A roof tent or rooftop tent is an accessory which may be fitted to the roof or bed of a

motor vehicle A motor vehicle, also known as motorized vehicle or automotive vehicle, is a self-propelled land vehicle, commonly wheeled, that does not operate on rails (such as trains or trams) and is used for the transportation of people or cargo. The ...

which allows the users to sleep in relative safety and comfort above the vehicle, and leaves the internal load-space free. The first example of roof-tents appeared in Western Europe in the 1930s. Roof tents are particularly seen on expedition-prepared

four wheel drive Four-wheel drive, also called 4×4 ("four by four") or 4WD, refers to a two-axled vehicle drivetrain capable of providing torque to all of its wheels simultaneously. It may be full-time or on-demand, and is typically linked via a transfer cas ...

vehicles such as

Land Rover Land Rover is a British brand of predominantly four-wheel drive, off-road capable vehicles, owned by multinational car manufacturer Jaguar Land Rover (JLR), since 2008 a subsidiary of India's Tata Motors. JLR currently builds Land Rove ...

s, but can be fitted to almost any vehicle. Generally they will mount to a vehicles roof rack or aftermarket roof bars. They are particularly popular in

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

and one manufacturer advertises them using photographs of their devices fitted to cars as small as the Fiat Panda.

History

Designs and styles

Roof tents have traditionally taken the form of a conventional ridge-pole

tent A tent () is a shelter consisting of sheets of fabric or other material draped over, attached to a frame of poles or a supporting rope. While smaller tents may be free-standing or attached to the ground, large tents are usually anchored using ...

which can be folded into a compact package, resting on marine plywood, and mounted on a roof rack. Beginning in 1958, more modern tent designs appeared - housed in a waterproof, moulded fiberglass or

carbon fibre Carbon fiber-reinforced polymers (American English), carbon-fibre-reinforced polymers (Commonwealth English), carbon-fiber-reinforced plastics, carbon-fiber reinforced-thermoplastic (CFRP, CRP, CFRTP), also known as carbon fiber, carbon compo ...

box, and are erected and taken down more quickly using a simple crank-operated cantilever arrangement or gas rams that automatically erect the tent when the latches are released. In 2003 a

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

manufacturer introduced another design of simple and lightweight tents, resembling modern sprung-pole types of ground tent.

Manufacturers

* James Baroud * NaïtUpNaïtUp, in French
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References

Tents Automotive accessories {{Automotive-part-stub eu:Kanpin

History

Designs and styles

Manufacturers

See also

References