Outdoorsman73
TYF Newbie
- Joined
- Aug 25, 2021
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Maybe more of an observation than a question... I was surprised after searching for hours online that I didn't come across this complaint. I recently bought a used OE set of cross rails for my 2015 Tahoe in order to install a set of SportRack Mooring Kayak Carrier (J type). It was not obvious until I installed the cross rails to the vehicle that the top face of the cross rail is not "flat" or even remotely parallel with the roof. I am not talking about the bowed shape but the profile of the actual extrusion is more like an airfoil shape with a slightly thicker leading edge and tapered trailing edge. The issue is further compounded by the fact that the top face of the rail slopes backwards (imagine an airplane wing with flaps deployed). The only reason I can think of for this design is aesthetics or a creative way to minimize wind noise with no consideration for ever having to attach something to it. It complicates the installation of any accessories that require a perpendicular installation like my Kayak brackets. The kayak brackets do accommodate various rack profiles and widths of cross rails but there is no adjustment to "straighten" the bracket so it is perpendicular to the ground. The implication is that it does not support my kayak adequately.
Has anyone else encountered this or know of the actual design logic behind it? In the short term I will have to add a shim to level out the mounting surface but this is not an ideal long-term solution nor does it address the underside where the clamp is only hitting in one spot. I suspect that some accessories like cargo carriers are a bit more forgiving in how they clamp up to the cross rail but purely from a practical perspective any accessory that is designed to attach to a level mounting surface would have problems. If you have a creative solution to this problem please let me know!
Has anyone else encountered this or know of the actual design logic behind it? In the short term I will have to add a shim to level out the mounting surface but this is not an ideal long-term solution nor does it address the underside where the clamp is only hitting in one spot. I suspect that some accessories like cargo carriers are a bit more forgiving in how they clamp up to the cross rail but purely from a practical perspective any accessory that is designed to attach to a level mounting surface would have problems. If you have a creative solution to this problem please let me know!