I am looking at buying a roof box i have been in a few shops, what i found out was the thule ones seem to be the best as you get a 5 guarantee, fixings are freely available and there were quite a few more things that seem better than the others, could you recommend me these or do other people have other preferences, there seem to be alot of them about these days with a vast difference in price. So please help me
I have got an estate car and I brought the Thule Rapid system bars with the Evolution 700 box , for me the good points are box has 6 locking points opens either sides will only release the key when all locks are secure .bad points none you get what you pay for
We bought one from Halfords (I've been told they are made by Karrite, part of the Thule group, but I'm not sure about that)
It's OK, is about the best I can say. The struts are a bit of a pain TBH, a box with gas struts would probably be better. The attachment system seems a bit primitive - but works OK. Also, it only locks in two places (although it is central locking, and the key can't be removed until it's properly locked) - more locking points would probably give more peace of mind - I use a webstrap at the mo, just in case.
But the one thing I will investigate next time, is the boxes which open on both (or either) sides - not particularly for the loading/unloading (although I'm sure it would help), but it would be a real help when putting the box on/taking it off (we only put ours on when we are going away, and take it off again when back home - if you intend to leave it on permanently, then this is probably a bit of a moot point) - no more having to fiddle around blind on the hinge side of the box.
Still, no real complaints for the price I suppose, but as has already been said, it seems you get what you pay for!
Hi, see my reply on the thread in Tent Talk about roofboxes v trailers. If you live near the channel ports consider getting one from Feu Vert in France.
I've purchased a Kamei Delphin 470 roof box from roofbox.co.uk (excellent website full of useful advice). Roofbox.co.uk recommend Kamei as being the best roof boxes on the market, and they come with a 6 year manufacturers guarantee.
The Kamei Corvara 390K has just been voted the best roofbox by Auto Express, with the Kamei Delphin 380 getting second place.
On the roofbox.co.uk website they write: By common consent KAMEI (Germany) makes the best quality and best engineered boxes on the market; they never go wrong, and they keep on looking good well beyond their 6 year guarantee period. The last major breakthrough in box design was KAMEI's "pull to shut" central locking system.
Visit http://www.roofbox.co.uk/scripts/rbproduct_search.php?keywords=kamei&submit=Search&from_quicksearch=TRUE - it has lots of useful advice about what to look for in a roof box.
Personally I think it is better to spend more money and get a good quality box that will last, than to go for something too cheap. One piece of advice I found useful, was to be aware that the cheaper boxes have thinner plastic which a) don't last as long b) are more likely to vibrate when driving at speed c) more likely to break.
We would love a roof box but would have storage problems. We looked at the handirack then read that people had encountered problems with rain. Have now found one called an X rack as a substitute for roof bars. Has anyone tried this, if so are they any good
------------- We dont stop playing because we grow old. We grow old because we stop playing.
If you order a roof box from roofbox.co.uk they are offering a free hoist so you can store your roof box from the garage roof - one good solution to the storage issue.
i have a thule atlantis....i couldnt realy afford it, but glad I bought it.
got it from roofbox.co.uk and its been great, takes me only 2 minutes to fix on the car and opens either way. It also has a locking system that spreads the locks across the length of the box. i.e. it locks all the way round the seal.
The one I chose seemed to be the most appropriate and largest for my car. take a look at the thule website and you can do a virtual installation on your car!
I have used cheaper versions. some things to look for are the method in which it fixes to your roofbars. I have seen cheap versions that take ages to fit and bolt on. They also tend to have a basic clasp or locking system that may only use say one bolt. and may not close properly when you pack it full.
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Topic: best roof boxes??
