The Nomadic Life

[funcrusher]

I'm with Angry on this one. I've never had a roof top tent but spent many nights in a tent when we were motorcycle touring. If I am driving a car I would much rather have a bigger tent and be able to leave it setup when I pull out. What are the advantages of the roof top tents? Being off the ground? A good Helinox cot is comfortable and keeps you off the tent floor if comfort is the issue.

I've used an air mattress and have slept in our van. The issue with that is no air flow if it is hot out.

SUPERLITE ROOF TENT – Go Fast Campers

this is the one i'm considering

it is pretty big...and pops up in seconds...one less thing to worry about when you get to a site...and i do like the idea of being off the ground

screens so plenty of air flow

and light...only 80lbs so i could feasibly throw it on my jeep myself

[bigbill]

Car camping, I have a six person Big Agnes and a queen air mattress. I also have a 10X10' popup shelter. I've got a two person Big Agnes if I have to haul it anywhere. The girlfriend has an older Class C RV but our relationship is maturing to the point of selling that and getting a 25ish foot travel trailer. The used market is pretty good here.

[deano]

I have a friend who has a Tepui. Family of four up there on top of a Subie. It's awesome. I want one for my Econoline.

[funcrusher]

I have a friend who has a Tepui. Family of four up there on top of a Subie. It's awesome. I want one for my Econoline.

i have a neighbor with a tepui...nice for sure...but he says it is a beast to get on the roof...he had to buy a folding table as a midway stop for lifting it onto the roof...and requires 2 adults

my problem is i have a 3.5" lifted jeep with 35" wheels...and the roof rack is another 3-4" high...

[Saab2000]

i have a neighbor with a tepui...nice for sure...but he says it is a beast to get on the roof...he had to buy a folding table as a midway stop for lifting it onto the roof...and requires 2 adults

my problem is i have a 3.5" lifted jeep with 35" wheels...and the roof rack is another 3-4" high...

That's also not nothing. I live alone and don't have a crew of helpers, so getting it on and off of my car is not a trivial matter. And it could be enough to sway the decision. It would be nice to think I would just pop it on the car and take off for a few days, but the logistics of that are in fact an issue.

[funcrusher]

That's also not nothing. I live alone and don't have a crew of helpers, so getting it on and off of my car is not a trivial matter. And it could be enough to sway the decision. It would be nice to think I would just pop it on the car and take off for a few days, but the logistics of that are in fact an issue.

dont know what your timing is, but the tent i am planning to buy gets released in november...80lbs seems doable for 1 person

[Saab2000]

dont know what your timing is, but the tent i am planning to buy gets released in november...80lbs seems doable for 1 person

I have only really even been considering this for the past couple days so I'm totally new and naive about it. Today I went to two stores I thought might have something and neither had anything. REI and Bass Pro Shop were useless.

My first task is trying to figure out if I'm going to damage my car, a 2018 VW Tiguan. The Roofnest Sparrow XL is 145 lbs. Combined with the rack needed to put it on the car, it will come in close to the car's limit of 165 lbs, which is presumably the dynamic load limit of the car. I would assume that since the car will be parked and not moving that technically it will support more, but VW doesn't mention that in their literature. The limit is 165 lbs, but that assumes the car is in motion.

Anyway, it's not so much the weight that concerns me as the awkwardness of the whole thing. Regardless of weight, they're not small and would be awkward to lift onto the roof of the car without damaging it, especially by myself.