Item: Coleman Hooligan 4
Rating: 4
Author: Paul Turner

The Coleman Hooligan tent comes in two, three or four-person models. For our Coleman Hooligan 4 Review, we will be taking a look at the pros and cons of the four-person model. We will cover the key features and look at some competing models.

Finding a solid tent that meets all of your specific needs can be a difficult task. This review should hopefully help you decide if the Coleman Hooligan is right for you.

Our Rating:

Pros

Vestibule adds lots of storage space
Solid construction
Good weather protection
Easy to set up
Fire Resistant
Light weight
Very low cost

Cons

Not great in cold weather
Vestibule entry is small
Doesn’t work great on rough terrain
Excessive amount of guylines

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Key Features

The Hooligan tent by Coleman is spacious and easily sleeps four average-sized adults. When used for a lower number of campers, it can provide tons of space to live and move around in. With a center height of 4ft. 10in., adults can comfortably sit up in this tent. Shorter children can even stand up with no problems.

Weatherproof System

Coleman uses a patented WeatherTec™ system to weatherproof their tents. All of the seams are welded and inverted to ensure no leaks get through. The bathtub style floor keeps any ground moisture away. All of the corners, seams and zippers are protected from the elements. This tent features a nice-sized vestibule for storage of your gear and supplies. The vestibule is covered to keep all of your stuff nice and dry. There is also an extra storage pocket to help you keep your items organized.

Large Rainfly

The Coleman Hooligan has a large rainfly that extends all the way to the bottom of the tent. This provides an extra layer of protection against rain and wind. Many tents in this price range cut costs and weight by providing a smaller rainfly. Coleman bucks this trend and provides one that works exactly as intended.

Easy Setup System

The Hooligan tent offers several features that are exclusive to the Coleman brand. The tent has a unique Insta-Clip™ suspension system. The system makes securing the tent to its poles easy and aids in creating a more stable shelter. A patented pin and ring system prevents connections from sliding apart, which could lead to one side of your tent collapsing. Snag-free pole sleeves are included to aid in the ease of setup.

Others

A mesh body and ridge vents are welcome features of the Coleman Hooligan. These add great ventilation for the tent. You will breathe easier and stay cool in warmer temperatures. Not only is this tent weather resistant, but it’s fire resistant as well. This is a great feature that adds some peace of mind. You will never have to worry so much about a stray ember from the campfire setting the entire tent ablaze.

Detailed Review

Now that we’ve taken a look at the key features, let’s get into the meat of our Coleman Hooligan 4 Review. We will look at some important categories and give the tent a rating on a scale of 1 to 5 for each one. This should help you to better decide if this model will suit your needs.

Ease Of Use - 3.5/5

The Coleman Hooligan fairs better than average in this category. Color-coded parts aid in the setup process of the tent. It is fairly quick and easy to get it up and secure.

The entire process should take around ten minutes or less for an experienced camper.It is not the fastest or easiest tent to setup in the market, but there is nothing to really complain about.

There are a lot more guylines than many other tents of this size. This can make it a bit more time consuming to make everything secure, but it’s not terrible.

Build Quality & Durability - 4/5

The build quality is very solid. The durability is excellent as well. The compact dome and sturdy poles are rated to withstand winds up to 35 MPH. I have never seen a camper dispute this claim from Coleman. The tent holds up great in heavy rain with no leaks.

Comfort & Features - 4/5

The tent is nice and spacious. Four adults can sleep in comfort inside the Coleman Hooligan. Like most tents on the market, you should be aware that their sleep capacity is only for how many adults can fit laying on the floor space.

If you intend to spend significant time in the tent, it is much better suited for only two or three people. The number of features is excellent for a tent of this size and in this price range. The storage space is really nice and sets it apart from a lot of the competition.

Wet Weather Usage - 4.5/5

Coleman’s proprietary materials and weather-proofing system hold up well in heavy rain. The sealed seams, enormous rainfly and bathtub floor make it unlikely you will see any leaks. Everything, including the vestibules and zippers, are well protected from rain.

Hot Weather Usage - 5/5

The Coleman Hooligan is perfect for warm to hot climates. You can remove the rainfly and have protection from insects with the mesh walls.

This gives you a great view of the campsite and stars at night. It allows for full ventilation. Even with the rainfly on, the ventilation is excellent and should keep you cool on those hot summer nights.

Cold Weather Usage - 2/5

The Coleman Hooligan is really intended as a three-season shelter. This means it should hold up well in the spring, summer and fall. This is a four-person tent, but still quite light and made with backpacking in mind.

This means that the wall materials and rainfly are on the lighter and thinner side. They are rugged and should hold up to years of abuse, but they offer little protection against very low temperatures.

Weight & Packed Size - 3.5/5

The overall weight of this tent is 12.6 lbs. There are much lighter tents on the market, but keep in mind that this backpacker is meant for a family of four.

It packs down nice and tight and comes with a convenient carrying case. It’s not the smallest or lightest, but it’s easy enough to carry with you on a moderate hike. We give it a score of 7/10 for weight and size.

Overall Score:

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How Does It Compare To Others?

One of the biggest benefits of the Coleman Hooligan 4 is the lower price of this tent. It offers a lot of tent for your money. Here are a few more options you might want to take note of. These are all four-person tents of comparable size.

BlackShark TE02 4-person Lightweight Tent

This tent is designed to sleep four adults, but it best suited for three. The interior is rather small. It beats out the Coleman in weight and pack size.

If you intend to go on long hikes, this may be the better option. The materials are not quite as nice and the rainfly is much smaller, making leaks more likely. Still, this tent is much cheaper, though it also has less features.

Sundome 4 Person Tent

This tent is made of polyester. It is sturdy, but the materials are of a lower quality than the Hooligan. It lacks many of the Hooligan’s weather-proofing features. Setup is also a bit more complicated and can take up to 15 minutes.

The interior size and dimensions are almost identical to the Hooligan tent, but it lacks the storage space and vestibule. This model is also made by Coleman as a sort of budget model of the Hooligan. It is much cheaper and great for a tight budget, but the Hooligan beats it out in every other way.

Mountain Trails South Bend Tent

This is another good budget buy. It is cheaper than the Hooligan, but a bit less durable and less weather resistant. It is much lighter at only seven pounds. It can be setup as quickly and easy as the Coleman.

The Coleman has it beat on interior size, so if this is important to you, stick with the Coleman. If you want to go basic, lighter and cheap, the Mountain Trails South Bend is a nice option to look at.

Should you buy?

The Coleman Hooligan 4-Person Tent offers excellent value for the price. There are a lot of nice features that you normally only see on more expensive models. The tent offers excellent protection from the elements and is extremely durable.

It’s not the lightest backpacker out there, but should work fine for a group of 3-4 only planning to hike shorter distances. We highly recommend this tent for families or groups of 4 planning on a backpacking trip.