OzTent unveils electric roof-top tent

The forward-thinking Australian company behind the legendary 30 second OzTent has introduced what it believes is the world’s first electronically-controlled roof top tent.

Making its public debut at last week’s Melbourne 4x4 & Outdoors Show, the Jet Tent Hangar is a two-berth tent that sits on your four-wheel drive’s roof racks and automatically opens and closes at the touch of a button.

Two years in development, it’s the first roof-top tent from the NSW-based tent and camping accessories leader and is manufactured in the same Chinese factory as OzTent's lightweight Jet Tent range.

OzTent general manager Chris Mercieca said like the OzTent, the Jet Tent Hangar takes 30 seconds to erect, using a nifty mechanism comprising a waterproof, electric motor, worm drive gears, stainless steel cable and tracking system connected to the folding internal frame.?

It’s as simple as pulling into camp, plugging the 12V cord into the vehicle’s cigarette lighter, pressing a button on the remote control unit to erect the tent structure, and manually pulling out the mini-awning at the front.

“We’ve basically designed this as a simple, easy to use unit, as foolproof as possible,” he said. “Each of the parts have been worked on so there’s protection against customers damaging it.

“The system has three over-rides on it, so if they were doing something wrong it will actually stop by hydraulic, electronic or mechanical (means),” he said.

“What’s more, everything’s accessible, so if someone had to replace a part on it they could do it on the road.”

Mercieca said OzTent’s reputation for innovation and build quality, meant the Jet Tent Hanger had to stand apart from other roof top tents on the market.

“It’s OzTent, we’ve got to do something different, we can’t have it boring. We had to do something special with it and this is what we came up with.”

To keep weight down the 1.2m wide, dual density foam mattress sits on an aluminium slat base, while the tent is a combination of 18 ounce polycotton RipStop canvas and UV-resistant, lightweight polyester.

Each unit also comes with a retractable ladder, heavy duty PVC cover, and a separate tool kit including manual winder and spare cable.

OzTent is also working on a smart phone app that can be used to operate the tent instead of the supplied roller door-style push button unit.

It’s also compatible with OzTent’s FoxWing awning if further cover is required around the vehicle.

Although final specifications are yet to be released, Murcieca expects the Hangar to weigh between 40-50kg, which would make it lighter than similar-sized but more expensive European models like the James Baroud Explorer.

Murcieca said a wider version, perhaps offering similar bedspace to ARB’s flip-over roof tent, could also be introduced at a later stage.

Priced at $2499, the Jet Tent Hangar will go on sale in Australia in December and comes with a two-year warranty. In conjunction with its Chinese manufacturer, the Hangar will also be sold in other countries under different brand names.

Check out the OzTent website for further details.