Having too many cars and not enough garage space is the bane of many, but there are solutions, storage containers, metal sheds/garages, temporary gazebo-like things…and then there’s the Outdoor Carcoon.
The weatherproofed, exterior grade version of the original indoor Carcoon that’s kept million-pound motors dust and moisture free for a few decades now. And with the poor little Peugeot 106 GTi sitting outside long term last year, I decided it was time to pony up the big bucks and commit after years of thinking, ‘Yeah, I’ll do that one day’.
So, on 20th October 2021, at 13:57 and 07 seconds, I purchased a Size 4 Outdoor Carcoon from Demon Tweeks. On 25th September 2022, it was dispatched. Yes, you have read those dates right. It took 11 months, or 341 days, 48 weeks and 5 days or 93.42% of a typical year to arrive.
I can’t fault Demon Tweeks here. They were awaiting stock from Carcoon. Actually, I can fault them somewhat. During the tedious wait, they never removed the Carcoon from sale on their website, even though they knew there had massive supply issues. Nor did they update the lead time or put a note on the listing to say, ‘This might take a year to arrive’.
Carcoon has taken a hammering in terms of reviews because of this over the last year. I called them a couple of times to ask generally about lead times and occasionally specifically about stock to Demon Tweeks.
On one occasion, I called Carcoon only to be told that stock was being sent to Demon Tweeks regularly; this was probably around July. I then called Demon Tweeks, who said they still hadn’t had any stock whatsoever.
Some of the Carcoon reviews on Google even thought the company had gone bust or was in serious trouble, yet were taking orders and pocketing the money. These bad reviews are self inflicted. If they’d have just been truthful and up front saying they had stock delays and just apologising, they wouldn’t have happened.
Thankfully Demon Tweeks said I could have my money back whenever, and were always hugely apologetic. I considered cancelling twice and paying another £120 to get a different brand that does the same thing, but their system isn’t dual-layer…which put me off.
Anyway, the 106 has sat outside for a year longer than I wanted it to. The lacquer peel on the roof is now terrible, and the car definitely needs a whole respray. Thanks, Carcoon. I needed it for winter 2021.
If you’re reading all this a year or a decade from now, then the supply issues are probably fine. And I hope Carcoon are more truthful about their supply issues in future, as they were downright deceitful on the numerous times I called them.
On with the review.
What is it?
Think of it as a huge bubble that uses positive air pressure to keep itself inflated with your pride and joy inside. It eliminates moisture with the constantly filtered air that gets pumped in and protects your vehicle from the elements.
How?
It’s made up of two main parts. A thick plastic ground sheet is the base, and then there’s the upper section which is dual-layered. So the outer skin is UV resistant and protects the inner bubble part. It also helps minimise large temperature fluctuations, which could cause condensation.
You zip the upper and lower sections together to create a fairly airtight fabricy container.
Before you do all that, you hook up the 12v power supply. This works as a battery trickle charger and can also take power from the battery to power the fans should you have a power cut.
A pigtail lead comes out of the charging box and plugs into either of the two 12v fans that are already bonded into the top part of the Carcoon.
Attach the foam exterior filters. These are fitted with elastic and pop over the fan housings that already have activated carbon filters built in. Then put the large foam shrouds around those – these hold the outer part of the cover away from the fans to allow airflow.
Velcro it up at the bottom and wait for it to inflate.
The whole thing takes about 30 minutes to an hour.
Installing the Outdoor Carcoon
1. Find a suitable location – no sharp gravel, not near things that can pierce it, as level as possible. A good few years ago, I put this second driveway in on the other side of the house…because…too many cars.
Driving the 106 off, I left it to warm up for a while as I swept the concrete base. Laying out the ground sheet, you need to make sure that the start of the zip is where the fans will be, so make that closest to your outdoor socket if you can.
Unfold it and position it where you think best. It shouldn’t be too close to outdoor heat sources like boilers (as seen here, but it’s far enough away not to melt it), garage doors etc. All can heat up the air, which, if near the fans, ends up sucking in warm air to the Carcoon and creating moisture.
2. Drive vehicle onto ground mat, make sure the front is folded over when you do so to prevent damage. Grab the 12v PSU and set it down toward the front of the ground mat. Place it on a brick or something non-combustible/melty.
Open the bonnet of your car and connect the 12v crocodile clips or the permanent hook up loops. Unwind your extension lead (you will need one because of the lack of mains cable on the PSU), and leave it near the ground mat. Don’t plug it in yet.
3. Lay the upper part over your car like you would a standard cover. Make sure you’ve got the fans at the right end – you’ll be able to feel the large hard plastic circles that are stuck into the cover. They need to go to the end where the zip starts.
Unfold the cover and align the zip. Go around the whole cover, zipping it up until you get to where you started. But leave a bit of a gap for now.
4. On the cover, there’s a small zip below a bigger zip with airflow graphics and a ‘drying vent’. The smaller one is where you need to feed your mains plug through. It’s tighter than a fish’s nostril, but it will fit. Just be gentle.
You also need to thread the 12v connector for the fans out of this zip. Once done, zip it back up right against the cables.
Get the 12v fan supply and wind it around the loop of vinyl material next to the fan – this stops it from coming unplugged should it get windy. (Both fans have a 12v input, do this on whatever side is closest).
Plug the 12v in, and the fans should start running as they’re being powered by the car battery – this checks that the backup feed will work. Now plug the other end into the mains and switch it on.
Check the PSU lights. The Red LED on the top right should be lit; this signifies it’s being powered by the mains. And if your battery is charging, the amber lower left light will be on.
Attach the foam external filters, then put the rigid foam rings around the fan shrouds.
5. Now zip up fully, and the Outdoor Carcoon will fully inflate in about 15 minutes.
Sped up, it looks like this:
And from start to finish!
Takes probably an hour tops.#OutdoorCarcoon #Carcoon pic.twitter.com/X3YP3MdKfH— (@car_witter) October 31, 2022
What’s it like?
Well, for £600, it does feel every bit of £600. The base is incredibly thick and the heaviest part of the Carcoon. The zip is a huge heavy-duty thing; all the stitching is neat and precise. It feels like it should last.
The 12v PSU looks a little like it’s come from the 80s, but if it does the job, so be it. The main annoyance is that the cable with the mains plug on it is so damn short. If you’re using this thing outdoors, then in all likelihood, you aren’t going to have a socket right next to where you’ll put it.
So factor in needing to buy an extension lead that’s up to the job of being left outside – I found this one on Amazon after a lot of searching. It’s 13amp rated, so it can take the full load of a regular socket and bright green, so the cable is easily visible.
The 12v power supply is the same as you get with an indoor Carcoon. So the cables on the 12v side have metres of cable on them. The PSU is wall mountable, so you’d place this away from your indoor Carcoon and leave the wires trailing into the bubble.
With the Outdoor Carcoon, you must put all these cables in the bubble. It also states you need to raise the PSU off the floor (I gather in case it gets hot/warm and damages the flooring). In their instructions, they use a bit of scrap wood for this…I used a brick.
Surely, by now, they’d have developed some legs for the PSU to raise it off the floor? Oh, and add 4/5 metres of cable on the mains side.
I was really surprised at how quickly it inflated, considering it’s powered by what are essentially two 12v PC fans. How long they’ll last…who knows, but I reckon they’d be easy enough to replace yourself without buying the costly original spares.
I’m most worried about the thing getting pierced or torn by accident. Unfortunately, there’s no ‘repair’ tape etc., that comes with the Outdoor Carcoon, so I guess you just duct tape it if that happens. But it would be a lot of money to replace it if it did.
The drying feature is handy. I used that for 20 minutes or so to ensure there wasn’t any moisture underneath the car. You open the drying flap, letting the air rush out, hopefully taking any moisture with it.
Outdoor Carcoon Conclusion
Overall, I’m really pleased. It will keep the little 106 GTi safe, damp-free, and away from the elements.
I purchased a size big enough for the largest of my cars so I can swap them around in the future if need be. If you have more than one car, it’s worth doing the same. The 106 looks pretty lost in a Size 4, but it doesn’t blow around too much in the wind. Just make sure you park a smaller vehicle as central as possible.
Where can I get one?
Well, if you want the chance of getting your money back if there’s an epic delay of nearly a year, then go with Demon Tweeks. The price is pretty much the same as purchasing directly with Carcoon, and you can use things like Klarna to help spread the cost, which you can’t do with Carcoon.
You’ll notice I’ve not linked to Carcoon at all in this article…
