2019 TRD Pro Rooftop tent question

Hello fellow 4runner owners! I recently purchased a 2019 TRD Pro and as you all know it has a funky roof rack. I'm interested in the 2-3 person Freespirit Recreation adventure series manual 55" roof top tent. Do you guys think my roof rack can be used to mount a roof top tent? Or if you have other recommendations I am very interested to see. If I can make my current roof rack work, I would prefer to make use of it as oppose to investing in a different one.

-Xavier

 

Well I suppose you could use it but your tent will be very high up and may look ridiculous. Being that high I feel it would be hard to manage the tent, i.e., packing and unpacking. You could always buy a different rack like say, a LFD 7/8th's rack, then sell your rack for $600. Many people have asked about your stock rack and I don't think you will have an issue selling it.

http://lfdoffroad.com/catalog/toyota/5th-gen/roof-racks/7-8-5th-gen-4runner-roof-rack


https://www.4runners.com/threads/wtb-2019-trd-pro-roof-rack.7494/

 

Thank you for your input. I think I can look past the 'aesthetic' height issue, although I can see how set up/breakdown could be annoying. Definitely something to consider. I'm a bit more concerned about the tent sticking out the rear of the vehicle, being that the rack halfway covers the roof. What's your thought about that in terms of safety or vehicle performance? Does it make a difference? I can't seem to find any samples of other 2019 stock roof racks with tents. For someone like me who is a visual person, I'm having a hard time picturing the rig.

 

when I shop for tents, I need to make sure they don't exceed the 110lbs load capacity. So this may be a stupid question, but with me sleeping in the tent (I weigh 149lbs) I'm already above the maximum load capacity for the cross bars. I'm confused... ??

 

Nope, you're reading that right. The Pro roof rack is more of a garnish. I think the owner's manual also instructs that you shouldn't attach any luggage to it. There is a difference between static and dynamic load, however. Dynamic means when the vehicle is moving. If you're lucky, 110 is the dynamic limit and your static limit is higher.

Have you seen these? They're like a rooftop tent but you can set them up on the ground. Pretty nifty.

 

That is a nice tent but I really would like to invest in a rooftop.

So I started thinking. The TRD roof rack is similar to the fj cruiser rack. I found a thread in the fjcruiser forum and someone was able to pull it off with the stock rack. Of course it sat higher like Mike had mentioned but it was possible.

I called the free spirit sales person, and he wasn't too familiar with the trd roof rack. he suggested that I purchase cross bars from yakima or rhino, but the trd roof rack comes with 4 cross bars.

 

An investment is the purchase of an asset that will generate wealth. A rooftop tent is something you purchase, use precisely 3 times, and then put in the classifieds section for half price. It is the opposite of an investment.

All kidding aside, I think the difficult part of integrating an RTT to the Pro rack is that it has those high rails and upper front crossbar. This will impede your ability to bolt the tent onto a "flat" load floor and utilize the actual crossbars below. Do you see what I mean? You'd have to either bolt the tent on awkwardly to the upper rails and completely sit above the crossbars, or chop off the rails to get the tent to sit flat on the bars. It's too big to sit "inside" the rack.

If you're set on an RTT, I recommend you look into a true full-length rack or bolstering a stock rack with extra bars as 4x4Runner suggests.

If you REALLY want a great system, look at Go Fast Campers. They make an RTT that replaces the rack entirely, and you can sell your Pro rack to recoup a chunk of the cost.

 

Tory when did I say I wanted to invest capital into a roof top tent? Why would you assume I meant capital and not time? If I invest time into something it means I am expecting a result that is worthwhile. You know what the say about people who assume...

All kidding aside though, the rest of your post was very helpful.

 

I'm here for a good time, not a long time.

 

does any company make cross bars for 19 pro rack?

 

I have not been able to dig around to know for sure. The sales person at Free Spirit looked into rhino but said they do not at the moment. I'm not familiar with the companies who sell cross bars so I have some homework to do.

 

Honestly I think your best bet is to ditch the stock rack. As far as performance and safety goes, the higher the tent the higher your center of gravity and you will feel it up there. Also for example, trail riding anywhere in the woods, your tent is going to hit more things being up that high. An as others have mentioned, the stock rack is not rated for much weight. If I was to personally want to do this (which I wouldn't) using the stock rack, the small Yakima is about all I would think about putting up there using Yakima cross bars.

 

No question. I'd not even attempt to put a tent on the PRO rack. Seems like it would be a major pita. The height alone would suck for a handful of reasons.

If you're gonna do a tent, do it right the first time and enjoy.

 

Oh, you also won't be able to open the rear hatch if it's hanging off over the back.

 

They should have just brought back the 2010 TE rack.

 

Agree, that one was the best. The new one just seems overwrought.