How high up to mount the RTT?

I was considering how two different mounting heights for the RTT would affect the mpg of the truck.

I mount it a few inches over the bed, using standard bed-rail cross bars.

Or,

I mount it above the bed, but higher up. At about the same height as the top of the cabin. Looking at something like this nutzo rack:
https://nuthouseindustries.com/shop/racks/nutzo-tech-1/

Will the couple extra vertical feet of mounting height have a significant impact on mpg or driving performance?

 

@Blackout14

 

Any of them will impact it. The more flush with the roof, the better. May I ask what it is about the listed rack you like? That's quiet expensive

 

Wow damn @KB Voodoo get in here and sell this member a nice rack.

 

Thule Xsporter, I lower it to travel so no MPG loss and raise it above roof line for full ladder extension, annex and dont smash my head walking underneath.

 

Haha. He's probably off mountain biking. But he does stay up to 2am answering customers.

 

I average around around 18 combined MPG with my tent above roof level with my 6MT and oversized duratracs.

 

X2. 3" lift. Voodoo mid rack

 

3rd gen forum, but... Anytime I have my tent on I notice a marked difference in MPG and drag. The tent only sits a couple of inches above the cab, but it's enough. Its easy enough to remove when not in use, though.

 

How did you know? I’m 11 miles into the woods at the moment.

On my Tundra, I totally noticed the weight of the tent when it was on the 18” rack. The center of gravity was definitely off.

I switched to our 10” MAX Modular Rack about a week ago. The truck feels more balanced now.

It only made a 0.5 MPG difference.

 

I went with just above cab height. Haven’t compared gas mileage.

 

Mines just above cab, I get 18mpg on a good day with my 3 inch lift, and e rated tires

 

You can always do what @yota90 did and fav up a semi truck wind deflector

 

assuming most people with low mounted tents never use or have an annex?

 

we have an annex and use it.

 

Good to know. So basically, for the best mpg and on-road driving performance, the top of the RTT should be ideally flush with the roof of the cabin?

 

I guess your annex would mostly be for storage on your Tepui. Height was my concern getting into a tent with overhang entryway and most annex'd entryways are supposed to be around 6ft. There is a bit of adjust with the straps for running it a bit lower.

This is the only picture I have. Don’t have one of it down below the roof line or with annex. Time to go camping again and take a couple more pictures.

 

My annex is for my 5'3 wife to change in. I personally dont give a crap if I have to bend down to change, as I have to anyway to put my pants on.

 

Overall I think lower is better, unless you need more height for a specific reason.

 

Free spirit makes three sizes of annex. Low, medium, and tall, not sure about other brands.