SportRack Complete Roof Rack System

I like this roof rack a lot, however, I'm going to give it only 3 stars for a couple of reasons. I've installed it on my 2009 Mitsubishi Lancer GTSPackaging.The rack was shipped in its own box, which ended up taking a beating with multiple holes and rips. The other problem I have is that the Rack seems to have been used. I base this on the damaged packaging and minor dents and damage where the rack is bolted down around the numbers/measurements.The RackThe rack itself is pretty sold feeling. There is a coating across the bars themselves and the 'hooks' have a rubber coating that does not scrape your paint. Unfortunately, the foot of the rack has a fairly week rubber pad that is held in place by 6 small plugs that fit through holes in the foot base. When you tighten down the feet, it squishes the rubber so it bulges out. I'm hoping it doesn't squish so much that it wears away and damages my roof. Another issue I have is that the feet/towers do not rotate or swivel or adjust in any way/ My roof line is not straight, but is an actual shallow hour glass. So the foot in the front both are at weird angles compared with the roof line. Doesn't seem to effect the grip on the car, which seems to be solid.The ManualSucks. The only reason I looked at it was to get a general idea. My car wasn't even listed so I used the measurements for the Subaru Imprezza, I similar style car,. For the 08-15 Lancer, I would suggest 21 in back and 23 in front. But obviously you can use what works best.I test drove the rack after installation and found it to be incredibly solid.No rattles or shaking. I went back and mounted my 18 Specialized Sirrus on the CyclingDea "1 Bike Bicycle Car Roof Carrier Fork Mount Rack". Again, no rattling or shaking, it all felt very solid.The next day, my daughter and I set out to ride around the Golden Gate Bridge. I mounted my Sirrus and her old, heavy 04 Gary Fisher Tassajara and drove slowly and steadily. Didn't have an issue. I did hear a weird rattle and stopped and checked all bolts and screws and everything seemed ok. So I continued and didn't have a problem.Bottom line, if you don't want to spend $300+ on a roof rack, this is a solid buy. I definitely recommend but only if the buy goes in knowing that there are some quirks to the system. I do wish SportRack offered a fork mount bike rack that was custom to this roof rack.**Update**It's been two weeks since I've installed it and I've used it three times. Twice to go riding with my daughter to Golden Gate Bridge. Both times I had no issue getting our bikes onto the rack and secured. (My bike is a 2018 Specialized Sirrus and her's is an 04 Gary Fisher Tassajara). Both times, before and after the trip, I checked the wing nuts and the tightness of the rack itself and am satisfied that this rack is being held securely to my car.The third trip was with a single bike (Trek 7100 Hybrid) from San Francisco to Sacramento. Not once during the trip did I feel like the bike was in any danger.One thing I did notice, especially since I have a moon roof, there is a lot more wind noise. Not sure if that can be reduced with a fairing or not.I did, however, have an incident with the rack and it was totally my fault. Last weekend I took my car to the dealer for service and since BART is near, I decided to bring my bike and ride from dealer to BART station and from there home. Before and after setting out, I told myself over and over to remember the bike on top. And guess what I did? Forgot the bike on top. I slowly entered the garage and scraped the bottom of the roll up door. Fortunately, the Bike had minimal damage to the seat only, my car, the rollup door, and the rack were undamaged. The bike rack rail however was bent down. And this is fortunate because of the way I installed it. If you can see from the side view of my car, the back of the car rack hangs over the rear cross bar of the SportRack. So when the seat of my bike scraped under the door, it pushed down, causing the rack to bend down. I believe that if I had this bike rack more centered on the SportRack Cross bars, this would have damaged the rack itself, my car, and most definitely my bike. Fortunately, the dealer were extremely cool about the incident and even offered to try to bend the bike rack back into place. (they tried, still bent a bit, but oh well, they are cheap-$39 here on Amazon).Bottom line, I need to find some sort of warning sticker to place on the top of the windshield reminding me to look up and be careful! Through it all, the rack remained solidly connected to my car so I've added a star for build quality and durability. Definitely recommend this rack.

The overall build quality of the rack was really nice, they were not cheap little aluminum bars that were stamped. It's a heafty but not to heavy steel construction with sturdy nylon parts and a lock that was actually keyed. The instructions are easy to understand and it really is fully assembled. I was able to get one of the racks in place and ready to go within 8 minutes. Despite what the manufacturer says, it doesn't fit my car. The bar that holds the footpack to the door opening is too wide and prevents the door from closing. Also Amazon sold me a "New" one and it was definatley used. The bars were marred up where the previous user overtightened the top rail and the whole bar was bent on the one I tried to install. I really didnt want to but I'm going to have to get a Rhino Rack. One of the other "budget" rack systems that I've tried was aluminum with plastic parts that I could deform with my fingers and the key was a placebo, you could open it with anything key shaped. I would have LOVED this if it actually fit my vehicle and wasnt damaged. I really dont know what they could have done to bend the bar though.

I'd like to give them a bit less than 4 stars, but Amazon won't let me, so let's go with 4First, some context: I ordered these to tie a table (and other things) to my roof and drive across country savely. The vehicle I used was a Chevy Cruze 2014, and drove about 1.500 miles with 90 pounds attached to it across rain, cold, snow and wind, above all wind.I couldn't find these rails in any store in town so I ordered them only with two day delivery. I placed the order on Thursday and got them on Saturday at noon, so perfect timing for me to do the installation and prepare my car.The rails do the job, there's is no doubt about that. Ever since I got them not only did I finish driving across country, I've also carried bigger items on top of my car. So whatever the job, as long as you don't exceed the weight limit 'of your vehicle', then these guys will do the job for you. In case, it was 90 pounds, in yours that might be more or less; always read the fitting manual.The reason why I don't give this item a full 5 start is both aesthetic and functional:1.- The product has a rubber coating on every clamp or surface that touches your vehicle, this protects it from scratches. The problem is this prevents the doors from closing properly so you have to 1) slam them harder, and 2) hear that awful Pop sound when you open them that tells you there's a lot of pressure on the lock. I was afraid the whole time there would be damage on my hinges or locks, specially on the back doors.I installed this following instructions from the manual, including the distance between each rail and the door frame. Still, the match was poor and the doors had to put up with that.They should revise the manual. My Cruze has dents on the inner door frame that seem to be put there for the purpose of attaching this kind of rails, yet if you follow the instructions the clamps end up nowhere near these dents, which seems counterintuitive.2.- They don't look cool. That's it. The more expensive ones look a lot prettier than these. Sure, my car looked sporty, I guess, but very far from elegant.This is a minor thing, and if you're worried about budget, believe, this is the best you'll find, and it's worth it.Some advice:*Make sure the model you choose matches your car. I bought the wrong one at a store and spent to hours trying to install on my car to then drive back and return it.*Pull on them once you're done installing them. Even the lightest object becomes a projectile when you're driving at 20, 30, or more miles an hour.*Don't exceed the maximum weight your roof can carry. You'll regret it if you went it or even if your things are ejected if you hit the breaks.*Whatever your moving, use proper attachments. I like using ratchet straps because I think it doesn't get safer than that. You can get them for cheap at any home depot.*If you decide to you rope then make.sure you are tying things properly, and that you are making a decent knot.*Drive slowly, or accordingly to your load.*Be mindful of the weather conditions, specially the wind. Anything strapped tomyoir roof is a potential sail that will either jerk your car around, or take off flying. It doesn't hurt to have a weather app and check wind conditions as drive, specially with tall cargo, that way you can adjust your speed for safety.*If you're gonna use a cover, please make sure you use restraints on it. Really, that's literally a sail.*If you do use a plastic cover, consider using tape to seal possible air pockets, this helps a lot with the aerodynamics. A bit of tape on this and that corner can be the difference between your roof making horrible scary noises and the cover tearing, and a smooth ride.These rails can be more helpful than you can imagine. I paid less than $200 dollars for them, they helped me super load my car across country, and even after that trip was done, they saved me $100 worth of delivery fees by simply attaching my stuff to the roof.Conclusions: Get them, and use them safely. They're a good addition to.yoir toy box.To the manufacturer: You have to either fix your design or come up with a fix for the immense pressure the doors have to withstand. It's worrying to think you'll have to strap these things to your car for too long.

Won't fit any mid-size trucksWon't fit mid-size SUV'sWill fit compact vehicles----Easy to install on vehicles WITHOUT railsfollow the instructions----If you tighten the mount properly you will be fine, but always check it during extended tripsUsed for Kayak and rooftop carrier use only.-----Will work with bike rack, cargo rack, etc.

I did return these only as the fittment wasn't exact for my vehicle but sportrack is my go-2 for all things roof rack if they make them.I've used SR for a long time on most of my vehicles as they make some of the best racks for a price that is hard to argue with.Being in Canada we pay a 30% premium on most if not all things so finding bargains is a good thing and SR is that bargain.Easy to adjust, all bolts are really good quality and not the cheap stuff.Instructions are super easy and TONS of online videos, I've personally never had an issue.

Works great. A little noisy if left on.Carries lumber drywall and a 17 foot canoe with ease.

Build quality feels good and overall product seems sturdy. If it fits your vehicle, it would be a good product.Packaging was is very bad shape (definitely previously open/returned) and inside, a clip was broken (a clip that holds a tool, not a part of the rack itself)What is most important is to be aware (and do your research) about this model’s compatibility as it seems it is a very old model compatible only with very old cars only. It comes with a fit guide which only shows cars below 2005.So, I would suggest you go to their webpage and confirm before purchasing.

This unit is a little hard to adjust and everytime you think you have it the right location and lock it down it puts a dent in the cross bar. I adjustedaccording to guide and it was wrong.They need to update the guide to current year .