So I’m taking a 1400 mile trip out to Colorado next week. I’ll be towing a Uhaul out there then spending about a week camping in the Rockies before heading home. I get pretty abysmal fuel economy in my rig (2004 Xterra, ~12mpg) and can only go about 200 miles on a full tank. I’ve cobbled together this temporary solution for the time being. I’m mostly looking for some catastrophic oversight I may have missed that would really ruin my day.
I’m aware of the higher center of gravity I’ve got now, but I’m unsure of any other disadvantages. I’ve loaded the tanks up and driven around, and they’ve stayed put and did not give me any issues, even at highway speeds. I’ve got a mat under the back two tanks to prevent them from damaging my roof and vice versa, as well as to add a little bit of friction. I’ll also have a mat in the front basket to keep that tank from sliding around as well.
For a long term solution, I’d like to build a proper cage for two on the roof, and then mount the third on my spare tire carrier. I don’t exactly have time to put that together by next week unfortunately.
Also I’m pretty new to this whole overlanding/car camping thing, so any good advice for a first timer would be appreciated.
