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Sub $500 roof top tents?

BigG

NAXJA Forum User
Location
Michigan
Does anyone know of any roof top tents that can be had for close to $500 the only ones I can find are at least $1000.
 
Buy a tent and buy some wood. Make a frame to put the tent on. problem solved.
 
Yeah. I was looking at the quick setup aspect of most roof top tents out there, not just the off-the-ground part. Also I am in an apartment right now so my shopwork abilities are limited.
 
for ease of setup I usually sleep in the XJ, but thats another thread.
 
All the current offerings I have seen are top end. I'm sure that the materials are worth less than $200 but the design and effort are currently being recouped. Your best bet at this point might be to build a board structure and buy a regular tent that fits on top. Most bow tents can be assembled in a couple minutes and lifted up easily. Tie it down to the rig and use a ladder.
 
Most of them are expensive...and most deserve to be. However, there is one company importing from China. www.car-top-tent.com. Their newest model was available for $600 shipped from the first imported container...now they list for close to 8-900 shipped. Keep in mind these are knock-off's of the Eezi-Awn design...and dont have the quality materials or construction of the more expensive model. But are you necessarily looking for a tent that can last 20+ years?

Your in TX...i happen to know of a guy in Texas (College Station) who bought 20 of the above mentioned tents and is attempting to sell them on ebay. Search for roof top tents...and get ahold of him. Maybe he can work a deal if you can travel for pickup.

There was also the older model tent from the above importer. It was called the Mombasa tent....some guys bought these cheap when they were being liquidated, and some have since sold for the newer models. Keep an eye on www.ih8mud.com for a used Mombasa.

Me...i'll continue to save for the Eezi-Awn. And ARB is about to introduce their tent to the US market as well.
 
Thanks! I had been to Car-top-tent.com before, ut hadn't gotten arround to calling them for actual prices. I'll call them up and see what they have to offer right now. I've also been keeping an eye on eBay.
 
a few times we used tent poles zip tied to the rack holding up tarps. not so much a car top tent but it worked well made a decent shelter from wind and rain and during the day we just opened it up and had a patio :)
 
I wonder if we could save $$$ if we bought a bunch of these and had 'em shipped together? There has to be someone getting containers from near there on a regular basis.
 
I sent him a message inquiring about hte shipping cost and about arranging a bulk purchase. I'll post back on here if the talks go well.
 
Yeah, I don't think that these would get over here for much cheaper than $1000 a piece. We would need our own container to get them cheap. Then we still have to ship them across the US once they get here.

hi there mate, without knowing exactly where you're from, I've given a
shipping quote for 1 unit to a guy from the east coast for $800AUD. This
quote is from an international courier like UPS. Honestly, if you bought
2,3, 5 or 10 units, the price would is pretty much the same using a courier.
It would probably only knock 20-50AUD dollars off (from $800AUD) for getting
more than 1 unit but this is not a substantial enough saving if you were
buying these for resale in the US. My suggestion is to buy a 20ft container
of these units. You can fit 42 units of these campers in a 20ft container,
the saving would be substantial for you and you would be able to make a
generous profit from it? How do you like this option? Please let me know if
your intention is for commercial sale in the US
 
So i got another message back, they would sell 42 tents for $420 each. The shipping container would cost between $2000 and $2500 to ship ($50 per tent). If we can get the container, this could be doable.
 
Haven't had any inquiries.
 
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