Interesting roof top tent

[Rancho5]

Wow, this thread has taken a fun turn. Years ago I had a friend with 5 boys, ages 13-3ish, and he owned an older Dodge van that they used for road trips. Back in the cargo area he hole sawed a 4” hole through the floor, under the carpet. Boys would wander back, lift the carpet and take care of business. He said without it his family wouldn’t have gotten anywhere on any road trips. Imagine 5 boys on road trips...junk food and soda and constant potty stops. He said it was a life saver.

 

[phattyduck]

Got any clever solutions for #2?

A second one of these?

Maybe not...

-Charlie

 

[tx_shooter]

Initially I was not impressed by RTTs but after seeing one setup and checking it out I opened up to the idea. The real seller was my wife's interest and encouragement so we could camp more. She was not a fan of ground tents but really liked the RTT option.

So I bought a quality CVT RTT and have enjoyed it very much. The added weight to the roof is not bad considering the rest of the gear added to the 4R when camping off grid for a week. My wife and I put the RTT on the 4R without issue as needed so the MPG issue is a non issue IMO. When it is mounted it is about a 1mpg loss. I can live with that for the convergence of the RTT.

Our first trip out in the RTT we slept through some pretty bad storms and sheer winds while there was a tornado watch right on top of us. The next morning we woke up to many of the ground tents around us damaged, limbs down, and lots of camp furniture blown everywhere. My wife said she slept like a rock. That sold me that we made the right decision for us. Since then she has enjoyed camping anywhere we can get the 4Runner. (Due to knee issues from the Infantry life style I prefer to not backpack camp)

Your mileage my vary; but you do you. :cheers:

 

[TonyB66]

Initially I was not impressed by RTTs but after seeing one setup and checking it out I opened up to the idea. The real seller was my wife's interest and encouragement so we could camp more. She was not a fan of ground tents but really liked the RTT option.

So I bought a quality CVT RTT and have enjoyed it very much. The added weight to the roof is not bad considering the rest of the gear added to the 4R when camping off grid for a week. My wife and I put the RTT on the 4R without issue as needed so the MPG issue is a non issue IMO. When it is mounted it is about a 1mpg loss. I can live with that for the convergence of the RTT.

Our first trip out in the RTT we slept through some pretty bad storms and sheer winds while there was a tornado watch right on top of us. The next morning we woke up to many of the ground tents around us damaged, limbs down, and lots of camp furniture blown everywhere. My wife said she slept like a rock. That sold me that we made the right decision for us. Since then she has enjoyed camping anywhere we can get the 4Runner. (Due to knee issues from the Infantry life style I prefer to not backpack camp)

Your mileage my vary; but you do you. :cheers:

Back on track from that foul-mouthed turn we took, thank you...

RTTs can indeed be heavy alright, so that's a valid concern. I have a solution that I'm sure will work well for us though. As with the 4Runner, I'll be constructing a carport-like structure for the trailer. It will be a few feet taller than the trailer with the RTT mounted on the rack. I plan to store the RTT up there such that it can lowered and raised with a crank pulley system. The same can done in a garage too of course....

Happy Friday everyone.

 

[Scramble]

The design of that tent looks nice, I really like the fabric floor pan design, it seems much better than traditional solid ones. I wonder if it would puncture easily though, and if the tension on the fabric would spread the tear and cause a catastrophic failure?
This is just my personal opinion but I really think RRT are a terrible idea.

1) They Kill Fuel Efficiency
2) They raise vehicle center of gravity making high speed or off-road driving performance significantly worse
3) They are stupid expensive, you could get multiple high end tents for the cost of one RRT
4) They are heavy and a pain in the ass to take on and off your car

And last but not least, if I am not sleeping in the comfort of my home and I am already going camping, why on earth would I want to sleep on top of a bunch of gasoline and chemicals? I would much rather take the 5-15 minutes to setup a tent, make a campfire and sleep away from my vehicle and closer to nature.

There are some really amazing tent designs and innovative, easy to setup, designs (if poles really bother you) that can be had for a fraction of the cost of a RRT.
These are not exactly cheap but this is a german company that makes inflatable tents that are really nice https://www.heimplanet.com/

I agree with this post 1000%! For $250 you can get an amazing tent that will pack down to 15lbs - 18" x 10" & last 20 years.

 

[Riceye]

My RTT. The 4Runner is hiding behind.

 

[brtnstrns]

My RTT. The 4Runner is hiding behind.

I ****ing love Westies but man they fetch a pretty penny.

 

[GSTMike]

I don't think there is a right or wrong answer regarding Roof Top Tents, they have things going for them and going against them and at the end of the day it's really down to an individuals needs/wants. All the above negative and positive thoughts are valid it just comes down to what someone is looking for!

For me the decision was purely based off of my wife's wants I just couldn't bring myself to drop the coin on a new one so bided my time hunting the used market until a deal came up. Personally I'm happy sleeping on a piece of plastic covered in mud while being rained on, for some odd reason my wife isn't.

Mike

 

[JZiggy]

We need a kit that converts a 4Runner into a pop-up roof.

 

[IBallEngineer]

My RTT. The 4Runner is hiding behind.

I have one in my backyard too! Not mine though, I'm helping a friend do a Subaru conversion on an air cooled 1980. So far the engine is mounted, the harness done, but he works crazy hours so not much more. Converting to water cooling is the next big hurdle.

 

[repo]

The design of that tent looks nice, I really like the fabric floor pan design, it seems much better than traditional solid ones. I wonder if it would puncture easily though, and if the tension on the fabric would spread the tear and cause a catastrophic failure?
This is just my personal opinion but I really think RRT are a terrible idea.

1) They Kill Fuel Efficiency
2) They raise vehicle center of gravity making high speed or off-road driving performance significantly worse
3) They are stupid expensive, you could get multiple high end tents for the cost of one RRT
4) They are heavy and a pain in the ass to take on and off your car

And last but not least, if I am not sleeping in the comfort of my home and I am already going camping, why on earth would I want to sleep on top of a bunch of gasoline and chemicals? I would much rather take the 5-15 minutes to setup a tent, make a campfire and sleep away from my vehicle and closer to nature.

There are some really amazing tent designs and innovative, easy to setup, designs (if poles really bother you) that can be had for a fraction of the cost of a RRT.
These are not exactly cheap but this is a german company that makes inflatable tents that are really nice https://www.heimplanet.com/

Or if you tip over in the middle of nowhere you probably dont have shelter now. Or breakdown and need to hike out.