Thule roof rack in lux flush rails

[spiderjoe]

Unfortunately I don't have any videos or sound recordings. Noise level is relative, if you ask overlanding folks, they will say "what noise?" with their roof tent, jerry cans Pelican boxes and trail tires roaring but if you are coming from unibody crossovers, then it will sound obtrusive. If possible, maybe go back to your dealer and ask to test drive a GX with cross bars or rack installed to hear it for yourself?

If you are not in a rush to get a rack for this winter's snowsport season, better to wait and see what Yakima and Thule has in store for cross rail for GX550/LC250? Also if you go to Rack Attack or similar stores, they normally have a very good return policy. Thule/Yakima run 20-25% sales a few times a year if you can wait it out.

If you are going for a full platform rack, I won't pick the OEM platform rack as a first choice, it is not full size, only has 4 cross bars for securing items and due to having only 4 mounting points, the weight limits are not as high as a full rack such as Wescott Prinsu etc. At the moment, we don't know who made the platform rack for Lexus and Lexus doesn't sell any OEM mounting accessories, if you need brackets, etc more of trail and error, buy third party try and hope it works.

If you are going with cross bars, I have had great experience with Thule, very quiet with the aero/raised sections for wind noise reduction. And the Thule ones will be much better quality than OEM. Which snowboard attachments are you currently using?

 

[ilumo]

Unfortunately I don't have any videos or sound recordings. Noise level is relative, if you ask overlanding folks, they will say "what noise?" with their roof tent, jerry cans Pelican boxes and trail tires roaring but if you are coming from unibody crossovers, then it will sound obtrusive. If possible, maybe go back to your dealer and ask to test drive a GX with cross bars or rack installed to hear it for yourself?

If you are not in a rush to get a rack for this winter's snowsport season, better to wait and see what Yakima and Thule has in store for cross rail for GX550/LC250? Also if you go to Rack Attack or similar stores, they normally have a very good return policy. Thule/Yakima run 20-25% sales a few times a year if you can wait it out.

If you are going for a full platform rack, I won't pick the OEM platform rack as a first choice, it is not full size, only has 4 cross bars for securing items and due to having only 4 mounting points, the weight limits are not as high as a full rack such as Wescott Prinsu etc. At the moment, we don't know who made the platform rack for Lexus and Lexus doesn't sell any OEM mounting accessories, if you need brackets, etc more of trail and error, buy third party try and hope it works.

If you are going with cross bars, I have had great experience with Thule, very quiet with the aero/raised sections for wind noise reduction. And the Thule ones will be much better quality than OEM. Which snowboard attachments are you currently using?

Thanks for the info! I am in a semi rush as I’m going to go snowboarding this season and previous seasons I just stuffed everything in the trunk and had only 3 young snowboarders. I wanted to bring 4 adult snowboarders this season and will not be able to fit everything in the trunk. I dont have any carriers so all will be new. I probably won’t get a “box” and just get those clamping mounts to store the snowboards on the roof. For all of the soft /compressible gear I can fit those in the trunk.

I e been checking thules site every few weeks and even emailed them. They are “working on it” and just told me to keep checking their site for the cross rail systems.

 

[spiderjoe]

This might be worth a try if you need something in a hurry that doesn't break the bank? Made for flush rails:

Amazon.com

 

[spiderjoe]

I wonder how hard it would be to add sound deadening to the roof. I prioritize a quiet ride.

I personally would not want to risk opening it up on my own for fear that the lining will sag after some time. I would be more adventurous opening up bottom or door panels but not the roof. Others with experience might want to chip in..

 

[Hnsy]

Agree. Need 65 mph audio of wesctott prisnu and land cruise roof racks

 

[ilumo]

This might be worth a try if you need something in a hurry that doesn't break the bank? Made for flush rails:

Amazon.com

Thanks! I placed an order. I’ll do this as a halfway option until I can figure out which rack I really want. Do you know if I’ll need a tool to flip open those clips on the flush rail on the prem/lux trim?

 

[ilumo]

This might be worth a try if you need something in a hurry that doesn't break the bank? Made for flush rails:

Amazon.com

I just received these and I don’t think they were advertised correctly. They look like they “clamp” onto the flush rail, which in reality it would just be clamping onto this little plastic piece. I think the real solutions should bolt onto the roof. Looks like the cover is really bad fitment too. I’ll probably return this. Still need to find a cross bar that will fit.

 

[ilumo]

Also the plastic cover/clips took 5 secs to take off with a plastic pry tool. I had some with my ifixit PC kit. Easy peasy. Now to look for other crossbars. This is a pain.

 

[Clack]

While waiting for Thule or Yakima to release their crossbars for GX550 ( OEM flush rails crossbars seems to be sold out or removed from Lexus dealer sites), I installed our Thule Motion Alpine box on the OEM flush rails roof rack. Surprisingly the clamps work and sits secure even if the entire box sits on top of the rack. The Alpine box length is the same as the Motion XXL. Some pics for reference. With the OEM 20" wheels, overall height is approx 90 inches.

Also note that the flush rails are not the type where you can slide the cross bar clamps freely along the rails. The rails do not have indents to clamp on. I think you will need to get footers that bolts within the bolt holes/openings provided.


View attachment 3765

That looks sick! I wasn't going to buy anything else this week, but..... Black Friday and what not....

 

[ilumo]

That looks sick! I wasn't going to buy anything else this week, but..... Black Friday and what not....

What did you get? I got a hole burning in my pocket.

 

[Clack]

What did you get? I got a hole burning in my pocket.

Going back and forth on these.

Thule Motion 3 XL Low

Thule Motion 3 - Designed for modern adventurers, Thule Motion 3 is a stylish and spacious roof box that combines a sleek, aerodynamic silhouette with robust functionality.

www.thule.com

Thule Vector Alpine | Thule | United States

Thule Vector - A cargo box like no other that perfectly pairs performance styling with premium features.

www.thule.com

The devil on my shoulder is of course opting for the Vector. Because better, right?

edit: It's looking like the locking mechanism of these newer boxes sits lower and is only for bars, where the older ones are flat. I think I need to see it in person before pulling the trigger.

 

[ilumo]

Going back and forth on these.

Thule Motion 3 XL Low

Thule Motion 3 - Designed for modern adventurers, Thule Motion 3 is a stylish and spacious roof box that combines a sleek, aerodynamic silhouette with robust functionality.

www.thule.com

Thule Vector Alpine | Thule | United States

Thule Vector - A cargo box like no other that perfectly pairs performance styling with premium features.

www.thule.com

The devil on my shoulder is of course opting for the Vector. Because better, right?

edit: It's looking like the locking mechanism of these newer boxes sits lower and is only for bars, where the older ones are flat. I think I need to see it in person before pulling the trigger.

Nice. Black Friday deals are good on those too. And here I was going for the force xt.

 

[Clack]

I ended up pulling the trigger on this. Rack Attack will extend black friday prices 20% off through tomorrow. The new Thule Motion boxes drop lower in the front and won't fit on a flat surface rack. Kind of a hook nose/beak. I wanted something I can use on my current rack and transfer to a low profile one in the future if I upgrade. The mounting hardware is still meant for bars and will have to stretch a little. I'll likely go to tap plastics and make some custom spacers. I'll post pics when I'm finished.

GrandTour Lo

The GrandTour Lo rooftop cargo box is our sleekest, lowest profile cargo box, while maintaining premium looks, and gear capacity - perfect for skis

yakima.com

 

[spiderjoe]

I ended up pulling the trigger on this. Rack Attack will extend black friday prices 20% off through tomorrow. The new Thule Motion boxes drop lower in the front and won't fit on a flat surface rack. Kind of a hook nose/beak. I wanted something I can use on my current rack and transfer to a low profile one in the future if I upgrade. The mounting hardware is still meant for bars and will have to stretch a little. I'll likely go to tap plastics and make some custom spacers. I'll post pics when I'm finished.

GrandTour Lo

The GrandTour Lo rooftop cargo box is our sleekest, lowest profile cargo box, while maintaining premium looks, and gear capacity - perfect for skis

yakima.com

Congrats! Share some pics when you have it setup.

 

[spiderjoe]

I just received these and I don’t think they were advertised correctly. They look like they “clamp” onto the flush rail, which in reality it would just be clamping onto this little plastic piece. I think the real solutions should bolt onto the roof. Looks like the cover is really bad fitment too. I’ll probably return this. Still need to find a cross bar that will fit.

View attachment 5635View attachment 5636

Opps, sorry about that.. doesn’t look right..

Sorry, had been away and wasn’t on the forums last few weeks and missed some messages and replies.

We just got back from a 900 mile road trip up to Canada for Thanksgiving skiing with our Thule box on the platform rack.. 70-85mph driving .. many hours non stop .. snow wind rain .. the box is still secure .. after so many hours on the road , I think I got used to the wind noise lol

 

[Scooterizer]

Just put on the Lexus OEM crossbars - OT. Well yes! There is quite a bit of roar coming from up there at highway speeds. There was an earlier post with a ref to "OEM crossbars with ripcord" to reduce noise. Anyone have details on how to do this?

 

[Scooterizer]

Thanks. Yes wind noise is an issue but the noise is with the OEM platform rack and not with the Thule box. I had the Thule box on our GX460 and although you can hear it, it was not nowhere as bad as our GX550. The OEM rack on the GX550 is extremely noisy at 60mph and up and that's what I am hearing on the road. It is almost unbearable and we have to pump up the audio or talk loudly when we are on the highway. This is one reason I am considering experimenting with a different cross bars roof rack setup - less cross bars and potentially less wind noise. The platform rack does look good though Lexus is probably going to tell us if we have a platform rack, you are supposed to be overlanding at lower speeds, nothing wrong with the design ..

I am going to wrap the OEM crossbars with ripcord later this week to find out if it makes a difference (a well known cheap method to reduce noise). If that doesn't work, I will try third party wind faring and if that still doesn't work, sigh ..

Hey there. What are details on this mod - and how did it work out? Thanks for the info

 

[spiderjoe]

Edit: Yes, it works and the noise reduction is significant, but it doesn't eliminate it on our GX550.

Wrap paracord onto the crossbars. Dead knot to secure or if want a nice finish and remove the frails when you cut, heat up the ends with a lighter or blowtorch to seal it up. See previous page, I have some photos. Since you only have two crossbars, do it on both front and rear bars.

This is what I used, doesn't matter what brand, the cord breaks up air turbulence around the crossbars.

Amazon.com

many videos on youtube, one example (I picked randomly):

 

[Clack]

Congrats! Share some pics when you have it setup.

I was attaching it to the roof rack and realized that while it looked great, it wasn't functional at all. 5" vertical inside height at max which barely fits my fatter skis. zero volume. I'll go clamp ski racks or throw them in the back at an angle with half the rear seat forward.

 

[spiderjoe]

This is with the Yakima box? 5" is really low. Sorry it didn't work out. MY Thule Motion Alpine XT easily fit longer and fat skis, 6 pairs of adult skis, including pow skis. Snowboards have to lie flat though. I even have height to lay a moving blanket to soften noise from skis when going over bumps. The box also has space for poles and some other stuff, there is at least 8 to 10" of vertical height inside. The reason I prefer boxes to exposed skis is I don't want to deal with road salt and dirt on the bindings when its snowing or raining. Also prefer boxes for security. The GX550 is already pretty tall and a full size box won't clear many garages.