You Don't Need a Porsche Taycan Roof Tent. But You'll Want One

Porsche

I have never camped in my life, so when someone at Porsche asked if I’d sleep in a rooftop tent on a Taycan Turbo S Cross Turismo during Petit Le Mans, I naturally said yes. One, because I thought it might be funny; two, because I am genuinely camping-curious.

Camping at a race track has practical benefits—it’s money and time-saving. Your only cost is the one-time cost of your gear, and once you’re at the track, you’re at the track. Stay and hang out as late as you want, and avoid the traffic the next morning. Win-win.

So, I figured, "Why not?" Try out camping with someone else’s fancy gear, and if it goes badly, I’ll get a great story out of it. If it goes well, new possibilities.

The first thing you should know about showing up at one of the biggest sports-car races in America with a Porsche-branded tent on top of a Porsche station wagon is that you’re going to get a lot of attention. Rooftop tents have been a thing for a few years now, and there are plenty dotted around the Road Atlanta infield, but as far as I can tell, none on top of a Taycan Turbo S. And none with 911 R-style Porsche logos on the sides.

Photos by: Porsche

You get a mix of fascination and bemusement. Many will come up and ask who you are, what your deal is, and if that's really a thing Porsche sells. More will want to climb up the ladder and see inside once you’ve popped the canopy. People will want to know about the car, and also, how much all this will cost. They will balk when you tell them.

For better or worse, I, and this crazy rig, were the center of attention. I enjoyed it, but I could see it getting old.

Porsche Tequipment started selling rooftop tents in 2022, and compared with others on the market, it’s very expensive. Suncoast Porsche sells it for about $6,400, and that doesn’t include freight from Germany. Thule’s most expensive rooftop tent, which is way bigger than this, costs $3,199. But, this one does say "Porsche," so there’s that.

I can’t compare this to any other tent I’ve slept in, because, well, you know. But, I can say I was reasonably comfortable. This tent is designed for two, and in my case, I slept here solo and had room for my overnight bag, a backpack, and plenty of other gear. It comes with a mattress pad, which was a bit hard, so I’d probably upgrade to something a bit thicker. Or an air mattress. But, I can sleep pretty much anywhere as long as it's flat, so the hard floor didn’t bother me too much.

There’s a nice skylight and side windows as well, all with mosquito nets. So you can take in the view, or zip everything up for privacy. And on one of the inner sides of the tent, there’s an illustration of mountains printed on the surface. With a good sleeping bag, I was warm, and the tent did a decent job of blocking out the huge spotlights illuminating the track at night. Some cheap 3M earplugs took care of the noise.

Hilariously, I never actually drove the Taycan with the roof tent attached—Porsche brought it to the track for me. I’m told you do notice the extra weight—it’s about 123 pounds—and there’s a bit of extra wind noise. But, the Taycan Turbo S’s low center of gravity, ferocious power, and active suspension make it about as uncompromised a tent-hauler as you can have.

Going for the Cross Turismo allowed us to stick a huge Yeti cooler in the trunk, plus six folding chairs, a fire pit, logs, and supplies for making s’mores. (Side note, introducing some Germans to the wonder of graham crackers, marshmallows, and chocolate was priceless. They were horrified.)

And that was perhaps the real joy of camping. Sitting by a fire, beer in one hand, toasted marshmallow in another, with friends old and new, and prototype race cars rushing by along Road Atlanta’s back straight. A roof tent turned this Taycan from being a form of transportation to both a shelter and a social conduit.

Do you need the Porsche-branded tent? Of course not, but it is cool, and putting it on a Taycan Turbo S Cross Turismo of all things makes it even cooler. It is a great conversation starter, and if you’re camping out at a race track by yourself, that is not a bad thing to have.

Everyone, myself included, thought this whole gambit was hilarious, but other than the attention, it was fairly uneventful. Almost disappointingly so. It was just a good time.