Our 2020 Ford F-250 Super Duty, the “Super Tremor” project, is coming together as we complete another crucial step in turning the base truck into an overland rig. If you haven’t already been following the series, this Super Duty came fitted with the Godzilla 7.3-liter gasoline V8, mated up to a 10-speed automatic transmission. The big block engine makes 430 horsepower and 475 lb-ft of torque with a 3.55 locking rear axle.
Now, to that we’ve paired a 3.5-inch Carli suspension lift with Deaver springs and King Shocks with new KMC wheels. Wrapped around those 18-inch wheels are 37-inch Falken Wildpeak A/T3W tires, which should go a long way toward making this a true overlanding beast, but there’s one more step to go. In this video, Andre heads out to Southern California to get the truck fitted with a Four Wheel Campers Hawk slide-in camper.
The Hawk is meant for full-sized truck beds between 6.0 and 6.5 feet in length, and the camper shell models start at $12,995. Full camper versions of the Hawk start at $19,395 at time of writing.
Throughout the process, Andre walks through the structural components of the camper, including the wood shop, metal fabrication, upholstery and teh final assembly line. As the camper itself is completed, the slide-in unit is mounted inside the truck’s bed using anchor points, rather than hooking chains to the outside. Our Super Duty, in particular, has its rear suspension specifically tuned to handle the 1,100 pound dry weight of the camper in the bed. After installing the unit, the truck squats two inches from the unladen ride height, which is exactly what we wanted when we planned the project.
If you missed the first part of our build, check out the video below:
How does the camper affect fuel economy?
After the camper went in, we had to see just how much the install affected fuel economy. While the stock truck managed about 15.5 mpg and the off-road modifications changed that figure to 13.3 mpg. Over 964 miles, Andre used 84.424 gallons of fuel, amounting to a new fuel economy figure of 11.4 mpg.
Overall, the modifications we’ve made to the truck to date resulted in a 26 percent drop in fuel economy. When it comes to actually taking the truck off-road, though, the changes should make the Super Tremor a worthy companion when we leave the payment. That’s coming up in new episodes of our “No Pavement Needed” series, so stay tuned to TFLtruck.com for more updates on that!
