation and stuff,
this one you can pick up last generation
and there's tons of room.
I actually think this, I think this is gen three
works better than the newest ones
because there isn't quite so much
of a bump when you fold the seats down,
or seat in this case, so that's really sweet.
The other consideration that I've been working on
is yes I have tinted windows, factory tinted in fact,
and at night you really can't see in to well.
But I wanted to make them even more blocked out
just in case someone comes up here.
There's not much you can do for the front seat,
you know I've got Jack up there.
And the windshield you know if I was back there and
I had the blanket over my face
I really don't think people would notice.
But still if I'm watching the iPad, if I'm using my phone
or something like this, and I just don't want people
peekin' in or gettin' spooked or somethin' like that.
So I've got one other solution I ordered these special
magnetic window covers, custom cut for Toyota Prius
from Europe, by the way I'm gonna have all the links
to the different you know the computer holder and
some, the mattress pad and these screens
in the description.
But I'm gonna go ahead and put these on and show you
how they work 'cause I think they're really cool
and it's just another step in my little system here.
Okay so I've put the screens on the back half
of the car, you can see just looking in it's just
this pattern very similar to what some people put
for their kids so that their kids aren't
getting the sun in their face quite so much.
And I've only got it on half here so you can see
clear on this side and then the mesh on this side.
And it fits for all of them, they just fit perfectly.
I'm super happy about this and now I did have to order
them kinda custom, but even from the inside look at that.
Clear up front, kind of a mesh right there
on the small window, and at the back,
and then these are the other ones right here.
I'll just give the shout out Nigel Marston Motorsports
from the United Kingdom, thank you very much, buddy,
these are sweet and they pack flat
so I can lay them under my mattress
and I'm not sure I would even need to use them all the time.
But it would just act as a privacy screen a little bit more.
They even have half pieces that fit for part of the
driver window just to keep it even more private.
You know one concern that I have had with
Jack the dog is that some people would actually think
it's a real dog and call the police
or try to break the windows.
So you know as real at it looks, you get close enough
and you're like maybe that's not a real dog.
So I hope that, that's somethin' I'm still working on.
I've heard about people in LA getting like blowup dolls
and putting them in their passenger seat
you know to drive in the HOV high occupancy vehicle lanes.
I'm not quite there, I just think the dog is kinda cool
and friendly, and if I'm ever approached by the law
or you know something like that, usually I'm parking
in places that are legal, it's a friend's house,
and I just prefer to sleep in my car.
But there's also you know, there are times where I'm
not sleeping, I'm just hanging out relaxing in my car,
using my iPad or something like that, this is a nice way
to feel some sense of home, some sense of peace
when you aren't at home, or you don't have a home.
You know my family lives in Texas.
I've got some family in Colorado and Arizona.
And I can easily get to them, and I can do it in such a way
that I'm not standing out hopefully.
I always drive the speed limit,
'cause I have out-of-state plates.
These are just all the considerations.
Having done this now for several years,
and just trying to really dial it in and think about
all the things that could happen
and thankfully none of them really have.
You know I have triple A, I've got my cellphone,
I've got all the safety gear that we talked about
before so, it's just a neat setup.
I was excited to share but I wanted to do so
after I'd actually lived this way
for awhile and could chime in on some of those fringe cases.
And I hope it helps you.
Again this is kind of a unique way to go about it,
but it means I can do something I love and help people,
and to me that's worth the world right there.
So for any reviews on electric bikes I'll see you back
at electricbikereview.com.
But occasionally I'll do little videos like this
that just talk about the way I live
and hopefully help you to reach your dreams too.
(music)
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