AT Tacoma Habitat: Official Thread

[4xdog]

Any chance you took a video of the opening?

No video on opening, alas. The Habitat opened *very* quickly -- Lou unlatched the top, stood inside and pushed it over center to fall open, the gas struts providing control over the speed. Musta taken all of ten seconds. I had to move out of the way as I was under the canopy and on the slight hill where it was parked there wasn't enough headroom for my 6' 6" height.

 

[dman93]

No video on opening, alas. The Habitat opened *very* quickly -- Lou unlatched the top, stood inside and pushed it over center to fall open, the gas struts providing control over the speed. Musta taken all of ten seconds. I had to move out of the way as I was under the canopy and on the slight hill where it was parked there wasn't enough headroom for my 6' 6" height.

Did it look equally easy to open from the outside? If I have to go into the shell to open it that's a non-starter for me ... I have a shell to put things inside, and don't want to crawl in and around them, or unpack the things stowed at the front of the bed, to open it up. Otherwise, as a current FlipPac owner, I think that the zero-footprint of the flip-forward design is nice, but in reality it's not a huge advantage. You typically want some room behind the truck to "tailgate" anyway. And the Habitat allows use of a roofrack, and of course provides a free awning. So that all seems fine to me, as long as it can be opened from the outside of the truck. Thanks for posting more pictures ... The tent looks a little slack, but the window/zipper/storage pouch details look very nice.

 

[4xdog]

Did it look equally easy to open from the outside?... ...The tent looks a little slack, but the window/zipper/storage pouch details look very nice.

I'm guessing here, but no, the Tacoma Habitat did not look as easy to open from the outside. Releasing the latches at the front led to a lift of several inches (from the gas struts if I recall correctly how they're mounted). It still needs levering over center to deploy. It might be OK for me as a really tall guy, but even then it would be lifting from only one side and twisting the top as it was raised to flip it open. Perhaps Martyn or Mario will come in with better information.

(As an aside -- and not trying to argue at all -- but isn't the point of opening it to get inside the shell?)

Yes, the tent probably does look a little slack. The tent wasn't pulled into place at all after flipping it open. I'm sure the fit woulda been tighter had it been. Martyn noted that Nemo would be making a few changes to the pattern for the production models, one of the changes being to increase the coverage of the perimeter flap. The fittings on the inside looked nice in person, too.

 

[Martyn]

The production model differs from the prototype in many ways, and it makes guessing how things are going to work difficult for you.

The tent on the production model is easy to open from the outside, a helper pole attaches to the lid, the latches are released, the gas struts initially open the lid and then help lift as the lid is guided up to vertical. At that point the gas struts act to slow the lid as it returns to horizontal.

We have been working all hours to get the first production model out the door for Expedition Overland as they have a tight schedule before shooting their next series. We will be posting pictures of the new upgrades on the production model and videos as we move forward.

Photo credit Expedition Overland

 

[joel]

So I guess there are going to be options for short beds and 3rd gens.

 

[WOODY2]

Think I'll wait for a year for things to settle down and revisit a potential purchase. I wholeheartedly welcome a viable alternative to an existing product and wish them success.

 

[dman93]

The tent on the production model is easy to open from the outside, a helper pole attaches to the lid, the latches are released, the gas struts initially open the lid and then help lift as the lid is guided up to vertical. At that point the gas struts act to slow the lid as it returns to horizontal.

Thanks Martyn ... this makes sense, just like my torsion-bar-delete FlipPac with helper poles, but with the huge benefit of gas springs to help. I'll wait patiently for more info ... so far it looks great. Thanks for the picture, as that shows what it will look like on my new '16 DCSB.

 

[Martyn]

So I guess there are going to be options for short beds and 3rd gens.

Joel the Tacoma in the black and white picture is a 3rd Gen with a 5ft bed. Lots and lots of options will be available. Some options we already know about, some we are just thinking about, and some will be totally custom. It's really and endless series of possibilities.



For example the rack in front of the Habitat has just been designed by Eezi Awn specifically to work with the Habitat top. This was the prototype proof of concept. Look for racks in the near future they are due in the next container from South Africa.

 

[cruiseroutfit]

We had the XO Tacoma/Habitat here in the shop over the weekend for some install projects. Wow, wow. That is some gorgeous design and very tidy craftsmanship, well done AT, well done!

 

[elcoyote]

Sleeping 3 & 4

A few people have asked about what the sleeping platforms for additional persons look like. Here are a couple of images showing Clay demonstrating the rigid composite panel that fills the void to accommodate a 3rd sleeper in the XOverland 5' bed 3rd Gen Tacoma. The panel is removable and can be left in place when the top is closed up. 2 panels would allow for a 4 person sleeping arrangement. Your own mattress will need to be added such as an inflatable Nemo Cosmo or similar as there is not enough space in the closed Habitat to allow for a 2nd mattress to be closed up inside along with the tent structure.

As far as weight rating goes, I will not reveal Clay's weight but I can tell you that we tested it with two AT employees totaling about 400 lbs bouncing up and down on it (not what you're thinking...shame on you!) and did not experience any significant flex. The panels should withstand the test of time.

 

[elcoyote]

K9 Roof Rack

A few inquiries have come in about additional roof racks. For those of you with 6' bed Access cab 5' bed Double cab Tacoma, we have worked with Paul at Equipt1.com to come up with an appropriate solution. The pictures show an approximate 40" long x 50" wide rack. The track installs in about 3+ hours to the roof with well nuts. Not only is it super stout, low profile and quiet due to its under rack wind deflector, the added bonus is that it is accessible from inside the deployed Habitat. Paul is bring in a few of these for us in his next container due in a couple of months. We're excited to make the addition to the options list. Retail is $950ish with track.

 

[cchoc]

Nice. Something like that would be great for FWC's on double cab Tacos as well.

 

[Equipt]

We are very excited to be working with the AT Overland team on racks for the Taco Habitat. Our container is loading this week, so it won't be too long until we have stock ready.

Thanks,

 

[dman93]

Martyn - I'm sure the final details may still be evolving, but can you briefly describe how the lift gate seals and/or overlaps the tailgate on the 3rd gen trucks? Will a closed and locked lift gate prevent the lower tailgate from opening, or does the tailgate have to be locked (3rd gens have locks)? If no significant overlap, is there a good dust and water seal? Based on the photo of the XO truck the window seems to stop at the top of the tailgate. Thanks.

 

[elcoyote]

Martyn - I'm sure the final details may still be evolving, but can you briefly describe how the lift gate seals and/or overlaps the tailgate on the 3rd gen trucks? Will a closed and locked lift gate prevent the lower tailgate from opening, or does the tailgate have to be locked (3rd gens have locks)? If no significant overlap, is there a good dust and water seal? Based on the photo of the XO truck the window seems to stop at the top of the tailgate. Thanks.

The lift gate is sealed on top of the tailgate door by means of an automotive grade bulb seal. We found this to be very effective on both the 2nd and 3rd Gen Tacoma. The lift gate is locking. The tail gate and lift gate may be opened independently of each other. While 3rd Gen owners will benefit from the factory locking tailgate, 2nd Gen owners will need to add a locking mechanism like the Pop and Lock for tailgate security http://www.popandlock.net/manual-tailgate-lock/toyota/tacoma