<span class="highlight">Roof</span> <span class="highlight">Top</span> <span class="highlight">tents</span>

Hi Stacey,
if your on a budget go to Ebay.
We purchased a tent /annex-awning/mossie screen package last year from a seller "ARCO-design" in melbourne- just search seller.He also advertises in the trading post
we used the tent for a 9 week trip across the ann beadell, then the canning , kimberly across to kakadu then down the centre home. absolutely no problems with the tent or awning.
I did make up a short extension to the ladder to siut my raised 80 series but they do have them available.
although a No name model iplain grey cover) it was advertised as a simpson 2 and was delivered in about 5 cartons branded made in south africa.
Will admit we did not put up the room under the tent the whole trip. have only ever put it on once during a shakedown trip to make sure it worked.
cheers
Howard

Stacey,

Very popular way to go these days. What type of car are you putting it on and do you have a roof rack fitted already. The other option is roof bars of course. The link below is to a list of recent threads on roof top tents which contain a lot of good info. I have used an ARB Pilbara roof topper for a few years and found it to be very good but they are far too pricey these days. Having just been to the recent 4x4 expo, you can get packages and the likes including the roof topper and underneath awning, a side awning and a screen room for that for a little over a grand. Much better value. The majority of roof toppers are identically sourced these days (china) so you tend to be paying big bucks at ARB or not so big bucks at places like Ironman for more or less identical products.

Good luck.

Mick.


Roof Top Tents

Hi Stacey - look for one that is easy to erect and close. My son bought one from eBay some years ago and found it similar quality to the brand names at a fraction of the price. It appeared that someone had purchased a batch from China and was selling off the rest as a one-off. This worked out very cheap for a good roof top tent.

Motherhen

Hi Stacey
We have been using an ebay rooftop tent for a while now and prefer it to towing the camper around. We have had no trouble with it in the rain or strong winds. Yes they do flap around in strong wind but then most tents do.
We have put an eggshell mattress on top of the standard one it came with, to make it more comfortable, sheets and a quilt and still folds up ok. The pillows left in make it a bit difficult but still possible, we now just put them on top when folded but under the main cover which works well, there is also room under the cover to place extra blankets etc if needed.
Chris

Hi Stacey
Check out thread. 85406
I leave my sleeping bag, pillow and sheep skin blanket in my rooftop tent all the time.
My vehicle is parked outside most of the time.
No problems , always dry.
Cheers

We have a Ezi-awn roof-top tent that we have used on many occasions and works well for the application. Mind you we have offered it for sale previously as we now have a TVAN, but still have it.

A couple of points to make in response to your questions though;

Firstly, I’d by a reasonable quality one, although with the benefit of hindsight I would most likely have gone the E-bay route knowing what I know now. Perhaps you won’t get anything like the quality offered in some of the more well known branded models, the price variance suggests the risk/reward of going cheaper is still a reasonable option. We’ve tried to sell ours at a steep discount to the new price, and weren’t able to sell as the E-bay no-names come in cheaper, with an attachable room in many cases. Mind you the Ezi-Awn has served as well and it is in the garage waiting for an opportunity to travel with us again!

Whether you can close it properly with bedding included will simply depend on just how much bedding you have. But a couple of sleeping bags, a blanket and a couple of pillows shouldn’t cause any concern.

Wind, any canvas will flap in the breeze/wind, and the roof-top tent won’t be any different, you can expect it. And whilst we experienced no problem in wind, out Southern Cross centre pole tent will outperform a rooftop in very strong winds.

Rain, well I guess that comes down to the quality of manufacture, our experience with the Ezi-awn is that it did not leak water or ingress when driving in the rain. But remember you are looking for a price/quality trade-off so cheaper brands may compromise in that regard.

The other consideration is how long are you going to stay in each place on your trip. Given it is a three month tour will the roof-top tent be your best option? My partner has never been a big fan of them for the simple reasons they are nothing more than a ‘sleeping’ area, whereas a tent provides a ‘living’ area. And whilst many rooftop tends have room attachments underneath, the time and effort to set it up will be no different to setting up a tent.

All comes down to personal choice....so good luck with it

Cheers, The Landy

Having done many trips between a week and 14 weeks with the roof top tent it really depends on what type of travelling you do.
If driving every day and rarely staying in one spot for more than one night is your normal travel mode then they are great.
If you are more inclined to drive for a few days and then stay in one spot for a few days and do day trips they quickly become a PITA as even though the packup is quiick and relatively easy it wears a bit thin especially if in a van park or city. We used to end up getting cabins for extended stays which increases costs.
The other problem is a lack of shelter in bad weather even though our shippshape has a room beside the vehicle it is still very cold and wet in bad weather where a tent might give you space to sit and read etc.
You also have to get used to getting dressed in the open if you don't have walls on the side room, not usually a problem in the bush but can be a bugger in parks etc.