dacia jogger camping conversion - DIY Dacia Jogger camping conversion (single person)

DIY Dacia Jogger camping conversion (single person)

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There aren’t many, yet here’s a pretty cool single-person (+ bike) Dacia Jogger camping conversion that you can try yourself too. Some very clever ideas, including a simple DIY car awning. The Jogger is a good choice if you are looking for a new car that has a big enough boot for sleeping in – read more on our Jogger camper page.

Key highlights of this Dacia Jogger camping conversion

  • it’s for 1 person only + a bicycle (with the front wheel taken off)
  • sleeping area / bed surface of 180x65cm, still usable even with the bike inside
  • room for a plugged-in fridge (using a second small 12V battery next to it)
  • the owner’s aim was to be able to easily put up 2 rear seats then revert to a bed again
  • after some testing, the author decided an awning could be pretty handy and built a clever way to attach it
  • there’s a built-in toilet too!

And finally, if you don’t fancy building your own camping kit, you can always check out one of the ready-made camping boxes for the Jogger.

Conversion steps

STEP 1: Clear out what’s not needed and build a floor

Here, the author has removed one of the three rear seats and cleared everything in the back. In order to have a better flat surface for the rest of your camping kit + better be able to fix the remaining bits, build a floor out of durable enough plywood. This makes it much easier to attach anything else to the floor later (you don’t really want to drill into the car itself if it’s that new, you need to know where any wires are if you decide to do so and fixing anything into plywood is much faster anyway).

As the Jogger’s boot floor isn’t 100% flat the new floor has supporting timber along the inner part that keeps it levelled.

Bike holder – the two pieces of timber sticking out are there to keep the bike wheel in place. A clever little fix!

STEP 2: How to fix things in place and exterior (pull-out table)

Here, the author has covered the remaining two rear seats (when folded down) with another board – makes sense if you want a bigger flat surface you can use as a table or for storage + it will protect the seats from dirt.

I like the pull-out table that is basically a double floor that you pull out, fix at one end (car’s boot) and stand on a telescopic leg. For better stability, I’d recommend using two legs outside.

Everything is held in place with aluminium “L” shape profiles. Light and durable.

STEP 3: Storage and final touches

The storage compartments are built using the same plywood as the floor + their covers have holes in them instead of handles – an easy way to open them. They are loose – just put them in place or remove them and use as a table or chopping board 🙂

The storage compartments serve as the base for your bed, hold things in place and you can always put a plastic storage box inside to separate things. They are easily available in any DIY store.

Note that the floor is covered by a PVC floor sheet, which makes the cleaning easier, especially underneath the bike.

STEP 4: (optional) DIY Awning

The awning is a simple tarp that is attached to a telescopic broom handle (it seems!). Another clever solution that doesn’t require much and works fine. You need to make sure the handle is attached to the roof rails properly, rest is easy – you need a tarp with punched holes on every corner, then attach it to the handle using short elastic bands with hooks and two poles on the other hand. Secure the poles to the ground using standard tent strings.

STEP 5: (optional) Toilet + fridge with it’s own battery

This DIY Camping conversion can of course be adjusted to any other car – I will certainly use some of these ideas in my 2-person Sharan camper upgrade soon.

Images shared with the owner’s permission

Post author:

Lukas

Founder of NimbleCamper.com, avid traveler and outdoor enthusiast. Car camping and microcamping allows me to keep traveling and exploring with a much greater level of freedom & privacy – to go anywhere and sleep anywhere. I didn’t have 30K to buy a VW Multivan, so found my way to the world of everyday car camping conversions. Here I share my experiences and what I learn.

Check out my thoughts on a balanced life: sensimism.com

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3 Comments

  1. Hi Lukas.
    Great write up on the Dacia Jogger conversion. Please could I ask when you removed the rear seat (behind front passenger) whether you got any warning lights on the dashboard when you unclipped the rear seat belt sensor wire?
    Thank you.

    1. Hi James, thanks!

      Will check with the person who did this conversion and let you know!

      But my guess would be that you shouldn’t remove any sensor wires as the car probably checks for broken loops in the wiring, so always better to leave any electricals intact (unless you know the ins-and-outs of car wiring and can bypass it yourself).

      Lukas

    2. Here’s the response from the owner of this conversion:

      “There is [a warning light] only for about 20 seconds. The seat recognition shows that no one is buckled – at least that’s how I understand it. Then the symbol is gone again – so no permanent warning light 👍”