Cargo Box vs. Roof Rack

Hawkshot99 · Jan 8, 2013

I have a truck now with a hard cover so I just put the gear in thier. But I still have my cargo box as well from my previous vehicle. My rack could hold 4 pairs of skis, and I have fit 11 pairs in my box. It is also the smqllest model Thule makes to take skis.

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Anklebiter · Jan 8, 2013

Smellytele said:
Box - Was lucky to find one at a yard sale for $25. I drove by, saw it and said to myself as I was turning around - if it is under $100 I'll buy it. The thing had no price tag on it so I looked around at other stuff until the yard sale proprietor was free and asked how much. She had no clue and said someone had dropped it off for her to sale. She then said how about $25. I couldn't get the money out of my wallet fast enough. I practically ran back to my vehicle with it looking around as if I stole something and didn't want anyone to see me.

Awesone find, I hope to be so lucky.

x10003q · Jan 8, 2013

When I go with the wife and 6 year old we can fit everything in the car. I has a ski sack. If we travel with 4 or 5 I put on a Thule Atlantis 1200. It holds lots of stuff and really makes life easy. It drops the gas mileage a couple of MPGs. The box comes off when we get home. I usually take the cross bars off also. It is all pretty easy to remove from the car.

Smellytele · Jan 8, 2013

Hawkshot99 said:
I have a truck now with a hard cover so I just put the gear in thier. But I still have my cargo box as well from my previous vehicle. My rack could hold 4 pairs of skis, and I have fit 11 pairs in my box. It is also the smqllest model Thule makes to take skis.

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You must be a master box packer because I can only get about 7 pairs in. Well with poles as well

HD333 · Jan 8, 2013

Box all the way. Very versatile. Camping, Tailgating, dump run, and it will keep your beer cold on the ride.

snowmonster · Jan 8, 2013

Has anybody else heard a rooftop cargo box referred to as a "mother-in-law" box?

Whitey · Jan 8, 2013

Switched over to box several years ago, would NEVER go back to an open rack now.

Driving back from Sunday River, freezing rain kind of day. They were sanding/salting the heck out of the roads. By the time we got home my hand-tuned skiis (spents hours working on the whole families' skiis) were coated with rust on all of the edges. I was shocked at how much the edges had corroded by exposure to the stuff off of the roads. Vowed I would never expose my skiis to something like that again and bought a ski box within a week.

Now everytime I pass someone on the road with exposed skiis in an open rack, I just think "that's a shame. . . ."

Hawkshot99 · Jan 8, 2013

Smellytele said:
You must be a master box packer because I can only get about 7 pairs in. Well with poles as well

I pack a box pretty good!

When I have done that many it is no poles transfering skis from one store to another.

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bobbutts · Jan 8, 2013

Yeah, the salt thing is a real issue for open rack, I guess maybe you could hose off your skis at home. Not fun and maybe not even possible in cold weather though. I use the trunk and folded out rear seat currently.

Nick · Jan 8, 2013

snowmonster said:
Has anybody else heard a rooftop cargo box referred to as a "mother-in-law" box?

:lol:

Nick · Jan 8, 2013

My Saab has the ski pass through but the new Ford Edge we have does not. I have to fold the seat yet.

vcunning · Jan 8, 2013

I went with the Thule . . . and as I'm a little bit of a car nerd, I had all the Thule badges removed and repainted the exact color of my Dodge Magnum (Brilliant Black). A local guy did all the work for $80. But again, I'm a car nerd. I keep my skis at the mountain, but always find it helpful for extra luggage and stuff.

HowieT2 · Jan 8, 2013

bobbutts said:
Yeah, the salt thing is a real issue for open rack, I guess maybe you could hose off your skis at home. Not fun and maybe not even possible in cold weather though. I use the trunk and folded out rear seat currently.

I used to make my son get in the shower with the skis.

drjeff · Jan 8, 2013

vcunning said:
I went with the Thule . . . and as I'm a little bit of a car nerd, I had all the Thule badges removed and repainted the exact color of my Dodge Magnum (Brilliant Black). A local guy did all the work for $80. But again, I'm a car nerd. I keep my skis at the mountain, but always find it helpful for extra luggage and stuff.

What Vcunning isn't telling you is that the only sticker on his Thule box says "Moover, please back into me, TWICE!"

:lol:

But I will attest 100% that he does have a custom matching paint job on his Thule box to match his Magnum wagon, and they look sharp!

xwhaler · Sep 15, 2014

Bump. Finally joined the cargo box club last wknd. With kid gear + dog our SUV was getting quite full on wknd ski trips.
Ended up with a Thule Force XL (17cu ft) Probably a bit bigger than I need but I didn't want to regret buying too small in another yr or so.
The nice thing about the Force model is it opens on both sides which I think I will find convenient.
Also went with the Aero Blade bars over the Square bars for a few extra $. They look nicer and allegedly cut down on wind noise though there is a noticeable whistle at highway speeds when box is not installed.

Nice guy at Golf and Ski in Greenland NH walked me through the process and helped with the install.

Tin · Sep 15, 2014

I can fit our skis in the car. I think my S40 will look dumb with skis almost as long as the damn car on the roof.

Savemeasammy · Sep 15, 2014

We have a Thule cargo carrier. It's on my wife's Jetta wagon. We got it to supplement the smaller cargo capacity that we had in her escape. In the summer it holds our luggage when we are vacationing, and of course it holds ski gear in the winter.

We got the square bars because, at the time, a: they had them in stock and the others were on order, and, b: I thought it would be easier to find used attachments to work with the square bars (we have yet to buy any...!). I regret not getting the other bars b/c of the noise of the square bars - but I guess I wonder how much difference it would make?

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Puck it · Sep 15, 2014

Savemeasammy said:
We have a Thule cargo carrier. It's on my wife's Jetta wagon. We got it to supplement the smaller cargo capacity that we had in her escape. In the summer it holds our luggage when we are vacationing, and of course it holds ski gear in the winter.

We got the square bars because, at the time, a: they had them in stock and the others were on order, and, b: I thought it would be easier to find used attachments to work with the square bars (we have yet to buy any...!). I regret not getting the other bars b/c of the noise of the square bars - but I guess I wonder how much difference it would make?

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The Thule Aero bars still a lot of noise on the wife's SRX.

SIKSKIER · Sep 15, 2014

If I was transporting skis every ski weekend from my southern NH house I would definately have a box.I drive a few thousand feet so a rack is fine.

Savemeasammy · Sep 15, 2014

Puck it said:
The Thule Aero bars still a lot of noise on the wife's SRX.

Good to know. I have considered taking a loss and upgrading to the aero bars, but it doesn't sound worth it. Luckily the sound system in her car is pretty nice, so when I'm driving solo, the noise from the bars is a non-issue!

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Cargo Box vs. Roof Rack

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