ahhh!!! the great pop top debate, it has been raging for as many years as the pop tops themselves, some say the easier towing is taken up by the extra weight involved in the construction of the pop top itself = no fuel savings I personally dont know I like the convienience of a pop up, easier to get in to carports and sheds, shouldnt catch as much wind when towing etc. etc. etc. what I dont like about them is when it gets windy and the tensioning springs arent as good as they used to be, then you get the thump thump thump in the middle of the night as the wind flaps the canvas around, insulation properties arent as good as insulated aluminium side walls but then the big flaps let more air in during a cool night, more prone to leakage as more exposed areas of roof are prelevent, this includes dust and water even in the "stowed" position

we prefer poptop for ease of towing and storage.the aircon/heater does not work as good as in a solid van.our last poptop lasted 7 years before leaking,which happened at midnight in freezing tassie.most leaks are caused by sealant drying out and are easily fixed.
we are now waiting to buy a new van which will be an 18ft poptop with shower/toilet.
it all boils down to personal preference.
rocan

rocan wrote:

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we prefer poptop for ease of towing and storage.the aircon/heater does not work as good as in a solid van.our last poptop lasted 7 years before leaking,which happened at midnight in freezing tassie.most leaks are caused by sealant drying out and are easily fixed.
we are now waiting to buy a new van which will be an 18ft poptop with shower/toilet.
it all boils down to personal preference.
rocan

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Thanks for that Rocan, the fact that you are buying another pop top with a bit more fruit must mean you are happy with them and there are no major faults, just a query on the leaks you mentioned, are modern pop tops  prone to leaking? or as you are in the process of buying a new one you are not aware of this happening.

i think all vans will leak eventually.but with modern day sealants u have to be unlucky to get one that leaks within a few years.
friend of mine bought new solid van last year,leaked last week thru the side lights ruining interior wood panel.just unlucky
rocan

G'day I heve a advance poptop that works well. I have had a problem wirh leaks but the van is getting on now and the leaks were fixed with new sealant as others have said. This van has the aircon and heating coming up from the floor. the system works well. I recently had a problem with the air con but found a bloke who could fix it. The system can be set at cool or cold enough that you need blankets. Have not had the need to use the heater yet but as a test one day i turned it on and after a while i felt that you could cook your roast in it.Go the poptops.

All designs have their pros and cons but after shifting from a full height van to a pop top earlier this year (both the same size @ 17') I found the old Landcruiser (1989 4lt petrol/gas)was comfortably cruising at 95(pop top) as opposed to 85km/h(full height). Get the feeling that weight (not much difference between them anyway ) isn't as important as wind resistance? Fuel consumption when travelling at the same speed as the full height van is down by around 10-15% with the pop top. I also find that in extreme heat conditions the 'cruiser runs cooler. Just a hint - if it's really hot when camping and you have an van airconditioner struggling to cope- lower the roof. Put up with the reduced height, the aircon will not have to compensate for the uninsulated canvas and extra air space to cool, becomes much more effective.