Thule Base Roof Racks For Vehicles With Factory Raised Rails

    Raised rails have become more and more common over the last few years. While they provide great places to strap things down (cargo bags, for instance), many of these racks don't come with crossbars. A lot of the crossbars that do come with these raised rails systems have a fairly low weight carrying capacity, or the racks are simply not long enough to allow carrying several items at once. If you'd like to know how easy it would be to gain the advantages of a full integrated Thule roof rack on top of your raised rails, then keep reading. With an installation that takes only a few short minutes, and the versatility of a rack that will fit nearly any vehicle that has raised rails, it's hard to go wrong with the Thule Crossroad system.

Installation Instructions/Tips

    The 450 and 450R Crossroad Raised Railing Foot Pack system attaches to vehicles with factory installed raised side rails. The Thule 450 Crossroad Railing Foot Pack is used with Thule rectangular crossbars. The Thule 450R Rapid Crossroad Railing Foot Pack is used with Thule's oval shaped aluminum crossbars. When combined with Thule crossbars, the Thule 450 / 450R Crossroad will turn your factory raised side rails into a versatile multipurpose rack system. Both versions of the Crossroad feature integrated rubber lining on the tower and a rubber-coated stainless steel attachment strap which provide maximum strength and a nice, custom molded fit around your factory side rails. The Thule 450 / 450R Crossroad tower end cap design has an integrated Allen tool built right in, which allows for easy installation and removal. Once you have everything out of the box, simply slide the towers onto each crossbar. The end of the tower with the adjustment bolt in the center should be facing out. If you cannot slide the towers onto the crossbar, use the tower end cap/Allen tool  to loosen the adjustment bolts slightly. Now install the bar end caps on either end of the bar to prevent the towers from slipping off. After deciding on the placement of your front crossbar simply set the bar onto your vehicle's raised rails in the desired position. Now line up the arrow on either side of each tower with the center of the raised rail, run the rubber-coated steel strap underneath the raised rail and clip the end of the strap into the slot on the tower under the adjustment bolt. Make sure that the strap is clear of any of the raised railing's supports. Next, slide the crossbar as necessary to get the bar placed evenly between the towers. Now tighten the adjustment bolt on each tower until you start to feel resistance. Now slide the tower end cap/Allen tool into the tower (insert the Allen tool just below the adjustment bolt.) If you cannot get the end cap to "snap" into place, loosen the adjustment bolt a little and try again.

Test The Installation

    Push up on the end of bar to test the installation.  Also, grab the bar near the towers and pull back and forth.  If the tower or crossbar slides, check tower for tightness and re-tighten.

    The Thule 450c Crossroad Complete Railing Rack includes 3 components: 4 of the Thule 450 Crossroad Towers, 1 Pair of Thule Crossbars, and 4 End Caps. The height of the Thule 450 tower when mounted on your raised rail is about 2 ½” from the top of your raised rail to the top portion of the Thule crossbar.  In most cases Thule's recommended load bar length will be provided unless otherwise specified. Thule Lock Cores are sold separately.

    The Thule 450rc Crossroad Complete Railing Rack includes 3 components: 4 of the 450R Rapid Aero Crossroad Towers, 1 Pair of Thule Rapid Aero Aluminum Crossbars, and 4 End Caps. The height of the Thule 450R Rapid Aero tower when mounted on your raised rail is about 2 ½” from the top of your raised rail to the top portion of the Thule crossbar. In most cases Thule's recommended load bar length will be provided unless otherwise specified. Thule 544 Lock Cores, 4 Pack are recommended and are sold separately.