Q: How do you survive the Zombie Apocalypse? A: Get yourself a really big truck, some welding gear, a bunch of diamond plate – and build one of these!
The owners of the Wothahellizat Expedition Motorhome, weren’t always globe trotting adventurers, however.
At age 45 they both grew tired of the rat race and began looking for a way to drop out. That was 15 years ago, and since then they’ve built two expedition RVs and a cargo container house.
Right now we’d like to share Rob and Chris Gray’s creation known as the Wothahellizat, an expedition RV on steroids.
A front view of the truck.
Rob is an Australian photographer who wanted a platform that would put him right where he wanted to be, give him a great view and let him stay until he got the images he wanted.
If you’re going to build a DIY expedition RV, Rob’s method is the way to get it right. He started with an empty flatbed truck and custom built a steel tubular frame to allow for every piece of the interior he wanted.
A top view to get perspective of how big this RV really is.
The truck is an ex-army International ACCO with a six liter Perkins diesel. As equipped, the vehicle has an effective range of well over a thousand miles without so much as a pit stop for gas. They stay in touch with a Globalstar satellite phone. The truck is almost entirely cased in 2 mm thick aluminum tread plating for a rust proof envelope that can take whatever the outback throws at it.
The RV with windows open and bedroom roof raised.
The resulting vehicle is half semi, half above ground bunker. Once parked in a camping spot, the vehicle opens up to reveal a comfortable condo on wheels that features many of the comforts of home – one that’s designed for months of off-grid living.
Along the top, windows open up out of the tread plate metal exterior, providing a great lookout and lots of natural light inside. Hinged metal shutters create awnings to help keep the heat out, while allowing light in.
A view of the back porch extended.
Inside, the truck is divided into several areas, the lower main living quarters are galley style, with a central hall and storage, bath and kitchen all along the sides. Upstairs, the roof raises hydraulically, to provide plenty of overhead space for the couple’s bedroom, perched over the cab and complete with a seating area for lounging.
A view from the master bedroom, featuring seating and the bed.
Since the truck is built to enjoy the outdoors, it makes sense that outdoor living space be a part of the design and Gray seems to be of the “go big or go home” school of thought. The entire rear of the truck folds out into a large deck, with an overhead canopy. When this is buttoned up, a side entrance serves the living quarters and a pair of large windows opens up along the rear.
The downstairs central living space.
For survivability, the truck has 6×6 drive for all terrain. The eight solar panels are capable of driving all systems indefinitely, when not connected to the grid. There is ample fuel, water and food storage for two to live comfortably up to ninety days.
Food storage is built into the chassis of the truck, using the empty spaces under the floor, with lift out lids on the compartments. What the truck lacks in grace, it makes up for in utility.
Food storage compartments in the floor.
With a truck this large, alternate transportation can be a necessity to reach less accessible areas. Wothahellizat features a garage large enough to house two dirt bike motorcycles for those harder to reach places.
All in all, with a bit of armor and some weaponry, we feel confident Mad Max would be hard pressed to find a better platform from which to launch his next campaign.
