- Ooh, this is like the nicest packaging
I've ever seen.
- [All] Whoa!
- Oh my god
- Bugs! Bugs!
- Get it outside! Get that outside.
- We're not going to do so good in the wilderness.
(laughter)
- $900 rooftop tent
- Versus $3,500
rooftop tent.
- Does more expensive really mean, more better?
- Let's find out.
(music)
- Big thanks to E-bay motors
for sponsoring today's video we couldn't have asked for a
better partner to help us build
these awesome trucks.
You guys are watching so you already know.
There's no better place
to buy or sell your vehicle and parts
than eBay motors and looking at us now
we're riding in style thanks to them.
Cold drinks in the ARB zero fridge freezer
burgers and dogs cook on the Coleman gas stove
even a sweet Smittybilt over lander tent.
We got it all on eBay.
- Heads up
now what Nolan forgot to mention
was they're actually invested in making
the auto parts sales process honest
which is why they include a Money Back Guarantee.
It doesn't cost you anything,
and it covers your purchase price
plus original shipping on eligible purchases.
- [Nolan] So no matter what you need, shop with confidence
today on E-bay motors by clicking the link
in the description below
or download the eBay motors app today.
Thanks for getting me this.
- Absolutely man
- Ahh!
- Open it.
- What?
- You're supposed to open.
- Take a sip, just take a sip.
- It's not the right take yet Joe.
- [Nolan] We bought two nearly identical Toyota Tacomas
and we've been building them to be fun
daily drivers that you can take
One Tacoma gets all the expensive parts
and the other one gets a bunch
of the cheap stuff.
- [Nolan] Then we compare the two
to see which components are worth spending
your hard earned money on.
- [James] Some outdoors people are gross
and they sleep on the ground.
But if you're a real adventurer
you know that the elevated luxury
and comfort of a rooftop tent
is the only way to camp baby.
- [Nolan] That's right, James.
That's why we've installed tents
on top of our trucks
so we can camp wherever we park.
- [James] because there's nothing more fun
after a day of driving and digging
your truck out of stuff
than sleeping in a 24 square foot area
with your fully grown adult friend.
Hi Truck is getting an iKamper 2.0
Top Clamshell Tent coming in at $3,500.
- [Nolan] And Low truck, on the other hand
we have a $900 Smittybilt tent
we got it on sale
usually its like 1200 bucks.
- [James] Smitty built it themselves.
Are you guys keeping score at home?
That is a $2,500 difference.
Hi Truck's tent is three and a half times
as much as Low Truck's
- [Nolan] But is it really three and a half times better?
- [James] The only one way to find out.
- Hey mic, check, one two.
(music)
- [Nolan] Back at the shop we un boxed our tents.
- Oh there's a lot more bugs.
- Aagh! They came from your box!
- [James] And we quickly got to installing them
on our bed racks.
- Okay, there are some instructions here.
- [Nolan] It's come this way, three quarters of an inch.
Low Truck's installed was a breeze
for the most part.
- Oh (beep).
- [Aaron] Just going to drill a couple holes
that way these little pins can hold the length.
Nice and strong.
- [James] Hi Truck had its fair share of snags as well.
- [Zach] So its crooked
which way does it need to go to center wise?
- [James] Our bedrack was a bit too beefy
for the brackets supplied by IKamper
so we had to do a bit of modifying.
- Oh my gosh.
- [Zach] Look at our house man.
- [James] Oh, no that's fine.
- [Zach] Oh god!
It's not fine, i did the same thing
Low team did.
- [James] All in all the installs on both trucks was
pretty plug and play
but it's hard to get an impression of these tents
without actually using them. - [Nolan] So we hit the road
and drove all the way to the San Juan mountains
here in Colorado, America.
'Cause nothing says donut media more
than driving 900 miles into the wilderness
with a bunch of stuff
that you put on a truck yesterday.
The main goal of our trip is to test
all of the components of our trucks.
But over the course of our
four nights in the mountains, we were able to
get familiar with the ins and outs of both tents.
And after familiarizing ourselves with our tents
it's time to give you a little tour.
- [James] Welcome to the Crawl Daddy Cave.
Please don't judge us by a riff raff neighbors
once you get inside, this baby is plush.
As you can see, it's pretty nice in here
the materials are super nice
this is like a very high quality
i think like a wax or oil canvas.
The zippers are really nice
if you'll notice the actual pulls
are covered in rubber so there's no
jangling in the wind, you shake Low team's tent
sounds like a bunch of freaking jingle bells in there.
There's obviously thought put into the shell
the foam is amazing
it's kind of like
you buy a really nice jacket
and only having owned cheap jackets,
you're like
"Oh this is why things are expensive
this is how nice things can get"
- [Aaron] The material's might not be the highest quality
especially compared to Hi team's tent
but it's all there
and it's very well constructed
It's got the double stitch here
I mean, yes, some of the stitching
might be a little bit off or layered up
but nothing's moved and it's nice and sturdy
so that's a big plus for me.
- [Nolan] The mattress itself is pretty good
for a tent
but I feel it breaking in already.
- [Aaron] True.
- [Nolan] I'm not sure i like that very much.
(music)
- [Aaron] We have quite the spacious opening
- [Nolan] Also we can enter
the tent from both sides of the truck
Hi team cannot.
I think that's kind of inconvenient.
- [Nolan] I would say that our airflow in this tent
is a lot higher just because
there's more openings and I think that's an advantage.
you know?
You can have so much more control over your-
It's true, i haven't showered in a while.
The windows are two layer, you know, you've got
your screen door kind of feel here
and then a more, waterproof cover
and just two layers like that.
But I've heard tell, that Hi team
has a more sophisticated windows system.
- [James] One of the coolest features about this tent
is the windows, so we have the classic
screen and flap
but we also have
this really nifty clear plastics.
- [Zach] In case you're out in the rain, you can watch it.
- So if you're in the rain
and you want to watch the frogs skip around you can
because of the fiberglass shell,
this being a clamshell tent,
we don't have as many windows
or entryways as the Low tent
which I do
not like.
- [Zach] Yeah.
- [James] I want to be in nature
i want to be up getting some breeze
i would like to add a window to this side.
- [Zach] We missed out on some good views, to be honest.
- [James] Yeah you really have to position your truck
towards the views.
- [Zach] Yeah, and if the campsite doesn't really
work for that then you just miss out on the view.
- [James] Yeah, you missed the sunrise.
(music)
- [Aaron] Slept in this thing a couple of nights
and I've been fairly comfortable.
I sleep like a baby aside from one bad aspect
which is just leveling the whole tent
I mean parking in a spot that's flat.
- [Nolan] If you're not
you can feel yourself over time
the sleeping bags sliding down to the edge
and you'd have to like readjust
you have to wake up and readjust.
- [James] We have a lot more space in here
than the Low teams tent.
Zach and I have been sleeping
in this thing for a few days now.
And sometimes I forget that he's here.
- [Zach] We roughly estimated the size of this thing
it's about 49 square feet
about seven feet by seven feet
which ain't bad.
- [James] Yeah
that's like $1,500 a month in LA.
- [Nolan] As for sleeping space
there's room for two sleeping bags
Aaron sleeps exactly like that
so bumping into him hasn't been a problem.
I know that Hi team's tent is a lot bigger
i'm just not sure that that much more room is necessary.
But me personally, I've actually not had
very good sleep the past couple of days.
First night in the old Smittybilt roof tent.
I feel like (beep).
(giggling)
- [James] I feel great.
I went to sleep hours after you, I feel amazing.
- [Nolan] I think I got one hour of sleep
last night combined.
When rain fly on this, gets extremely loud.
This material is pulled pretty tight in areas
and it acts like a big drum
so like, even though this tiny, thin rain flies
is flapping against it, it's very loud in here.
- [Aaron] Yeah, and that might be a thing
where Hi teams materials come into play
because it's just less noisy, you know?
(music)
- [Nolan] One big inconvenience
for having a rooftop tent
is that your tent is on the roof.
You have to climb in a ladder to get up into it
to get to bed.
That being said, it does feel like
we're in a tree fort right now, which is kind of cool.
- [Aaron] Yeah.
- [James] If you have to wake up to go pee
in the middle of the night
- [Zach] You better not miss that ladder.
- [James] because this tent is so big
you really do have to
mount it up super high on the roof.
Some people do mount it low, like Low team did
on their bed but, it's longer than the bed
so it's going to hang off about a foot
and we really didn't want to deal with that.
- [Zach] And since we'd have to put this thing on top
on top, on top of the truck
we have a lot of leverage over
the suspension on the truck.
So anytime you kind of readjust in the night
the whole thing shakes
for about five or six seconds afterwards
it's really kind of annoying.
- [James] Another downside to our tent
which Low team also has
is bad access.
With all of our recovery gear
hanging off of our bedrack
the convenience of having a pickup truck
is really lost.
- [Zach] Dare I say, we may have gone too far.
- [James] I think we've added a lot of stuff.
- [Nolan] The truck bed is a lot harder to use.
- [Aaron] Yeah.
- [Nolan] You have to go through the back
the tailgate.
- [Aaron] It seriously cuts down the convenience
and the accessibility of the bed, I mean
if we end up getting stuck on a mountain face
and we don't have access to the truck bed?
That's an issue to me.
- [Nolan] So it is awesome that our lower profile tent
means that we don't have to climb as high
and that we might be getting better gas mileage
'cause it's not blocking the air flow
But, that does mean that we can't see out
the back of our truck.
(giggle)
We only have the side mirrors.
- [Aaron] Yeah, that's a inconvenience
especially when you're trying to see who's behind you.
- [Nolan] Yeah!
- [Aaron] If someone's too close.
- [Nolan] It's very inconvenient and parking lots.
- [Aaron] One thing that's pretty cool
about Low tent
is this thing takes like 15 minutes max
to put onto these racks.
And you can actually take this thing off
and set it up and just
get rid of all those inconveniences.
You have full access to all your recovery gear
for the rack
and you still have a pretty
nice tent just on the ground.
- [Nolan] Only four mounting points, done.
- [Aaron] Yeah, it's just as easy to go on
as is take to off, so.
- [Nolan] I don't think Hi truck and say the same.
(music)
- [James] So the number one reason you go
with a rooftop pop-up up and down tent is convenience.
You want to get to camp, you want to go to sleep
'cause you're tired
but which one of these sets up faster?
Only way to find out is a good old fashioned drag race.
We got Zach Joe versus Nolan.
We're going to do a time attack
prison rules.
(giggling)
- [Nolan] 3, 2, 1 Go.
- [James] Zach job spent $3,500 on this tent
and he needs to set it up faster than Nolan
to prove to his wife, Karen Delevine
that it was good decision
or she's going to leave him.
- [Zach] Uno!
- [Nolan] Oh no, he's having trouble- He's tossed the keys.
- [Zach] This thing's packed tight.
- [Aaron] Uh, oh.
- [Nolan] Oh, something's jammed up.
- [Zach] There we go.
- [Nolan] There you go
30 seconds as the clamshell is open.
He's got to mess with that ladder though.
- [Zach] Oh no, I'm trapped.
- [Nolan] Oh, the floor is bending downwards.
- [Aaron] Uh, oh.
- [James] You gotta go up one. - [Zach] Gotta go up one?
- [Nolan] Gotta go up one
you don't want to break that floor, buddy
it's a very expensive floor.
- [Zach] Time-consuming, i'm going to be single soon.
(giggling)
- [Nolan] Minute and 30 seconds in.
- [Zach] Oh God.
- [Nolan] Oh no.
- [Zach] It's not smooth.
- [Nolan] Oh, wow (giggling)
- [Aaron] That was pretty good.
- [James] Let's go Zach Joe.
- [Zach] One more arm!
- [James] That's time!
- [Nolan] All right
2:36 and some change.
- [James] That is fast.
- [Nolan] That is smoking.
- [Aaron] Yeah, that's impressive.
- You get to camp, you're like
"I just want to hop in with my honey"
Two and a half minutes later, you're in a tent.
- [Aaron] Think the cover's really gonna-
- [Nolan] The cover's gonna mess us up.
- [Aaron] Yeah.
- [Nolan] I gotta go beast mode.
- Come on Nolan!
- [James] If you do this in 8:45 or less
than this is not worth it
that means this is not three times faster.
- [Nolan] I'm ready.
- [James] Alright. 3, 2, 1
Go!
Looks like he's at a strong man competition.
He's in the bed.
- [Aaron] That's what I'm talking about, dude.
Yes.
Adios.
- [James] Gaaagh!
- [Aaron] Long straps, long straps.
- [Nolan] Long straps?
That's on the other side.
- [James] Yeah, it's the smallest legs that might cost
Nolan the title.
- [Aaron] Yes, there you go. Nice.
- [James] Yeah, he is on pace.
He's definitely working harder
he's running around a lot more than you had to.
- [Zach] I'm sweating.
You didn't see how much moving I did up in there. (giggling)
All right, and
time.
- [Both] 3:49.
- [James] Not bad.
- [Zach] Really not bad.
- [Nolan] A minute slower. - [Zach] A minute slower for
three and a half times less money.
- [Nolan] Yeah.
And i'm out of breath.
- [Zach] I was too, i was trying to keep it together
but there's not a lot of oxygen up here too.
- [James] Well we rode into camp a couple times after dark
and being able to set
this thing up in less than five minutes
without rushing has really been amazing.
Ikamper claims that
you can close it with your sleeping bags in it.
And we've really tried and it's just not possible.
(indistinct)
And as far as i can understand
that's something that Low team can do easily.
- [Zach] That's gotta be really nice to really, you know
get our tent popped up in a minute
and have it completely done and ready.
But now I gotta get my sleep bag.
- [James] If I'm not ready.
- [Zach] Which is really just being spoiled
but that's why we paid all this dang money
we're supposed to be spoiled.
(music)
- [James] This tent is nice.
There's no doubt about that, but for $3,500
i kind of expect a little bit more wow factor.
- [Zach] Yeah.
- [James] You know, like I'm not-
- [Zach] Some electronics!
- [James] Right.
I'm not surprised by anything in here other than the map
the map is really cool.
- [Zach] It's definitely just a tent.
- [James] Maybe some Bluetooth speakers
maybe some built-in lights.
- [Zach] Think about a motorized awning.
That'd blow my mind!
- [James] Yes.
And for almost $4,000 for what is essentially a little room
that goes on top of your car
i want a little pizazz.
- [Zach] Yeah, i want to be a little blown away.
And while this is nice.
- [James] It is nice. - [Zach] No doubt about it.
- [James] No doubt.
- [Zach] There's no going above and beyond.
- [Nolan] All right, thank you
Donut Media for visiting my house.
Now i'm sorry to say, get the hell out.
- [James] So Nolan, home away from home
does more expensive mean, more better?
- [Nolan] Nope.
(giggling)
- [James] I think this is a case of
more expensive does mean more better
but less expensive is pretty freaking good.
- [Nolan] It's so good.
I really like the Smittybilt tent.
It is smaller than your tent
but it does comfortably fit two adults
you could definitely fit
a third fully grown adult in there
wouldn't be as comfy, definitely not.
- [James] But it might be a little bit more fun.
- [Nolan] Yeah (giggling)
Yeah, yeah man.
Don't touch me.
(laughter)
- [James] When it's down, I think it looks great.
I think it's a lot less of a statement
like Hi truck at this point, i'm a kind of guy
you know what I mean?
- [Nolan] Yeah. - [Nolan] I'm a kind of guy
I think things about myself.
You in Low Truck, just look like someone who likes to camp.
- [Nolan] Yep.
- [James] Okay. Let's talk about pros of the Ikamper.
- [Nolan] Yes.
- [James] Number one.
- [Nolan] Big map.
- [James] Number one, the big map on the ceiling
" Ay, James, whereas Australia?"
I could be like
"Oh, let me just go..."
(laughter)
Number one pro of the iKamper is
ease of setup, and how quickly it sets up.
We were in our tent in less than a minute
that's no exaggeration
we were out of the elements
and at that point we could continue to set it up as much
or as little as we want it to.
I also want to call attention to the fact
that there's a lot of things that you could
come into contact with while camping
that we didn't deal with.
We went camping in the middle of the summer.
- [Nolan] That's true.
- [James] It was very temperate.
It was beautiful out the entire time.
- [Nolan] No rain.
- [James] I think if you were in a place
where you had to deal with more of the elements
IE rain or cold
the differences in the two tents
might be way more apparent.
- [Nolan] That's very likely
although I will say
the temperature control that we had in
our tent was actually quite impressive.
It's like our body heat itself
- [James] A bit.
- [Nolan] That we just worked up.
- [James] I bet man.
- [Nolan] I really
(beep)
I got distracted there for a second.
- [James] When we started this series
the tent was the thing
i was looking forward to the least.
I think a certain amount of stigma
comes with a tent on
a truck.
We've all seen the memes.
But after having used them.
- [Nolan] I don't think they're dumb.
- [James] They are not dumb.
- [Nolan] No.
- [James] It is a life changer.
It is so much better sleeping
on top of your truck than on the ground.
It just makes it so much easier to be like
"You know what? Let's go camping this weekend".
- [Nolan] Yeah.
- [James] We know we're going to be comfortable
and we know we're going to be tired.
- [Nolan] Its ready to go, it's in your garage
The trucks like "Hey man, let's go out"
And you're "You know what truck?
We are going to go out".
Speaking of looks and perception
we did do a contest on our donut underground
seeing which tent had more IG steez.
- [James] Which one was more gramable
which one got more likes?
- [Nolan] Yeah.
- [James] At this time we don't have the results yet
but they're right here.
- [Nolan] Wow. Look at that.
- [James] So either congratulations
or in your face.
- [Nolan] Either thank you or
go (beep) yourself.
- [James] All right, Nolan
if you had to spend your own hard-earned money
which one would you buy?
- [Nolan] I'm going with the Smittybilt
did a dang good job.
- [James] I think I would go with the Smittybilt as well.
If somehow I got a wild hair, it was like
" I'm going to drive across Canada
and camp the entire way"
I might go with something more expensive
like this
but for the weekend warrior
I think the Smittybilt does everything
you need it to and more.
- [Nolan] For sure.
- [James] Next week
the dramatic conclusion of Hi-Low trucks.
- [Nolan] It is dramatic.
- [James] Let's see next week
how a $21,000
Toyota Tacoma compares to a
$45,000
first gen Toyota Tacoma.
We go on this like really epic adventure.
It's scary.
It tested our friendships.
- [Nolan] So subscribe if you're not already
click that bell so you do not miss the finale.
It's amazing.
All right, be kind.
- [James] I love you.
- [Nolan] See you next time.
(burp)
- [Nolan] Nice.
- [James] Thank you.
Show your support for America's favorite off-roader
and America's favorite off-road team
with the brand new Hi team tee shirt.
- [Nolan] I think he means the Low team T-shirt.
- [James] No, I said America's favorite off roader
and off-road team Hi team.
- [Nolan] Yeah Low team, that's what-
- [James] Hi team.
- [Nolan] Low team.
Low team.
- [James] Nolan people only like you guys, ironically.
- [Nolan] I don't think that's true, James.
- [James] Dude, this is a classy shirt.
It's black it's sleek
we're like the heroes of the mighty ducks, the hawks.
- [Nolan] If you'd like a little more lighthearted fair
then Low team t-shirt comes
in this beautiful light blue color
letting people know that you're a
easy going fellow or lady.
- [James] Well, whichever team you want to represent
whether it's Hi team or the wrong team
they're all available at
donutmedia.com
for $29.98
which is so much cheaper than the (indistinct)
- [Nolan] So much, so much cheaper James.