Isuzu NPS Truck Build – Episode 5: Internal Canopy Fit-Out + Rooftop Tents After 2 Years on the Road
Isuzu NPS Truck Build – Episode 5: Internal Canopy Fit-Out + Rooftop Tents After 2 Years on the Road
Welcome back to our Isuzu NPS Truck Build Series! This is Episode 5 and in this one, we’re diving into our full canopy fit-out and rooftop tent setup — all tested over two years of full-time travel around Australia. The truck’s done, the trip’s done, the truck’s been sold, but before we moved on, we wanted to pull everything together and show you what worked (and what didn’t) from our time living out of the canopy.
Let’s get into it!
Internal Canopy Fit-Out: Kitchen + Storage
Our full internal canopy fit-out was done by Luke from Penny Industries on the Sunshine Coast. He is an absolute legend and highly recommended — he also did our boat loader.
We’re starting with the passenger side of the canopy — the kitchen side and, to be honest, the bit we used the most.
The Pull-Out Kitchen
This section had:
Breville Coffee Machine—This is hands down our most–used appliance. It is a grinder and machine all-in-one. It lived outside, so we didn’t wake the kids.
SodaStream – For gin & soda on the beach… or just about every night.
Double Toaster
Ninja Multi-Cooker – This was our go-to for most meals. Air fryer, pressure cooker, slow cooker — did everything from butter chicken to ribs and spaghetti.
🔧 Pro tip: We built the slide tall enough so the Ninja could open without removing it. The upper shelf held all the pans and cooking gear. Hardkorr lights were wired in throughout too.
Induction Cooktop
Single Breville Induction Cooktop on a pull-out shelf — simple, efficient, and used every day.
In front of the Induction is a small draw that opens and would be perfect for Cutlery - but if there was any water on the coffee machine on bumpy roads it came out and went into this draw, so we never used it.
Upright Fridge – Bushman 130L
This fridge was awesome. We never had issues, other than strapping the door closed on rougher tracks (Gibb River Road, Cape York, etc). We added a Rogue Industries fan mod which stopped it icing up and made the internal temps way more consistent.
💡 Best $90 mod we did. Just ran the fan with the light circuit — easy and effective.
It was mostly our drinks fridge unless we were away from the van. Then, it’d get filled with food and last the five of us about four days.
Pantry Drawer
Full-length pantry that pulls out with 3 internal shelves — perfect for kids’ snacks and day-to-day dry goods.
The smaller drawer below for stubby coolers, bin bags, etc.
Plate & Cuttlery Draws & Space
At the very rear we had a Big Draw that fit plates, saucepan & frypan in it.
Then, Below that thinner draw that had utensils and cutlery in it. Andrew also had a food grade cover on it so we could use the top of this draw as a chopping board.
Above this we had a big open space, we had our two roof-top tent ladders in here. We could also fit a couple of cartons of beer, or when away from the caravan and in a national park we could put a camp toilet in here.
Storage Above
Above the kitchen, Andrew designed a shelf that ran the full length of the canopy. That housed 6 waterproof tubs on the passenger side and an additional 3 on the driver's side. This was where we kept all the random stuff you need. We had a snorkeling box, a wetsuit box, a fire cooking box, a Gerni box, a gym box....well, you get the idea, one tub per activity.
Toolbox Use: Recovery & Fishing
Passenger-side toolbox = all our George 4x4 recovery gear (NPS-specific kit with big kinetic rope).
Driver-side toolbox = full of fishing gear and tackle boxes.
To be honest, we hardly used the recovery kit — which is a good sign!
Water System
We ran a dual water setup:
80L drinking water tank on the headboard – always filtered, super clean, only filled from high-quality sources.
120L general-use tank – on a pump with filter, used for washing sandy feet, washing up, etc.
All taps and access points were on the passenger (kitchen) side, which made setting up camp for ocean views a breeze.
This is one of the most asked-about parts of the build, so here’s the rundown.
We needed to fit two rooftop tents side-by-side on the canopy – not an easy task given most tents are slightly wider than the tray.
Canopy & Tray Sizing
Tray width = 2.2m, standard size.
Tents were too wide to sit north-south, so they’re mounted east-west.
We dropped the canopy height to ensure tents sit 50mm below both the headboard and rear rack.
Middle canopy support added to hold the boat loader and keep it clear of the tents.
Tent Models
Bush Company AX27 – main tent for the adults. Opens taller with more internal space.
Bush Company DX27 – kids’ tent. Packs up quicker and easier (single skin vs double).
The staggered heights meant the awnings didn’t interfere with each other when open. Win.
What We’d Do Differently
It was a solid setup overall, but here’s a few things we’d tweak next time:
Redesign pantry space — more usable storage, less dead space.
Divider trays in the cutlery drawer — everything slid around.
Add a smoker – if we were doing it again, we’d fit one in the canopy or toolbox.
Box access – the roof tubs were great, but Briohny (at 5'2") couldn’t reach them without help.
Final Thoughts
After two years of touring around Australia with the kids, this canopy setup served us incredibly well. It was functional, reliable, and genuinely enjoyable to live out of. Massive shoutout to Luke from Penny Industries for the fit-out, and to everyone who followed this build series — we hope this inspires your own custom touring setup.
Got questions about the canopy or rooftop tents? Drop a comment or reach out.
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