Aftermarket roof racks

I have been looking at new roof racks for my wife's 5th Gen and was wondering if anyone has purchased any of the aftermarket rack on eBay. There is one that is the PRO style that she likes, but I am curious about durability and longevity of an AM rack. I bought her a basket to go on her stock rack but it rusted out in 12 months. I've been watching Marketplace to try and find an OEM one in Missouri but haven't had much luck.

Looking at eBay Item No: 274747797431

Thanks for the help!

 

I have bought many things off ebay but have to be certain about what you are getting and even more importantly is the quality of the seller. I personally would not by the roof rack off ebay especially if its just a generic made one. You can find used oem pro rack takeoffs for decent prices.

 

What rack does your wife's 4R currently have?

 

Just the stock rails with cross bars

 

Welcome!

The first review on that rack stating they wished they bought OEM would probably dictate my decision

 

Have you considered new heavier duty crossbars instead of a different rack? A lot of Pro owners have ditched their oem rack due to it's odd configuration for carrying larger items, also because of the added height over the other oem 4R rack.

Two options for beefier crossbars:

https://www.victory4x4.com/product/V4RRK-CS.html

https://trail4runner.com/2020/01/23/lfd-off-road-ruggedized-crossbars-5th-gen-4runner/

 

Catfish I sent you a pm. I too initially wanted to upgrade to a TRD Pro rack too, but aftermarket just provided way more versatility.

 

Ebay is a crap shoot. many of the items for sale on ebay are counterfeits.buyer beware!

 

Yeah, I'm just going to keep my eye out for a local OEM rack.

 

Are you adamant that it has to look like an OEM rack? There are many great roof rack options out there, and a lot of them are constructed of aluminum, so they won't rust. I love my Victory 4x4 roof rack:

 

If I had to do it over, I would have gone with a modular roof rack. I have a GOBI now and it took almost a year to get to me and lacks the flexibility of all the other addons available to the modular ones. Just my 2¢.

 

I would weigh in to say.....I have the original cross bars and a basket. Ive been researching FOR MONTHS the next roof rack I want. Just 2 days ago I pulled the trigger and bought the Sherpa Crestone (it arrives tomorrow). I got lucky because I just happened to look at their website and they had them on sale for 895. I would caution you about the quality of materials of the after market. Yeah the good ones cost a little more but guess what? They arent going to rust and you will be satisfied. I no longer buy anything for my car on ebay or Amazon. There are waaaayyyy too many counterfeits out there and Im not going to risk safety or longevity of the product

 

Sherpa Crestone allllllll day for the win...

 

Mine was supposed to arrive today but because of the storm it has been delayed. I am so pumped you cant even imagine. I just happened to go to their website last week and they had the Crestone on sale for 895.00. I immediately pulled the trigger. The very next day they changed the sale price to 1100. I dont know if it was a mistake that they put it for 895 or what but its not my problem. Do you have one? Do you love it?

 

Usually the bare aluminum version is cheaper.

 

Why not post your thoughts rather than a PM, so other members can learn instead of just one guy? The whole point of a forum is a sharing of information.

 

I posted my view in the exact post you quoted.
I didn’t want to thread jack by offering him my Prinsu rack in public display. I had to upgrade from a 3/4 to full rack and I have one available.

I also had his same issue just reversed… I wanted the PRO rack but my wife hated it. We settled on the Prinsu 3/4, but decided to go with an RTT and wanted extra storage space options on the roof. Initially I didn’t want to cover the moonroof but sucked it up and couldn’t be happier.

You can’t go wrong with Sherpa, front runner, Prinsu. I chose Prinsu.

The only one i’d personally stay away from is Gobi (rust issues) but that’s just me. Many have one and are perfectly happy with it, but the few I have been around have had issues.

I agree forums are to share information, but not everything needs to be posted for all eyes to see.
I hope you consider yourself informed now.

Not trying to be disrespectful, but maybe take a moment before posting to put someone on blast when they have contributed an opinion in the thread about the thread topic.

Feel free to pm me to discuss further if you need to; but, I will not be discussing it here after this post.

I will gladly answer any questions you have about my aftermarket rack experience in this thread.

 

It seems more members are getting their knickers in a twist over a simple question lately. "Put someone on blast?" Really?

 

Come on guys. It’s Christmas. We all have a passion for 4Runners. Let’s focus on the passion we share for them.

 

No blast intended, no disrespect intended. More of a learning opportunity.

You said "wanted TRD PRO roof rack but aftermarket provided more versatility" which would then lead inquiring minds to wonder what particular aftermarket racks you considered and why, what you went with, and how you liked it, if you wished you had gone a different route, etc... Except this information wasn't given and in its place was the tantalizing phrase "I sent you a PM", leaving the curious reader who wants information on the topic to wonder what information you had which you referred to having but then stopped short of giving out.

As an example, another poster mentioned a Sherpa Crestone rack, which I have never heard of before. So now, because of that post, if this rack interests me I can research it. Had that poster sent OP a private message about the Sherpa I wouldn't have ever had that option to consider.

Obviously I wouldn't expect you to post a sale offer or private transaction with dude, that is what PMs are for. But you also don't have to post that you sent a PM... the recipient gets an alert.

 

Hey there. I mentioned the crestone to you. There are a lot of great American made roof racks. I went with Sherpa because it fits my needs. Another good one is gobi and Wescot Designs. It’s all what you want your rack to do for you. My wife and I like to off road and pull over and have lunch or whatever. We wanted to be able to put up an awning. So that was a priority for us. But look at the ones I told you. Another good one is Prinsu

 

Meef I’m good. No ill will at all. I just want to be a contributing member of this community.

I have an ORP, so I had OEM side rails. Looked at LFD cross members but I didn’t like some of the negative feedback on them. Loved the look of the PRO rack but my wife was 100% against it. It woulda been the cheapest option as well.

Again some are happy with LFD cross members and you get some people that have issues with fitment and quality.

I was like you… so many options out there and none of us want to regret a large purchase or have buyer’s remorse.
It really comes down to what are your specific build goals. What are your expectations with your rig? Overlanding? Mall crawling? Weekend warrior?

To me the quality of the brands I mentioned are very similar… same materials, similar “system” and all pretty much mount to the factory mounting spots. Prinsu just fit my budget and I have been pleased with both of my purchases.

As for specific info on the Prinsu rack:
-I installed it myself took me about an hour with a step stool, impact driver for cross member bolts/faring, and an impact gun with auto torque for the mounting bolts.
- I used my OEM bolts to mount it instead of the ones Prinsu provided.
- pre install the faring to the aluminum front cross member before installing it the the side rails
- rack uses 1/4 carriage bolts or tnuts to mount stuff.

 

I second this. I believe they were/are having a sale on this rack. Hard to come by.

 

Mine just arrived yesterday. I got mine in the black for 895. I can’t wait to install it. Just waiting for my Baja design light bar to arrive

 

Love it!

 

Where are you located? I have a 21 Pro (19.5 months old). I have been wanting to remove the rack and sell it. I am in Frederick, MD.

 

I'm in Missouri.

 

@morfdq I LOVE my Sherpa Crestone. no wind noise, and I went with the Extreme LED option so I can do white or amber..... it looks so freaking good and I get compliments allllllllllll day every day!

 

Yes. Couldn’t agree with you more. I absolutely love the Sherpa Crestone. I bet yours looks amazing with the amber/white LED bar. What size did you go with? I have a Baja Design 40in that’s supposed to arrive tomorrow. It’s just white light. I bet the amber/whaite on yours really looks nice. Did you wire it so that you can turn on the white/amber separately?

 

@morfdq So, I got the Extreme LED option Sherpa offered when I ordered. There are 5 sets of 5 white in the middle with 1 set of 5 amber on each end. Yes, it's wired to go all on or just white or just amber. The white is crazy bright and I run the amber in fog and/or rain (although I'm afraid I might get a ticket, but I'll just play dumb if I get pulled over and pray for mercy I'm pretty sure it's the 44" but don't quite me on that, it basically covers the entire front space above the fairing.

Here's some rack-porn pics for your viewing pleasure...