Here’s the make, model and configuration of trucks 1,086 truck campers readers currently own, and want for their next camper. This data clearly defines the hottest truck targets in the truck camper marketplace. And the 2024 Dream Truck is…
It’s always fun to look at trends and check our personal preferences against the greater community, but the bi-annual Dream Truck Survey isn’t for just for entertainment.
The Dream Truck Survey is designed to give the truck camper industry solid third-party data on the trucks their future customers want. Specifically, the survey data informs truck camper manufacturers on what trucks to build campers for. It also informs truck camper dealers on which truck campers to keep in stock.
Want to know what the hottest truck targets are in the truck camper marketplace? After thirteen years and seven bi-annual surveys, the data makes it clear.
New for 2024: Mid-Size Truck Results
Recently, there’s been a significant increase in new truck camper brands and models designed for Mid-Size trucks. By polling Truck Camper Magazine readers on Mid-Size trucks, we can now understand the current strength of this niche and better inform the industry on where to focus product development.
Phone Users: Some phones may cut off the charts. To see the entire chart, turn your phone sideways.
Current Truck Results
1. CURRENT TRUCK MAKE
For the seventh straight Dream Truck Survey, Ford dominates as the truck our readers currently own. That stated, RAM continues to gain ground on Ford and the combined GM brands (Chevrolet and GMC).
For the 2024 survey, we added Jeep Gladiator and Rivian to the truck make mix. With 0.09% and 1.3% results respectively, the data for these trucks isn’t encouraging. The rest of the field – Toyota, Nissan, and ‘Other (Unimog, Fuso, etc.)’ are equally paltry with only Toyota breaking 3%.
From this thirteen-year, seven-survey chart, the core of the truck camper market remains firmly in the hands of Ford, Ram, Chevrolet, GMC.
| TRUCK MAKE | 2012 | 2014 | 2016 | 2018 | 2020 | 2022 | 2024 |
| Ford | 37.88% | 36.6% | 36.30% | 37.17% | 39.49% | 40.02% | 39.26% |
| RAM | 19.89% | 22.81% | 23.64% | 23.00% | 23.21% | 23.35% | 24.54% |
| Chevrolet | 23.30% | 18.83% | 18.11% | 18.51% | 18.33% | 18.09% | 16.39% |
| GMC | 6.44% | 10.48% | 9.62% | 8.68% | 10.33% | 9.61% | 10.93% |
| Toyota | 4.73% | 4.38% | 5.13% | 5.18% | 3.33% | 3.68% | 3.06% |
| Other: Unimog, Fuso, etc. | 0.76% | 1.06% | 0.88% | 0.84% | 0.71% | 0.68% | 0.74% |
| Nissan | 0.95% | 0.93% | 0.88% | 1.29% | 0.08% | 0.09% | 1.3% |
| Jeep Gladiator | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | 0.09% |
| Rivian | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | 1.3% |
| None, I do not own a truck. | 6.06% | 4.91% | 5.45% | 5.33% | 3.82% | 3.68% | 3.7% |
2. CURRENT TRUCK MODEL
While the increase isn’t impressive, 1-ton trucks continued their growth streak for a seventh survey. The other stand-out growth category is ‘F-450/F-550/4500, etc’ with 4.63%. In the past two years, many 1-ton truck owners have likely upgraded to a Class 5. In contrast, 3/4-ton trucks dropped in 2016, 2018, 2020, 2022, and now 2024.
Mid-Size trucks also gained for 2024, but barely beat out the Class-5 score at 4.82%. This mirrors the data from question 1.
What’s likely to raise eyebrows the most is the nearly 2-percent drop in the Half-Ton category. Half-Tons absolutely dominate the truck sales figures, but there’s no sign that that Half-Tons are a growth category for truck campers. From our thirteen years of survey data, the majority of truck campers want one-ton trucks, or bigger.
| TRUCK MODEL | 2012 | 2014 | 2016 | 2018 | 2020 | 2022 | 2024 |
| Mid-Size: Ranger/Tacoma, etc. | 5.87% | 4.52% | 4.98% | 4.42% | 3.40% | 4.05% | 4.82% |
| Half-Ton: F-150/1500 | 16.48% | 15.29% | 15.66% | 16.09% | 14.26% | 15.89% | 13.9% |
| 3/4 Ton: F-250/2500 | 31.82% | 33.24% | 28.67% | 28.53% | 26.74% | 23.39% | 23.35% |
| 1-Ton: F-350/3500 | 37.5% | 38.43% | 41.85% | 42.79% | 47.59% | 49.48% | 49.58% |
| F-450/F-550/4500, etc. | 2.27% | 3.46% | 3.13% | 2.59% | 3.90% | 3.22% | 4.63% |
| None, I do not own a truck. | 6.06% | 5.05% | 5.70% | 5.57% | 4.11% | 3.97% | 3.71% |
3. CURRENT TRUCK FUEL TYPE
The 2020, 2022, and 2024 data shows diesel holding onto its dominance but losing ground survey after survey to gas. This is likely the result of the increasing complexity and cost of diesel engines, and the improving power and torque of gas engines.
Electric continues to be a big loser here with nobody reporting electric as a fuel type. If electric trucks have a future in the truck camper world, we don’t see it here.
| FUEL TYPE | 2012 | 2014 | 2016 | 2018 | 2020 | 2022 | 2024 |
| Diesel | 48.57% | 55.56% | 53.99% | 50.96% | 56.37% | 51.84% | 49.77% |
| Gas | 45.7% | 39.49% | 40.37% | 43.61% | 39.66% | 44.39% | 46.43% |
| Electric | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | 0% | 0.08% | 0% |
| None, I do not own a truck. | 5.73% | 4.95% | 5.64% | 5.43% | 3.97% | 3.69% | 3.8% |
4. CURRENT CAB TYPE
With seven surveys of continuous growth, Crew Cabs are now the defacto standard for truck camper rigs. Extended Cabs still account for 22.43%, but are being phased out. Regular Cab and Ram Mega Cab remain in the single digits and falling.
| CAB TYPE | 2012 | 2014 | 2016 | 2018 | 2020 | 2022 | 2024 |
| Crew Cab: Four Doors | 35.65% | 54.95% | 54.42% | 56.25% | 61.64% | 64.22% | 66.82% |
| Ram Mega Cab | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | 1.34% | 2.03% | 1.95% |
| Extended Cab: Half Doors | 35.65% | 31.68% | 31.35% | 30.70% | 26.96% | 23.93% | 22.43% |
| Regular Cab | 12.52% | 8.16% | 8.52% | 7.29% | 6.02% | 5.93% | 5.19% |
| None, I do not own a truck. | 6.36% | 5.21% | 5.71% | 5.76% | 4.03% | 3.90% | 3.61% |
5. CURRENT TRUCK BED TYPE
The current bed type is still dominated by Long Bed trucks, but Long Beds fell to just under 49%. Added together, Short Bed and Super Short Bed trucks are 42.5%.
Custom storage beds and flatbeds have gained considerable ground. For more insight, we will likely break the storage bed trend out in future Dream Truck Surveys.
| TRUCK BED TYPE | 2012 | 2014 | 2016 | 2018 | 2020 | 2022 | 2024 |
| Long Bed | 60.34% | 56.12% | 55.96% | 52.21% | 52.77% | 53.19% | 48.94% |
| Short Bed | 32.45% | 32.98% | 33.87% | 35.65% | 35.60% | 34.51% | 36.63% |
| Super Short Bed | N/A | 3.99% | 3.20% | 3.97% | 4.04% | 5.55% | 5.92% |
| Custom Storage Bed | 0% | 1.06% | 0.80% | 0.76% | 1.06% | 0.90% | 1.39% |
| Flatbed | 0.76% | 0.93% | 0.56% | 1.68% | 2.34% | 1.95% | 3.33% |
| None, I do not own a truck. | 6.26% | 4.92% | 5.60% | 5.73% | 4.18% | 3.90% | 3.79% |
6. CURRENT TRANSMISSION TYPE
With only the Toyota Tacoma and Jeep Gladiator available in manual transmissions in 2023, the trend to automatic transmission is all but complete. This question is essentially irrelevant now.
| TRANSMISSION TYPE | 2012 | 2014 | 2016 | 2018 | 2020 | 2022 | 2024 |
| Automatic Transmission | 81.59% | 83.9% | 86.17% | 86.54% | 88.67% | 90.41% | 90.93% |
| Manual Transmission | 12.02% | 11.23% | 8.5% | 7.95% | 7.44% | 5.69% | 5.37% |
| No Transmission – Electric | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | 0.07% | 0% |
| None, I do not own a truck. | 6.4% | 4.87% | 5.34% | 5.50% | 3.90% | 3.82% | 3.7% |
7. CURRENT DRIVELINE TYPE
Four-wheel drive absolutely dominates at 87.74%. Only 8.64% own a two-wheel drive truck. Not everyone needs four-wheel drive, but most of us want to have it – just in case.
| DRIVELINE TYPE | 2012 | 2014 | 2016 | 2018 | 2020 | 2022 | 2024 |
| Four-Wheel Drive: 4×4 | 76.63% | 79.78% | 77.42% | 81.06% | 84.48% | 84.15% | 87.74% |
| Two-Wheel Drive: 4×2 | 17.43% | 15.23% | 16.94% | 13.50% | 11.60% | 12.02% | 8.64% |
| None, I do not own a truck. | 5.94% | 4.99% | 5.65% | 5.44% | 3.91% | 3.83% | 3.62% |
8. CURRENT REAR WHEEL CONFIGURATION
Across the 2020, 2022, and 2024 data, the balance between single rear wheel (SRW) and dual rear wheel trucks (DRW) has been relatively steady. 66% of truck campers have single rear wheel trucks, and 30% have dual rear wheel trucks.
NOTE: Only two categories of trucks (1-Ton: F-350/3500 and F-450/F-550/4500, etc.) are available as single rear wheel or dual rear wheel trucks.
| REAR WHEEL CONFIGURATION | 2012 | 2014 | 2016 | 2018 | 2020 | 2022 | 2024 |
| Single Rear Wheel: SRW | 70.1% | 68.23% | 66.35% | 68.50% | 66.83% | 67.97% | 66.36% |
| Dual Rear Wheel: DRW | 23.81% | 27.08% | 28.04% | 26.09% | 29.19% | 28.12% | 29.94% |
| None, I do not own a truck. | 6.1% | 4.69% | 5.61% | 5.42% | 3.98% | 3.91% | 3.71% |
2024 Dream Truck Survey Results
1. DREAM TRUCK MAKE
Ford gained ground in 2016, 2017, 2020, and 2022, but fell nearly 5% for 2024. That still leaves Ford the 2024 winner, and easily beats the combined GMC and Chevrolet’s 26.6% result. RAM, GMC, and Toyota all gained, but we were surprised at the lack of interest in the Jeep Gladiator.
| DREAM TRUCK MAKE | 2012 | 2014 | 2016 | 2018 | 2020 | 2022 | 2024 |
| Ford | 42.31% | 37.68% | 40.18% | 40.89% | 44.06% | 46.55% | 41.75% |
| Dodge Ram | 22.31% | 24.23% | 26.30% | 24.73% | 25.12% | 23.01% | 24.98% |
| Chevrolet | 20.38% | 16.78% | 14.92% | 15.39% | 14.52% | 13.52% | 13.51% |
| GMC | 8.08% | 13.72% | 11.31% | 11.79% | 11.03% | 9.95% | 13.14% |
| Toyota | 3.65% | 2.93% | 3.93% | 4.13% | 2.56% | 2.73% | 3.26% |
| Other: Fuso, Unimog, etc. | 3.27% | 4.39% | 2.89% | 2.37% | 2.56% | 4.02% | 2.14% |
| Jeep Gladiator | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | 0.56% |
| Rivian R1T | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | 0.47% |
| Nissan | 0% | 0.27% | 0.48% | 0.69% | 0.14% | 0.23% | 0.19% |
2. DREAM TRUCK MODEL
The gain Half-Ton trucks enjoyed in 2022 dropped for 2024 as the Mid-Size category more than doubled. However, even when we add the Half-Ton and Mid-Size categories together, the combined number (7.54%) remains a fraction of the 48.19% of 1-ton responses.
The only two categories to grow for 2024 are Mid-Size and ‘F-450/F-550/4500, etc.’ The trend towards Class-5 trucks is especially strong at 31.26%.
| TRUCK MODEL | 2012 | 2014 | 2016 | 2018 | 2020 | 2022 | 2024 |
| Mid-Size: Ranger/Tacoma, etc. | 2.31% | 1.60% | 1.67% | 1.45% | 1.91% | 1.36% | 3.35% |
| Half-Ton: F-150/1500 | 4.42% | 4.39% | 4.22% | 3.67% | 2.76% | 5.75% | 4.19% |
| 3/4 Ton: F-250/2500 | 16.35% | 15.56% | 14.80% | 15.14% | 11.54% | 14.08% | 13.02% |
| 1-Ton: F-350/3500 | 52.69% | 49.34% | 55.93% | 55.50% | 57.89% | 52.61% | 48.19% |
| F-450/F-550/4500, etc. | 24.23% | 29.12% | 23.39% | 24.24% | 25.90% | 26.19% | 31.26% |
3. DREAM TRUCK FUEL TYPE
As shown in the Current Truck results above, diesel held onto its dominance in the Dream Truck results, but continues to lose ground to gas. It also seems that the interest expressed for electric trucks in 2022 has nearly evaporated. The shift away from electric benefited the gas category with a nearly 7% gain.
| FUEL TYPE | 2012 | 2014 | 2016 | 2018 | 2020 | 2022 | 2024 |
| Diesel | 78.99% | 77.27% | 75.26% | 72.18% | 63.58% | 53.03% | 52.27% |
| Gas | 21.01% | 22.73% | 24.74% | 27.82% | 32.04% | 37.25% | 44.2% |
| Electric | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | 4.38% | 9.71% | 3.53% |
4. DREAM CAB TYPE
Despite being dropped from option lists and dealer lots, people still want Extended Cabs. That stated, Crew Cabs are the defacto cab type in the truck camper marketplace. Ram Mega Cabs continue in their mid-3% range, while Regular Cabs are stuck in the mid to high 2% range.
| CAB TYPE | 2012 | 2014 | 2016 | 2018 | 2020 | 2022 | 2024 |
| Ram Mega Cab | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | 3.4% | 3.33% | 3.81% |
| Crew Cab: Four Doors | 65.32% | 70.17% | 68.72% | 68.23% | 68.58% | 70.42% | 70.63% |
| Extended Cab: Half Doors | 30.25% | 26.23% | 28.72% | 29.55% | 24.82% | 23.52% | 22.86% |
| Regular Cab | 4.43% | 3.60% | 2.56% | 2.23% | 3.19% | 2.72% | 2.7% |
5. DREAM TRUCK BED TYPE
Long Beds dropped for the 2024 Dream Truck category, but remain at the top of the list with 49.26%. Short Beds (6-foot) are essentially flat from 2022 at 26.12%. Super Short Beds (5.5-foot and shorter) are hugely popular in the greater truck market, but remain a faction of the 2024 Dream Truck results.
Flatbeds put in their strongest ever showing with 9.94%. Together, the Custom Storage Bed (13.29%) and Flatbed results hit an all-time high of over 23%. Not a lot of truck camper owners have a Custom Storage Bed or Flatbed, but they’re interested.
| TRUCK BED TYPE | 2012 | 2014 | 2016 | 2018 | 2020 | 2022 | 2024 |
| Long Bed | 62.33% | 56.31% | 60.99% | 53.59% | 54.17% | 52.12% | 49.26% |
| Short Bed | 17.59% | 22.58% | 20.62% | 24.92% | 24.86% | 26.67% | 26.12% |
| Super Short Bed | N/A | 0.66% | 0.48% | 0.76% | 0.92% | 0.98% | 1.39% |
| Custom Storage Bed | 14.72% | 15.54% | 13.69% | 14.91% | 14.12% | 11.89% | 13.29% |
| Flatbed | 5.35% | 5.35% | 4.22% | 5.81% | 5.93% | 8.33% | 9.94% |
6. DREAM TRANSMISSION TYPE
Hope springs eternal for manual transmissions, but automatic transmissions have taken over.
| TRANSMISSION TYPE | 2012 | 2014 | 2016 | 2018 | 2020 | 2022 | 2024 |
| Automatic Transmission | 82.49% | 86.96% | 88.23% | 88.73% | 90.48% | 84.78% | 86.65% |
| Manual Transmission | 17.51% | 13.04% | 11.77% | 11.27% | 9.52% | 8.55% | 10.55% |
| No Transmission – Electric | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | 6.66% | 2.8% |
7. DREAM DRIVELINE TYPE
Once again, four-wheel drive destroyed two-wheel drive with an incredible 95.4% of the Dream Truck nod.
| DRIVELINE TYPE | 2012 | 2014 | 2016 | 2018 | 2020 | 2022 | 2024 |
| Four-Wheel Drive: 4×4 | 92.12% | 92.15% | 92.49% | 93.42% | 94.96% | 94% | 95.44% |
| Two-Wheel Drive: 4×2 | 7.88% | 7.85% | 7.51% | 6.58% | 5.04% | 6% | 4.56% |
8. DREAM REAR WHEEL CONFIGURATION
The battle between Single Rear Wheel and Dual Rear Wheel trucks got even closer in the 2024 Dream Truck category. Look at the data below to see the sentiments go back and forth.
NOTE: Only two categories of trucks (1-Ton: F-350/3500 and F-450/F-550/4500, etc.) are available as single rear wheel or dual rear wheel trucks.
| REAR WHEEL CONFIGURATION | 2012 | 2014 | 2016 | 2018 | 2020 | 2022 | 2024 |
| Single Rear Wheel: SRW | 48.85% | 52.25% | 50.16% | 52.37% | 49.04% | 56.85% | 55.35% |
| Dual Rear Wheel: DRW | 51.15% | 47.75% | 49.84% | 47.63% | 50.96% | 43.15% | 44.65% |
Electric Trucks
1. What is your current interest level in electric trucks?
We eliminated the ‘Neutral’ choice from this year’s electric truck questions forcing survey responders to choose their level of interest. The result is not in favor of electric trucks with a full 68.28% stating they are, ‘Not At All Interested’ in electric trucks. Compare that to the 47.85% that said they were ‘Not Very Interested’ and ‘Not At All Interested’ in 2022, and you see how dire the 2024 results are for electron-powered pickups.
Even when we combine the 2024 ‘Extremely Interested’, ‘Very Interested’ and ‘Somewhat Interested’ data, we only get 31.73%. That’s a drop from the 33% that presented as ‘Very Interested’ or ‘Somewhat Interested’ in 2022.
| INTEREST IN ELECTRIC TRUCKS | 2024 |
| Extremely Interested | 4.19% |
| Very Interested | 6.33% |
| Somewhat Interested | 21.21% |
| Not At All Interested | 68.28% |
2. How likely will your next truck be an electric truck?
It’s hard to ignore that 72.84% said they are ‘Very Unlikely’ that their next truck will be electric. As of now, electric trucks face a tough slog in the truck camper marketplace.
| LIKELIHOOD OF NEXT TRUCK BEING ELECTRIC | 2024 |
| Very Likely | 1.58% |
| Likely | 4.19% |
| Unlikely | 21.4% |
| Very Unlikely | 72.84% |
3. Do you find any of the following electric trucks interesting for a possible truck camper rig? Click all that apply.
This question throws down the electric gauntlet and the numbers are brutal. When asked about specific electric trucks, the highest results were all in the single digits; 6.85% for the Ford F-150 Lightning EV, 5.77% for the Chevrolet Silverado EV, and 5.58% for the Rivian R1T.
Contrast that with 81.21% who state, ‘I do not find electric trucks interesting’ and you see the depths of the challenge electric trucks face in our market.
| ELECTRIC TRUCK BRAND INTEREST | 2022 | 2024 |
| Alpha Wolf | 1.29% | 0.39% |
| Atlis XT | 3.31% | 1.27% |
| Bollinger B2 | 2.02% | 0.68% |
| Canoo Electric Pickup | 2.26% | 0.88% |
| Chevrolet Silverado EV | 10.48% | 5.77% |
| Ford F-150 Lightning EV | 17.26% | 6.85% |
| GMC Hummer EV | 3.71% | 2.05% |
| Hercules Alpha | 1.53% | N/A |
| Lordstown Endurance | 2.34% | N/A |
| Nissan Titan Electric | 3.79% | N/A |
| Ram 1500 REV | N/A | 3.91% |
| Rivian R1T | 8.79% | 5.58% |
| Tesla Cybertruck | 6.85% | 2.84% |
| Toyota Tacoma EV | N/A | 3.23% |
| I do not find electric trucks interesting. | 66.69% | 81.21% |
Mid-Size Trucks
1. What is your current interest level in Mid-Size trucks?
Due to the surge in camper models designed and manufactured for Mid-Size trucks, we added three survey questions to help clarify the interest in this category.
The first question shows that 9.51% are ‘Extremely Interested’ or ‘Very Interested’ in Mid-Size trucks. That’s not quite 10% of the market. Another 24.63% are ‘Somewhat Interested’.
| INTEREST IN MID-SIZE TRUCKS | 2024 |
| Extremely Interested | 3.54% |
| Very Interested | 5.97% |
| Somewhat Interested | 24.63% |
| Not At All Interested | 65.86% |
2. How likely will your next truck be a Mid-Size truck?
10.4% stated that a Mid-Size truck would ‘Very Likely’ or ‘Likely’ be their next truck. That leaves another 89.5% stating they were ‘Unlikely’ or ‘Very Unlikely’ to purchase a Mid-Size truck next.
| LIKELIHOOD OF BUYING A MID-SIZE TRUCK | 2024 |
| Very Likely | 4.01% |
| Likely | 6.43% |
| Unlikely | 23.39% |
| Very Unlikely | 66.17% |
3. Which of the following Mid-Size trucks would you be interested in for a truck camper rig? Click all that apply.
The Toyota Tacoma ran away with the most interest in the Mid-Size truck category with 15.28%. The Ford Ranger came in with 9.87%, Chevy Colorado with 7.69%, and Jeep Gladiator with 5.98%.
| MID-SIZE TRUCK BRAND INTEREST | 2024 |
| Honda Ridgeline | 1.61% |
| Chevy Colorado | 7.69% |
| Jeep Gladiator | 5.98% |
| Nissan Frontier | 2.94% |
| Ford Ranger | 9.87% |
| Rivian R1T | 3.7% |
| Toyota Tacoma | 15.28% |
| I do not find Mid-Size pickup trucks interesting. | 70.49% |
And the 2024 Dream Truck Survey Winner Is…
2024 Ford F350 Diesel, Crew Cab, Long Bed, Automatic, Four-Wheel Drive, Single Rear Wheel
If you’re researching a truck purchase for a truck camper rig, please start by reading our Newbie Corner. Specifically, read “The Best Truck Camper“, “Picking the Perfect Truck Camper“, and “Matching A Truck and Camper“.
