Supertramp Megatron Truck Camper Steals Show at Overland Expo West

Move over EarthRoamer, there’s a new expedition rig in town and it’s called Megatron. Built by our friends at Supertramp Campers, Megatron offers everything that the EarthRoamer does at half the cost. The world got its first look at the turnkey expedition rig at the 2024 Overland Expo West and the response was overwhelmingly positive. We were impressed too. During our tour of the 7-ton beauty, we couldn’t get over how functional and beautiful the rig was. Megatron’s fit and finish was most impressive.

Megatron has everything one could want in an expedition truck camper rig—a carbon reinforced camper mounted on an Elevation Off-Grid Black Edition Ford F-550 with the LiquidSpring suspension using a patent-pending independent mounting system. Inside, this gleaming, white beauty you’ll find everything needed to camp comfortably, including a California king-size bed, a huge dinette, a large bathroom, 70 gallons of fresh water, and a 24 volt electrical system powered by massive lithium battery bank. It also sports an enormous refrigerator-freezer, a dual induction cooktop, hydronic heating, and a DC air conditioner. Only the finest materials and equipment are used. There’s no doubt about it, if we were to build a turnkey overland rig from scratch it would have everything that Megatron has.

To learn more about this engineering masterpiece, we spoke with Kelsey Panich, Supertramp Campers Sales and Operations Manager.

Thanks again, Kelsey, for the tour of Megatron. What inspired you to build a rig like it?

Kelsey Panich: The team at Supertramp Campers enjoys challenging themselves and bringing innovations to new markets. Similar to the push forward that the Flagship LT has provided to the slide-in market, we saw an opportunity to manufacture a super capable, luxury overland vehicle that matches form and function. Many rigs in this market sector lack form or function. They are either very attractive with many amenities, but are limited in their capacity to take the users where they want to go. Or they are so function oriented that they lack the aesthetic features that make the unit comfortable for the user to use for an extended period of time. Our design goals have always been form equals function and we believe we have achieved this with Megatron.

Why did you decide to go with Elevation Off-Grid for the platform truck?

Kelsey Panich: Elevation Off-Grid (EOG) is known for building the world’s most capable vehicles. EOG’s attention to detail, knowledge of the vehicles, and build quality matches perfectly with Supertramp Campers. We also wanted to ensure that when the camper was fitted on the truck with gear, water, and toys that we still had ample payload to have a safe and enjoyable driving experience. We also test drove the vehicle with one of their owners, Jerime Monroe, and we were absolutely blown away by how nimble the vehicle behaved on highways at high speeds, in tights turns, and on rough terrain off-roading. We were sold on the EOG truck on the spot after that test drive.

What are the specifications of the EOG Ford F-550 truck?

Kelsey Panich: The EOG truck offers a GVWR of 19,500 pounds and the rig weighs 14,000 pounds, leaving us with over 5,000 pounds of usable payload. The Goodyear MSA tires are size 41s. The fuel tank is a whopping 66 gallons which offers a nearly 600 mile range on one tank of fuel.

How is Megatron’s camper/habitat constructed?

Kelsey Panich: Supertramp Campers is known for its vacuum infusion process that is completed in house and earned the Advanced Industries grant from the State of Colorado in 2022. Similar to the construction of our Flagship LT slide-in camper, the Megatron is manufactured using fiberglass and carbon fiber to manufacture a single piece monocoque shell. The shell structure and insulation comes from foam that is used during our laminate schedule that creates a highly insulated structure. It’s then painted using the same triple-stage paint solution used on the vehicle to complete the exterior.

What is the floor length and width of Megatron?

Kelsey Panich: Megatron’s floor length is 8 feet long and 7.75 feet wide. The main isle walkway inside is a full 30 inches wide.

How is the habitat shell mounted to the chassis? Does it articulate separately from the truck?

Kelsey Panich: The Megatron mount system is a patent-pending new design that solves the roll instability and lack of driving confidence in legacy systems. The system, which we call the RockSteady Mount System, allows for natural truck frame articulation without allowing excessive rocking of the habitat. The mounting system allows for truck frame articulation under the habitat without damaging the composite shell while also keeping the habitat stable. This makes the truck more confidence inspiring to drive on the highway without the habitat rocking back and forth during side winds, or turning. Off-road, it removes the secondary habitat weight shift felt when turning or articulating the suspension.

How large are Megatron’s holding tanks?

Kelsey Panich: The habitat has 70 gallons fresh, 20 gallons grey, and a 10 gallon cassette toilet or dry flush toilet.

Can you tell us about Megatron’s electrical system? How are the batteries charged?

Kelsey Panich: Megatron’s primary electrical system is running 24 volts for the majority of systems. This allows for us to place larger loads on the 24 volt system and be more efficient and then place lighter loads on the conversion 12 volt or any systems which require use of the 4,500 watt inverter. The 910 amp hours of lithium batteries are charged through three potential methods: 800 watts of walkable rooftop solar; DC-DC charging, which has a peak input of 83 amps at 24 volts given ideal temperatures for the second alternator; and shore power. Even assuming a lower average charge of 50 amps, it is pretty crazy that we can charge the entire battery system from 0 to 100 percent in under eight hours of driving without the need for traditional shore power.

Can you tell us about the appliances and features found inside the camper? Is propane used anywhere inside the camper?

Kelsey Panich: There is no propane used in the Supertramp Megatron. We are running a two-burner induction stove top and a combination microwave, air fryer, and convection oven off of the 4,500 watt inverter. The hydronic heating loop in the floor is also the same system for your hot water, and forced air which runs off the primary diesel tank of the Megatron.

Nice! Does Megatron have a DC air conditioner?

Kelsey Panich: Yes, we are using the Cruise N Comfort VES Icebox 24L. It’s a 24 volt, mini-split air conditioner that uses between only 20 and 33 amps. It’s very efficient.

Megatron’s cabinets are beautiful. What are they made of?

Kelsey Panich: The cabinets are made of veneer. The veneer is all grain matched and the customer can select the desired wood finish.

Megatron’s nine windows offer an amazing amount of light. Can you tell us more about them?

Kelsey Panich: Yes. Supertramp Campers is known for its spacious layouts with ample storage and light. We wanted to provide a ton of natural light into the space to make a bright interior that feels large. We partnered with Outbound that designs windows specifically for expedition vehicles. The windows feature double-tempered glass and matching roller blinds with a black out screen and bug screen. This makes the products suitable for the most extreme conditions and special adventures. We also feel that a product in this price range should have glass windows compared to a double-pane acrylic that is more common in the slide-in camper market. Acrylic windows are prone to scratching.

What does Megatron list for? What are the standard features and which options to you offer?

Kelsey Panich: The base price of Megatron is $495,000. The base price includes the EOG F-550 truck, the carbon reinforced camper shell, 910 amp hours of lithium, 790 watts of solar, a 4,500 watt inverter, an air conditioner, hydronic heating with heated floors, a quartz countertop, 70 gallons fresh water, 20 gallons grey, a C-zone integrated touchscreen, double pane glass windows, veneer cabinetry, a veneer stone bathroom, a California king-size bed, a wet-bath with sliding dry flush toilet, a two-burner induction cooktop, 200L DC refrigerator-freezer, a deployable entry step, keyless entry, and a RADs bumper. We offer numerous options for both the habitat and the truck, which will be on our website soon.

Do you offer more Megatron colors besides white?

Kelsey Panich: Yes. We can accommodate any color offered by Ford, but we can also line-X the vehicle any color that the customer wants.

What makes the Megatron better than the competition?

Kelsey Panich: Lots of things. Ford’s F-550 platform provides a turning radius that is the same as a crew cab F-150. This makes maneuvering the vehicle a breeze whether it is parking at the ski resort or pulling a U-turn on a remote road. The remaining payload with the vehicle after loading it with all your gear and water is confidence inspiring to take on technical roads and tow your toys. The LiquidSpring suspension is adaptive while the end user is driving the vehicle. This prevents body roll in tight corners and allows for you to be nimble on the trail with the 6 inches of lift capacity to overcome obstacles along with the capacity to lower the bump stops 6 inches to avoid overhanging features.

Inside, we provide a full 7 feet 4 inches of headroom, which makes it feel airy and not cramped at all. The California king, north-south sleeping feels amazing and with the beautiful aesthetics of the interior roof, wrap around windows, and 34 inches of headroom it is not a compromise at all from your home sleeping arrangement. The lines on the F-550 are also carried through to the camper’s body lines, which makes it one complete piece to the viewer. The bathroom is spacious and even has a small window and the large amount of counter space makes cooking and meal prep a breeze!

Is there anything else of note that you’d like to tell us about the Megatron?

Kelsey Panich: The functionality of Supertramp Megatron’s habitat is unmatched. The features include airliner storage to tuck duffel bags of gear away to a sliding bathroom solution that allows for a full-size shower with veneer slate walls. The booth in the rear converts into an L-shaped couch to accommodate more individuals in a relaxed atmosphere. We have designed this unit to allow form to equal function.

We have two build slots for units that will be hitting the road this year remaining. We have strategically increased our production capacity to bring this new product to market and we cannot wait to see it on the trails.

Interested in seeing the Supertramp Megatron is person? You’re in luck. The rig will be on display at the Overland Expo Pacific Northwest in Redmond, Oregon, June 28-30, and at the Overland Expo Mountain West in Loveland, Colorado, August 23-25.