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roof rack and cargo carrier

66K views 77 replies 36 participants last post by  BoingoInsanity 
#1 ·
I'm going by the Honda dealership tomorrow and thinking about getting a roof rack and possibly a cargo carrier for my 2018 Ody.

Any suggestions on this? We would like to get the stroller out of the vehicle and tie it to the roof rack for long car trips.
 
#3 ·
For my 2013 we used OEM for the roof rack and cross bars (actually was already on the vehicle when we bought) as well as the large Honda cargo box. We really only used it a few times but the Honda OEM large box is the same as one made by Thule except with a Honda logo on the back.

We are going to skip the roof rails for now but may need to add on later. I can see if I still have any pics lying around.
 
#4 · (Edited)
Here's the long carrier on my 2013

Automotive exterior Vehicle Automotive luggage rack Car Roof rack


It has flat bars hanging from the underside that you use to sandwich the cross bar against the bottom, with hand screws inside the box to tighten against, not a clamp. You can unlock and open it from either side.
 
#5 ·
Here's the long carrier on my 2013

View attachment 109033



It has flat bars hanging from the underside that you use to sandwich the cross bar against the bottom, with hand screws inside the box to tighten against, not a clamp. You can unlock and open it from either side.
What kinds of things would fit in this? I know it sounds silly but I'm really bad at visualizing, lol.
 
#7 ·
I would put in the duffel type bags that would fit two across and maybe 3-4 deep. The container is taller than what you think, and I think some suitcases would fit, but I tried not to put anything overly heavy or hard inside it.

An umbrella stroller would definitely fit, as would some of the single strollers that fold flat.
 
#8 ·
I just bought the black roof rails for 276 from college honda. There are chrome too for 2x the price. But they are super easy to install (like I did on the 2012). Make sure you get the 2018 model as the rails are different for this model. All you have to do is cut some plastic carefully and have torx screwdrivers. Should take about an hour if you are handy.

From there you can get the cross bars, but I have Thule Aero Rapid bars I use instead as I have a bike racks in addition to cargo box & bag.
 
#14 ·
We just had the dealer install the rails so they would be covered under the warranty ($450). It was the first install for the dealer so they took an extra long time. I understand it's pretty easy, but I didn't want to risk doing it myself because it involves cutting and I prefer to spend on the peace of mind of warranties. I intend to use them with the Thule crossbars and carriers we have from previous vehicles.

-Bill
 
#15 ·
I got them from college honda for 260 shipped and installed them myself in about 45 minutes. If you do it yourself, you will need a wide range of TorX bits (most folks dont have these), and a dremmel or something to cut the plastic trip pieces. Other than that, measure twice, cut once. Warranty wise, these things can take a beating...on my last van, my inlaws did the drive it into the low pole at the gas station, rips the thule bars right off, but the roof rails stayed put (I installed those too).

If you are at all a bit handy, installing them is easy and quick

Hooked them up to Thule Aerobars.
 
#17 ·
If you bought a new ody like me, my dealer is giving me 15% off. College hills Honda, Bernardi Honda are online but shipping may negate savings
 
#18 ·
#20 ·
I wanted to do the same until I looked at the screw drive pattern, it looked like some kind of modified Security Torx, I doubt the hobo trying to break into your cargo box looking for something to sell for drug money will carry anything that would fit.

Additionally the crossbars attached on the inside edge, the angle is really odd, so without a three step ladder no can open.

I would say stick with OEM.
 
#22 · (Edited)
I am waiting on delivery of a 2018 Odyssey EX L with nav and res. I thought the prices at my dealer were high. $185 to install OEM floor mats! Another $260 to install an OEM rail and crossbar.

I plan on doing this myself. Do the rails have good instructions that will match the internal roof crossbeams? A set of security Torx is only a few dollars at Tool Freight. I'm handy enough and careful enough to build and trim a house, I should be able to handle what sounds like a simple job.
 
#23 ·
It only took two hours seaching to find my own answer on the internal roof beams. For anyone who cares, there are crossbeams at the pillars and also at the midpoints between the pillars.I would have to have roll bars installed if I ever wanted to convert to a high top. The cage is more secure than I even hoped.
 
#25 ·
Here is my 2018 Elite with OEM roof rails and cross bars and Thule cargo box.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
That's a nice looking setup. Do you have the OEM factory cross bars? and what's the model of your Thule carbo box? I am looking to get a similar setup but been wondering what would fit on the Honda Factory OEM Roof Rail with Cross bars. Thule website was not very helpful.
thanks for any advice.
 
#27 ·
I purchased the Honda OEM rails and crossbars. Installation of the rails wasn't too bad if you follow instructions. The 6 cuts required for each of the roof molding strips was a little difficult. The molding strip is comprised of a steel alloy channel with a plastic/rubber jacket. I tried to use a hack saw but it was so slow. Reciprocating tool worked better but not great. Finally clamped the molding with channel on top and used a sawzall with metal blade which worked well.

The only issue remaining is with the crossbars. The bolts supplied seem to bottom out before the crossbar is tight. I'm afraid to really crank on this because I don't want to strip the threads in the rails. Has anyone else run into this?
 
#28 ·
I just did the same install this past weekend and experienced the same concern as you with regards to the crossbars however I did notice that the bolts supplied with the crossbars did have some locktite on the threads and it’s seemed like I was tightening the bolts forever,however it does get to a point where the bolts get tight and bottom out. My crossbars are tight to the roof rails and have no play when pulling on them.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
#35 ·
Can anyone tell me if the Thule XT X-Large (XL) box will fit on the OEM crossrails without issues? That box is 84.5 inches long. Thought I saw somewhere some folks had problems with the OEM bars being too far back, causing the front of the box to move from highway wind.

Trying to avoid having to put the more expensive moveable Thule cross rails if, OEM will work. thanks` View attachment 146639
 
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