comfort vs practical

[Visser]

Hi all,

I have been in a dilemma for a number of weeks/months about what type of roof to fit on my LC 75. I am either going for a pop-top tent roof or a hardtop camper style roof.

Goal of my build: Expedition vehicle to travel throughout europe/asia & north-south america. My main concern is that if i will live in this vehicle for months on end, comfort will beat practical living in some ways.

List of pro's and cons I have made concerning both roofs;

Pop-top tent:

Pro's:
Low profile
Lower costs
Less conspicuous expedition vehicle

Con's:
Cold for certain regions
Depends on wind conditions if it is usable
less headroom compared to camper top


Camper Style hardtop:

Pro's:
More headspace / more comfort
Not dependable on weather conditions

Con's
Higher profile (65 centimeter higher), possible problems with bridges, forests..
Higher costs
Conspicuous expedition vehicle


I was hoping to receive some feedback from people who might have travelled in one of the two or possibly both. Any advice is greatly appreciated!

 

[Bogo]

The people at Expedition Portal Forum would likely have a lot to say on this.

On my own I figured staying under 7' overall travel height was important. Many parking garages have 6' to 8' height restrictions. Also the ability to put the vehicle into a standard shipping container creates it's own limit. There are taller containers, but they cost more.

 

[renago]

Hi Visser

first of all GOOD LUCK for your long Trip-Expedition .

I have a toyota 78 , initially used for 10 years in north africa , so no need for pop up roof .
just a maggiolina on the roof.

Now that those areas are off limits , I must look elsewhere , so I decided for a pop up roof .
I am very happy for this change .
pro :
not heavier then a Maggiolina on the roof , maybe even lighter .
very nice to stand up after or before you want to go to sleep
very handy when you have rain or cold weather outside , the cabin can be heated very quickly .

neg:
pls consider that you will have 240 cm of hight , so many parking places are 200, or 220 .
in come cities all underground parking are too low.
the change is not reversible ,
costy ,
unlikely you can regain the money invested in the roof .
to efficiently use the space you must refit the interior .
wind could be a problem if the lift is planned ONLY on oil pumps.
consider also something else .
if you put a second wheel or a box on the roof , this may become very heavy to lift .

I have not tried the full camper version .
but I think it is way too high and not that practical .
even dangerous with lateral wind .
Have seen very little of them arround .
if you want/ need to load something on the roof , with this set up it will be impossible .

just may 2 cents

bon Voyage

Renago

 

[Hiace4wd]

Hee nog een Nederlander!

We've been to Asia in a BJ45 with a rooftent. The whole tent/fabric thing is usually nice to sleep in, in good weather is more comfortable than a closed body. However, there is more risk when you are in dangerous areas, as it can be cut open. And when the weather turn really bad, a closed body is nicer. But make sure to ventilate enough!

Are you travelling alone or with two people? You could choose the pop up roof, and whenever you feel unsafe, sleep at a lower platform with the roof closed. Or when it is very very windy or heavily raining (like monsoon etc)

Where in Asia will you go? Usually it is pretty safe, even though you might be going to "unsafe" countries. I would really recommend Iran. Pakistan is also nice but you have to take more care about safety in a lot of areas.

Sleeping in our rooftent is a bit vulnerable, but we only got "harassed" twice in India and Nepal (normally pretty safe), and that was not so bad. I yelled them away and then we left.
Now we have a family and I really like the closed body for when we go bush camping. With a pop up roof and the kids, it would mean there is never the option to put the pop up roof down because you need the sleeping places.

Friends of ours travelled through Africa and South America with their HZJ75 with pop-up roof, but I think they did a bit less bush camping than we did. However, they didn't have any issues.

I don't have a specific preference for one of the two. But please not that the camper examples that you give, you will have more space in the camper. However, also more drag which is mostly important for travelling within Europe. Outside Europe it is not so important.

You can visit our site, there are some links to other travellers as well.
Lovetheworld.nl - Amsterdam to Singapore by Landcruiser