I'm going to need to cart a lot more stuff around shortly and don't really want to get a bigger car than what i use already for long journeys ( X Type estate)....
can anyone recommend a brand of roof box..........and/or advise if there's an optimum speed you should travel at when one is fitted...if you were to assume that on the odd occasion the speed limit might be broken, possibly?
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We have a Thule Alpine, and it´s fine. About 1/2 the width of the the distance between the roof bars, and of the long/thin variety, designed for skis etc. Very handy having the extra space (more room in the car for wine).
A wee bit fiddly to attach to the roof bars I found, the bracket that runs through the box has loads of bits that are liable to fall off just as you´re about to tighten them up. But that could just be my general incompetence at all things small and fiddly.
´Belt and braces´style, I always run a strap over the box on the front round the roof bars.
I think the recommended maximum is 130 kph. I´ve had the Astra up to 195kmh with the box on, and it didn´t fly off (but the car got through a huge amount of fuel).
Have a good look at the models available though, relative to what you´re planning to lug around, as they come in a wide variety of shapes and sizes. And obviously the heavier stuff should go in the vehicle.
Hope this helps.
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After much pondering I spent a wee bit extra and went for a Thule box which attaches to the bars by screw-tightened claws, which are safe as houses but easy to put on/take off. It also opens both sides which I didn't think I'd need but is actually very handy.
I figured the extra money would partially be paying for the Thule badge, but the quality of build would be as good as I could get and to my eye, the design is better than own-brand. For something you'll own for a few years and be carrying on the roof your car at high speeds, I recalled the very wise words of buy it cheap, buy it twice.
As for speeds it didn't hold me back on the autoroutes, but I did find that the box shifted back a couple of mm, which meant the tailgate touched the box when I lifted up, which wasn't the case when I first fitted the box.
I got mine from Halfords and got a good discount, but there are loads of on-line retailers
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I also have a Thule, but can't remember which one at the moment. It has been great, and would echo the words above about the usefulness of being able to open it from both sides. It also appears to be very secure.
I bought mine from www.roofracks.co.uk near to Sevenoaks, Kent. They will be very reasonable in price.
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about four or five years ago I bought the biggest Halfords own brand roofbox, it lives upright behind the garage when not in use. It's been great to use - four U brackets with spinners inside the box to hold it to the roof bars so its secure. It's just a big plastic box so I can man-handle it onto the roof of the Previa myself (ok I'm 6'2") doesn't affect economy too much ( it's a 2.4 shed anyway) and doesn't let the rain in. Only downside is the old human error thing - if you forget to lock it properly the lid doesn't open until you're doing about 45 - 50 and at that speed when you finally notice the buckets and spades are 2 miles back down the road - sorry kids!
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We also have a Halfords brand roof box. On ours the key can't be removed unless it's locked, so if you keep the key on the same ring as your ignition key, there is no way you can leave the box unsecured. It also has an extra securing bracket on the front. My only complaint with this box (but it applies to many one-sided opening boxes) it is is hard to attach the rear most bracket on the hinged side. However the box is well made and doesn't let any water in.
Overall I would recommend the Halfords branded box. It does everything we need at a good price. It doesn't have a 'THULE' badge on it but I can live with that.
One bit of surprising advice - if you need roof bars don't assume the dealer is more expensive. Mine at Renault were cheaper than anywhere else and are very sturdy.
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I've twice used www.roofbox.co.uk and they've been excellent, and there is a lot of useful information/recommendations on their site.
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We don't own one but I've borrowed a couple of different boxes from friends. (It's a big thing to store if you only want it once or twice a year.) One is an oldish Thule design, the other a newer Halfords one. It looks to me as if Halfords has licensed an old design from Thule, as the mouldings, hinges and locks are eerily similar. I prefer the Thule fittings, though, for securing the box to the bars, and if you buy a new Thule they've been improved again.
Yes, both types are fiddly to attach and too bulky to be a safe one-person lift onto the roof. (You wouldn't want those protruding bolts underneath to make contact with your paint.) I'm 6'5" and even I have to stand on the door sill and stretch to do up the fittings on the hinges side. If there are designs that hinge both ways, this could make it worth paying extra for one. Once it's on the bars, though, we've found it surprisingly easy to lift box and bars off in one go and store them assembled while we're on holiday. Then we just lift it all back on top when it's time to go home.
Once installed, both boxes were easy travelling companions. Even fully loaded, they seem not to affect the balance of the car, and wind noise becomes intrusive only above about 75 mph. Coincidentally or not, that's where I tend to set my cruise control on a French motorway. Treated this way, my Volvo usually manages 44-46 mpg, but I've never done a comparable trip without the box, so it's hard to say what the effect is. Neither box has ever let in water, despite some severe provocation from the weather, but you'll need to set aside some time after your trip to scrub off the insects. A bright blue, three-inch-long dragonfly is my best catch so far.
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12 tested here:
www.autoexpress.co.uk/products/products/64382/best...l
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reading Xileno's comment's above reminded me what I did last year - I fitted the roof box to the bars in the back garden, it's easy to reach all four mounts when the bars and box are on the ground. All you do then is enlist the help of an assistant (it helps if your son is 6'7"!!!) to lift the whole assembly onto the car - my bars are Thule that bolt in place leaving the mountings sticking up. It's obvious when you think about it. All those times I struggled to do it whilst standing on the off-side rear tyre.....
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Unfortunately in our house these jobs are all down to me, myself and I.
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Like others use a large Halfords box variously on a BX, Xantia and Berlingo. Reasonably easy to fix to the first two, provided you're athletic enough to get a knee on the roof bar (and light enough to do no damage - I'm 5 foot 9 and under nine stone!). More of a battle on the B but still do able.
Bear in mind the height as well, the Berlingo is 2.3m with box - way too high for many car parks and for the auto tolls on French Autoroutes.
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thanks for the responses, most useful
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The kamei boxes are very good quality.
If you are going to be using it regularly then it may be worth spending a little extra on a Kamei.
If you look on the roofbox.co.uk link above they will explain why the kamei will probably stand the test of regular use better than most.
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The halfords box instructions suggested a max speed around 60. Found it OK in practice up to 130kph on autoroute with some impact on fuel consumption. Too much weight up there *will* affect handling as we found when BX heeled nastily after a bit of poor observation on the offside blind spot.
Heavy kit now goes in he boot, roofbox takes bulky but light stuff.
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I've got a halfords roof box which I used on a previous car, but now I've got a C-Max which has a high roof I don't think I could actually load or unload the thing without a stepladder!
So I'm just hoping the boot will be big enough for the family holiday this year...
The roof box itself is pretty good. Not flashy or anything, but rugged with plenty of capacity, and has two clips as well as the locks to secure it.
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