roof rails and roof tents?

[Toyney]

I want to fit some full length roof rails to my surf so I can fit a roof tent or other stuff.
Can anyone give me a list of which make of rails will fit the surf. Im looking on ebay for ones from estate cars and wotnot, would something from an estate fiat, citroen, peugeot, bmw, volvo fit it? do I have to fit specific ones or is there a generic shape that fits all?

does anyone have a diagram of where the supports and cables go in the roof so when im drilling i dont hit something I shouldnt. is there any special anti-sweat tablets i can take before drilling my roof???? Im sure I will measure 10 times and still get it wrong.

oh, and who here has used or uses a roof tent on their surf. any recommendations? I have read that the german ones are best suited to europe with its wetter climate...

cheers

Jayne

oh and where can I get hold a new cupholder for the dash? mines broken. is anyone flogging bits on here like that? havent seen any on ebay at all.

[truckarms]

have a look at
bundubashers web site
I think he looked into it, from what I have seen on here there are a few companies that sell full length roof bars but I think its recormended that you reinforce the roof which meens you have to take all the roof lining out etc.
Use the search and you will find out loads of info.

[TRUCKMAN]

I want to fit some full length roof rails to my surf so I can fit a roof tent or other stuff.
Can anyone give me a list of which make of rails will fit the surf. Im looking on ebay for ones from estate cars and wotnot, would something from an estate fiat, citroen, peugeot, bmw, volvo fit it? do I have to fit specific ones or is there a generic shape that fits all?

does anyone have a diagram of where the supports and cables go in the roof so when im drilling i dont hit something I shouldnt. is there any special anti-sweat tablets i can take before drilling my roof???? Im sure I will measure 10 times and still get it wrong.

oh, and who here has used or uses a roof tent on their surf. any recommendations? I have read that the german ones are best suited to europe with its wetter climate...



cheers

Jayne

oh and where can I get hold a new cupholder for the dash? mines broken. is anyone flogging bits on here like that? havent seen any on ebay at all.

Sorry cannot help on the rails or cupholders! but my friend got a fantastic roof tent from here www.rooftent.co.uk to go on his 110 Defender and he loves it!. So they maybe worth a try you never know. Good luck with the rails.

[DaveD]

I want to fit some full length roof rails to my surf so I can fit a roof tent or other stuff.
Can anyone give me a list of which make of rails will fit the surf. Im looking on ebay for ones from estate cars and wotnot, would something from an estate fiat, citroen, peugeot, bmw, volvo fit it? do I have to fit specific ones or is there a generic shape that fits all?

does anyone have a diagram of where the supports and cables go in the roof so when im drilling i dont hit something I shouldnt. is there any special anti-sweat tablets i can take before drilling my roof???? Im sure I will measure 10 times and still get it wrong.

oh, and who here has used or uses a roof tent on their surf. any recommendations? I have read that the german ones are best suited to europe with its wetter climate...

cheers

Jayne

oh and where can I get hold a new cupholder for the dash? mines broken. is anyone flogging bits on here like that? havent seen any on ebay at all.

I think Vince (Bushwhacker) fitted some rails from a pug...........whisper in his lug and I'm sure he will tell you all about them.....

[dave.j.robbo]

cheers

Jayne

oh and where can I get hold a new cupholder for the dash? mines broken. is anyone flogging bits on here like that? havent seen any on ebay at all.

There IS actually one on e-bay at the moment...

Here's the link..

Dave

[Toyney]

I turn my back for one moment.... and as soon as i mention i cant find one... hey presto.

im watching it, is anyone else from here watching it too? dont fancy a biddng war against someone on here.

SO, about these roof bars... has anyone else found a method of utilising all the roof space? If i fit roof bars I can only use the front part of the roof since they fit into the doorways, I want to use the back part of the roof for a roof tent ( which would open out to over hang the back, and then I want to be able to utilise the front part of the roof for luggage or bikes ( or canoes which would strap over the top of the tent. )

Im not aversed to fitting a safari type rack, but its a mine field out there and I dont know what works and whats doesnt. has anyone got any solutions to utilise the whole of the roof fitted their own surfs?

I want to try and get kitted up for a little road trip to spain coming up in a few months.

[CaptainBeaky]

There IS actually one on e-bay at the moment...

Here's the link..

Dave

Doesn't look much like my cup holder...

[Gizmo]

I turn my back for one moment.... and as soon as i mention i cant find one... hey presto.

im watching it, is anyone else from here watching it too? dont fancy a biddng war against someone on here.

SO, about these roof bars... has anyone else found a method of utilising all the roof space? If i fit roof bars I can only use the front part of the roof since they fit into the doorways, I want to use the back part of the roof for a roof tent ( which would open out to over hang the back, and then I want to be able to utilise the front part of the roof for luggage or bikes ( or canoes which would strap over the top of the tent. )

Im not aversed to fitting a safari type rack, but its a mine field out there and I dont know what works and whats doesnt. has anyone got any solutions to utilise the whole of the roof fitted their own surfs?

I want to try and get kitted up for a little road trip to spain coming up in a few months.

I think it was Bundabusher who fitted 'floating legs' by fitting a plywood [better make it marine ply in the weather] sheet onto the roof rails that go in the normal place and then attached two adjustable leg supports on the underside of the plywood to stand against the back of the roof.

Besides heads cracking on some surfs the Roof seems to be a weak point.

[dave.j.robbo]

Doesn't look much like my cup holder...

That's cos it's for a 2nd Gen!

[AndyLala]

Roof rails or bars...?


Roof rails... like mine came from Eezi-Awn. the mounting points are few and far between. Mine, has been mounted through the roof and braced to the internal roof braces... Considerable effort (read cost)...

You will have to take the roof lining out.

If I was to do it again? Get hold of some more internal roof braces and double up.

Better still, get hold of a Safety Devices Full Roll Cage (or make one) and mount your full length roof rack straight through the roof into the roll cage.

Roof Tents...

German, Italian, South African...? choice is yours. they all do the same job... but the base board will need to be something that won't rot, if you are going to use it in this country.

[Toyney]

have you got any pics from when you did the work on yours?

i was thinking of attaching rails, so i could then attach cross bars to them.
but putting in braces and wot not... phew! maybe i should buy a ****** great van instead...

no just kidding, so, if you have any more info on the work you did I would be most happy to hear about it. what the pit falls were, how you got around it.

does anyone know what the roof is rated at? I plan on putting two people up there each around 60kgs or 10 stone, then theres canoes, bikes and the weight of a tent.
Im seriously considering making my own roof top tent, after seeing a pop up tent that is self erecting.. (he he i said the e word) attach that to some marine ply with caribeaners to hold the tent in palce when its up and bobs your auntie.
the roof tents ive seen for sale are all around the 40-50kg mark... thats almost as heavy as me! just for a 2 man tent. seems a bit daft really.
its about time they got a bit more technical with their tent design and used less heavy weight materials.
the cheapest ive seen is around the £689 mark... what on earth can they make a tent and base board out of that costs so much? i mean , really?

anyway, im keen to hear about how to make sure i dont write off my surf by buggering the roof up...

cheers

[BUSHWHACKER]

Do you really need a roof tent? how about one of these.....

[pops]

Do you really need a roof tent? how about one of these.....

thats neat where you get it and how much ??

[BUSHWHACKER]

I got mine from here a couple of years ago.

http://trucktoys4less.com/sporsuvminte.html

[Toyney]

thats a nice tent ya got there, but i think its probably pretty hard to pitch it in a very small awkward space, very uneven ground, or on a sand dune/ soft beach or on some rocks....
I want to be able to sleep 2 people off of the ground away from snakes, rats and crawling critters and keep my bikes, tools, expensive kit inside the car where its safer.
I carry lots of kit usually for the different sports i do so sleeping in the car is becoming more and more difficult.
I also want to fit some bungee mesh on the ceiling of the car to hold my various maps and navigation stuff, as well as other stuff thats good to have handy and not rolling around with the rest of the kit in the back.

my surf may look absolutely bog standard with no bells or whistles, but it still does exactly what it says on the tin. i just want to enhance its load capacity a bit more.