Thule 400XTR Aero Rapid Roof Rack Foot Pack (Set of 4) Review

Pros: Looks nice, aerodynamic. Cheaper than Yakima.
Cons: Shoddy quality. Cheaper than Yakima.

Used for 17' fiberglass kayaks.

To carry our touring kayaks, we purchased the Thule Aero system for our Prius, because it was significanly cheaper than the Yakima. To work properly, one needs to purchase the correct Fit Kit for the specific vehicle; this Fit Kit is attached to the foot with a plastic-handled bolt. The metal parts in the bolt handles bent during installation, and the cheap rivet holding one of the handles to its bolt sheared in two. There are plastic tabs in the handles that are supposed to fit into a slot on the Fit Kit parts, but 3 out of 4 tabs snapped off. Fortunately, the locks still manage to hold the handles onto the feet. The supplied measurements didn't work for our Prius, and we had to improvise.

Another disadvantage is that the aerodynamic bars need to be parallel with the ground, which doesn't happen if the vehicle's roof is curved (again, think Prius or VW bug.) This doesn't seem like an issue until the accessories are added to the bars, and they wind up tilted and not parallel front-to-rear. Since this results in only a single point of contact on the boat hull, this puts undue strain on the kayaks as well as the fittings holding the attachments to the bar. In this case, a round bar would work perfectly, as one could rotate the accessories until they're parallel and horizontal, supporting the boat across the entire pad. Due to the poor contact with the cradles, the boats are not secure while in the rack, and easily wobble 12" side-to-side. Plus, the amount of pressure needed on the straps to minimally hold the boat in the cradles deforms the hull. Bow/Stern tiedowns are crucial to avoid highway fly-aways.

We've got a Yakima rack on our pickup truck, and it works like a charm. I regret not purchasing a Yakima rack system for the Prius instead of Thule.

If you have a flat-roof vehicle, like a station wagon or SUV, the Thule Aero system would probably work very well for you. Curved roof, think round bars instead.

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Product Description:
The strongest, best fitting rack system for vehicles without factory racks

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