A Small Jeep Packed for a Real Trip
Panda Express is our 2015 Jeep Wrangler JK Sport two-door, built around a simple question: how much gear do we need to travel comfortably without giving up the trail manners that make a short-wheelbase Jeep fun?
In July 2025, Brit and his son took this setup through Colorado and Utah with the AAL team. The trip included the Alpine Loop, Black Bear Pass, the La Sal Mountains, and Onion Creek. Back at the shop, Brit unpacked the Jeep on camera to show what came along, where it fit, and what he would change.
The layout uses the space behind the front seats for a cargo platform, slides, an Overland Shelf, and separate storage for smaller items. Cooking equipment and water work from the tailgate; recovery equipment has its own mounting locations.
Vehicle: 2015 Jeep Wrangler JK Sport, two-door
Rear Seating: Removed for this cargo layout
Configuration Shown: July 2025 walkthrough and the build gallery below
Panda Express on the trail. The walkthrough below explains the equipment carried for the July 2025 trip.
Watch Panda Express Get Unpacked
The 28-minute walkthrough follows the equipment from its place in the Jeep to the shop tables. Food, personal duffels, and pillows had already been removed before filming.
Storage and recovery gear, 2:11 Ā· Slides and table storage, 5:16 Ā· Cooking equipment, 10:52 Ā· Fridge and inflator, 16:20 Ā· Trip power setup, 20:57
Some components were prototypes when this video was filmed. Use the current product pages for available configurations, specifications, and included parts.
The rear cargo area: Packout storage below the Overland Shelf, with the tailgate table folded for travel.
Use the Height, Keep the Corners Accessible
The 2-Door JK MASS+ Platform provides the cargo foundation. Above it, the JK 2-Door Overland Cargo Shelf creates an upper storage level. This shelf occupies the rear-seat space, so the rear seats cannot be reinstalled with this layout in place.
The shelf’s mounting position also leaves useful storage along the sides of the body. On this trip, Brit used those areas for items including his backpack. The spaces behind the front seats held personal duffels and a heavy tool roll.
Chairs, sleeping bags, sleeping mats, and a jacket also came along. The point is to give those soft items a place around the mounted equipment, rather than let them block access to the fridge or kitchen supplies.
A Fridge Slide and Packout Storage Below
The walkthrough identifies the refrigerator as an original 35-liter ARB. It rides on one of the ultralight slides being developed at the time. The other side carries Milwaukee Packout boxes and drawers, with camera accessories, hand tools, repair supplies, and kitchen equipment grouped into separate containers.
A Packout drawer riser lifts the drawer unit above the slide edges. That solves the clearance problem, but it adds an access tradeoff: Brit had to extend the slide before opening the drawers. After the trip, he preferred the convenience of dedicated drawers for this position.
The current Ultralight Fridge Slide page documents dimensions and mounting requirements. Check your refrigerator footprint, lid clearance, and platform arrangement before choosing a slide. A matching pattern name alone does not establish that modules can stack.
A closer look at the cargo slide and the equipment arranged behind it.
Panda Express at camp, with the cooking table set up beside the open cargo area.
Make Camp Without Losing Storage Space
The JK VersaTable opens from the tailgate. A separate folding table provides more workspace. In the video, a prototype riser stores that table beneath the fridge slide.
Brit also found a useful home for the GSI Pinnacle two-burner stove beneath the Packout drawer riser. Felt helps it slide in and out, and padding keeps it from clanking against the surrounding equipment. That is the practical lesson from this layout: when a bracket or riser creates a gap, check whether that space can hold something you already carry.
The kitchen kit includes nested pans, a utensil roll, compact spice containers, and four stainless-steel plates. Drawer liner between the pans reduces noise. For coffee, Brit used a DC water heater and instant coffee to simplify preparation and cleanup.
Water and Cooking Fuel
A Dometic GO water jug connects to a tailgate-mounted faucet through a remote hose. The current JK faucet bundle has optional faucet, jug, mount, and remote-kit selections, so check those individually when recreating the layout.
The walkthrough also shows compact refillable one-pound propane bottles and a bracket to stop them rolling around on the shelf. The Dual 1LB Propane Tank Mount is listed among this build’s products. Choose your fuel quantity for your own stove use and trip length.
Recovery Gear, Navigation, and Trip Power
Small hand tools and repair supplies live in Packout storage, while an Atlas 46 tool roll carries larger tools behind the seats. The walkthrough shows an M18 inflator bracket bolted to the fridge slide, with the tire deflator and recovery-board wrench in a nearby pouch.
The spare-tire platform carries recovery boards and a clearly labeled first-aid kit. The Jeep has a winch, although it was not used on this trip. The spare fuel container also stayed empty because the route remained close to fuel stops. Those are details of this trip, not a fuel or recovery plan for every route.
At the front, the JK Overhead MOLLE Shelf supports the Starlink setup and Icom radio equipment. The JK Dash Tablet Mount holds the tablet used for navigation and music.
The Power Setup Was Still a Work in Progress
A 100Ah lithium battery was installed below the cargo floor but had not been connected before departure. For this trip, an EcoFlow portable power station powered the fridge and Starlink and handled battery charging. The exact EcoFlow model was not confirmed in the walkthrough.
That distinction matters when planning a similar build: equipment mounted in a vehicle may still need wiring and commissioning before it becomes a working system.
What the First Trip Taught Us
The cargo layout worked well enough that Brit could unpack it exactly as it returned, aside from food and personal items. The strongest lessons were about access: keep side spaces usable, give tools a consistent home, and consider how often a slide has to move before you can reach a drawer.
The July 2025 suspension setup retained a front spacer and stock front coils, with Teraflex lower arms and 3.5-inch JKU rear springs. Brit reported that the rear springs helped address the previous rear sag, but the shocks still needed improvement for the loaded vehicle. This records the filmed setup; it is not a suspension prescription for another Jeep.
A lighter roof-rack concept was still under development for carrying a long ground tent and potentially relocating some rear-mounted equipment. The video does not show it as a completed product.
Brit’s goal after the trip was to keep reducing the load while retaining the equipment that earned its place. Panda Express is a working development vehicle, and that balance continues to shape the build.
Questions About a 2-Door JK Cargo Build
Can I Keep the Rear Seats With This Layout?
No. Panda Express’s Overland Shelf and cargo layout use the space occupied by the rear seats. The walkthrough explicitly confirms that the seats cannot go back in with this shelf installed.
Which Fridge Is Shown in the Walkthrough?
Brit identifies it as an original 35-liter ARB fridge. Check slide dimensions and refrigerator clearances for your own model rather than assuming all 35-liter fridges have the same footprint.
Can the Ultralight Slide Stack on a 6Ć3 Drawer?
The current Ultralight Fridge Slide product page says it does not stack on the current 6Ć3 drawers and is intended for a MASS or MASS Plus Platform. Check the exact modules and mounting arrangement before ordering.
Are All the Parts in the Video Available Today?
The video was published in July 2025 and includes prototype slides, risers, and future development plans. Check the linked products for current options. A complete build photo also includes equipment sold separately.
Browse installation instructions or contact our team with your model year, refrigerator, and planned cargo equipment.
Products Used in This Build
Photo Gallery: Panda Express on the Trail and at Camp
Compare the mounted equipment, open cargo layout, and camp setup. Select a photo for a closer look.
