Full Review w/Pics and Video: Badass Tents Roof Rack

[JediMcMuffin]

I dont get it. Why do people want to camp on their car roof? Whats wrong with the ground? Seems like sleeping IN the car would be more comfortable than on the roof...

Rooftop tents have come a long way, they're pretty well built now, but the biggest advantage is that your tent isn't consuming interior cargo space. Personally I'm in the ground tent camp, but I don't live in a place that gets wet very often.

I personally want a hard top and a roof rack so I can store a few bulk items up there and relive some cargo pressure. Take a look at my 4 door packed for our last desert outing, with my Kodiak canvas tent occupying a massive chunk of the cargo space, with the poles being stored underneath the rear seats. I could go with smaller solutions, but those are very LONG and don't fit in the Bronco very well at all.

I'm also probably going to swap that RTIC for a fridge eventually, because 26 quarts of my 52 quart capacity is given up to ice, where a 45L dometic will actually yield MORE food storage in the same (actually slightly smaller) footprint.

A small FYI: BadAss tents is a sister business to HotBodies racing. I've been buying motorcycle gear from them for over a decade. Hard working folks that build good stuff.

Sponsored

 

[SkyKing]

C

ould be

The difference in clearance is probably very very small. With this new rack it is just barely enough room to remove the rear panel.

 

[Mickey21]

Not that you should be offended, but when I clicked and watched the video my immediate thought was, wow, Patton Oswalt's brother bought a Bronco, cool! J/K, but there is a similarity, maybe the video creator has heard this before. Just saying... Great video, thanks for that review!

 

[Bender]

Great write up with pics and video, @SkyKing! Thanks for taking the time.

I have the same rack in my garage awaiting installation, and now I'm debating leaving off the front rail, like you did. My main purpose for the rack is to hold a big Yakima rocket box (longer distances) and to lash on some SUPs (short drive).

Regarding wind noise, I've previously had Yakima aero bars on a Ram 1500 and BMW bars on a BMW X5 and they both added some noise, so I assume the BA rack will too. I find that the Bronco with no rack is quieter than I expect at ~65 MPH, but if I do 80 MPH with some crosswinds, I've gotta turn the radio up.

I saw BA posted an install video, with a few good reminders (e.g. use Loctite Blue, don't tighten until fully assembled, etc.)

 

[WuNgUn]

I dont get it. Why do people want to camp on their car roof? Whats wrong with the ground? Seems like sleeping IN the car would be more comfortable than on the roof...

Because 2 door... And...
Lol

 

[WuNgUn]

I’m pretty sure that you can easily buy any length of 80/20 aluminum crossbar very easily.

I'd rather attach a piece fore or aft than make an entirely new bar... And then figure a way to bolt directly to it.

 

[WuNgUn]

The gap from load bar

I don't know what you're talking about. You want the crossbar to be attached in the middle of the rail, lower than it is?

 

[SkyKing]

I'd rather attach a piece fore or aft than make an entirely new bar... And then figure a way to bolt directly to it.

good old hose clamps to the rescue.

 

[friethmiller]

I've been looking at these pics for a few days now. I like the rack but..... I think black mounting hardware would really make this assembly look a ton better - make it look less "rivety". Just my unsolicited 2 cents . I'd place an order for bolts with Belmetric (or the like). Might be cheaper then the box stores.

 

[SkyKing]

I've been looking at these pics for a few days now. I like the rack but..... I think black mounting hardware would really make this assembly look a ton better - make it look less "rivety". Just my unsolicited 2 cents . I'd place an order for bolts with Belmetric (or the like). Might be cheaper then the box stores.

Not a bad idea - there are only 3 different lengths of screws on the whole thing - otherwise they are all identical - so swapping them out would be simple. I was thinking the same thing, but I decided I like contrast of the screws. Similarly, I was convinced I would want to get rid of the shiny black grill and mirrors on my Wildtrak in favor of the gray grill and matte mirrors of the BL, but now that I have it in person, I like the shiny black. I'm going to convert the rack to the short version during the shoulder season and go back to full length for canoe/kayak carrying starting in May.

 

[friethmiller]

Sure! It’s your rack. It looks good either way. Hope it works well for you.

 

[Quick]

What are your thoughts on the clamping mechanism for the rear? I noticed that there isn’t an inner clamp, as the ford and zroadz racks do. Instead of having a positive pressure clamp on a small-ish space (clamp on outside pushing against inner “hump”), the badass rack simply pulls on both outer edges, across the entire rack.

This to me seemed like it was pushing a lot of pressure on relatively flimsy outside edges of the roof. I was concerned this would pull up rather violently if my iKamper was attached to the top and I hit a big bump in the road.

 

[The_Axeman]

The purpose of this post is to offer an in-depth review of the Badass Tents roof rack for the Ford Bronco. At the bottom of the post is my 11-minute video review and pics below.

Some of you may have seen a similar review of mine about a very good rust proofing service.

Background:
Like many 2021/2 Bronco buyers, I occasionally want/need to put stuff on my roof. Unfortunately, some configurations did/do not allow the buyer to add the OEM Ford roof rails w/crossbars for ($365) – the reason is rumored to have something to do with weight. If you ordered a Sasquatch/2.7/4-door, you couldn’t get it. Eventually, Ford added the rack as an over-priced accessory for $825 (but still not “available” as of 3/7/2022).

I wanted a well-made rack to hold canoes, kayaks, skis, and whatever. I was also disappointed that the OEM Ford rack eliminates your ability to remove the 2nd row roof panels.

I found BadassTents.com, a new US-based company that specializes in high-quality roof-top tents and off-road accessories – all made in the US. And specifically, it designed and sells a Badass Tents roof rack for 2-door and 4-door Broncos. (this is an independent consumer review – I am not affiliated with Badass Tents).

Competition:
There will no-doubt be additional entrants into this market, but as of now, I think this one stands out as the winner. And importantly, these are available now.

Why I chose Badass Tents:

• Made in the USA
• No Plastic
• High load capacity
• Low-profile design
• Leverages OEM attachment points (no drilling)
• Allows for removal of the 1st and 2nd row panels
• Modular design enables it to be configured as a short rack (rear cap only with 2 crossbars), or the full rack with up to 6 crossbars.
• Nice looking
• Quality/price
• Available now

Ordering, pricing, and delivery:
For the 4-door, you can order a “short rack” which attaches only to the rear cap, and provides 2 crossbars. Or you can get the full rack. You can choose black or bare aluminum crossbars. The 2-door version has 5 crossbars. Prices are on the site at the links above. Delivery came by FedEx ground. There is also a wind-guard that can be added to the front. I don’t have that so I can’t speak to it.

Unboxing:
The box was about 6’x1’x1’ and about 73lbs. The rack was very well packed – important to keep the pieces of steel and aluminum from scratching the powder coating off of each other. The pieces that needed to be labeled were labeled. I downloaded the directions here.

Materials and hardware:
There is zero plastic. This rack is 100% powder-coated steel and anodized aluminum, with stainless steel screws/nuts. There is rubber padding to protect the roof from having any direct contact with metal.

Assembly, Installation and Fit/Finish:
It takes a bit over an hour to assemble and install. No drilling or special tools are needed. I was impressed with how well all the holes lined and matched up to the Ford mounting points on the Bronco. The rack is VERY sturdy. It has a 500lb. static limit and 250lb (in transit).

Aesthetics:
It’s a nice-looking piece of hardware. The only strike against it would be the Ford mounting points above the windshield are a little bare without the colored caps on them. The rack only makes the bronco 3.125 inches taller (yet still allows the panels to come out). The rack is very business-like while still looking as sleek as possible.

Modularity:
There are two aspects that stand out here. First, BadAss Tents provided adapter pieces so that you can configure it as a short rack on the rear (w/2 crossbars). This would let you put stuff on the rear cap, and you could remove the rear cap with no need to remove the rack. Or, you can set up the full rack (up to 6 cross bars). In this configuration, you can remove all the roof panels, but you’d need to remove the front part of the rack in order to go in full convertible mode with no rear cap). As much as I’d like to believe otherwise, here in New England the weather changes enough that I will rarely remove the rear cap.

The other thing I like, is that you can decide which cross bars you want. For example, I don’t have a light bar and I might not need the front cross bar. I think it looks a little better without it so I removed it (see pics below – some have it on, others have it off.

Versatility/Compatibility:
This rack was designed with rooftop camping and overland in mind, and it’s well suited for it. What I like is that it’s somewhat minimalist. It’s not overkill. You’ve surely seen some bro’s out there who add 1000lbs. of cheap and heavy steel tubing, bins, ladders, and brushguards, and it starts to look truly ridiculous when parked at the mall or sitting in commuter traffic. This rack is sleek but you can add whatever you want, and the t-slotted crossbars accept t-screws to attach… anything you can think of. Also, the crossbars themselves are thin enough to accept attachments made for a universal fit on crossbars (ski racks, roof-top box, kayak/bike carriers). With a small amount of mechanical ingenuity, anything could be affixed.

Wind noise:
Compared to having no rack, I didn't notice a difference in wind noise - until about 55mph (I haven't gone faster with the rack yet - I'll have to update this post later). I've had some kind of rack on my daily driver SUVs since the 80s and they all make some noise at speed - especially with skis, etc. There is a wind deflector accessory by Badass Tents that I didn't buy, and it might make a difference.

Overall:
Very impressed with this rack option. It’s higher quality, more useful, better looking, and doesn’t limit the roof panel removal like the OEM model. It’s not cheap, but you can feel confident that it will handle anything you want to do with it.

And, personally, I like supporting small purpose-based US-businesses that prioritize quality and customer service. Even though Ford corporate refuses to communicate with its customers, the owner/founder (Roger Davis) of Badass Tents responds quickly and his team is there to support you.

Video Review:


Pics:

Great review and write up! Thanks for taking the time. Looks like a great option.

 

[Winkydee]

Right. For me I wanted crossbars that would be a size and shape that accept my big Yakima roof top box, ski racks, bike carriers, etc.

I made the Yakima .MegaWarrior with the extnesion work with the factory roof rack. The rear bracket is a little further back than I would have liked (can sorta see in the pic) but it still clamped on and holds extremely well due to some added rubber padding.

I also added heavy duty zip ties in a couple of other locations to snag the other crossbar for additional piece of mind. That shit ain't going anywhere.

Sponsored