The Toyota Chinook pop-up camper had a huge if brief surge of popularity in the mid-late seventies. It was compact, affordable, and readily usable as both a daily driver as well as a camper on the weekends. But apparently, it wasn’t quite well enough insulated for this owner.
Here’s how it looked in its stock condition. The roof popped up, giving reasonable headroom. These had a big following, at least on the West Coast, as a VW Westfalia alternative that was cheaper and undoubtedly more reliable. And there’s still a (dwindling) number of its devoted fans today.
Well, someone wanted one that would be really snug in the winter, and at the expense of the pop top, which had only fabric walls.
I’m assuming it was a proper foam spray gun that did the deed, and not several dozen cans of Good Stuff to make this happen. And of course, it’s topped by a nice silver paint job, to ward of sun-induced foam cancer.
Even the original sliding windows have been replaced by fixed ones. Maybe a trip to the Arctic?
I hope you were taking those photos from a good distance. Looks like the kind of vehicle the next Ted Kozinski would drive. Or someone else with a real distaste for company, too ready on the draw.
I wonder what the inside looks like. I guess it’s better not to know.
Out of the 30 or so cars I have owned over the past 50 years, my 75 Toyota Chinook remains the all-time favorite. I bought it 3rd hand when it was only 3 years old and kept it 8.5 years beyond that. In the chill climate of northern Ohio the heater kept it warm enough until the holes in the cab floor got too large and then I would drive it in a snow mobile suit. It was a great driver in the snow by the way. After finally getting the cab rebuilt I stopped driving it in the winter and had the bottom sprayed with oil every year. It was a family driver, perfect for one wife, one daughter and one cat and we enjoyed several trips to Florida in it as well as other more local destinations. During the week it was my mobile office for advertising sales in the Thomas Register and I could not have asked for a more perfect vehicle for that purpose. Sometimes I would even pop the top and invite my client out to my office for a presentation. That could be a little touchy though as I was dealing with American manufacturers and driving a Japanese product. After a much needed engine rebuild at 80,000 miles (due to abuse by the first two owners) I continued accumulating mileage at the rate of 30,000 miles a year until the odometer was past 250,000 miles. It still ran great but a roadside safety check revealed several electrical issues plus no emergency brake that all had to be corrected within 24 hours. Being cramped for time I swapped for a cherry 77 Chrysler New Yorker 4 dr hardtop. I never coated the Chinook with urethane foam however I did have a fixer upper house with an indoor pool housed in a sold concrete uninsulated room. Even the ceiling was constructed of 8′ X 20′ concrete slabs with seams that leaked tarry water into the pool every time it rained. So after considering all my options I had that entire structure sprayed with urethane foam. It came out looking much better than the Chinook in your picture thankfully. It just looked like the structure was covered with stucco. The cost was minimal and the result was wonderful as a solution to the problem plus the pool room stayed cool in the summer and warm in the winter.
That has to be the strangest thing I’ve seen on CC yet in 3+ years…
This is your brain on drugs…
When we drove to Fairbanks and back via the Alaska highway, most of the motels we stayed at had rather amazing insulation, and windows that could be shut quite tightly if they could be opened at all. I’m thinking that the guy who had this rig had Arctic winter travel in mind.
I remember that in the early 1960’s there was a place across I-5 from the pulp mill at Albany, OR, that dealt in that sort of foam insulation.
That well-insulated nightmare should have been in David Cronenberg’s Videodrome.
Looks like it got put in the microwave for 2min too long.
Can’t hear the screaming from the outside…
Curbside Creepy.
Now THAT is a padded vinyl roof!
THE vehicle 9 out of 10 serial killers endorsed up in the PNW……
Must be a meth lab
Coming to theaters! “The Blob That Ate My Toyota!” Part of Godzilla marathon week!
This is my vehicle. It has 4″ of sprayfoam, including the undercarriage. I have camped in -20 degrees and stayed comfortable with no heater, and I have stayed in the desert at 115 degrees and stayed cool. The windows still open I just had them spray over the section that was naturally stationary. The roof still pops up as well, I just had them spray a lip for the roof to drop into, reducing drag from wind.
I rebuilt the entire inside, tearing out all the ugly carpet, and cheap prefab wood. I replaced everything with real varnished wood and tile.
This camper has been across country three times, to Mexico, and everywhere else you can think of. My mom was the original owner and it still runs strong today.
I had a 74, which was an early one. I think the 1st ones were 73s. It was a nice little camper, roomier than the VW Wesfalia I had previously . But quality wasn’t as good, . Water would collect in the roof gutters and leak in through the poptop canvas. The camper felt underpowered with the Toyota 4 cyl. They also made a Chinook body for the Chevy Blazer and Dodge van chassis. .