Forgive my very untechnical description. I have a roof rack and need to purchase a hard case thing to put on it for extra storage.

Sooo, my father is chomping at the bit for me to find out if they're safe. He feels that it'd make the car top heavy and I'll flip the car with the family in it, somewhere in Kansas, in a cross wind, lol.

Any thoughts? Also, I know there's a post where someone asked for pictures of one of these on someone's Scion and nobody posted one... maybe someone has a pic now? I think they'd look pretty neat.

Two years ago we traveled 500 miles across NY state with an expandable ( nylon type ) roof carrier . This was on a Toyota Sienna. We drove through lots of bad weather and other than some of the straps flopping around some, the thing worked great. I don't like the way they look but , in a pinch, it's a great way to expand your cargo capacity.

They are safe. I would recommend the Thule. We have used one on our Subuaru for years. As long as you don't over load them you will be fine. They are spec'd out for only so much weight 150-250 lbs if I remember right. But they really work great for giving you storage.

I used to live in Wyoming and have driven across all of the US with one. You will feel the wind a little bit more, but in reality they are great and you don't even notice them. I would recommend that hard plastic because they can be used in the winter and are easier to keep clean.

Good luck.

chunter

They're widely used here in Colorado, particularly the ones designed to hold skis and snowboards. I haven't used one yet, but the day is fast approaching, I'm afraid.

I've been very impressed with the rugged quality of my Yakima rack- it's stout. If their boxes are built to match, and I suspect they are, you shouldn't have the slightest difficulty with one....

Some for-instances:

http://www.rackattack.com/shopdisplayproducts.asp?id=43&cat=Yakima+Cargo+Boxes

Too bad they're not cheap... I'd shop around, the local guys above wanted an extra $60 over the online price + shipping for the bare rack...

Oh, yeh, if you're concerned about stability in strong gusty sidewinds, get the Progress rear sway bar... It's not just for cornering...

Thanks for the responses and sorry it took me so long to get back online. I'm shocked this was a movable topic... oh well.

I think we might get the bag thing because we're in a pinch for money at the moment. But even that, I'm sure my father would complain about.

I figured they'd be safe. Thanks a lot!

i had a Yakima Rack with a "Basket Case" basket, coupled with a nylon bag and it worked great.

But if you want a hard lockable case, I'd suggest Yakima's space cadet.

www.yakima.com