Whats next at EarthCruiser

[Steve_382]

This is an intriguing concept. Is there a reason it is limited to a soft-sided pop-top? I can see the capabilities offered in the pop-top but there are likely a good number of folks, especially as the vehicles go up in price, who would prefer a hard top. I didn't see any specifications on the website so I don't know the anticipated height but would guess that a hardtop would be 6-12" taller and would provide advantages in certain respects and perhaps appeal to a different audience who do not need/want the arguably minor/major mobility advantages of a pop-top.

I think the pop top version would be at least 2 feet shorter than a fixed roof version. Perhaps 8' 6" for the pop top and 10' 6" for a fixed roof. I don't think they have any current plans for a fixed roof version.

 

[gregmchugh]

This is an intriguing concept. Is there a reason it is limited to a soft-sided pop-top? I can see the capabilities offered in the pop-top but there are likely a good number of folks, especially as the vehicles go up in price, who would prefer a hard top. I didn't see any specifications on the website so I don't know the anticipated height but would guess that a hardtop would be 6-12" taller and would provide advantages in certain respects and perhaps appeal to a different audience who do not need/want the arguably minor/major mobility advantages of a pop-top.

A hardtop with the bed still over the cab? I think it would be more than 6-12” taller. You want to be able to sit up in the bed...

 

[pugslyyy]

This is an intriguing concept. Is there a reason it is limited to a soft-sided pop-top? I can see the capabilities offered in the pop-top but there are likely a good number of folks, especially as the vehicles go up in price, who would prefer a hard top. I didn't see any specifications on the website so I don't know the anticipated height but would guess that a hardtop would be 6-12" taller and would provide advantages in certain respects and perhaps appeal to a different audience who do not need/want the arguably minor/major mobility advantages of a pop-top.

I think it would be substantially more than that. (Our roof raises 34".)

 

[lucilius]

I think it would be substantially more than that. (Our roof raises 34".)

One would guess that the ultimate height of a hardtop EC would depend on user vs design requirements. I didn’t do a scaled sidexside comparison of images but had an Earthroamer XV-LTi in mind: the EC concept truck appears to be about a foot shorter though perhaps it is more. The images on the website don’t give any dimensions but the poptop concept camper portion above the truck cab when collapsed seems to be nearly as tall as the Ram 5500 windows and i estimated another 6-12” would provide adequate height, maybe bump my estimate up a bit, and it’ll be comparable in dimension to Earthroamers, which have plenty of room above the bed. 34” is indeed a formidable amount of additional height and a fine luxury that combines with the more compact collapsed profile to create a package that no doubt appeals to current EC owners and like-minded folks. A hardtop option would be intriguing to others. Another observation is that the camper and the truck cab roof appear to be quite close together in the concept and I wondered if we’re looking at a novel solution that mitigates camper vs truck chassis movement. Good luck with this and let’s all hope full-sized F550/5500 pickup trucks/chassis trucks continue to be available: they are great platforms for campers.

 

[gregmchugh]

One would guess that the ultimate height of a hardtop EC would depend on user vs design requirements. I didn’t do a scaled sidexside comparison of images but had an Earthroamer XV-LTi in mind: the EC concept truck appears to be about a foot shorter though perhaps it is more. The images on the website don’t give any dimensions but the poptop concept camper portion above the truck cab when collapsed seems to be nearly as tall as the Ram 5500 windows and i estimated another 6-12” would provide adequate height, maybe bump my estimate up a bit, and it’ll be comparable in dimension to Earthroamers, which have plenty of room above the bed. 34” is indeed a formidable amount of additional height and a fine luxury that combines with the more compact collapsed profile to create a package that no doubt appeals to current EC owners and like-minded folks. A hardtop option would be intriguing to others. Another observation is that the camper and the truck cab roof appear to be quite close together in the concept and I wondered if we’re looking at a novel solution that mitigates camper vs truck chassis movement. Good luck with this and let’s all hope full-sized F550/5500 pickup trucks/chassis trucks continue to be available: they are great platforms for campers.

The TerraNova is designed for 350/3500 trucks not 550/5500 trucks isn’t it?

Would a hard top version need a 550/5500?

 

[Steve_382]

The TerraNova is designed for 350/3500 trucks not 550/5500 trucks isn’t it?

Would a hard top version need a 550/5500?

Yes, the EC TerraNova is on the 350/3500. Hard to know whether they could keep the weight low enough for a fixed side rig. I suspect they are near the 350/3500 limit already, but they haven't published the full specs yet.