Cross Bars & Side Rail

The instructions for this rack are woefully inadequate. The instructions said nothing about the c-channels. I had already viewed a YouTube video, so I had an idea of what to do. Keep in mind that the bolts for these channels are offset, so you have to make sure to get the right channel on the correct side; you can't interchange them. Also recognize that the channels are straight, whereas your roof is slightly curved. It'll take a little effort to tighten them down properly. You will need torx-head bits or screwdrivers to install this rack. I know I used a T-25 and a T-15, but I can't remember which one I used for the c-channels. I know it was larger than a T-25. A few other points: 1. The plastic edges were quite sharp. I have the scrapes and scratches to prove it. It would probably be easier and safer to make this a two-person job. 2. The sliders which fit into the c-channels are held in place when you attach the crossbars to the slider with a screw. The screw attaches to a silver piece on the bottom of the slider. When the screw is tightened, the silver piece somehow expands the slider and wedges it into place. If you're not careful when you put the screw into the hole, you'll push out the silver piece and have to remove the entire assembly to put it back into position. After I'd finished installing everything (re-doing it about 8 times because of this issue) I had the idea of using a piece of scotch tape to hold the silver piece in position during installation. Maybe that will help you. 3. Keep in mind that the crossbars are different lengths. The shorter one goes on the rear of the vehicle. The longer one goes on the front. They are slightly adjustable, but not enough to get them crossed up, so lay them side-by-side before you start installing them to identify front from back. 4. The plastic covers that attach to each end of the crossbars have a slightly longer side. That side is supposed to face the front of the vehicle to provide slightly better aerodynamics and less wind noise. I screwed up and put one on correctly and the other incorrectly, but I was so fed up with the process that I just left it. I hope this helps. The rack looks great. I haven't put a load on it, yet, but it looks and feels pretty sturdy.

These rails for prefectly, and were made of powder coated steel. They only fit the side they are made for and from what I could see they are not marked, but installation is easy. Mine did not come with instructions but I can't really where any were necessary. Light weight and strong, the cargo trails for prefectly and tightened nicely.

I'm giving this 5 stars, because it works as it should, and seems well made. The instructions leave a lot to be desired, though, and left and right and front and back aren't marked. I"ll try to cover what's not covered on the single sheet as well as how to install in general while its fresh in my mind. First, check if you have a C channel inside the plastic rails, our Traverse didn't, and i had to order the kit with both side and cross rails. Installing the C or U channel if you'd like is straightforward. There is a Left and right, as the holes are offset to one side of the plastic roof channel. The bolt holes will only line up one way, and there's an alignment tab in the plastic factory part. Once you get that installed (Torx T30 bolts, by the way), then you can preassemble the side pieces. They're is a left and right, there is no forward and back on them. Mine had one that the metal insert that the screw screws into kept falling out, however, it didn't really matter. So, take the outer covers apart, and slide the piece that fits in the C channel into the bottom cover, and thread the screw into the hole and thread it in until it flushes out with bottom of the metal insert. Repeat for all 4 side pieces. That insert will clip into the c channel and tighten the whole thing to the C channel. So, now you have to assemble the cross rails to the side pieces. Not hard, but none of the pieces are marked. The front of the side pieces are the longer parts if you're looking down at them from the top, and ths shorter pieces if you're looking at them from the side. There's a rubber lip on one side of the cross rails. That lip faces the front of the car. Once you get the two rails preassembled then take them out to the car - a step stool helps tremendously. There's an open spot in the middle of the C channel, insert the assembly into that spot. The shorter of the two cross rails goes to the rear (keeping in mind the long part of the side piece goes forward). Slide the whole assembly as far back as you want, and tighten the (also Torx T30) bolt on each side to lock it in position. Repeat this for the other assembly. Last snap the top half of the side pieces on and install the bolt that keeps them on and tighten. That's it. It took me about 20 minutes, and that was with figuring out what went where, and finding one of the screws i dropped in the grass.

It was extremely easy to install but for some it maybe a challenge because the instructions have a lot to be desired. There was key information missing and steps missing. The C-Channels are self explanatory but there are no instructions for them. The cross rails are different lengths because of the narrowing of the top of the vehicle from front to back but it would have been a nice heads up before I attached one side then moved to the other to realize my simple oversight, easy to redo but annoying because I had to backtrack. All in all easy to install and feels very solid. They do look like the OEM cross rails and when we start using them for cargo hopefully they stay as solid as they feel.

Rails were easy to install. The plastic covers that go over the mounting brackets come apart as you tighten them- leaving you with two options 1. Do you want it to look good? 2. Do you want the screws to be tight? I had one screw hole on the underside of the rear cross bar that was stripped from the factory. I never felt t the screw grab, and I used no power tools of any kind. I’ll need to see if I can get a bigger screw from the hardware store I guess. The real test is in a couple weeks when we take our trip. I hope it holds up.

Definitely worth the money the pieces aren't 100% flush but if you don't really care it's definitely worth it because of its ease of install just make sure you either use tape or glue the square metal pieces in so they don't fall out for the slides.

I received my Roof Rack from a company called Sevenbacksmiths.com on the box. The 1-page instruction inside the box call this item a "RACK-A93. As other have mentioned, the 1-page instructions are terrible. They don't even mention or show the C-Channel rails that mount to your roof. The cross-rails and the slide blocks mount to this channel and the access covers snap down into it. The instructions also don't give a Torque measurement to tighten the screws to. You are left to make the decision about how tight is "too tight" on your own. Lastly, my problem is that they sent me two of the same C-Channel mounting rails. The mounting holes are offset so there is clearly a passenger side rail and a driver's side rail. I received two passenger side rails. I have emailed both the seller on Amazon and "Sevenblacksmiths.com" who fulfilled the order. So far, I have heard nothing. Since I am handy, I will probably just drill out the two holes that are offset (there are 5 mounting holes total, 3 of them are not offset and in the center of the rail) and install the rail. It will make the rail slightly less sturdy, but since I do not plan to overload the roof rack, It should work okay. My advice is open and install the rack immediately after receiving it and double check the return policy from the company that is fulfilling your order.

The instructions are not great and required a good amount of time to figure out how it DOESN'T go together. My vehicle didn't have the metal rails which are sold separately so check to make sure you have those before you proceed. Some better detailed photos and some explanation would be helpful. I would say I have advanced technical skills and it took me about an hour by myself. A helper would have sped it up for sure.

Solo quisiera que los vendedores de portaequipajes de este modelo advirtieran al publico consumidor de la necesidad de comprar tambien los rieles, y que éstos son más caros incluso de el resto del equipo. En diversos sitios y foros me encontré muchos casos como el mio, personas que compraron el portaequipaje y descubrieron que no incluye los rieles... es una lata.