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Published May 15, 2026 06:00AM<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
You could make an argument that attaching an awning to your car is unnecessary, bordering on ridiculous. I\u2019ve made that argument myself. It\u2019s like attaching a covered porch to your car or truck. Why would anyone need that? At least, that used to be my stance on car awnings, but let it be known from here on out that I am 100 percent pro-awning\u2014as long as it\u2019s the right one. I\u2019m talking about the Kammok Crosswing, which is the most user-friendly awning I\u2019ve ever used.<\/p>\n\nThe five-foot Crosswing can be adjusted to three different lengths and provides plenty of coverage for lounging or cooking off the side of your vehicle. <\/span> (Photo: Graham Averill)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nKammok Crosswing Car Awning<\/h2>\n Available lengths:<\/strong> 5\u2019, 7\u2019Weight:<\/strong> 38 lbs<\/p>\nPros and Cons
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What Makes This Car Awning Different<\/h2>\n I\u2019ve had awnings on a couple of different vehicles, and the ability to throw shade on the fly is genuinely enticing. It\u2019s hot and sunny, you want to hang by your vehicle after a long hike or bike ride, and some shade would be awesome. But the truth is, most awnings don\u2019t set up on the fly. They take time\u2014covers you have to unzip and remove, support poles you have to erect, guy lines that need to be staked down. It\u2019s not like you\u2019re erecting a barn from scratch, but setting up a typical awning takes about as long as pitching a tent. Call it several minutes. And then you have to reverse the process when you\u2019re done. Even though I had awnings on my trucks in the past, the process was just difficult enough to keep me from using them in a lot of situations. Parked for several hours? Sure, I\u2019d go through the trouble. Having a beer after a bike ride? Why bother. I\u2019ll just bake in the sun.<\/p>\nThe Crosswing\u2019s compact housing and built-in ratchet system \u2014 visible here mounted on a Thule XScape rack\u2014are what make the five-second setup possible. <\/span> (Photo: Graham Averill)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nKammok\u2019s Crosswing takes an innovative approach to design that eliminates all of that hassle. The Crosswing is almost automatic, and sets up in five seconds or less. I\u2019ve had it mounted on the side of my truck for the last two weeks, using it to cast shade after day hikes, during lulls in my daughter\u2019s track meets, and after the occasional round of golf when I just wanted to sit still and have a cold beverage. Unlike other awnings I\u2019ve tried, I\u2019ve found the Crosswing so easy to deploy that it\u2019s become my go-to for impromptu breaks from the sun.<\/p>\n
The Crosswing comes in two lengths, seven feet and five feet. I went with the five-foot because I have a short-bed truck, and it provides enough shade for lounging or cooking off the side of my vehicle. I also think the shorter length is more versatile\u2014I have it mounted on the driver\u2019s side right now, but I\u2019m toying with the idea of mounting it on the back of the truck so I can pull it over the tailgate, since I spend so much time back there. A seven-foot awning would be too long for that.<\/p>\n
What I Love About This Retractable Car Awning<\/h2>\n Speed is the main benefit. There\u2019s no outer shell to unzip and remove\u2014just unlock the clasp and pull the awning out to the size you want. The fabric deploys to three different lengths\u20143 feet, 5 feet, and 6.5 feet\u2014so you can dial in coverage if you\u2019re in a tight spot. Once the awning clicks into place, crank the small ratchet on the side to tension the fabric. No poles, no guy lines required under normal conditions; Kammok says the aluminum cross bars on the underside are strong enough to handle wind gusts up to 25 mph, though I haven\u2019t tested it anywhere close to that. They do sell support kits for heavier winds. I\u2019ve had the Crosswing up in rain and winds around 5 mph and I\u2019ve been impressed with how the freestanding system holds up.<\/p>\nThe Crosswing mounted on Graham Averill\u2019s F150. <\/span> (Photo: Graham Averill)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nPutting it away is just as easy\u2014reverse the process and lock it in place. I\u2019m always watching my fuel efficiency these days, and I pay close attention every time I add something to the truck. Two weeks in with the awning mounted and I haven\u2019t lost anything at the tank.<\/p>\n
What I Don\u2019t Love About the Kammok Crosswing<\/h2>\n My complaints are minor. The biggest one: the cross bars inside the awning rattle on bumpy roads. I don\u2019t notice it with the windows up, but roll them down and you can hear it. You also have to pull both sides of the awning evenly when deploying it\u2014if you don\u2019t, the cross bars get off kilter and you end up with too much slack on one side.<\/p>\n
If you decide to get a Crosswing, pay close attention to the shape and size of your rack\u2019s bars, because you might need specific mounting plates. The Crosswing comes with options for racks with T-slots as well as plates that fit over aero bars and round bars. I have the Thule XScape, and the T-slots aren\u2019t standard size, so the included T-slot hardware didn\u2019t do me any good. The mounting plates would have fit perfectly around my old truck rack, but the XScape has unusually wide bars\u2014I was able to make it work, but just barely. If you have standard-sized bars, it won\u2019t be an issue.<\/p>\n
And it has to be said: the Crosswing isn\u2019t cheap. It\u2019s almost twice the price of most similar-sized awnings on the market (Topoak\u2019s 180-degree awning<\/a> is $549; Yakima\u2019s OverNOut<\/a>, which requires poles, is $449). But the system is leaps and bounds above the competition\u2014and if you\u2019re like me, you\u2019ll use it twice as often as any awning you\u2019ve owned before. So the price-per-use works out the same, right?<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Kammok Crosswing is a retractable awning for cars and trucks that deploys in five seconds flat\u2014no poles, no guy lines, no excuses not to use it. The Kammok Crosswing deploys in five seconds flat\u2014no poles, no guy lines, no fuss. (Photo: Graham Averill) Published May 15, 2026 06:00AM You could make an argument that<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":13044,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[35],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-13043","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-wild-living"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13043","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=13043"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13043\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/13044"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=13043"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=13043"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wildgreenquest.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=13043"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}