Had a Halfords half box approx 250L and it was great. Recently chopped it in for a bigger one as wife likes to take everything and the kitchen sink with us. Got an Autoplas 415L off ebay for £80 delivered. Flimsier than the Halfords one but seems ok and at the price it was a bargain. At the end of the day as long as it stops on the roof and doesn't leak what more do you want. I am sure roofbox snobs will baulk at this and yes Thule are the market leaders but they are ridiculously expensive. If you want to look cool spen £300 plus on a Thule. If you have children and are used to being embarrassed 24/7 go for the autoplas. You can always stick the kids in it.
Oh dear Cheryl....don't start the thread going down the route of roofbox anti-snobbery!
Yep, I've got a Thule Evolution XT900 box and it cost me just over £200, and it fits on the roof and it keeps stuff dry, but there's more to it than looking cool with a Thule...I like the way I can open both sides of it, I like the way one lock operates several locking points, I like the way it's so easy to fit to the roofbars and remove (it's got quicklock clamps), I like the way it's got load securing points inside it, I like the way it has a 600 litre capacity, I like the way it is really really long at 232cm, and wide at 90cm, and decently deep at 41cm, I like the way I've been able to keep it outdoors for the past 4 years (either against a wall or on my 'bus) and it still looks and works as good as new, and finally, pretty importantly, I like the way I can go really fast (well at the speed limit on the French motorways) without worrying it might get ripped apart scattering everything over the motorway, and knowing that it won't go all brittle and shatter when the temperatures are in the minuses up in the French Alps!
When I buy things, stuff like the roofbox, as well as clothes etc, I always work out in my head a "cost per use", so I tend to buy clothes I know I'll wear a lot, and the roofbox that I know I'd use a lot...then it all works out good value. Granted, if I was using the box once per year, on slow road, and didn't envisage keeping it long then a cheap floppy thing would do. But it's a bit like tents really - I wanted something that will get a lot more use and last well so I don't have to change it in the foreseeable future.
See, I haven't got it because it's cool to have a Thule, but because it suits my needs. I'm cool anyway and don't need to advertise the fact
i have a thule roof box for sale,its a 650 ltr and we had it on a ford focus,its both side opening so your not struggling over the back of the car,its only been used once and was £450 from halfords.we are selling it for £170.bargain we think
I managed to bag myself a brand new Thule for less than £90 delivered from Tesco Direct Unfortunately it's out of stock and back up to £178 now.
I'm no box snob, and was gonna go for the Hapro Roady from roofbox before I saw the Thule deal - but that Autoplas monstrosity looks like the cheapest, ugliest thing you could possibly furnish your car with!!
Quote: Originally posted by comic wife on 03/8/2009
Hi,going away on Friday for first time,we have decided that we need a roof box,but their is so many sizes out their,the ones we have looked at its hard to tell if it will be big enough or too big,we have a picasso and we are a family of 4 does anyone know the best size and somewhere that wont cost a fortune for one thanks.....
I have a handirack and handiholdall, holds around 80kg and has a 280 litre capacity. have no problems with storage after use and it only weighs 4kg empty. best buy
You could also try Ebay loads on there for around £100 eventually various sizes etc. N yr right camping can get expensive so we've bought alot online. Saved £100s
We were given ours on Freecycle - ask and ye shall receive. Its a Halfords, looks quite flimsy, but has travelled well over 6000 miles now fully loaded with no probs - apart from when we didn't lock it and it opened on the A1 LOL!
Amazing family weekend with old steam engines, classic car displays, market stalls, and full catering and bar. And camping on site - Save £25 by booking in advance.
Topic: roof boxes?
