Thoughts On a "Tropical" Roof Rack?

[gaijin]

Many of us will remember the old Land Rovers, like this 1966 example, that had the option of a "Tropical" roof:

Basically, that was just a raised panel, painted white to reflect sunlight/heat, that provided an air layer between the hot sun and the roof of the vehicle. The goal was to mitigate heat inside the vehicle when in a hot, sunny environment.

Discussions have been had about painting the roof white to accomplish basically the same thing, but that option does not provide an insulating air layer above the roof.

So... what might be a modern "tropical" option for those of us who live or travel in the desert or other hot/sunny environments and also want to have a roof rack?

I'm sure the FrontRunner roof rack will be familiar to many of us:

Additional cross members are available so that the rack can be configured as a platform:

So... what if we install the additional cross members and powder coat them all white?

This would provide a (more or less) solid white surface, above the roof, that would mitigate heat gain in the vehicle and provide all the functionality of a roof rack.

Am I crazy? Or is this a potentially good idea?

Thoughts?

 

[ZackR]

The idea definitely makes sense, white reflects heat, the air gap prevents heat soaking into the cabin.

Perhaps a large roof top tent with a white fiberglass hard shell could meet those goals and provide a place to sleep...

 

[Markuson]

There is no question white helps a lot. Look at the “herds” of white LCs in the Dubai dunes.

An Aside...
Going to limousine-dark tint on my windows has dramatically helped the interior of my truck stay cool in parked, summer heat.

Highly recommend a tint for parked heat reduction.

 

[M1911]

A cheaper and simpler option would be to simply get a white wrap for the roof (assuming that your LC isn't white already). That likely wouldn't be as effective as the tropical roof, but seeing as much of the solar gain is from light through the windows, I'm not sure how effective a tropical roof would be anyways...

So I guess my reaction would be to first get a darker tint (as suggested by Markuson) and a wrap, and then see how effective that is, before adding a bunch of weight up high.

 

[mcgaskins]

I did a nearly clear (you can't tell by looking at it) quality tint on the windshield, and it helped tremendously as well. I also had the fronts tinted to match the back, and I think the total was only about $200 IIRC. That achieved a massive reduction of heat in the truck.

 

[T4Runner]

Ceramic tint is the way to go.