Cybertruck Basecamp rooftop tent disappoints: $3,000 Tesla accessory almost unrecognisable from original marketing

Tesla's marketing for the Cybertruck has been criticised for a handful of half-truths and somewhat misleading statements over the years, with many online calling Tesla out for its questionable claims, such as bulletproof skin, 500-mile range, and general over-the-top claims of ruggedness and work-hardiness.

It seems we can add the Cybertruck's Basecamp to the growing list of let-downs, if a recent Cybertruck Owners' Club post is to be believed. In the post, user TownBiz explains his Basecamp purchasing experience and provides a short review of the tent, which looks nothing like the initial promotional material in his images.

Giving Tesla and HeimPlanet, the company that makes the Basecamp tent, credit where it's due, TownBiz does comment on the Basecamp's premium materials, but that's about where the praise ends and the questionable aspects of the tent start.

For one, although a Tesla service centre performs the Basecamp's first install, it is meant to be user-removable and -installable, but is reportedly quite heavy and can be difficult to lift out of the Cybertruck's bed. Secondly, much of the installation seems overly complicated, with part of the process described as "blindly reaching the two T30 bolts that keep it in place and if you drop those bolts into the abyss below (likely falling into the area that the tonneau retracts into), bad things may happen."

It seems as though the most disappointing part of the Cybertruck's Basecamp tent seems to be the deviation from the original design, which presented the accessory as more of a camper conversion than a simple rooftop tent.

If you're after a rooftop tent, check out the Thule Tepui Autana Rooftop Tent with Annex on Amazon. You can also read about the Tesla Cybertruck in Walter Isaacson's biography of Elon Musk, also on Amazon.