Roof Rack Pros & Cons

[@fnq4now]

Hi guys & gals,  I'm in the market for a roof rack for our 120 sreies Prado and would welcome opinions on these two different types.

This Rhino Rack:- http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/ALLOY-TRAY-AND-RHINO-ROOF-RACK-COMBO-TOYOTA-PRADO-4WD-120-SERIES-AT1810-/180852327678?pt=AU_Car_Parts_Accessories&hash=item2a1ba384fe

or this one from ARB:- http://www.arb.com.au/products/roof-racks-and-roof-bars/roof-racks/alloy-roof-racks/4913010M/

All opinions welcome.  Thanks in advance.

[Teabag]

Sorry mate, can't help with those 2 particular options but I have Tradesman brand. I have the Tradesman Oval Alloy roof rack and have been very happy with it. I also opted for the open back so extra long things can still sit flat and easier sliding things on and off. Another RR worth considering......

http://www.tradesmanroofracks.com.au/page8.php

[Steelo]

Hi @fnq4now,

I have an 08 D4D GXL with a ARB alloy 1800mm roof rack.
The rack is very solid but also increases the wind noise by a fair bit. I don't have a wind deflector but from what I have read they don't seem to stop much of the noise especially when there is a cross wind. I am looking at installing some Dynamat extreme in my roof to stop the noise. I only had the choice of the 1800mm rack but if i could change it for the bigger one (2200mm I think) I would. This may also increase the wind noise even more. The door mesh they use is a great idea as you can sleep on the rack if needed but it is a pain to clean your roof.

Hope this helps
Steele

[Mace]

IMO if you are going to be roughing it (chucking firewood up there and other non comformist stuff l) and potentially knocking it about - ARB. It has a mesh floor and less possibility of contents poking downward and scratching roof.

If its just for additional space for bags, cases, etc, the Rhino will be fine.

Then it gets down to what overall appearance you want for your rig 

tough looking ARB or more stylish Rhino.

[D4D]

ARB alloy with mesh floor, I'd fit one if I didn't have to park in undercover carparks.

[Hairs]

ARB alloy with mesh floor, I'd fit one if I didn't have to park in undercover carparks.

Yep,
BTW, why do they have to make undercover car parks so bloody low?

[Robertsons]

Yep,
BTW, why do they have to make undercover car parks so bloody low?

PITA for parking sure is. We have ARB. Noisy with cross wind. We used ours for fire wood and swags. Saved our roof one time when we drove over a large tree branch that flung up. If you change cars as we did all we had to do was buy different brackets.

[Hairs]

I'll just add, I can't get in our shed with a rack on, BTW I have a stock ride height too. 

[ARB 4X4 Accessories]

Hi guys, without trying to sound like a sales pitch, this new video of ours may be of interest, particularly if you're considering an ARB rack anyway.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zyaAFFj3Gkw0&feature=player_embedded#

Cheers, Sam.

[Hairs]

Cheers for that Sam,
A Rack is on the wish list 
Along with a Swag of other gear.
There is always Christmas if I'm a good boy 

[McGirr]

Sam

Not to sound cynical but it would be good showing gear on the roof or throwing fire wood on showing how tough they are as driving around with one empty doesn't mean much.

Again just an observation.

Mark

[ARB 4X4 Accessories]

Fair point McGirr, I'll certainly make that suggestion for future videos.

Cheers, Sam.

[BigJules]

IMO if you are going to be roughing it (chucking firewood up there and other non comformist stuff l) and potentially knocking it about - ARB. It has a mesh floor and less possibility of contents poking downward and scratching roof.

ARB alloy with mesh floor, I'd fit one if I didn't have to park in undercover carparks.

Yes and yes. I have an ARB steel rack, the third I've owned, bloody good but heavy. I've bought all mine second hand on eBay by the way, never paid more than $600. If you want alloy you'd have to buy new I think.

[Black Diamond]

ARB alloy with mesh floor, I'd fit one if I didn't have to park in undercover carparks.

Yep i had to remove mine because the missus cant get into work carpark (Kmart)   

[cewilson]

I've got the Rhino Racks and a basket on the wife's Prado - it works perfectly well for what we use it for.  Basically carry a table, some chairs, swags etc with a little bit of firewood.

On the other hand I have a full length alloy rack on the Defender - again perfect for what we use it for.  Which is extended touring through corrugations, full off-road conditions etc etc.


Depends where you plan on going in the future.....

[Black-Pig]

My old man has ARB rack on his 120 prado. It has been up the canning, gibb river and simpson, full of gear, gas bottles, spare tyres, space case full of gear and  all sorts of other stuff. Not a problem other than a bit of wear of the paint. He also had the side mounting for the hi lift and shovel on the side. I help him out with the cleaning as he is getting on a bit, and climb up onto the rack (115kg of me) and pressure wash under it. Easy cleaning. Have un bolted a few times too only 6 brackets with 2 bolts each. Thena bit of thread locker when you put it back on. Does take 2 people though. I did not notice the noise when I have driven it around.

[DAZnBEC]

We too are in the market for a new rack, we currently have a rhino but want something bigger so we are looking at the ARB racks. We are going for the mesh floor but not sure wether to go the 1800 long or 2200 long.

[two+four]

I have a Tracklander Alloy rack on my 120 series and have been very happy with it. Forever chucking stuff on it. There appears to be a Queensland contact for them. I can fit the Oztents on so I am happy.

http://www.tracklander.net.au/

[two+four]

some closer pics

[Wato]

We have a full length ARB rack with mesh floor on the Patrol, have had it for about 5 years and bought it secondhand off Ebay. I throw swags and spacecase up there if going away with the boys, carry an additional spare on longer trips. Great bit of gear but also heavy.

Craig

[Black-Pig]

If it about looks this is what the old boys looks like.

[LeighC]

I had a mesh rack on a previous vehicle

Pro's : great for chucking anything on it, many tie down points for any size item.
           Looked great.

Cons : It knocked the fuel economy around
          It was an absolute prick to clean the roof under it.
          Didn't fit in garages and u/g carparks (car also had 2" lift)

If I was going to get another I'd look to a tradesman style, open ends and cross bars, not mesh

[dooguss]

We have the ARB rack with mesh floor as said earlier in the thread great for throwing bags of firewood and the kids bikes with plenty of tie down points.

Cons. we have the 2inch lift and with the rack on it scraps the headwall above the garage door as we drive in, and also near impossible to wash the roof with the rack on, but otherwise very strong unit and we are happy with it.

[Squalo]

I have an 'ARB-style' full length mesh rack, and can concur with all of the above - seriously heavy, so do some GVM calculations. Hard to wash under it. Impossible to get into low carparks/garages. Wind noise. But boy do we miss it when it is off the car... it's a brilliant place to throw bikes (we have five to carry) and other big or bulky items, the kids love sitting on it, and with a side and rear awning on it, wherever we stop we can have shade. I have a full length Southern Cross canvas roofbag and can carry a huge amount of (not too heavy) stuff up there with this set-up.

A tip for anyone buying a Chinese rack - before you commit, find out how many bolts are in the fitting kit, and the sizes, and then price decent quality replacements. You will have to replace them unless you are ok about rust stains on your paintwork, and it only takes a couple of weeks for the cheap bolts to start rusting. The cost of replacing the bolts might make that bargain rack look a little less like a bargain.

The paint/powdercoat on mine is also not nearly as good as ARBs and eventually the whole rack will require attacking with rust converter and new paint. But overall it seems to be fairly well constructed.



I also have a set of aero-style bars and a Thule roof pod, which is another good way to carry gear; you just can't carry as much. Certainly a lot lighter and easier to manage than the big rack... and lockable/waterproof too.

[camdyson]

I'm running ARB's steel rack on my 90 series, and no mesh. Noise was a real issue, but local plastic fabricator made a wind deflector to fit for $70 (just friction fit folded perspex) and made a huge difference. With my 2" lift I'm now about 2.1m so most parking is shot, but it was bloody handy for wheel/fuel/firewood on recent trip. Handy for mounting awning and shovel too.

Biggest pain is that dimeter of bars is just too big for all my ratchet strap hooks 

Heard some stories of alloy racks falling to bits with alot of weight and corrugations so went steel, but suspect that has a bit to do with weld quality - brands unknown.

Cheers,

Cam D