Rooftop tents on Prado (1 Viewer)

[wvalle]

Hello all,

I have a ‘96 Prado TZ (KZJ95) and I’m looking at getting the Roam XL Rooftop tent. The whole thing weighs 190lbs and doing a quick search online I’ve seen that 100kg is the limit for the roof which doesn’t allow for any persons to be in the tent on the vehicle. Just curious if the 100kg number is accurate and if so how have others retrofitted the frame/rack to support a rooftop tent? Thank you in advance!

Wilson

 

[javelinadave]

I think that limit is for the factory rails. If you get 3 or 4 gutter mount crossbars you should be fine.

 

[wvalle]

I think that limit is for the factory rails. If you get 3 or 4 gutter mount crossbars you should be fine.

Thanks for the info!

 

[KiwiBogan]

I'm 106kg and I climb up on my roof when loading kayaks, camping gear and other stuff and it certainly shows no sign of being at its limits. I would say the 100kg limit would be for driving, not parked? My rack has 8 feet attaching it to the gutters so the load is pretty well spread out.

One thing to note though, fuel economy goes up noticably with the kzj95 with things on the roof. You might not want to keep the RTT up there all year round!

 

[eatSleepWoof]

Vehicle roof ratings are typically for dynamic (ie. in transit) loads. Static ratings are, by default, way, way higher.

I've yet to hear of a vehicle roof being damaged by a RTT and a few people in it, even under... active, night-time scenarios.

OEM rails are also often considerably better designed and stronger than aftermarket options. I don't have a Prado so can't speak to it specifically.

 

[wvalle]

I'm 106kg and I climb up on my roof when loading kayaks, camping gear and other stuff and it certainly shows no sign of being at its limits. I would say the 100kg limit would be for driving, not parked? My rack has 8 feet attaching it to the gutters so the load is pretty well spread out.

One thing to note though, fuel economy goes up noticably with the kzj95 with things on the roof. You might not want to keep the RTT up there all year round!

Thanks for the info KiwiBogan! Good to know about the

I'm 106kg and I climb up on my roof when loading kayaks, camping gear and other stuff and it certainly shows no sign of being at its limits. I would say the 100kg limit would be for driving, not parked? My rack has 8 feet attaching it to the gutters so the load is pretty well spread out.

One thing to note though, fuel economy goes up noticably with the kzj95 with things on the roof. You might not want to keep the RTT up there all year round!

thanks for the info KiwiBogan! Good to know about the worsened fuel economy, I’ve seen people have little cranes in their garage to quickly load/offload the tent singlehanded.

 

[wvalle]

I'm 106kg and I climb up on my roof when loading kayaks, camping gear and other stuff and it certainly shows no sign of being at its limits. I would say the 100kg limit would be for driving, not parked? My rack has 8 feet attaching it to the gutters so the load is pretty well spread out.

One thing to note though, fuel economy goes up noticably with the kzj95 with things on the roof. You might not want to keep the RTT up there all year round!

Thanks for the info KiwiBogan! Good to know about the

I'm 106kg and I climb up on my roof when loading kayaks, camping gear and other stuff and it certainly shows no sign of being at its limits. I would say the 100kg limit would be for driving, not parked? My rack has 8 feet attaching it to the gutters so the load is pretty well spread out.

One thing to note though, fuel economy goes up noticably with the kzj95 with things on the roof. You might not want to keep the RTT up there all year round!

thanks for the info KiwiBogan! Good to know about the worsened fuel economy, I’ve seen people have little cranes in their garage to quickly load/offload the tent single

Vehicle roof ratings are typically for dynamic (ie. in transit) loads. Static ratings are, by default, way, way higher.

I've yet to hear of a vehicle roof being damaged by a RTT and a few people in it, even under... active, night-time scenarios.

OEM rails are also often considerably better designed and stronger than aftermarket options. I don't have a Prado so can't speak to it specifically.

fantastic info thanks! Haha looking forward to validating the rooftop integrity after an active night myself!

 

[buggyboy7]

Hey wvalle

I'm chiming in here kinda late but have a look at my tent setup. Call me crazy but I've had this same tent on three KZJ's with just two Frontrunner gutter mount tower/crossbars with no issues at all.
(Active tests carried out..lol)