MERCEDES-BENZ CITAN 2012 – 2021 AWNINGS & AWNING RAILS

Unlock the true potential of your compact cruiser and expand your campsite footprint with a premium awning for your 2012-2021 Mercedes-Benz Citan!

The first-generation Mercedes-Benz Citan brought a distinct touch of premium German refinement to the compact van market, combining an incredibly agile chassis with car-like comfort and impressive fuel economy. It has quickly earned a loyal following as a stealthy day van and a nimble micro- camper platform. However, because it is designed to breeze through busy urban streets, internal real estate is naturally at a premium. Once you have a compact bed system, a fridge box, and your travel bags loaded, the cabin can feel a little tight. Upgrading your van with a high-quality awning room is the smartest way to overcome this boundary, instantly creating a spacious outdoor annex. At Vanstyle, we source top-tier awnings and rail setups engineered to align perfectly with your vehicle's roofline.

An exterior awning annex functions as a brilliant extension of your layout, giving you an enclosed, weather-proof area to lounge, cook meals, or store bulky outdoor kit without encroaching on your main sleeping deck inside the Citan. Our high-quality range from industry leaders like Dometic offers versatile sizing, meaning you can easily choose a configuration that mirrors your exact style of travel. Before you can pitch up, establishing a solid anchor point is key. A dedicated awning rail or a sleek multi-rail fastens securely along your roof structure, providing a rock-solid foundation to either slide in a massive drive-away tent or mount a rapid wind-out canopy.

To make camp life completely hassle-free, drive-away options feature an integrated connecting tunnel section that wraps snugly over the side loading doors of your Citan. This layout acts as a weather-tight bridge, keeping the wind and rain out while you move back and forth between the driver's cabin and your living space. Much like a traditional ground tent, these setups rely on heavy-duty guy ropes pinned firmly to the ground to keep the structure rigid and prevent the fabric from lifting in strong gusts.

If you want to completely eliminate arrival stress at the campsite, modern air awnings are a phenomenal alternative to traditional pole structures. By replacing heavy, awkward steel or fiberglass frames with robust, inflatable air tubes, pitching up becomes an effortless, one-person job that takes only a matter of minutes. Not only does this save valuable weight in your Citan's payload, but it also completely removes the risk of an awkward metal pole slipping out of your hands and scratching your van's pristine paintwork during setup.

For quick day trips, spontaneous road trips, or roadside lunch stops, a fixed wind-out awning provides unparalleled convenience. Once fitted securely to your vehicle's roof structure using technical brackets, the sleek casing sits neatly out of the way until needed, winding out to provide overhead protection in under two minutes. It delivers instant shade from the hot summer sun and immediate shelter from a sudden British downpour. Best of all, because it lives permanently on the side of your van, there is zero risk of turning up to camp and realizing you left your shelter sitting back in the garage.

FAQ:

Q: Can I fit a wind-out awning and an awning tent at the same time?
A: Because a compact vehicle like the first-generation Mercedes Citan has a finite amount of space along the roofline, these two systems generally compete for identical mounting locations. We advise evaluating your usual camping habits to choose the single style that best fits your routine.

Q: What is the difference between an awning tent and a drive-away awning?
A: While both give you an enclosed living space, a drive-away awning stands entirely on its own. You can effortlessly unhook the connecting tunnel from your Citan, leave the tent pitched to lock down your spot on the campsite, and drive away to explore local attractions for the day without packing down your living area.

Q: What is a Kador?
A: A Kador strip is a tough, double- beaded fabric strip that acts as the vital connection link for drive-away setups. It threads smoothly into your van's awning rail on one side and attaches to the awning tunnel on the other, creating a waterproof seal. When you want to head off-site, you simply slide the Kador strip out to release the van, and slide it back in when you return to base.