SUV tents primarily have a sleeve that attaches the tent to your SUV for a hybrid camping experience. Here comes the Napier Sportz Cove tent – flipping that idea and design on its head. This model chops has a simplistic adaptation of what’s commonly understood in an SUV tent, and provides you with an awning/canopy/extension type mixture instead.
Miles apart design-wise from their top selling Sportz and Backroadz models, but definitely has a place for those who prefer to sleep in the bed of your SUV, as opposed to outside on the ground floor.
Table could not be displayed.Please note- this particular model is not compatible with SUVs that have a ‘barn door’ design, so in that case you should opt for the Sportz or Backroadz models, or perhaps check out our dedicated SUV tent list of all the top brands on the market.
Today we look at all aspects of this SUV tent to help you decide whether its worth opening the wallet for.
Page Contents:
Napier Cove SUV Tent Guide
Our First Thoughts
RV camping in SUV style. That’s the best way to describe this SUV awning tent.
SUV camping has become pretty popular, with a lot of campers (especially older campers) opting for it because it’s more comfortable to sleep on a mattress in your SUVs cargo hatch, than on the ground in a tent.
We think this type of tent is perfect for those that are camping on a solo or 2-person trip, and aren’t concerned about having a huge tent with tons of bells and whistles. This is more of a functional shelter than a flashy one (although it is pretty eye-catching).
The only downside we can see in this model is that if you had some rain to contend with, you will be cooped up in your vehicle for hours, or days even. Whereas a tent at least gives you a secondary space that you can move around in a bit easier.
But if that doesn’t matter to you, we feel the Sportz Cove is a great tent for anything from camping, to shading you on beach days, or spending time tailgating with your fellow sports brethren. Casual camping is where it excels, and you can get a lot of use from it in spring, summer or fall.
Important Specs at a Glance
| Type
SUV Awning Tent (61000 Model) |
Awning Length
2 feet |
| Weight
7 lbs. |
Capacity
2 People |
| Number of Doors
1 Hybrid Door / Window |
Price
$139.99 USD |
| Season
3 – Spring / Summer / Fall |
Assembly
1 Minute Setup Time |
| Materials
Polyester Taffeta, Polyester Mesh Fiberglass Pole |
Waterproof
1200mm PU Coating |
Overview of Features
Some of our favorites are as follows:
- SUV Awning Tent Attaches Easily to Vehicle
- Allows for Multiple People to Sleep in Cargo Space
- Lightweight, Shock-Corded Pole Design
- Hybrid Window/Door for Convenience
- Includes Waterproof Coating and Storm Flaps
- Includes Carrying Case
Here is a look at some of the other features included in the COVE tent on our graph.
Some Extra Specifics for you to Gloss Over
What We Love – Our Top 3 Features
The Design Makes it Versatile for Other Outdoor Activities
GOLD QUALITY – Awning Attachment
This large entry SUV tent is basically a glorified awning that can attach to your SUV for those that are looking for a more comfortable sleep experience during their outdoor adventures. The whole thing goes together quite easily.
After removing it from its carrying case, you connect the top straps to either your roof rack, or the hood of the car, followed by pulling the bottom portion of the awning over your bumper. Next, hook up the side straps to your wheel wells. Then, pop the hatch up and the awning will spring into place.
Short, shock-corded fiberglass poles interlock to provide the awning with a single frame that slides through the fabric’s top pocket and connects into two corner pockets. Last step is to attach the guy lines and you’re in business.
SILVER FEATURE – Swift Setup
The quick set up time of this SUV tent is an attractive feature that will give you more time to enjoy nature rather than spend it fighting to pitch your shelter.
Most SUV tents have a lot of moving parts to their setup as you have to attach multiple poles, rain fly, and even the tent floor in some cases. Staking it down and guying it out can also cause headaches for inexperienced campers.
The Sportz Cove cuts setup times in half, with only 1 pole that needs assembly. Everything else in this tent is connect with straps, buckles, velcro, and only 2 guy lines for staking down. You can even use this tent sans guy lines, unless the conditions are very windy. But for the most part it should hold up just fine.
BRONZE HIGHLIGHT – Singin’ In The Rain
Even though the 61000 model is an extended awning, and you will be inside your car during storms, Napier designed it with standard waterproofing features regardless.
The polyester taffeta fabric has a 1200mm hydrostatic head rating, using a polyurethane coating to help rain bead and deflect off the awning and away from the hatch.
As the hatch is a pretty large entry, the awning can only protect so much, so Napier makes sure to include a heavy-duty storm flap on the door. This can be zipped up during inclement weather, to ensure the interior of your SUV doesn’t get soaked.
Main Overview – Breaking Down Every Detail
Also Serves Well as an SUV Sun Shelter
Multi-Purpose Shade
The Sportz Cove from Napier is designed as a camping tent, but many people use them for other purposes.
The large awning can be used in many situations for providing shade on sunny days, and it’s almost the perfect addition to anyone’s tailgate party. Using the cargo space to store supplies and gear, you can sit outside in the shade with a few bevvies and dogs before the big game.
Additionally, this type of awning tent can be used to provide sun protection at the beach, during road trips, or if you are fishing down at the lake.
No Bugs, Mo’ Airflow
Ventilation is always an important factor to consider when you are tent shopping. With its small size, you really don’t need much in the way of vents with the Sportz Cove, but the entry door has a mesh window that can be used to let air in, while cracking a window in the SUV will cycle fresh air efficiently. This mesh window also doubles as protection against mosquitoes as well as other airborne nasties, letting you enjoy nature without itching and scratching.
Light as A Feather
Not only is this tent small, but it’s also pretty light at only 7 lbs. The polyester material keeps the weight down while providing a good fabric that can combat UV rays and abrasions. Polyester can also be compacted pretty well when you need to repack it. Further keeping the weight down are flexible fiberglass poles that are shock-corded for a single frame design that adds minimal weight to the structure.
Napier Cove SUV Tent Sizing Guide
If you’re unsure which model will fit your SUV, whether its the 61000 cove or the 61500 cove, this table below should help you filter down the size you need.
Find Your SUV Here for the Perfect Tent Match
So for example if you had the Dodge Journey or Nitro SUV, then the 61000 cove tent will be right for you. However if you have the Dodge Caravan or Durango SUV, then you will need the Full Sized tent, which is the 61500 model.
Note: If your SUV model doesn’t appear here, a good idea would be to research if your back-end dimensions are similar to say the Honda HRV or GMC Yukon for example, if you have a match, then you will know that Cove tent will fit yours too.
Most Asked Questions – We’ve Got You Covered
How can I find out if this tent will fit my vehicle?
The tent is designed with a universal size to fit SUVs, CUVs, and minivans. If you want to be 100% sure, Napier has a sizing tool on their website that will tell you what tent(s) will work best with the make/model/year of your vehicle.
Do I have to secure the two guy lines?
The awning will stay rigid on its own due to its size, fiberglass pole, and location to mounting points, but it wouldn’t be a bad idea to secure the guy lines when the conditions start to turn nasty.
Can the hatch be shut when the tent is set up?
Due to the design, you won’t be able to shut the hatch without first removing the tent. The good news is that it can be removed and re-attached in a matter of seconds.
Does my SUV need a roof rack to secure the top portion of the tent?
It is not imperative. The buckle straps that are provided on the top of the awning are long enough to reach the front of the vehicle for mounting purposes.
What’s the difference between Napier Sportz Cove 61000 vs 61500?
It’s just a size difference. The 61000 is for small to midsize SUV while the 61500 is for midsize to full size SUV, a slight dimension difference allowing the 2 tents to fit all sizes of SUV easily.
Conclusion on the Napier Cove SUV Tent
The Napier Sportz Cove Tent is a pretty unique design, and excels in providing you that SUV tent camping experience, albeit it stubby one.
Ideally for use with 1 or 2 people, you can have a more comfortable sleep in your car than on the ground, while still enjoying a hybrid camping trip.
The only times we could see this not really be a good tent to use would be in rainy weather. The awning can provide you some rain protection, and the tent is waterproof, but you will still have to spend the majority of your time in your car.
But for those time when the sun is shining, this is a quality tent that can give you years of use, and help you make some fun memories.
on their website (Napier) that will tell you what tent(s) will work best with the make/model/year of your vehicle they don’t mention the Ford Transit Connect. Does someone can tell me witch of the two models fit for my car, if it’s fit, the 61000 or the 61500
Yeah unfortunately they don’t cover EVERY model of Truck which can be frustrating when you’re trying to get things right. However, you can refer to the graph in our article, and your best best would be to find a truck that has near identical dimensions to yours, then buy the tent that matches that Truck. The tents do tend to have a tiny bit of give, so don’t worry about it being 100% matching, but a close match would suffice and the tent will fit nicely. You could try scoping out the Ford website for truck dimensions of their other models and compare it to your Connect, you may have some success with this method. Thanks Alain