Thule had a 20% off sale recently and I was able to pick up a new Thule Vector M roof box, Thule 450R Rapid Crossroad mounting feet, and 53" Wingbar Evo bars.
I hope this posts helps others thinking about adding a roofbox to the older trail editions.
First off, don't even consider using the OEM trail edition crossbars for a roof box, they are only rated for 120lbs evenly distributed. The Vector M weighs almost 60lbs by itself so you'd only be able to put maybe 60lbs of gear up top.
On top of the low load rating, the OEM trail bars are VERY flexy. At 75-85mph, there was enough flex that the front of the Vector M would tap the sun roof. I could look out the sun roof and see the front of the box moving more than I felt comfortable with.
I went back to RackAttack Austin and picked up the 450R Rapid Crossroad mounting feet (since these are the ONLY mounting feet that Thule has for the older Trail Editions) and the Wingbar Evos. This combo bumped the load rating up to 165lbs (according to Thule).
With the new mounts and bars, the shaking of the box was virtually eliminated. They had the added benefit of raising the box so that there was a little more room between the front of the box and the roof.
I choose to go with the Thule mounts and bars because I do not anticipate leaving the box and bars on the truck all the time. The bars are very easy to take off and store when not needed.
And of course some pics:
I hope this posts helps others thinking about adding a roofbox to the older trail editions.
First off, don't even consider using the OEM trail edition crossbars for a roof box, they are only rated for 120lbs evenly distributed. The Vector M weighs almost 60lbs by itself so you'd only be able to put maybe 60lbs of gear up top.
On top of the low load rating, the OEM trail bars are VERY flexy. At 75-85mph, there was enough flex that the front of the Vector M would tap the sun roof. I could look out the sun roof and see the front of the box moving more than I felt comfortable with.
I went back to RackAttack Austin and picked up the 450R Rapid Crossroad mounting feet (since these are the ONLY mounting feet that Thule has for the older Trail Editions) and the Wingbar Evos. This combo bumped the load rating up to 165lbs (according to Thule).
With the new mounts and bars, the shaking of the box was virtually eliminated. They had the added benefit of raising the box so that there was a little more room between the front of the box and the roof.
I choose to go with the Thule mounts and bars because I do not anticipate leaving the box and bars on the truck all the time. The bars are very easy to take off and store when not needed.
And of course some pics:
