OEM Roof Rack or Not?

They sure do make the truck look better and its there if needed.

 

Fortunately it's nice an quiet when the crossbars are stowed. I'm sensitive to unnecessary noises and by checking the pictures I'm 99% sure I'd hear wind noise from some of these aftermarket solutions. I can hear when my crossbars aren't stored.

Plus.. beauty is in the eye of the beholder. They look slick to me.

 

I noticed the same wiggling issue with mine which makes me nervous. They also arc across the roof so putting a bike rack on top (unless in the middle) will result in your bike tilting to one side. I hope to get a Prinsu or one that TacomaTown has fabricated recently - https://www.tacomatownonline.com/co...5-c-tacoma-double-cab-honey-zipper-tt-edition .

 

My OEM roof rack is on their rock solid. If it is wiggling then it was installed improperly.

 

Not very well versed in bolt strengths, but now I'm also curious; who can put into idiot terms what kind of strength we could expect from the factory M6 roof bolts? I'm gonna go out on a limb, without actually knowing, and say that I bet its a stupid high amount when compared to the actual load capacity of the rack. That being said, I'd assume the weakest link in the entire setup would be the plastic rack, so a rating of 75# makes more sense than whatever the roof or bolts could actually support. Then my second guess is that the "whatever side to side breaking strength of a bolt is technically called" would be the next weakest link, and too high of an advertised rating to the public could result in roof racks separating from the truck in wrecks. Then I'd probably worry about the downward pressure strength after that. Nobody quote me on this thought process, just an idiot trying to make logical sense of why Toyota would advertise a load rating so low when the roof/bolts can obviously hold more. Liability.

Again, I have no idea what I'm talking about. But my assumption is that the sheer strength of those little bolts is much higher than the load capacity ratings of the racks, so they advertise the rack limit. Another assumption, the thin sheet metal isn't the only thing at play to grab a capacity from. I imagine you have to look at load distribution of the mounts, ABC pillars, windshield; overall integrity of the roof as a whole. Think rollover accidents, and the amount of weight the roof would see when its on its top.

Open for any and all correction here; just a simple guy with a simple a brain, whos wrong more times than not. Interested if anyone can provide those bolt strengths (in a way I'd understand).

 

Sorry I was referring to when opening the rack from its "away" position, the bars, as they click into place have a slight wiggle when engaged. They worked fine for my ski/snowboard carrier but I worry about my bike being tilted due to the arc. I do like this rack however I prob should have just waited to get a Prinsu or something the like but hindsight is 20:20 I suppose lol.

 

Buy a few different size rubber O-rings and put them over the part that snaps in until it fits tight. No more rattle.

 

This is very interesting! Really gives you something to think about when loading down the roof rack.

Thanks for the tip! Will definitely give it a try!

 

Hi Folks,
This seems to be a constant question: how much weight can I put on my roof rack. I am in the midst of trying to figure out which rack is the best for me. One thing no one seems to the thinking about on TW is how much weight can the ROOF of the truck handle. This is completely separate from what the rack is rated to. And also different from how much a rack can handle on-road vs off-road (dynamic vs static load). This is really about your roof's rating, not the OEM roof rack's rating, but the actual roof itself. If your truck's roof is rated for 150lbs it does not mean shit if your rack is made of depleted uranium and can handle 10,000 lbs before it caves in, your truck should only have 150 lbs on the roof itself regardless of the rack used.

Sure, TW and the internet is full of people with a RTT, a spare tire, 2 jerry can, and a rifle case all strapped on their Tacoma's roof and it looks sick sitting in the grocery store parking lot. Is this safe off road? Probably not. And you may be a dumbass if you think your roof can handle 10,000 lbs. So do your research. If company A says their rack can held 600lbs and company B says it can handle 300lbs, but Toyota says your roof is only rated for 150lbs then both rack's ratings are highly misleading about what actually can be handled by your truck.

I have to admit, I have not been able to find the roof rating for a 3rd gen Tacoma, but I am certain it is not 600lbs like some rack load limits suggest. As many people have mentioned already, many company's all use the same attachments points with the factory bolt fittings (M6?), so if every company is using the same factory attachment points don't think that the load differences are all that meaningful between companies. If the rack you have chosen requires you to drill new holes and install beefier hardware then this logic may not apply, but the physical limits of the roof itself likely still apply.

Give this video a look. Maybe I don't know what I am talking about but this guy (Ronny Dahl) for sure does!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pa0R1BGj83M

Happy roof rack hunting, folks!

 

Since I've been there, done that, and got the tshirt, figured I would chime in.

Started out with the OEM rack:
Pros - Cheapest option, easy to install, looks good not as intrusive (except I hated the way it looked when bars are stowed)

Cons - 75-100 lb weight limit, very noisy when bars are horizontal.



I then went on a Big Bear camping weekend with a total of five peeps in my truck. Ran out of room with everybody's shit and decided I wanted a real rack that I could actually carry loads up there. Went with the Sherpa Grand Teton. Best decision I made. Its actually quieter than the OEM rack, and built like a tank.



So depends on what you want out of it. If you want it just for looks, go for OEM. If you think you'll actually put anything substantial on it, go with Prinsu or any of the copycats.

 

I've always used Yakima products on my vehicles and have never had a complaint. For my purposes, carrying kayaks and bikes, they are spot on. In fact, I just picked up all the components to put racks on my truck and the teardrop camper I'm building. I love the overland style racks, they just don't serve my purposes as well as a Yakima or Thule style rack.

 

You are onto something here, if you need a lot of extra load carrying, forget the roof rack, get a DiamondBack bed cover. Those are unbelievably good, sure they cost 3x as much as an expensive roof rack but they are way better for carrying loads. I have one and it is the second best mod I have next to the suspension replacement.

I am just saying for those looking at roof racks thinking they can load them up with a bunch of stuff and go crash through some 4x4 roads with a roof top tent and a chain saw up top, they may be sorely disappointed with how little they can actually hold safely up there. Even less if you get the cheap copycat knocks offs.

The Diamond Backs though, you can park an ATV on top of along with firewood and still be good (you will need some bed stabilizers but it will carry the weight).

 

Love my OEM bed rack, install was a breeze and it looks great. I don’t like how it looks with the bars stowed though.

 

Couldn’t agree with you more take a close look at the second picture in my post. I had a whole bunch of stuff loaded on top of and underneath my diamondback and still ran out of room we just had an insane amount of crap

 

You won't find a "roof rating". Toyota doesn't say your roof is rated for 150 lbs; they claim the OEM rack is rated for 150 lbs, and they wouldn't dare to "rate a roof" because that involves non-Toyota components to get to that number. If you want to find out how strong the integrity of the roof actually is, flip your truck over. The structural integrity isn't just about the thin flimsy metal roof material; the roof is supported by multiple pillars and glass. If a load were distributed equally across the entire roof, I'd dare to say it'd support 'nearly' the weight of the entire truck. Now is it a good idea to load that much weight, or anything over a few hundred lbs up there? Hell no. I don't think its a matter of "how much weight can it hold". In my super unprofessional opinion, I think one of the most important parts of a rack that no one talks about is the mounting bolt shear strength. Its why dynamic/static weights are different. I see no problem running a couple hundred lbs of stuff evenly distributed on the roof. But I wouldn't go very far over that. Its fine while you're stationary, and probably completely fine while you're driving, but it sure would suck to have to slam on your brakes, or to be involved in an accident, and your entire roof rack + stuff snap the bolts and launch off the vehicle at whatever speed. Not to mention, a high center of gravity is an entire different discussion. All that to say, 150 lbs is conservative, rated for a cheap plastic rack and 600 lbs is way too generous for someone to drive "safely" in my opinion. I suppose meeting somewhere in the middle is 'fairly safe', and people do it daily.

 

I really wanted an OEM rack, but I bought my Taco (with its naked roof) off the lot. I installed an after-market Yakima, which I use for my bike and a 15.5’ kayak. It is rock-solid, roof-top cargo doesn’t budge, and I like that it comes off for ski season when skis will ride in the covered bed.

 

I really like my factory rack personally. I’ll be using it more extensively in a couple of weeks

 

Have second hand Cali raised. If not for the stupid shark fin for my build I'd have gone with the OEM. Now that I have this I'm happy I have this over the OEM.