Kostyan

Which rooftop cargo carrier would fit our RXs?

Kostyan

what, no one's using a roof top carrier on their vehicle?

mandyfig

I have no seen one...have you?

rosen39

I removed the crappy crossbars on my 2008 RX350. I have Yakima 48" crossbars with their mounting legs that clamp on to the roof rails. They can be installed & removed in under 5 minutes.

Kostyan

mandyfig: you'd actually see more SUVs with roof top cargo carriers in resort towns...as travelling families try to fit more stuff in their vehicles. Some are universal fit, and some are not.


Rosen: My family and I plan on taking a long trip with the baby, for the first time, and we're thinking of all the stuff we need to take with us.Taking down the factory crossbars to "improve styling" is of no interest to me, I dont even know why did you bring this up in this topic.

mandyfig

I heard Thule's are great. Have you cehcked it out?

Kostyan

as much as I like their products, I would settle for something less pricey.

rosen39

I mis-read your post. Sorry. But I have used the cargo carriers sold at Sears, and for under $100, it carried pleanty of articles back and forth from my kid's college. Attaches to the crossbars with u-bolts and wing nuts, and a one-person operation.

Kostyan

no probs.
I had checked out Sears' online store and have not seen anything priced less than $160. Could you please give me the make/model of your carrier?

rosen39

It was a Sears X-cargo plastic carrier. Granted it was purchased 8 or 9 years ago, but then it was only $99. The new plastic carriers are $200+. You can get a canvas carrier for under $100, but I don't know how waterproof they are. I have seen the same carrier that was sold in Sears, at other auto supply chains from time to time.

biff44

Not very practical. They do not hold much, are hard to get to, and kill your gas mileage.

I prefer trailer hitch boxes, like these:
http://www.stowaway2.com/faq.asp

Easy to get into, hold a lot, actually improve your aerodynamics. They are excellent for camping--you can keep an entire kitchen in there.

Kostyan

that's nice! agree that this is better that roof-top boxes...

mowmow

This only works if you have the tow hitch package installed on your RX

Boognish

I have a Thule Evolution box (don't remember which one) which I used on my Subaru with Yakima racks and it fits on top of the RX no problem. It's a great place to stash snow boards, stinky boots and various other stuff. The RX does not have much cargo room for a vehicle of it's size and we've always used the box on trips to Tahoe. It doesn't quite allow the back hatch to open up all the way, so I'd recommend against using the automatic door opener.
*beep beep beep CRUNCH!*

timfou

I went through this same decision last year. I originally got the Thule Ascent which didn't allow me to open my rear hatch! Hunted around quite a bit and got the Atlantis which fits perfectly and has plenty of capacity for my family of four.

I got a great reply at Wantbox for a post I did asking for a rooftop cargo carrier. There are pictures there showing it mounted on a RX400h and how close the tolerance is when the rear hatch is opened.

Also got good advice for a bike hitch rack for the same car.