School me on rooftop cargo carriers

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Wild Bill

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I've been thinking of investing in a rooftop cargo box for my wife's Subaru Ascent. With two car seats now and a 70 lb. dog, space for bags and misc. cargo has evaporated quickly. Looking for something to hold standard luggage/duffle bags for 4-5 people, Christmas presents, etc. Definitely want a hard sided one, rather than a large bag style.

Let me know what you've got, what you like, don't like, wish you had more of or less of, how many CuFt you think is adequate, brands to avoid to ones you love.
 
I found a Thule on the Nextdoor app used. It was about half price. Quality product. I hang it on the wall of the garage when not in use.
Also consider a trailer hitch receiver rack. It’s more aerodynamic and easier to load.
 
We had them growing up, key is to remember it's on before you drive in the garage ;)

If I was buying one today these are some features I'd be looking for;
(1) Long not tall, so max volume but better clearance
(2) Opens from both sides
(3) easy for one person to get on and off the car
(4) doesn't obstruct access to the trunk
 
3855WIN said:
I found a Thule on the Nextdoor app used. It was about half price. Quality product. I hang it on the wall of the garage when not in use.
Also consider a trailer hitch receiver rack. It’s more aerodynamic and easier to load.
Click to expand...
Hitch rack would require me to have a receiver installed. Purchased the vehicle used and it didn’t have one from the factory. The downside I see with that is protection from them elements. I use one on my pickup when my topper is full, but that is typically coolers and totes so who cares about dirt, snow, etc.
 

I have this one ON my truck, works very well I did add a padlock rather than the key lock on it. On a truck, you want a rear opener. An SUV a side would be better.
truck-top-k.jpg
 
Wild Bill said:
Hitch rack would require me to have a receiver installed. Purchased the vehicle used and it didn’t have one from the factory. The downside I see with that is protection from them elements. I use one on my pickup when my topper is full, but that is typically coolers and totes so who cares about dirt, snow, etc.
Click to expand...
I have both. Hitch racks are dirty. You'd need to add a storage box. I like my Thule rooftop but it's a bit long for my vehicle. Works okay because Jimmy is tailgate not hatchback. Open on one side only is fine. But mine has to be mounted on the passenger side of vehicle to access. One that opens on drivers side would be safer. And I could stand on the curb when loading. The carriers don't have to be centered on top of vehicle. To one side is fine.20201025_134929.jpg
 
Question for all the thule guys - my old man just had one on top of a toyota highlander. Looked like all the ones pictured above, side opened, brand new. It leaked bad. Is that normal? Installed wrong? Just a defect? He returned it cause for $1k, he was pissed it leaked and rightfully so.
 
I have a Thule box and it works well. Good latch, opens from both sides. I probably could take it off and on myself but haven't tried. I have not had trouble with leaking, but would not be surprise if i got moisture inside in very wet, slushy weather and road conditions. We've had above average precip this winter and I have not had any leaking.
 
I would warn of one problem: it has these very clever four clamps that attach to the cross bars. All well and good on the highway. However, after two weeks of exploring terribly rough mining roads in the Pioneers, one of the clamps came loose. I caught it but there was some internal damage to the gizmo. My buddy and I jerry-rigged it to get it home, but I had to replace that clamp for $10. I always carry a few NRS straps to reinforce the thing if it gets really windy. Also I would take it off next time and leave it at camp when out exploring old mining roads. All in all, though, I would buy it again.
 
One more observation. I almost ruined the thing driving into a friend's carport. I just forgot it was up there and didn't think about how low the entrance of the carport was. Dear Wife stopped me just in time. This, however, says more about me than the box itself.
 
I only own a rack and hitch carrier. Researched the Yakima and Thule cargo boxes which are both great brands, but I didn’t see that a lot of them were described as waterproof or would keep water out.

However it’s better than no protection.

I’d bought a cheaper brand of cargo rack, but to help prevent rust (if you leave it on all year), when it was new I put on about 5 coats of matte black paint for truck wheels. Holding up well
 
Got the Thule. I love it. My sixteen-year old makes fun of me, but it’s worth it. It’s handy how quickly and easily you can take it off the rig if not needed.
 
Ben Long said:
One more observation. I almost ruined the thing driving into a friend's carport. I just forgot it was up there and didn't think about how low the entrance of the carport was. Dear Wife stopped me just in time. This, however, says more about me than the box itself.
Click to expand...

When we leave for a road trip with the roof box on my wife's LC I always put a sawhorse in the way of the garage to remind myself I can't park in there, after returning from a long drive the last thing on my mind is what's on the roof of the car...
 
3855WIN said:
Looks like you could put the 70 lb dog on back like Ontario did.
Click to expand...
That's the 35 lb Brittany. Obviously not the 70 lb Lab. I don't have to remove the luggage to unload/load the dogs. Window pops open and they jump on the boxes then into back of Jimmy.
 
I have a Thule and it has worked really well. It has been awesome to go camping with the family! Definitely no leaking issues. I agree that you should keep total height in mind when choosing which model to go with. I bought mine used so the price was right, but I do wish I had a bigger model.
 
We used our Yakima box a ton when we had a houseful of kids. Got it at REI, not sure what model but it's big...long enough for skis and one of the wider ones you could get. We ran it on a Honda Pilot, GMC Yukon, and Nissan Armada and it worked great on all. Figuring out the clamps was a bit of a learning curve but they're pretty solid once you get them spaced and tightened correctly, and quick to move around after learning how they work. Sage advice above on carrying ratchet straps just in case though. It's darn nice for hauling ski gear, you just throw them in and close it up, no need to get all strategic or ice them up in an exposed ski rack. Cracked our top a bit in a garage door mishap, it wasn't even me driving! But I just sealed it up with epoxy and it hasn't leaked since.

Do watch how far back you put it relative to your hatchback, if you have one. Some rear windows don't take kindly to running into the back of the box when the read door gets flipped up. On road trips, I always kept heavy stuff in the rig and saved the box for lighter stuff because it will change the physics of your tip-over potential if things get sporty. Not a lot, since usually you have a lot of weight in the main rig if you're using one of those, just something to keep in mind.

Keep the box key attached to the rig key. Just trust me there!
 
wllm said:
We had them growing up, key is to remember it's on before you drive in the garage ;)

If I was buying one today these are some features I'd be looking for;
(1) Long not tall, so max volume but better clearance
(2) Opens from both sides
(3) easy for one person to get on and off the car
(4) doesn't obstruct access to the trunk
Click to expand...
#1a... has lots of surface area for stickers.

We have this one and love it - is a workhorse for a packed car on ski weekends and for summer road trips when you have a full rig. To me it was a good blend of length and height without either being too much. It's also pretty quiet compared to the last thule roof box we had.

We run ours on the outback limited, runs real nice on the factory crossbars.

Thule Force XT XL | Thule | United States

Thule Force XT - Versatile roof-mounted cargo box for everyday use.
www.thule.com www.thule.com
 
We have a Yakima on my wife's Ascent, with 3 kids it works great for hauling all sorts of luggage and gear so we don't have to take my truck on longer trips. We just leave it on there, but it's pretty easy on/off, just can't park it in a garage. Opens from both sides and have never had issues with water getting into it. Let me know if you want me to grab the model # from it.
 
Jwill said:
We have a Yakima on my wife's Ascent, with 3 kids it works great for hauling all sorts of luggage and gear so we don't have to take my truck on longer trips. We just leave it on there, but it's pretty easy on/off, just can't park it in a garage. Opens from both sides and have never had issues with water getting into it. Let me know if you want me to grab the model # from it.
Click to expand...
If it's not an issue that would be great! I wouldn't turn down a picture of the rig too, if you've got one.
 
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