OVERLAND TOY-HAULER

Tactical Application Vehicle Supercharged, Long-Travel Tundra is Not Your Average Tow Rig

- Patrick McCarthy

Traditionally, the term “toy-hauler” refers to a fifth-wheel trailer with a loading ramp and enough interior space for motorcycles, ATVs, or UTVs. It’s a convenient way to travel to the lake, sand dunes, or mountains — when you arrive at your destination, the family piles out of the truck, the toys are backed out of the portable garage, and the trailer is converted into sleeping arrangements. It’s a tried-and-true formula … but what if there were a better way? Walt Wagner, the founder of Tactical Application Vehicles, believes he has found one. He and his team at the TAV workshop in Albuquerque built this 2018 Toyota Tundra into his concept of the ultimate overland toy hauler. It blends the go-anywhere versatility of an overland camper, the practicality of a tow rig, and the high-speed performance of an off-road race truck.

The project began with a stock Cement gray Tundra 4x4 Double Cab. Much like TAV’s first project truck, the 2009 “Ranger Goat” Tacoma we wrote about in Issue 6 of CARNIVORE magazine, this Tundra is equipped with a full long-travel suspension setup. This enables the truck to fly down washboard fire roads and soak up bumps, even when it’s loaded down with passengers, cargo, and fuel. The suspension consists of a Total Chaos Fabrication long-travel kit with secondary shock hoops, King coil-overs and bypass shocks, Alcan leaf springs, and King air bump stops. For optimal ride quality and smoothness, TAV special-ordered custom shock valving and spring rates for the Tundra.