Lightweight Hardshell Truck Camper: AT Overland Aterra Topper

Light, durable, and super configurable, the AT Overland Aterra Topper offers a fresh take on the truck camper.

If you have a full-size truck with a 6.5-foot bed and want a camper without the hassles of a pop-top or the weight and cost of a slide-in, then the AT Overland Aterra Topper (ATP 6.5) is for you. This unique new hardshell truck topper camper bridges the gap between a pop-top camper topper and a hard-sided slide-in truck camper.

It is also the lightweight follow-up to the AT Overland Aterra XL, a full-featured truck camper that requires a flatbed and HD truck. The Aterra Topper requires neither, and it comes with considerably less weight and cost.

At 510 pounds, the Aterra Topper is relatively lightweight, but more importantly is extremely strong. It is made of the same honeycomb composite panels bonded with aluminum extrusions and covered in a high-polyurea content coating as the Aterra XL. It is also finished with the same single-stage automotive paint, but only in white for the ATP 6.5 — vehicle color matching is not yet available.

What sets this camper apart from the crowd is that it's a hardshell topper with a cab-over. Most truck toppers with a cab-over sleeping area are of the pop-up style. This gives you the security, durability, and convenience of a hardshell camper, without the added weight and built-in features associated with a slide-in truck camper.

In the cab-over of the Aterra Topper is a king-size bed (74 inches wide and 80 inches long) with a 3-inch-thick upholstery foam mattress. The mattress and mattress platform are of a split design. This allows the bed system to be converted into a sofa when placed on the lower bed rails. Comfy seating in a camper is key!

If a bunk bed is desired for additional occupants, a second split mattress panel is an optional add-on as well. This adds a lower 74 x 30-inch sleeping area to the upper standard king bed in the cab-over.

Four Tern Overland windows, two on the walls and two on the angled roof areas, offer lots of light and ventilation in the camper. These double-pane windows also offer great insulating properties, while also including blackout roller blinds and bug screens.

Also standard inside the ATP 6.5 are two flip-up tables, a nice versatile solution as a table, kitchen counter, or standup desk. The quick stow features allow them to easily get out of the way when you need more space to move around or haul gear.

Interior dimmable LED lighting and power outlets (both USB and 12VDC) come standard. A 185W roof-mounted solar panel does as well. This all ties into a removable rear corner MOLLE panel. It acts as a wire chase with lots of electrical upfitting options. Just tie in your favorite DC power pack/battery generator system.

Getting in and out of the Aterra Topper is super easy as well. No tiny door on this camper! There is a rear liftgate that opens a full 90 degrees.

Not only is it tall enough to allow motorcycles and ATVs to be loaded into the truck bed, but it also provides some shade and weather protection behind the truck. The liftgate is lockable from both inside and outside. This offers you the security you want when camping and when hauling toys.

To round out the standard features on the Aterra Topper, you get mechanical camper jack mounts. These jack mounts make installation and removal of the camper from your truck super simple. They are also compatible with the industry standard Rieco-Titan jacks.

The first two production ATP 6.5s are what you see here. Production is already underway, and the order books will likely fill out fast. This is especially true with the topper debut this week at Overland Expo West.

Base pricing starts at $20,500. It will be no doubt easy to elevate that price if you start to add optional features. Things like cabinets, a bunk bed, heating, more electrical, and an awning are nice to have, but they also rack up the price tag quickly.

The ATP 6.5 is just the first in a series of Aterra Toppers. In the works are Aterra Toppers for 5.5-, 6.75-, and 8-foot full-size trucks, as well as 5- and 6-foot midsize trucks.

Also to be released are new accessories to help outfit this camper with living systems and secure storage. Things like a modular wall-mounted cabinet system utilizing STEP22 full and half Stingray Bags and a mounting system for the Dometic GO 11L water jugs are in development.

The AT Overland Aterra truck camper has become reality. Our resident overland expert Bryon Dorr got a chance to crawl around it in the wild and came away impressed. Read more…